For most damaged recordings, start with Effects → DeClicker/DeCrackler. Use DeClicker for separate clicks and pops, DeCrackler for a bed of fine crackle, and Tools → Repair → Interpolate for one short glitch you can isolate precisely. A click created by your own edit needs a zero-crossing or fade fix instead—not a restoration plug-in.
That diagnosis matters more than any preset. A declicker can soften real drum hits and consonants when pushed too far, while Interpolate can create a second glitch if the selection is too wide. This guide follows the current Sound Forge Pro 2026 menus and the controls documented by Boris FX.
| What you hear | Likely cause | Start here |
|---|---|---|
| Separate sharp ticks or pops | Vinyl scratches, digital impulse errors | DeClicker |
| Continuous fine crackle | Worn vinyl or similar surface texture | DeCrackler |
| One visible, very short discontinuity | Damaged samples or a tiny glitch | Repair → Interpolate or Pencil |
| Click exactly at a cut or event edge | Waveform discontinuity | Zero crossing, fade or crossfade |
| Flattened peaks with distortion | Clipping | DeClipper, not DeClicker |
First, identify the kind of click
Listen at normal level before zooming in. A vinyl click is usually a short impulse that is not locked to an edit boundary. Crackle sounds like many small impulses forming a texture. Clipping is broader distortion around flattened peaks. A bad cut clicks at the same timeline position every time and often lines up exactly with an event or selection edge.
The current Sound Forge Pro 2026 repair overview separates these jobs the same way: simple replacement or interpolation for small damage, classic restoration plug-ins from Tools, the newer Sequoia DeClicker/DeCrackler effects from Effects, and specialist plug-ins or SpectraLayers for harder material.
Do not process the whole file just because one defect is obvious. Mark a representative problem area, duplicate the file or use Save As, and compare the repair with the original. Sound Forge processing dialogs let you change the selection while the dialog is open, preview the affected signal, use Bypass for the original, and add pre-roll or post-roll so you hear the transition in context. Those controls are documented in the official processing-dialog reference.
DeClicker vs DeCrackler in Sound Forge Pro 2026
Choose Effects → DeClicker/DeCrackler for the modern restoration effect. The two processors share one panel: DeClicker controls are on the left and DeCrackler controls are on the right. Don’t look for separate DeClicker and DeCrackler tabs.
DeClicker is the first choice for isolated clicking typical of scratched records. DeCrackler is designed for the denser, lower-level crackling that remains between the larger defects. Boris FX also still lists classic Click and Crackle Removal and Audio Restoration tools, so two similarly named restoration families can appear on a configured installation. This guide uses the current Sequoia-derived effect unless stated otherwise.
The shared panel exposes Sensitivity and Mix controls for each processor, plus Inverse and Bypass. The official Boris FX control reference explains the useful safety check: Inverse lets you audition what the processor is removing. If you hear wanted attacks, consonants or tonal detail in that residual signal, reduce the sensitivity or the amount of processed signal.
There is no honest universal numeric preset. The source and damage determine the useful point, and a number copied from another transfer says nothing about yours. Start low, loop a difficult passage, raise Sensitivity until the target defects are detected, then back off if wanted transients enter the removed signal. Use Mix to retain more of the original when full processing sounds too smooth.
A safe automatic declicking workflow
- Preserve the original. Work on a copy or use Save As before rendering restoration.
- Select a representative passage. Include at least one clear defect and some clean transient material such as a drum hit or hard consonant.
- Open Effects → DeClicker/DeCrackler. Enable only the processor needed for the first pass.
- Preview and compare. Toggle Bypass and listen with a little audio before and after the selection.
- Audition Inverse. The removed signal should be dominated by the unwanted clicks or crackle, not useful music or speech.
- Process the smallest sensible area. Check the result at normal listening level before treating a longer range.
For a vinyl transfer, test DeClicker before DeCrackler. This is a practical sequence, not a rule built into Sound Forge: removing the larger isolated impulses first makes the remaining fine texture easier to judge. Stop before useful attacks or consonants enter the Inverse signal; a little benign surface character is safer than softened transients.
If the clicks are sparse, target only the affected regions. If they are dense across a side, test two or three contrasting sections before applying one setting to the full recording. A quiet intro and a percussion-heavy chorus can trigger the detector very differently.
Repair one short click with Interpolate
Interpolate is the precise native repair for a very short glitch:
- Zoom in until the discontinuity is clear.
- Select only the damaged samples.
- Choose Tools → Repair → Interpolate.
- Listen through the repair at normal zoom and with the surrounding audio.
The current Interpolate documentation says the selection should be very small—less than 2 ms in most cases. With no selection, Sound Forge assumes a glitch shorter than 1 ms and treats the cursor as its centre. The command joins the start and end of the selection with a straight interpolated line, which is why a wide selection can replace useful waveform detail or create another discontinuity.
Interpolate is not automatically “cleaner” than the Pencil tool, and it does not analyse a long region to reconstruct missing music. Use it when the samples immediately before and after the defect provide a sensible short bridge. Undo if the repaired shape or sound is less natural.
Redraw a tiny glitch with the Pencil tool
Choose Edit → Tool → Pencil, zoom in far enough for the tool to become available, and draw a smooth connection through the damaged point. The official Pencil Tool help says you can hold the left mouse button and use the arrow keys to fine-tune the pencil position. Availability also depends on the Pencil tool maximum zoom ratio in Editing preferences.
The current Boris FX documentation does not list a default shortcut for Pencil. Sound Forge Pro lets you customize keyboard shortcuts, which means a shortcut seen on one workstation may not exist on another.
Use Pencil only when the expected waveform path is visually obvious. It is ideal for a single outlying point. Interpolate is faster when a tiny selected span needs a straight bridge; Copy Other Channel or Replace may be better when the damaged region is longer and a valid reference exists.
Fix clicks created by cuts and event edges
A declicker is the wrong first tool when the click appeared after editing. The new join may jump abruptly from one sample value to another. Move the boundary to a zero crossing or add a short fade or crossfade while preserving the wanted transient.
- Use Edit → Selection → Snap to Zero to move both selection edges.
- Use Snap Edge to Zero when only the active edge should move.
- For event edits, overlap the events and create a short crossfade when a zero crossing alone does not make the transition clean.
- For a file boundary, select a short edge region and use Fade In or Fade Out.
The 2026 Selection Snapping reference documents the zero-crossing commands. Snapping reduces the chance of a discontinuity but is not a substitute for listening: unrelated waveforms can meet at zero and still sound abrupt.
When to use iZotope RX instead
If iZotope RX modules are installed, Sound Forge can access them through FX Plug-In. The exact bundle depends on the Sound Forge edition and the licences on that machine, so do not assume that an older MAGIX-era bundle and a current Boris FX installation contain the same RX version.
Current RX 12 Elements includes De-click, De-clip, De-hum, De-reverb, Voice De-noise and Repair Assistant as host plug-ins. De-click targets clicks, pops and digital impulse errors. De-crackle is listed in Standard and Advanced rather than Elements, and the specialised Mouth De-click module is also above Elements. That edition distinction is more useful than the old blanket claim that “RX Elements handles everything better.”
Escalate when the native effect repeatedly removes wanted attacks, the damage is too dense for targeted Interpolate repairs, or you need a specialist module. Test the RX plug-in against the Sound Forge result on the same short selection. Brand name and a higher sensitivity value do not prove that one pass is safer.
Where click repair belongs in a restoration chain
For an archival transfer, a practical order is: correct obvious DC or speed problems if present, repair large isolated clicks, reduce remaining crackle, address hum or broadband noise, then EQ and dynamics. The exact order can change with the source, but restoration should come before heavy mastering because compression and limiting make small defects louder and harder to judge.
Do not normalize between every repair step. Keep headroom, compare at matched listening level, and save an intermediate lossless file before the final master. For the adjacent cleanup stages, see the Sound Forge restoration workflow, background-noise guide and clipped-audio repair guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is DeClicker in Sound Forge Pro 2026?
Open Effects → DeClicker/DeCrackler for the current Sequoia-derived effect. Classic Click and Crackle Removal and Audio Restoration tools can also appear through Tools, so the exact list depends on the installed components.
Should I use DeClicker or DeCrackler?
Use DeClicker for separate sharp clicks and pops. Use DeCrackler for continuous fine crackle. On damaged vinyl, test DeClicker first, then decide whether the remaining surface texture needs a lighter DeCrackler pass.
What sensitivity setting should I use?
There is no reliable universal number. Start low on a representative selection, raise Sensitivity until the target defects are detected, and use Inverse plus Bypass to make sure wanted transients are not being removed.
How small should an Interpolate selection be?
Boris FX says less than 2 ms in most cases. If there is no selection, Sound Forge assumes a glitch shorter than 1 ms around the cursor. Wider repairs need a different method.
Does the Pencil tool have a P shortcut?
The current documentation tells you to choose Edit → Tool → Pencil and does not confirm P as a default shortcut. A user-defined keyboard map can assign one.
Why did a click appear after I cut audio?
The samples on either side of the new boundary may not meet smoothly. Snap the edge to a zero crossing, move the edit, or add a short fade or event crossfade instead of processing the whole file with DeClicker.
Is iZotope RX Elements included with Sound Forge Pro?
The current Sound Forge 2026 plans do not list RX as included. An older licence or upgraded installation may still expose RX plug-ins, so verify the entitlements on that machine. RX 12 Elements sold separately by iZotope includes De-click; De-crackle and Mouth De-click require Standard or Advanced.
Continue with the Sound Forge restoration hub when the file also needs broadband cleanup. If the defect is a flattened peak rather than an impulse, use the DeClipper workflow; for edit-boundary clicks, follow the cut-and-trim guide.
Last fact-checked: August 2, 2026 against the current Sound Forge 2026 repair, Interpolate, Pencil, processing-dialog, selection-snapping and pricing documentation, plus the current Boris FX DeClicker/DeCrackler and iZotope RX 12 edition references.