Bad Audio On VHS>DVD

[frntrw]

I've looked thru the forums and am suprised nobody else has had this problem. I got my first VHS recorder in 1984. I didn't upgrade to a Hi-Fi VHS until a couple of years later. I'm getting rid of all the stuff I taped back then and transfering what I need onto DVD. On several of my early tapes, the sound is muffled. I know I can take the audio and bump it up a bit in an audio editing program, but then it get's really hissy. My question: Is there a way to get a better sound without the hiss? I realize based on the original source, I'm not going to get cd quality sound, but is there a way to make it listenable?

[Tommyknocker]

I would use Gold Wave. Load the original video into it, select Effects-->Volume to increase the volume to you liking.

This is where it gets a little tricky. Select Effects-->Filter-->Noise Reduction-->Presets-->Remove Hiss.

It won't give CD quality, as you mentioned, but it will be listenable.

[fmctm1sw]

There are also filters in audacity that I have had success with. They're called lowpass and highpass.

[frntrw]

Thanks for the info. I'll give both programs a try.

[lordsmurf]

http://www.digitalfaq.com/restoration/audio/soundforge/soundforge.htm