Sound Editing

Matt Thomas · August 20th, 2014, 03:28 AM

Hi Guys,

Just wanted to know how others would go about editing sound from two sources (two people speaking).

Now the TV channel I work at likes the sound to peak at -9dB and to be quite level to that as well.

So when I've been editing shows with multiple sources, I have been removing the other persons voice on the track which can be still heard in the background, so that when I use a compressor it doesn't bring the level of that up too loud when levelling out the voice of the source.

Just wondering if there is a better way for sound editing with two sources?

Thanks
Matt

Colin McDonald · August 20th, 2014, 04:28 AM

If
(1) you are delivering mono sound and
(2) the sound sources have very similar background ambient sound (eg. 2 voices placed fairly close together) then you might like to try just muting the other track in the sections where it is not being featured - one or the other all the way through.
Were I planning to edit this way, I would record a third track which picked up the actual voices as little as possible for consistent ambience/room tone, and mix a little of that in. That way can sometimes also work when delivering in stereo. Might not work depending on recording environment.

Matt Thomas · August 20th, 2014, 05:30 AM

yeah, that is what I've been doing so far, muting the audio when the other one is speaking etc but I'm just worried the change over will be noticeable as their is only the two audio sources and it's outside.

I don't have any involvement in the recording stages, so unfortunately I don't have any ambient track.

Thanks for your reply though.

Rick Reineke · August 20th, 2014, 08:56 AM

I use cross-fades a lot, x-ing between the tracks. A volume envelope/graphic-fade preset can facilitate the repetitive process. If an x-fade is audible, other means are necessary.
"I don't have any ambient track"
- If there are pauses in the dialog, (which there typically are) especially in movie scenes, room tone can easily be copied, pasted and looped. Capturing room tone in a TV/radio studio setting after the fact is fairly easy as there are far fewer changes in the environment.

Martijn Damen · August 28th, 2014, 06:46 PM

If I understand correctly you are having problems with spill:
[url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spill_%28audio%29]Spill (audio)
What mics do you/they use?

August 20th, 2014, 03:28 AM	#1
Matt Thomas Major Player Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: UK Posts: 232	Sound Editing - Two Sources Hi Guys, Just wanted to know how others would go about editing sound from two sources (two people speaking). Now the TV channel I work at likes the sound to peak at -9dB and to be quite level to that as well. So when I've been editing shows with multiple sources, I have been removing the other persons voice on the track which can be still heard in the background, so that when I use a compressor it doesn't bring the level of that up too loud when levelling out the voice of the source. Just wondering if there is a better way for sound editing with two sources? Thanks Matt

August 20th, 2014, 04:28 AM	#2
Colin McDonald Trustee Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Glasgow, Scotland Posts: 1,546	Re: Sound Editing - Two Sources If (1) you are delivering mono sound and (2) the sound sources have very similar background ambient sound (eg. 2 voices placed fairly close together) then you might like to try just muting the other track in the sections where it is not being featured - one or the other all the way through. Were I planning to edit this way, I would record a third track which picked up the actual voices as little as possible for consistent ambience/room tone, and mix a little of that in. That way can sometimes also work when delivering in stereo. Might not work depending on recording environment.

August 20th, 2014, 05:30 AM	#3
Matt Thomas Major Player Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: UK Posts: 232	Re: Sound Editing - Two Sources yeah, that is what I've been doing so far, muting the audio when the other one is speaking etc but I'm just worried the change over will be noticeable as their is only the two audio sources and it's outside. I don't have any involvement in the recording stages, so unfortunately I don't have any ambient track. Thanks for your reply though.

August 20th, 2014, 08:56 AM	#4
Rick Reineke Inner Circle Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: New York Posts: 2,039	Re: Sound Editing - Two Sources I use cross-fades a lot, x-ing between the tracks. A volume envelope/graphic-fade preset can facilitate the repetitive process. If an x-fade is audible, other means are necessary. "I don't have any ambient track" - If there are pauses in the dialog, (which there typically are) especially in movie scenes, room tone can easily be copied, pasted and looped. Capturing room tone in a TV/radio studio setting after the fact is fairly easy as there are far fewer changes in the environment.

August 28th, 2014, 06:46 PM	#5
Martijn Damen Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Valkenswaard, Netherlands Posts: 62	Re: Sound Editing - Two Sources If I understand correctly you are having problems with spill: [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spill_%28audio%29]Spill (audio) What mics do you/they use?