SpectraLayers 13 Editions Compared: Elements or Pro?

Steinberg’s “SpectraLayers 13” is editing software in which you see sound as a picture of frequencies (a spectrum) and can remove noise and unwanted sounds or separate sounds. It comes in two editions, Elements and Pro. In this article we compare the 2 editions on the same criteria as the 8 noise reduction and audio repair programs on this site. The basis is official manufacturer information.

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In short: which one to choose by purpose

• SpectraLayers Elements 13 (rank C): people who want to try removing noise while looking at the screen, and extracting a vocal, at a reasonable price.
• SpectraLayers Pro 13 (rank A): people who want to handle separating vocals from the backing track and detailed on-screen repair in one product.

The highest score among the 2 editions is SpectraLayers Pro 13 (rank A, average 4.0). But you do not need to buy a higher edition for features you will not use. Choose the one that fits your purpose.

Main features of SpectraLayers 13

Spectral editing: see the sound, grab it and fix it

SpectraLayers shows sound in a visible form and lets you grab, remove or move that shape directly. The official page explains that with selection tools refined over many years you can do everything from rough edits to fine fixes. Repairs such as removing unwanted sounds and fixing clicks and clipping can be done by hand or automatically.

“Unmix”: splitting songs and voices with AI

Using AI, you can split a song into parts by instrument (stems) and split the separated sounds further. According to the official comparison table, Pro can split a song into all of its parts, while Elements extracts only the voice. Pro also has functions that separate audience voices, two voices, choruses and more.

Treating separated sounds as stacked layers

Separated sounds and selected parts can be managed as stacked “layers”, like in image editing software. You can change the volume of just one layer or apply a different process to it, so besides repair you can also take samples apart to make new sounds.

The difference between Pro and Elements

Pro handles up to 384 kHz and 16 channels, and can also use a function that selects similar sounds together and Ambience Match, which matches the surrounding reverberation. Elements is a version narrowed to the functions needed for everyday repair, up to 96 kHz and stereo.

Where it is useful

• Finding clicks and noise in a vocal recording by eye, selecting them and removing them
• Extracting just the vocal from a song (from Elements)
• Splitting a song by instrument to make a remix or a karaoke track (Pro)

Differences between editions (comparison table)

Edition	Rank	Noise control for vocal recordings	Sound separation	Speed	Streaming and real time
SpectraLayers Elements 13	C (2.4)	Noise, hum, clicks	Vocal separation	Spectral editing	Mainly editing after recording
SpectraLayers Pro 13	A (4.0)	Room ring and sibilance too	Separates every part of a song	Automatic processing + batch	Mainly editing after recording

Rating of each edition

SpectraLayers Elements 13 (rank C)

The entry edition of SpectraLayers. It supports spectral editing, automatic processing of noise, hum and clicks, and vocal separation by AI.

• Noise control for vocal recordings: 2 points — It handles noise, hum and clicks. Processing to reduce room reverberation is Pro only.
• Sound separation: 3 points — You can extract a vocal with AI (separation of other parts is Pro only).
• Speed: 3 points — It has spectral editing that lets you remove things while looking at the screen, and automatic processing. There is no batch processing.
• Streaming and real time: 2 points — It is software for editing after recording while looking at the sound on screen. You can hear a preview of the processing in real time, but it is not a plug-in to use during a stream.

SpectraLayers Pro 13 (rank A)

The top edition of the spectral editing software, which shows sound as a picture on screen and lets you select parts and remove or extract them. It supports repair of noise, reverberation, hum, clicks and clipping, a de-esser, and AI separation of the parts of a song (vocals, instruments, multiple voices and so on).

• Noise control for vocal recordings: 4 points — Besides repair of noise, room reverberation, hum, clicks and clipping and a de-esser, it also has voice-specific noise removal and click removal. There is no dedicated processing for breaths or plosives on the comparison table.
• Sound separation: 5 points — It has separation into vocals, instruments, multiple voices, audience noise and more, and bleed removal (De-Bleed).
• Speed: 5 points — It has spectral editing, automatic processing and presets, batch processing (Batch) and Reverb Match, which matches reverberation.
• Streaming and real time: 2 points — It is software for editing after recording while looking at the sound on screen. You can hear a preview of the processing in real time, but it is not a plug-in to use during a stream.

SpectraLayers Pro 13 screens and images

The chart above shows the scores of SpectraLayers Pro 13.

How we score (Noise reduction and audio repair software)

Criterion	Basis	5 pt	4 pt	3 pt	2 pt	1 pt
Noise control for vocal recordings	How it deals with noise that often gets into home recordings	Deals with background noise, hum, clicks and room ring, and even lip noise, breaths, sibilance and plosives	Deals with most of those	Deals with the basics: background noise, hum, clicks and room ring	Only some	—
Sound separation	Features that separate voice from backing, or by part	Voice extraction, part separation, removal of bleed and separation of scenes are all included	Three of those	One or two of those	—	No separation features
Speed	Features that make repair work faster	Automatic suggestions, spectral editing and batch processing, plus features that match ambience and EQ	Automatic suggestions, spectral editing and batch processing	A feature that automatically suggests repair settings	—	—
Streaming and real time	Whether it reduces noise in a voice in real time while streaming or recording	Works in real time, and use for streaming is stated officially	Voice noise reduction is available as a real-time plug-in with no delay (zero latency)	Can be used as a plug-in (amount of delay not stated)	Mainly editing after recording (only the preview of processing is real time)	Cannot be used in real time

Each criterion is scored from 1 to 5 on how well the product serves one goal: reducing the noise in a vocal you recorded at home. Scores follow the conditions in the table above, and the rank is based on an average in which "Noise control for vocal recordings" counts double. The basis is official manufacturer information. Sound quality and CPU load are not measured, so they are not scored; reviews from trade magazines are introduced in the articles for reference. Price is not part of the score. Features that cannot be confirmed from the manufacturer's or a retailer's description are scored as if absent. "Streaming and real time" is a criterion that answers the common search for "noise reduction that works for streaming". The "OBS (streaming)" column in the table shows whether the official page lists the VST2 format that the streaming software OBS Studio can use (○). OBS does not support the VST3 format. It is not part of the score.

Trade-magazine reviews (for reference, not part of the score)

We summarized the main points from reviews in overseas music-production magazines.

Sound On Sound (review of SpectraLayers Pro 12), October 2025

A review of the previous version (12).

• It rates the AI-based processing modules as clearly improved
• It points out that upgrades come at short intervals, which may be a burden for people who use it only occasionally

Source: review in Sound On Sound (SpectraLayers Pro 12) (English)

SpectraLayers 13 system requirements and getting started

Supported OS	Windows / Mac (native on Apple silicon)
Plug-in formats	VST3 and AAX with ARA2 support (connects directly to DAWs that support ARA)
Standalone	Yes (standalone editing software)
Trial	A free trial is available (“Try for free” on the official site)
OBS (streaming)	Not usable as is. It can be loaded with a bridge plug-in

Checked on the manufacturer’s official page on September 27, 2026. How to use them in the OBS streaming software is explained in How to use VST3 plug-ins in OBS.

Compared with other noise reduction and audio repair software

Click a heading to sort. On a phone, the table scrolls sideways.

Related reading

• Noise reduction and audio repair software compared
• How we rate specifications