Using a Sound Effects CD to Enhance Your Productions

Whether you are looking to enhance your production, add some reality to your amateur film or include a little zing to your website, using sound effects from a sound effects CD is a common way to do it. A sound effects CD is used in a variety of applications, but mostly you’ll find they are used to create realistic atmospheres for a motion picture, podcasting or some kind of film production.

While there are a variety of sound effects CD producers, there are three or four sound effects CD considered to be the professional sound effects CD producers in the industry for applications such as podcasting, film production and radio production; Sound Ideas, The Hollywood Edge, Sound Vision, and the BBC. An important item when choosing a professional sound effects CD is that it comes with MetaData. MetaData is essentially a description of the sound effect. When it comes to indexing and searching for sound effects, the MetaData is there to make sure you can find the sound effect you are looking for!

Further, if you want true feature film quality production, it’s also important that your sound effect CD comes in Red Book Audio format. Red Book Audio Format is the standard format a normal CD player will play. Sound effects CDs in Red Book Audio Format will produce their files in WAV format, with WAV sound effects being of much higher quality sound then MP3 sound effects. Why do so many people still look to sound effects? The main reason is “Foley”! OK, you ask, what is Foley? Foley is the process of adding background sound effects and noises to a film so that the film sounds everyday realistic. The many background sounds you hear (sounds other than the dialogue) during a feature film is what makes it so realistic! It’s a critical part of what deciphers an amateur production from a production film.

Productions are increasingly being produced by amateur producers without big feature film budgets. This has caused a spike in Foley being increasingly done by using digital libraries of stored sound effects which can be added to the film without having to painstakingly record the sounds oneself. Having the ability to comb through thousands of libraries of sound effects in a sound effects CD or a library of CDs, producers (both amateur and professional) are able to make fairly realistic productions without having to rent actors to re-enact certain aspects of a film in order to record realistic sounds (typical of only of big budget films).

Without Foley, films usually end up sounding unrealistic. That is because during our day to day conversations, you will hear hundreds of sounds in the background. Without these background sounds in a film, the film sounds more like a high school play where you’ll hear the dialogue, but that’s it. While getting the dialogue correctly captured is the first part, there are plenty of little sounds in the background like a lawnmower mowing, a car driving past, kids laughing and playing, dogs barking, all that make a film feel like we are really there. In the end, sound effects libraries and sound effects CD make the production come to life and give us all the additional sounds that you didn’t know you needed.

Using Sound Fx in Podcasts and Video Games

There’s a trend towards more professional podcasting and video games by using impactful sound FX and implementing professional sound design in podcasts and video games. We would suggest that there are in essence are three main categories of sound FX people looking for in producing podcasts: cartoon sound FX, explosion sound FX and movie sound FX.

Cartoon sound FX can be a popular choice because of their instant recognition. Cartoon sound FX instantly triggers memories from shows and associate their podcast with a professional show. Secondly, explosion sound FX is used to maximize impact on the listener in a podcast. Sound FX in this category normally is items such as auto crashes, explosions, building crashes, earthquakes, house explosions.  The point being that they surprise the listener and get the listener’s attention. An example of explosion effects is the Impact Effects 2 CD by Sound Ideas who have created some of the largest variety of explosion sound FX.

Thirdly, movie sounds FX are generally used by people who are looking to use sound FX for Foley. Your wondering what is Foley? Foley is process of adding background sound FX to a story line, film production, or this case, podcast. Movie sound FX can contain almost anything but are often taken from digital libraries from previous sound designers who have gone through the painstaking process of recording individual sound effects for their films. Some film producers, example being in Bollywood, might rely almost solely on digital libraries of sound FX for their productions.

Today, at the same time, sound FX are taking a new turn in technology with video game producers. Sound FX is being in video games using something called positional audio. Positional audio utilizes complex calculations to determine how loud or quiet a sound effect should be in a video game depending on the distance of the player from the originating sound. For example, a first person shooter game would hear a gunshot much quieter if it was across the street then if the gun was shot right next to him or her. This is making sound FX design much more dynamic then has been historically. With video game productions become more main stream than many movies, sound design for video games has become just as important as in feature films.

If you don’t have actually sound FX how can you create them? Can you create them yourself? Many sounds FX are replicated with everyday items you can find in your house. For example, a heartbeat effect might be replicated by a plastic trash can lid! The popping out of the plastic lid creates a controllable “pumping” sound that might be used. Or, in order to create a sound effect of something dramatically freezing, one can record brushing the bristles of a wire brush brushing firmly against something metal, like a steel drum. As the brushes come closer it gives you the effect of rippling freezing ice. Recording a slithery snake effect might be when you take a wet sponge and drag it across a rubber surface. Creating sound FX can take some creativity!  In essence, adding sound FX to your podcasts can be a great help for a professional effect on the listener, sometimes you just need to get a bit creative!

Video Editing Software – Choosing the Best for You

Choosing the best video editing software can seem a daunting task given the wide range of products available at the moment. However with a little help to remain focused on what is important you should be able to make a good choice.

One of the key points to keep in mind is, “What is it that I am I REALLY going to do with the video editing software that I choose?” The answer to that question has to remain uppermost in your mind when selecting the best video editing software for you.

All of the major home video editing software companies offer camcorder to DVD video editing solutions that make them almost inseparable from each other. So concentrate on what you REALLY need.

The first thing to establish is what is the format of the material you will be working with and what will be the formats that you will want to produce in the end. Input will be determined by your camcorder or your DVD recorder or whatever the source of your material is. Take note of the format your device records in and make sure that one is covered first.

Then realistically take a look at how you would most likely distribute your final videos. DVD? Blu-Ray? Uploading to YouTube or similar? Make sure the software you choose can output to the format you want.

So, your first task in deciding on what video editing software is suitable for you is to work out what your most common source video files will be and what your most common video output will be. That represents the core of what you will be using the software for and should be your main focus.

Like any other competitive market, video editing software is caught up in a never ending race to keep up with technology as it develops and still make the product seem “sexy” to the customer. The point is you probably don’t WANT to buy video editing software. What you WANT is a finished video production.

The problem for the software company is that they know you NEED to buy video editing software but that is not what you WANT! They have to make you WANT it! And because of that we get “bells and whistles” features that make you WANT IT but most likely will never need.

Video Transitions:
Transitions are the little inserts that go in between two clips to make the scene change. If you look at a movie you will notice when the scene changes it either cuts to the next scene with no transition, this is called cut or a straight cut. It fades to black then fades into the next scene from black called a cross fade through black. Or, finally, the two scenes merge into each other softly and this one is called a cross fade. There you have it, pretty well the entire gamut of transitions that professional video editors use!

All video editing software programs offer at least 50 transitions each. Newbies use ALL the available transitions because they look cool the first time they see them. The reality is NOBODY ever, ever wants to go back to their house again to look at their latest production because their heads are still spinning from the last one! Ignore transitions as a deciding factor, all video editing software programs have them and they all have more than you need.

Video Overlay:
An overlay track, simply put, is the ability to put one video in the background and have another visible on top of it. It is that “picture in picture” effect you have seen on TV and in movies. You can also put subtitles in an overlay track or still photos or a bunch of other things to really get creative. You need about five for good control but you would never use more than that otherwise, once again, no-one is going to want to watch the mess you have created!

Audio:
There is no video editing software at the consumer level that offers truly excellent audio control and features. They are video editing programs not audio editing programs. Some have pretty good control, some don’t, if you are going to demand pro level audio then you need dedicated software for that.

The ability to handle Dolby 2 channel is a bare minimum and 5:1 Surround should be standard. The program should offer two audio tracks to play with in addition to the sound in the video track. That leaves you plenty of room for music, narration or effects.

Smart Render:
Rendering is the term used when the video editing software is making the final file of your newly created video. Up until rendering, in any consumer level video editing software, all the cuts, additions, changes and adjustments you have been making are “virtual.” The original footage is never touched. So rendering puts all that together and produces your final video file in the format you have chosen as the viewing format.

Any of the highly compressed formats such as MPEG2 (for DVDs), MPEG4 etc invariably suffer from loss of quality when they are re-rendered. The degree of loss of quality varies but it is essential that any video editing software you choose has the ability to recognise those files it does not need to re-render and simply copy those sections resulting in the high quality possible being retained. It should also offer good control over the properties of the final video.

So there you have it, stay focused on what is important and keep the “gee whiz” stuff to a minimum and you will do fine!

Sound Effects Libraries | What is the Difference Between Them?

When looking at sound effects libraries, there are a few key differentiators. You will especially want to know the difference between sound effects libraries if you want to ensure a high quality production. Not all sound FX libraries come in the same style or quality! Here are a few of the most critical things you should look for in sound FX libraries.

Firstly, the recording quality in sound FX libraries are probably one of the most critical deciphering factors. Traditional sound FX libraries will come with 16 bit / 44.1 kHz recorded sound effects. If you have a half decent audio card on your workstation you will want to go with the 16 bit version. If you are serious about your sound design, there are many sound FX libraries that today are being offered in 24 bit / 48 kHz with some being offered in a high definition 24 bit / 96 kHz format. Cutting edge sound effects libraries are being pushed to be delivered in 24 bit  / 96 kHz format, while at the same time providing other compatible versions of the sound effects on the same library (such as 16 bit) which allow you to choose whatever format you might need.

Another deciphering item is the actual saved file format the sound effects are saved in. When sound effects libraries are offered in MP3 format they diminish the quality of the original recording (few are). Most sound effects libraries are offered in a WAV format and are of much higher quality then MP3s (and therefore much larger files). This is still a large reason why sound effects libraries still take up multiple CDs or whole hard drives when you purchase them.

Next, if you want to seriously consider the full effect of sound effects libraries, one should consider surround sound. Surround sound FX libraries are created in true 5.1 Dolby Surround Sound, the audio standard for surround sound productions.  Surround sound adds realism and depth to your production, placing the viewer or listener and making them feel like they are in the middle of your production. Surround sound FX can be especially effective when creating ambiences and background sound effects.

Finally, it’s important to consider the search tools for indexing your sound FX libraries. Often search tools are provided and come along with sound effects libraries. Common search tools people use that they might already have are Pro Tools, AVID, Sound miner, Net mix and others. While all of these are great tools, one of the easiest tools you already have is ITunes. You already likely use it to index a lot of your music, why not your sound effects? Whatever you use, just make sure you’ve thought this through ahead of time and make sure the indexing of your sound FX library is compatible with your search tool.

In summary, when picking sound FX libraries, make sure they are the quality you want, the appropriate file format, decide on whether you want surround sound effects, and finally make sure you can index them and find them when you need them!

The Trend Towards Hard Drive and Usb Sound Effects Collections

The trend in distribution of sound effects is toward distributing sound effects collections on hard drives or USB drives. By doing this, publishers are compiling a greater variety of formats and much higher quality sound effects then in the past.

An example of a hard drive collection is the Series 6,000 Hard Drive produced by long time sound effects producer Sound Ideas. The hard drive comes with more than 20,000 sound effects with all sound effects in digital broadcast WAV file format. Sound effects on the Sound Ideas Hard Drive can be selected in multiple formats such as 24 bit / 48 kHz, 16 bit/ 48 kHz, or 16 bit/ 44.1 kHz. At the same time, every WAV file is embedded with metadata (information about the file) that allows for easy searching of sound effects through asset management software such as Pro Tools or Itunes. The digital hard drive also contains enabled metadata from the Sound miner Toolset for easy searching of the productions.

In summary, a collection such as this could have never been compiled on CDs or DVDs in the past as it would have taken up way too much space! The Sound Ideas Series 6000 hard drive series contains the following:

• The “original” “General” Series 6000 CD collection which contains more than 7,500 sound effects from 40 different CDs with sound effects such as Animal & Birds, Construction, Crowds, Household, Military and much more.

• The second in the series, Sound Ideas Series 6000 Extension I which contains a wide variety of in demand sound effects from 20 different CDs digitally recorded.

• The third series, Series 6000 Extension II, which contains sound effect collections such as snowmobiles and huge variety of modern telephone sounds. All together approximately 10 CDs of the most comprehensive professional sound effects.

• The third, Sound Ideas Series 6000 Extension III which provides the Series 6000 Hard Drive with an endless variety of terrain vehicles and amazing selection of guns and weapons.

• The next Sound Ideas Series 6000 Extension IV which has a collection of airplane sound effects, water, rain and other liquid sound effects.

• The Sound Ideas Extension V which features selections of airplanes, motorcycles and trucks.

• The Series 6000 Extension VI adds 10 CDs and more than 2,500 sound effects once again. Many sounds such as vintage airplanes, crowd sounds to whoopee cushions.

• The Sound Ideas Series Extension VII adds sound effects such as unique “hits & impacts” with 10 more CDs and 2,000 more sound effects.

The trend to large hard drives and USB storage sound effects is going to continue as it makes for easier handling of large collection of sound effects. When you are looking for a hard drive sound effects collections look at the quality of the recording, the search software and whether the files come in multiple formats. This in summary will give you a great start on how to differentiate and compare some of the hard drive and USB collections.

Does Size Matter In A Car Sound System

When it comes to auto sound systems, one question seems to be repeated often-is bigger better? The honest answer to that is not by a long shot. There are many excellent quality sound systems that will not require the backseat and your first-born in order to enjoy wonderful quality of sound and music as you drive along on your daily commute. One thing that is important to remember is that dynamite does in fact come in small packages. The same can be true of a good quality sound system for your car, truck, or SUV.

You can elect to have the full range sound package. This package, if not custom installed by the dealer can take up a great deal of real estate within your car, truck, or SUV. If you own a compact car, these types of speakers and this particular type of sound system is definitely not recommended. The first reason it is unattractive is that it will most likely require either the vast majority of your trunk or take out your back seat. I for one like being able to cart around friends, relatives, and/or children-my back seat isn’t up for grabs. I also prefer the continuity of a factory-installed system that takes up none of the premium living space within the interior of my SUV.

I am personally biased towards the wonderful sound quality of the Bose sound system and speakers. The quality of sound with this particular system is excellent and any true music lover will tell you that good quality of sound is better by far than a louder sound. This is not to say that the Bose sound system will be the perfect choice for everyone to use as his or her auto sound system only that it is my first choice as a music lover.

I prefer a softer sound that has good quality to a louder sound of the substandard or even average quality on any day. The problem with most ‘big’ sound systems and speakers is that they often sound hollow or tinny rather than full and robust. A good auto sound system will provide the best possible sound within the confines of the least possible space. You will probably find that you don’t need to sacrifice your backseat in order to hold the speakers and while the Bose sound system for automobiles does cost more than some sound systems, it won’t require a second mortgage on your home in order to afford. There are actually times in life when you get what you pay for.

The important thing to remember is that you do not have to have the most expensive, the best known, or even the biggest sound system in order to have a wonderful quality sound system in your automobile. You will not even have to have a Bose sound system in order to have a sound system that is not only excellent quality but also excellent sound. You do not need to pay an arm and a leg or any other appendages in order to have a good sound on your daily commute to work.

Music is all around us, at work, at home, on television shows. Music sets moods, sets tones, and kills moods on occasion. It only makes sense that you have good quality equipment upon which to play the music that so greatly enhances and enriches your life. If you are in the market for an auto sound system it only makes sense to listen to several before deciding on the one that will work best with your musical tastes and your desire for your vehicle sound system. Don’t be misled by commission minded sales associated that think you need the latest, greatest, and most expensive toy on the market. Find a system that sounds good to you and go with that system. You do not have to go for a better sound if you find a sound you like that should be enough.

LCD Enclosures – The Smart Choice for Outdoor Digital Signage

Digital signage is now the new must-have marketing tool with its applications and uses having multiplied many-fold over the last few years with LCD and plasma screens now being seen in all manner of locations for all manner of uses.

One of the latest environments to be exploited for the purposes of digital advertising is the use of plasma and LCD screens outside.

Digital outdoor signage is one of the few niche areas left in the digital marketing industry but more and more companies have spotted the potential and are producing LCD TVs that can be situated outdoors.

The major challenge of outdoor digital signage is protecting the plasma or LCD display from the elements. Many manufacturers ensure their outdoor LCD or plasma is sealed to protect from the rain which is obviously highly important when it comes to outdoor signage. However, many of these outdoor LCD screens are manufactured for mild climates and little consideration is given to the varying extremes of temperature often found in Europe and North America.

Extreme heat in the summer can be extremely damaging to an LCD. Both the screen and the electronics of the LCD need to be protected from the sun. LCD screens are easily damaged by direct sunlight while without adequate cooling exposure to high temperatures will dramatically shorten an LCD or plasma’s lifespan.

Likewise protection from the cold is highly important as most LCD’s will simply not be able to cope in temperatures below zero.

However, many manufacturers are starting to identify these outdoor hazards and are producing LCD’s designed to operate in extreme temperatures. However, most of these outdoor digital signage solutions are targeted at a particular environment such as extreme cold or extreme heat. There are very few options available that can actually deal with the heat of summer and the freezing temperatures often endured in parts of America and Europe during the winter months.

Fortunately, for those of us that live in areas where both extremes of temperatures are often experienced throughout the year a smarter more practical solution is to use standard LCD displays and house them in an outdoor LCD enclosure. LCD enclosures (and plasma enclosures) are now manufactured by some industrial computer enclosure manufacturers who use their experience of housing computers and touch screens in industrial areas to build LCD enclosures that can cope with not just the rain but all extremes of temperature and weather.

These steel LCD enclosures are also built to withstand vandalism and theft allowing the outdoor digital signage to be left unattended with full peace of mind.

An Introduction to the Properties of Sound for Recording Musicians

An Introduction to the Properties of Sound for Recording Musicians

by Clay Butler

Obviously, if you’re reading this article, you have an interest in recording.   I’m sure you also have some notion as to what sound is.  Sound is what we hear, right?  Well, yes.  But there’s a lot more to sound.  Knowing what sound is and how sound works is the key to getting a quality recording.  Let’s get our feet wet in sound waves (pun intended).

WHAT IS SOUND?

Simply put, sound is Acoustical Energy, or vibration.  More specifically, sound is vibration propagated through a medium, which is then received by our ears and interpreted by our brain as sound.  The reason I say the vibrations are interpreted by our brain as sound is because acoustical energy still exists that we cannot perceive as sound (more on this later).  For example, while a dog might go nuts from hearing a dog whistle, we as humans cannot interpret those vibrations as sound.  Radio, cell phones, Wi-Fi, microwave ovens, and RADAR all use sound waves that we as humans just can’t hear.  So, in essence, when we refer to sound, we really refer to our perception of vibrations.

Sound vibrations that are propagated through the air (or any other medium for that matter) are in the form of transverse waves.  Thus, you could also say that sound is really rapid fluctuations in air pressure.  The vibrations from a vibrating body, such as a guitar string, push and pull on the surrounding air, creating positive and negative pressures.  These waves occur as the molecules of air are slammed closely together as they are pushed by the vibrating body.  The part of the wave consisting of positive pressure, where the air molecules are slammed together, is called a compression.  Negatively pressured parts of the wave, where the air molecules are pulled apart from each other, are called rarefactions.

THE PROPERTIES OF SOUND

How loudly a sound is perceived is determined by how hard the air gets pushed by the vibrating body.  The harder the air gets pushed, the louder the sound.  Although this is typically referred to as volume, in reference to acoustical energy, it is called Sound Pressure Level (SPL).  The scale used to measure Sound Pressure Level is the Decibel scale, or dB SPL (more on the other Decibel scales in a later article).

The pitch of a sound is a function of frequency.   How frequently a vibrating body pushes the air determines how high or low the tone of the sound is perceived.  The more frequently the air gets pushed, the higher the tone of the sound.  As the air gets pushed less frequently, the tone sounds lower.  Therefore frequency is expressed as the number of sound waves occurring over time.  The scale used is known as Hertz (Hz), which signifies the number sound waves per second.  For example, the note “A” below “Middle C” on a piano is 440Hz.

The frequency spectrum is broken up into three parts.  The Audible Range for humans is roughly 20Hz to 20,000Hz (or 20 Kilohertz, abbreviated as KHz).  The frequencies below 20Hz are categorized as Infrasonic.  All frequencies above 20KHz are referred to as Ultrasonic.

ACOUSTICS

Let’s look again at sound being all about our perception.  Generally, we don’t hear the sound emanating directly from its source.  The majority of the time, we hear sound after it bounces off the surrounding walls, along with any other nearby surfaces, and interacts with the room.  We call this acoustics.  Understanding how acoustics influence sound, especially those sounds you’re trying to record, better enables you to get the sound you want without any surprises.  Each time a sound wave is reflected back into an acoustic space, our perception of that wave changes, especially when you hear sound coming directly from a sound source in addition the reflected waves.  This is why it’s not uncommon for a pro recording studio to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on architectural design and acoustic treatment, so that those extra reflections and wave interference are eliminated.

http://www.claybutlermusic.com

© 2009 Butler Productions

Sleek and Stylish LCD Tvs

LCD or Liquid-crystal-display television sets are the new form of television for viewing images without harming your eyes while watching TV for long-long hours. These television sets use LCD technology to give constructive images, very light in weight and reduce power requirements when compared standard televisions. LCD screen is also incorporated in computer monitors, mobile phones, pen drives and i-pods. Most of the LCD television screen size ranges from 26 to 42 inches. The large screen LCD television sets are quite expensive in nature. A few number of advantages of these cheap, smart and intricate LCD TVs are; they offer unmatched advanced technology, the screen of LCDs are consequentlly brighter with a high contrast, they can work effectively in any kind of lighting in room. Due to Liquid Crystal Display technology, an LCD monitor can create 16.7 million colours, it means, the tiniest of tints can be clearly visible through naked eye. LCD monitors are very different kind of monitors. They are used for computers and also for normal television, they also have TV tuner system into them so that apart from work on LCD screen, people can entertain themselves in their spare time. These TV monitors work upon the principle of blocking of unacceptable colours from the white array. LCD’s screens have a large number of pixels. The pixels are illuminated by a thin lamp or a projector LCD, each of which twist and turn at appropriate angles and can cultivate an excellent image. They also offer distinguished viewing angles. LCD TV also have an anti-glare screen and this makes them easy on the eyes of the viewers while watching very closely. Also, these are not affected by light falling on them. That is why even in a bright room, the quality of image on an LCD monitor will be as crisp as in the dark room. Liquid Crystal Display television monitors provide good image qualities regardless of their sizes. LCDs also have some disadvantages,they are; these television suffers from high-burn rates, which means the image persists on the pixels for longer times. Some LCD monitors cannot run high density games, which requires HD(High-Definition) compatibility. Samsung is one of the best brand for LCD TVs. There are wide range of LCD TV models available these days, they are Samsung LN46A650 46-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV, Samsung LN52A650 52-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV, Philips 37″ Widescreen HDTV LCD TV and lots more.

What’s Happening With 5.1 Surround Sound Music?

A few years ago 5.1 surround sound DVD video players looked likely to become standard kit in every living room in the technology friendly world.

So now a few years on, what has happened to the original promise of surround sound music? Well the answer to that is ‘lots, but not nearly enough.’

For those that don’t know already, 5.1 surround sound is basically five speakers and a sub-woofer placed around your room allowing you to listen to music or a movie soundtrack literally surrounded by speakers. The film industry pioneered it for theatres and it then became available as a DVD player add-on for home entertainment systems.

Now at least 100,000,000 people world-wide own systems, which can and should be used for all manner of surround sound music DVDs.

I hear you say, ‘but surround sound music on DVD hasn’t really caught on. All that wire in my living room’.

Even though the consumer can buy a DVD player and surround speaker system cheaply enough, surround sound music hasn’t really caught fire yet. Why?

There are reasons why we should all remain confident that surround sound music will become more popular, but at the moment it’s still an infant child.

The amount of different DVD and surround sound formats is confusing and can be offputting.

The consumer desperately wants an end to the confusing compatibility war between different surround sound formats.

Many music artists would start producing DVDs if it wasn’t so complex, just as there are many consumers that would purchase a surround sound DVD system for the same reason. They should be able to buy a DVD player and play any product claiming to play DVDs.

Consumer surround sound formats currently include sound on video DVDs encoded as Dolby 5.1 surround sound or DTS; the competing DVD-Audio (DVD-A) and Super Audio CD (SACD) formats and MP3 Surround.

There are 5.1, 6.1, 7.1 systems, four speaker systems, even one speaker systems and ’simulated surround sound systems.’ Phew! See what I mean?

They all have their uses, but the I feel the music business would be wise to embrace one format. Every time the consumer buys a surround sound music product they have to research whether it will be compatible to their particular system.

The good news here is that slowly, but surely things are improving. As long as there is no ‘new’ new format to rock the boat, the problem of incompatibility could become a thing of the past.

There are many great web sites to visit which do explain (in as much detail as you could possibly imagine) all the different formats and help you decide what to buy.

How about all that wire in my living room though?

There are wireless speaker systems available, but the cheaper ones are for mainly rear-channel wireless amplification. This doesn’t quite get rid of all the wires and limits people who have odd shaped rooms. But they are better than nothing.

It would be great for a ‘let’s make it fun revolution’ to occur with surround sound, like the iPod. Small wireless speakers one could place anywhere. The recommended configuration would still be in a circle, but you’d have a license to have fun by placing them in different locations.

Certain types of music would not really benefit from this unconventional approach, but other types mixed specially for surround sound might not suffer that much and it would release the consumer from the pressure to set their systems up in a way that would please an audio engineer or DVD manufacturer.

Not enough of an improvement on CDs and overall lack of interesting music DVD products.

The amount of compression used for music on DVD video is far greater than CDs. So stereo music on CD is generally of a higher quality than stereo music on DVD. However, add the extra speakers and a properly mixed 5.1 surround sound piece of music and all of a sudden the playback bit ratio seems much less important.

‘What is’ you ask, ‘a properly mixed 5.1 piece of music?’

Recreating real space is what seems to interest some surround sound pioneers. The chance to paint a more precise musical picture by placing you the listener deeper inside a musical ensemble or concert venue.

This approach has got its merits, but it’s reliant on people having their speakers in precise locations, and that they will sit dead centre amongst them. Pluses can turn to minuses at this point. If you don’t have a perfectly set up system it might just sound weird, especially if you are used to the stereo CD mix from the same artist.

Apart from all the technical considerations, I consider a great 5.1mix a strong alternative to the stereo mix. Let’s say the artist already has their stereo mix. Why not make the surround mix something that really explores that extra space and is different from the stereo mix.

Give the consumer a choice of two distinctly different sounding mixes. This might inspire more people to make the effort to set up those surround speakers which are still sitting unused in the attic.

Currently it is almost mandatory to include some type of visual content on a DVD.

In a way, it’s a shame that ‘audio only’ DVDs haven’t caught on…yet.

Depending on the level of production the artist is looking to reach, it can be both very expensive and time consuming producing enough visual material to accompany all the music for a competitive DVD release.

Most musicians have a hard enough time producing their music let alone having to produce hour’s worth of videos as well. So you could say that the need for visual content (as exciting as it can be) is holding back the growth surround sound music.

Live concerts are the most successful type of music DVDs, mainly because they are relatively cheap to produce.

For ‘audio only’ DVDs to catch on, consumer expectation will have to be ‘re-trained’ to expect what they might consider as less. I feel that the days of distributing film or music products on any type of disk is going to disappear fast.

What does the future looks like for surround sound?

The real turning point will come when the Internet becomes surround sound friendly. A new MP3 surround streaming module has just been announced that allows manufacturers to build web radios featuring true 5.1 surround sound.

Many people surf the Internet sitting at their desk, listening to music for hours at a time. Soon they will be able to surf and listen in surround sound. Small near-field computer monitors would work perfectly.(especially wireless ones).

It’s inevitable that 5.1 radio and TV broadcasts will soon become the norm. Even without the music business, embracing surround sound as anything more than a small niche, the amount of people with a 5.1 system is steadily increasing.

At this point, surround sound music becomes a viable ‘audio only’ product. If the surround sound community can simplify the production process even more allowing the average project studio to easily create surround sound content, we should all benefit.

I predict there will be a tipping point where all of a sudden the ‘need’ for surround sound music will exceed the amount of available products.

Live surround sound music can be amazing. I went to Berlin and mixed a gig by the experimental Electronic band ‘Warren Suicide’. Instruments and vocals flying around the room in surround sound mayhem. It was great, and opened my eyes to what I hope is ‘the future’ for certain styles of music.

Dance music is an area I really hope starts to explore surround sound. The drum/synth based repetition is perfect fodder to trigger a quantum leap in 5.1 music production. All the technology is now available to present surround sound mixes in smaller clubs or ’surround rooms’ in larger clubs.

I have to quickly point out that the 1 in 5.1 stands for sub-woofer (a dedicated speaker designed to carry just low frequencies). This on its own is a major step forward for dance music fans.

DJ producers in particular can take control of the ‘low end’ of their tracks and shake the furniture more than ever before. Because one doesn’t have to squeeze all that low end into the same speakers as everything else it allows for a more overall dynamic mix.

Music mixed in 5.1 surround sound gives us the opportunity to produce and listen to music in a completely new way.

Both as a composer and as a engineer, I personally feel liberated, set free from the confines of stereo. In this case more really is better. The extra speakers/channels give you more ‘room’ to put your music.

My hope is for ‘audio only’ surround sound music to take off. Music is, after all, the world of the invisible – it seems a shame to connect it at the hip to pictures. Your mind processes visual images first, then sound. So pictures can distract people who might listen more carefully without them.

There is room for both music videos and surround sound music without the videos.

‘What kind of gear do you need to start mixing in surround sound?’:

a) A reasonably fast computer

b) Music software package that supports 5.1 mixing (Logic Audio, Pro-Tools etc.)

c) Minimum 8 channel audio interface (Motu, Digidesign )

d) Five matched self powered speakers, and a sub-woofer

Mixing In Surround Sound:

When I first started mixing something in surround sound, I went out and purchased three sets of Sony Mega Bass self powered computer speakers. After connecting them directly to my audio interface outputs, I then assigned the surround sound out-puts in Logic Audio. I opened a song I was working on and spread the instruments out around the channels and hit play… Wow! The five mini speakers sounded great. Mixing in a tiny bit of subs from my Genelec sub-woofer, it sounded even better.

I know… I can hear engineers crying out.. ‘But what about…?’ Well, it’s unconventional but as a starting point this system does work. Now I own a full set of Genelecs, but I still use this approach.

The normal way to mix in surround sound is to have a matched system where the sub-woofer is driven from the speakers. A roll-off decides that everything below a certain frequency is sent on to the sub-woofer. I favour rooting the signal directly to the sub-woofer from a send on either my main out-put fadder’s or occasionally individual instrument fadder’s. This way I can choose which instruments to place in the sub-woofer and which not to.

I say to music mixers; ‘Approach the surround mix with a fresh concept, understanding that it can reflect a different side of the song/composition.’

I don’t recommend the approach of mixing both the stereo and surround mixes at the same time. It seems that one or the other will be compromised. You’re still ‘thinking in stereo’.

The effects needed and levels will be different in a surround mix. I find I use less processing overall especially compression, again it comes down to having more space to place the instruments.

So start fresh without any of your stereo effects haunting you. It’s one of those things that will save you time in the end, plus you will probably mix more creatively.

After a little guess work and experimentation I managed to figure out the right level to print my mixes. Again the sub-woofer channel was tricky, but after burning a few trial DVDs trying different levels I got the hang of it.

I played some mixes I had done in my studio at Real World and Metropolis Studios and they sounded right. It shows you can produce your own surround sound music at a reasonable cost, even in a project studio.

There are hours worth of surround sound production tutorials available from all the major music software companies. Just visit your software makers web site to get started.

Of course the absolutely best way to mix music in surround sound is to go to a top recording studio. If you’re just starting out with surround sound, mix a track with the guidance of a highly trained professional engineer, who has experience with surround sound mixing.

There are great audio engineers who would (for a smallish fee) come to your project studio and ‘consult’ with you on the technical elements of your mix.

If you are producing a DVD for commercial release, it’s still best to get your project professionally mastered. Any decent music mastering facility can (to a point) rebalance your surround mix, so if you are a little heavy or light on the subs they can deal with it then.

Tips on ways to create your own visual content:

The quality you want to achieve is normally connected to the expectations of your audience.

With enough time and energy you can make videos using a consumer DV camera and Final Cut Pro (or PC equivalent). DV cameras are generally just not quite good enough for any ’serious filming’, but if used creatively for certain situations it’s possible to pull it off. HD camera’s are much higher quality but still do cost a lot more to buy.

Live concerts and gigs can work well though. If you are doing a gig, ask around all the people you know and see how many DV cameras you could borrow. If you have four cameras set up around the club, one camera to roam around and some decent lighting on stage, you’re in business. Make sure the people operating the fixed cameras don’t mess around during the filming. No zooming and out or trying to track the movements on stage. Perfectly still videos are much better to edit. Then in your film editing software, you can cut between different angles and add zooms, even simulate camera movement.

There’s no guarantee, but if the actual performance is strong enough, some of the production values will be overlooked.

Done well enough, you can produce a DVD using still images, like a slide show – again a good film editing program allows you to animate still photos way beyond what one might think is possible.

There are some fantastic animation programs like Bryce 3D, and Cinema 4D that are worth looking into. Start producing convincing 3D text an logos.

Warren Suicide are a great ad-sample of a band who are embracing the audio – visual age. Their DVD was produced by them, and although they worked really hard on it, the finished DVD was not expensive to make, but is just as imaginative and entertaining as any big budget music DVD I’ve seen.

How do I get my mix on to a DVD?:

There are, as you can imagine, quite a few ways available.

The huge majority of DVD players in circulation use the DVD video format. So I recommend choosing Dolby 5.1 or DTS encoding, don’t worry too much about all the others. DTS sounds just as good to me, but I found more options were available with Dolby 5.1.

All you really need is Final Cut Pro and DVD studio Pro or the PC equivalents. DVD Studio Pro comes with a audio compression program called Apac. Apac allows you to compress your six channel mix into a single 5.1 file, ready to place on a DVD.

These programs are not cheap, but they are worth every penny if you’re considering commercially releasing your DVD. Between them you can edit and effect your video footage/audio content, add text, export the outcome in a format which is ready to be authored and finally burned on to a DVD. WOW! All in you back room – not bad.