WEEK 9

PRE-CLASS ACTIVITIES

IN-CLASS SUMMARY

Computer lab

Wayne explained to me today how he transformed a clap in the foyer into an explosion using processing on Pro Tools. This was very informative as I had been pondering how I was going to sculpt the explosion sound we had planned for the project. Once everyone had arrived in the session Wayne discussed that we were going to be looking at automation, noise gates, limiters and expanders today.

Pretty much for most of the session Wayne was reviewing how our projects were coming along and providing feedback to our groups. A lot of groups recorded actual bands and songs for their recording. Greg's was my favourite out of the group. When our group mix was uploaded to Wayne's Pro Tools he gave us a mixture of some warm and cool feedback, along with some constructive criticism and additional advice for some mixing techniques. For the warm feedback:

• Wayne was impressed that we had decided to do some sort sound design for our project and how we decided to come up with these ideas for the effects.

• Most of the sound effects are really interesting.

• The tone and humour is there.

• The voice recording is clean.

Cool feedback and constructive criticism:

• The tracks in the mix must be named (the tracks we did in the studio are all named, but the external sounds we got are not named).

• Automation on the vocals is essential, though Wayne also suggested side-chaining the vocals could be a good efficient solution.

• The vocal track levels are low for some reason, they need fixing.

• The fire sound effect sounds like rain.

• The pauses in the vocals are quite long and if there isn't a sound effect that is going to bridge the gap the gap needs to be cut.

• Some words in Bryce's vocals are not pronounced correctly (something me and Kieran didn't pick up on). Use the play-listed vocals we also recorded to cut and insert better pronounced words.

• Some of the sound effects don't have the correct timbre to them that probably should. Wayne suggested we either record new ones or do some heavy processing to shape it into the correct sound.

• We need to make sure we reference the ideas for the project (how we got each sound effect, what was the reasoning behind it, why we chose the tone of the recording for the book etc).

Wayne showed a couple of other techniques on Pro Tools we could possibly use like using signal generator, delay and some automation to help with the mix, but overall he was impressed with what we had achieved and the scope.

When the short recess had concluded and we were back in the session, we were instructed to discuss Project 3 with current group and what ideas we had. Wayne emphasised the importance of planning Project 3 early as the scope for the project is much larger. Kieran, Bryce and Fletcher bounced the idea off Wayne for us to record a podcast with accompanying sound effects as well as some original recorded background music; Wayne was impressed. Wayne said we can use the Tech desk people to help come up with ideas and use materials for it. After the session the group and myself were confident in the idea of podcast with music. We agreed we would have some ideas for some topics and how to record it by the weekend so we could start the project by the beginning of next week.

For the last half an hour Wayne finally explained and demonstrated what noise gates, limiters, expanders and de-essers were and how to use them in Pro Tools. Using a multitrack mix he demonstrated how each of these processors work:

• NOISE GATES: The noise gate can eliminate background noise spill by cutting anything in a certain frequency. The downside to this is if you use the noise gate too aggressively/too tightly it can make the track you are applying it to very unnatural sounding. This is especially important in live sound as some microphones need to be noise gated to reduce background spill.

• EXPANDERS: Expanders expand the dynamic range and only slightly chop it off, it's mostly in the low frequencies though. It can be usually found on the noise gate processor.

• LIMITERS: Limiters cut anything that exceeds a certain amplitude and cut it off. They can also raise the loudness so it is perceived louder.

• DE-ESSERS: This is a certain type of compressor that works by cleaning up a lot of sibilance (harsh "S" sounds like in vocals).

Studio

This is the last studio workshop we have for the trimester so it was imperative I was actively engaged during this workshop. Sam was our facilitator today, not Wayne, and he was to teach us about speed mixing which is also called top-down mixing. We did at first encounter some I/O issues which delayed the class a little bit but after getting one of the tech guys to help troubleshoot the situation we were back up and running.

Sam was also somewhat new to the Audient 4816 desk which gave the rest of us a chance to get involved and help him out where need be. Sam was adamant, like he has been in AUD175, that speed mixing is essential in this line of work and that you need to work fast and smart. We used a track by the Doubie Brothers and grouped the percussive instruments, the guitars, the bass and the vocals. These groups were stereo and each of these groups took up two channels on the console; one for left and the other for right.

Using the consoles onboard EQ pots we started adjusting the groups EQ parameters to get the best sound WITHOUT touching the gain. Sam explained that by doing all that before you even touch Pro Tools you save yourself a lot of time. The EQ parameters were set, the panning on the desk was panned left and right, it was now time to jump on Pro Tools.

With a combination of reverb, saturation, delay and a noise gate on the drum bus channel, Sam created different buses for different effects for all of the groups. Each of these effects that were applied were also copied and mildly adjusted to the next group and the group after that increasing the productivity and speed of Sam's workflow. The final part was Sam going in and just adjusting the levels of the channels to make sure there was enough headroom.

POST-CLASS REFLECTION

Computer lab

We only briefly touched on a couple of processors today as we spent most of it getting feedback from Wayne regarding our projects. As I didn't have Pro Tools up and running to follow along I didn't quite understand what Wayne was talking about, but I got the bare minimum. These processors are definitely going to need more in depth research after today as there wasn't enough time to learn about them. These could possibly help in my mix that is due Wednesday night.

For AUD176, if I can get my mix done by Tuesday night and leave Wednesday to put the final touches/write up my reflection I should have everything complete and ready to hand in. My only issue is that we have a very ambitious project and I'm afraid with my skill level with Pro Tools I may not mix it in time. Wayne did give me some personal help after the session that cleared up a couple of things regarding the Pro Tools.

My self confidence has been boosted in the last week or so, I'm not exactly sure why but it's almost as if everything just clicks. The fact that Wayne said he was impressed with us doing sound design in trimester 1 has given me confidence as sound design is something I was most excited to learn during the bachelor. This week is going to be a very busy week for me with me trying to get my mix done and stay on top of everything without falling behind. I'm feeling as if this week is going to be a little easier to deal with than last so I will need to lean in on my time management skills.

As mentioned before we were given feedback regarding our project. There was a lot of feedback that needs to be implemented and I should at the very least have my project in a decent state by tonight so my work load isn't as hectic before submission. With the feedback I was given I asked Wayne to show me after class how to use this feedback in Pro Tools. Each of what needs to be completed has been compiled into a list for me to check off while I'm mixing to make sure I am on the right track.

Studio

Although I was happy that I was starting to get used to Wayne's teaching in this workshop, he wasn't teaching today's one. It was refreshing to have a new set of eyes teaching us about mixing on the desk. You can tell Sam is a great top-down mixer and I learnt a lot in this session. From surface level I really see myself opting for this kind of mixing as my default with most of my mixes to come. Workflow is something that has always been my Achilles heel when mixing; I've always shied away from mixing because I don't have a decent workflow.

Grouping tracks and quickly EQing, applying time based effects and adjusting the levels was great to see in action. It's something I will definitely take home with me and apply to everything I do regarding mixing. Sam advised he would be sending us a copy of the mixing template for future referencing.

Reflecting back on this workshop, I am proud of myself as I stepped up and was definitely more engaged in this workshop than in other workshops in the studio. Similar to week 3's workshop. Again this was due to there only being 4 of us compared to the large workshop where there are 6 of us and from what I had overheard there was going to be others from the lab joining that couldn't make today's workshop so I definitely dodged a bullet with that one. The workshop would've been packed.

Another reason why I may have learnt more and was more engaged was because I feel it was only Fletcher and myself who were really stepping up to get our hands dirty on the desk. For the last workshop, I am very proud with how it ended and I think I have at least a very base level to get in to the studio myself now and start recording.