Exclude works — but it has rules, and most people break them without knowing.
1. Exclude takes nouns, not sentences. crowd, applause, banjo works. I don't want any crowd or applause or banjo in this song please gets parsed as... crowd, applause, banjo. Keep it a comma list of things.
2. Never put the excluded thing in Style too. If your style says 'epic stadium anthem' and Exclude says 'crowd,' the style wins — it's 50 words vs 1. Exclude can't outvote a contradictory style prompt.
3. Exclude the specific, not the general. muddy bass beats bad mix. chipmunk vocal beats weird voice. The more specific the term, the better it filters.
4. Some things can't be excluded — they're structural. You can't exclude 'chorus' from a pop song or 'drums' from EDM; the genre overrides. Exclude works on additions and flavors, not foundations.
5. The real power combo: Exclude removes, but positive description builds. intimate studio recording + Exclude crowd, applause beats either one alone. Always pair them.
Good luck! Hank founder of SonorixPG