Session 1: This week and next I’ll be demoing several techniques that apply to your final projects. Today let’s discuss a few tips and techniques for audio production. Some of these you’ve heard before, but bear repetition. Studio time will also be available.

Tips to remember when producing audio:

1. Garbage in = garbage out. If your recording doesn’t sound good, try again. Try not to waste time fixing something that should be re-recorded.
2. Use EQ in to mould your mixes. Each track should have its own frequency spectrum, especially in the low end. Filter the lows out of tracks that don’t need to occupy that space.
3. Trust your ears. In the end it is up to you to decide how to mix your piece. Listen carefully and keep changing things until it sounds right.
4. Use fades frequently. Sound rarely stop abruptly. Fade in and out tracks for more natural sounding mixes.
5. Don’t over process (or under process). Too much reverb or delay will diminish the clarity of your mixes. Use processing sparingly to enhance the realism of your piece.
6. Listen, listen, listen. Listen to your mixes loud and soft in different places and on different speakers and headphones. If you rely on headphones your mixes will lack detail and be too bassy. Don’t.
7. Timing is everything. Without time sound does not exist. Poor timing is obvious to everyone. If you hear or see bad timing put in the effort to fix it.
8. Mixing is mostly volume. Instead of turning one thing up, turn everything else down. If you keep turning up things you will eventually cause clipping.
9. Don’t forget the panning. Panning places sound physically in space and will help match the sound to picture. Be careful not to over-pan your mix out of balance.
10. Backup your work. This should really be number one. Don’t forget that you have a terabyte of cloud storage with OneDrive.

Session 2: Today is an optional open lab for feedback and questions regarding you final projects. You will not be marked absent if you decide not to attend.