Any VST3 plugin that can smooth out frequencies? (Reverse bit crushing)

[GTsongwriter]

I'm looking for a frequency smoothing technique, opposite of bit crushing. 

Any ideas?

[Mr No Name]

second law of thermodynamics says no.

someone will no doubt have invented one.

[Amberwolf]

I don't know that this will do what you want, but it was suggested in a search for anti-bitcrushing plugins as something that might help

Apulsoft's ApShaper https://www.apulsoft.ch/apshaper/

Never heard of it before this, so dunno how it might do that, but it has a demo version....

[GTsongwriter]

  On 1/21/2025 at 6:22 AM, Amberwolf said:

I don't know that this will do what you want, but it was suggested in a search for anti-bitcrushing plugins as something that might help

Apulsoft's ApShaper https://www.apulsoft.ch/apshaper/

Never heard of it before this, so dunno how it might do that, but it has a demo version....

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Thanks I will take a look at it.

[Chaps]

  On 1/21/2025 at 5:39 AM, GTsongwriter said:

I'm looking for a frequency smoothing technique, opposite of bit crushing. 

Any ideas?

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Might a compander or expander be something like what you are looking for? I've seen them by themselves or coupled with a compressor but I have very little experience with them other than as presets in multi-function plugins like the Cakewalk VX-64 Vocal Strip, which I am quite fond of.

[Mr No Name]

are you actually looking to reverse a bit crushed file?

[Mr No Name]

If you are actually just wanting to make audio sound smoother, there would be a multitude of ways.

 

 

[GTsongwriter]

  On 1/21/2025 at 6:48 PM, Mr No Name said:

are you actually looking to reverse a bit crushed file?

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I am looking for methods, techniques, and VST plugins that can reverse the effect.  I also want to know how much bit crushed effect can be reduced.

Edited January 21 by GTsongwriter

[Amberwolf]

The bitcrushers I have used appear to be removing assorted frequencies, along with in some cases / settings changing the bit depth.

In those cases, you can't directly "undo" the changes the BC made--the data is "gone".  There are almost certainly maths that can interpolate the data that *is* there to create new data that "fits" the existing data, as can be done with images...but it isn't the original data, so it may not sound even remotely the same as the original did, depending on what was missing.

I expect that some form of "LLM" AI where it's model is composed of bajillions of sounds it can use to compare to the BC'd sound, and where it has maths to try to figure out how the BC was done (which gives it more info on what's missing and why), would be able to do a decent job, if slow. 

There are probably simpler ways but those are two I can think of that have already been done wiht other "missing data" situations to help restore damaged (accidentally or deliberately) data (especially images).  

 

[mettelus]

  On 1/22/2025 at 1:33 AM, Amberwolf said:

In those cases, you can't directly "undo" the changes the BC made--the data is "gone".  There are almost certainly maths that can interpolate the data that *is* there to create new data that "fits" the existing data, as can be done with images...but it isn't the original data, so it may not sound even remotely the same as the original did, depending on what was missing.

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This is the crux of the OP's question, so a lot depends on how much the original audio was altered. About the best one can do in that situation is use an FX with upsampling that will alter the existing audio file (add content based on the FX), but even this is a hit-or-miss scenario depending on application. You can never recover the lost information, but can sometimes put it into a usable format.

[Guest]

You can convert a 128kb MP3 file into a 48/32 wave file but it will still sound the same and still contain the exact same info. From what I understand a bit crusher does what a MP3 does to a Wave file.