Alternative
Looking for a Podcastle Alternative?
Magic Dust comes inside a creator suite. Diffio is only speech restoration.
Our verdict
Diffio is the simpler pick when you only need speech restored in recordings you already have, with the background kept on its own track and a 2-minute free preview of each of 3 uploads. Pick Podcastle, now at async.com, if you want recording, editing and AI video generation in one subscription; Magic Dust comes with its paid plans. Diffio hasn't tested Magic Dust.
Is Podcastle Magic Dust Still Available?
Yes. As checked November 3, 2026, podcastle.ai redirects to async.com, which lists Magic Dust as its AI audio enhancer on the Essentials, Pro, Teams and Business plans. Async's plan comparison marks Magic Dust as not included on the Free plan.
What Podcastle Does Well
- Magic Dust in one click. Right-click a track and choose Magic Dust to remove background noise, even out volume spikes and polish the voice, as Async describes it.
- Related audio tools on the same plans. AI noise reduction, auto leveling and silence removal.
- A recording and editing suite. Remote multitrack recording, transcript-based audio editing, a video editor and subtitles.
- AI generation. Paid plans include monthly AI credits for video, image, voice, music and sound effect models.
When Podcastle Is the Better Pick
- You want one creator suite. Recording, transcript editing, video editing, subtitles and AI generation on one plan.
- You record there already. Magic Dust is a right-click away on the track.
- You also want AI video, images or voices. Paid plans include monthly credits for them.
When Diffio Fits Better
- You only need cleanup. Restoring speech is the whole product, so there is no suite to learn.
- Noise, room echo and some distortion. Diffio restores them in one pass on recordings made anywhere.
- You want to try it free. Diffio Free previews 3 uploads; Magic Dust isn't on Async's Free plan.
- You want the background back at your own level. Every result has restored speech and a background track, with a Background amount slider.
Diffio vs Podcastle Magic Dust by Workflow
| Need | Diffio | Podcastle Magic Dust |
|---|---|---|
| Primary job | Restore recorded speech | One-click enhancement inside a recording, editing and AI generation suite |
| What you get back | Restored speech and the background as 2 tracks, a Background amount slider to mix them and a transcript | The enhanced track in your project |
| Free | 3 uploads in total with a 2-minute preview of each result | A Free plan that does not include Magic Dust |
| Paid model | Basic $8/month (6 h) or Pro $29/month (30 h) | From $19.99/month ($11.99/month yearly); Magic Dust comes with the Essentials, Pro, Teams and Business plans with no published hour limit, so it has no cost per hour. |
| Video | Every plan; Diffio restores the speech soundtrack and the picture stays unchanged | Yes: Magic Dust cleans audio or video files inside Async's audio and video editors |
| API | REST API with Python and Node SDKs, billed per second | No Magic Dust API listed on its pricing or Magic Dust pages |
| Diffio-run speech enhancer test | Diffio 4.6 Pro: SCOREQ +2.31 on average, word error rate 10.5%. Method and every clip. | Magic Dust was not in that test |
How Much Does Podcastle Cost?
Checked November 3, 2026 in US dollars on async.com: Magic Dust isn't sold on its own and isn't on the Free plan. It comes with Essentials at $19.99 a month ($11.99 a month billed yearly), Pro at $39.99 ($23.99 yearly), Teams at $84.99 per creator ($49.99 yearly) and custom-priced Business. Async doesn't publish a Magic Dust hour limit. Check current pricing before buying. For other podcast workflows, see the podcast audio enhancer.
Diffio Plans and API
The Diffio Free web plan includes 3 uploads in total (not monthly), audio or video, and plays back the first 2 minutes of each result. Paid Basic ($8 per month) includes 6 hours (360 minutes) of audio or video per month, and paid Pro ($29 per month) includes 30 hours (1,800 minutes) per month, with full playback and downloads. Every plan accepts files up to 2 GB and 90 minutes long. The public API is billed per second, $5 an hour for Diffio 4.6 Flash and $10 an hour for Diffio 4.6 Pro, with a $5 starting credit. Check current Diffio prices or API pricing.
Has Diffio Tested Magic Dust?
Diffio hasn't tested Podcastle Magic Dust, so this page makes no quality claim about it. Diffio's own AI speech enhancer test ran Diffio, Adobe Podcast, Cleanvoice, Auphonic, ElevenLabs and Descript Studio Sound on the same 59 real recordings on October 22, 2026; play the clips there, or upload your own recording to Diffio and compare it with Podcastle Magic Dust yourself.
Hear the Difference
Lecture recording: toggle Original vs Enhanced by Diffio.
FAQ
What happened to Podcastle?
As checked November 3, 2026, podcastle.ai redirects to async.com, which lists Magic Dust among its tools.
Is Podcastle Magic Dust free?
No. Async's plan comparison marks Magic Dust as not included on the Free plan. It comes with Essentials, from $19.99 a month.
How much does Podcastle cost?
Checked November 3, 2026: Magic Dust isn't sold on its own and isn't on the Free plan. It comes with Essentials at $19.99 a month ($11.99 a month billed yearly), Pro at $39.99 ($23.99 yearly), Teams at $84.99 per creator ($49.99 yearly) and custom-priced Business. Async doesn't publish a Magic Dust hour limit.
What does Magic Dust do?
Async describes Magic Dust as an AI audio enhancer that removes background noise, evens out volume spikes and polishes the voice, applied with a right-click on a track.
Sources Checked November 3, 2026
Podcastle facts were checked November 3, 2026 on its own pages: Async pricing and plan comparison (podcastle.ai/pricing redirects here) and Magic Dust AI audio enhancer. Diffio is not affiliated with or endorsed by Podcastle (Async). Product names are trademarks of their owners.
Try Diffio Free
Upload a speech recording and hear the restored speech next to the original.