Sonic Design / Exercise

September 26, 2024 - 

26.09.2024 –  / Week1 – Week

Ryoma Kato / 0365874

Sonic Design / Bachelor of design (Honours) in Creative Media

MIB

LECTURE

Week1:

The lecture started by explaining what we will cover over the 14 weeks of this class, including an overview of the assignments and their due dates. After that, the lecturer gave an introduction to Adobe Audition.

Week2: 

The lecture not only covered how to use EQ but also provided a detailed explanation of the parameters of reverb and how to apply it. Additionally, we applied the knowledge learned in class to process an audio file provided by the lecturer, reducing noise and adjusting the EQ to make it sound like the audio was coming from inside a closet. For the exercise given in this session, we applied different EQ and reverb settings to the same audio file to create the effect of the sound coming from a bathroom and from inside a stadium.

Week3: 

In the third week's class, we learned how to create different sounds from a single audio source. The lecturer explained how to manipulate one audio file in various ways, such as stretching it, adjusting the timing, applying different EQ settings, panning, adding reverb, and using fade-ins and fade-outs. By layering the same sound multiple times and applying these techniques, we were taught how to transform a single sound into something entirely different.

Week4: 

EXERCISE

Exercise1:

In this exercise, the lecture give us Original music file and other 4 versions of the Audio with slight EQ. We need to open the EQ and edit the parameters of the other four audio files to make them the same as the original audio.

My answers for questions 1 to 4 are as follows.

(A screenshot of my answer for audio file 1)

(A screenshot of my answer for audio file 2)

(A screenshot of my answer for audio file 3)

(A screenshot of my answer for audio file 4)

Sometimes I compose the song for my hobby so until the first three question its not difficult for me but the last question, I need to slide other point so I felt little hard. 

Exercise2: 

Use EQ and Reverb effect and edit the original audio to fit each situation.

Original

(The Original file)

In the Closet

Edit the I applied an effect to make it sound like it’s coming from inside a closet. 

( The editing screen of Exercise2 1)

First, I cut the lower hz but it didn’t sound the way I envisioned, so I ended up boosting the low Hz range to recreate the sound as if it were coming from inside a closet.

The bathroom

( The editing screen of Exercise2 2 )

This time, I applied an effect to make the original audio sound like it’s coming from inside a bathroom. In addition to using EQ, I also applied a reverb effect to accurately capture the echoes inside the bathroom. 

The Stadium

Exercise3:

Make three type of sounds (Explosion, fireworks and 3 punching).

The explosion

( The editing screen of Explosion sound)

I created the explosion sound by layering several explosion sound effects from the audio files provided during the lecture. I also used techniques like reverse playback to enhance the effect. In class, we experimented with stretching the audio, but I didn't feel it was useful for achieving the sound I wanted, so I avoided using that method. Instead, I focused on applying simple EQ adjustments, setting appropriate volume levels, and slightly shifting the timing of the layered sounds to recreate the explosion sound.

( The completed explosion sound effect )

The fireworks

( The editing screen of Fireworks sound )

( The editing screen of Fireworks sound EQ )

( The editing screen of Fireworks sound, Echo for others)

( The editing screen of Fireworks sound, Echo for biggest sound )

For the fireworks sound creation exercise, I used five explosion sounds, adjusting the PAN and volume to replicate the sound you would hear when watching real fireworks. For the EQ, I primarily boosted similar low-frequency ranges across the sounds. For the final firework, I applied a stronger echo effect compared to the others, and I also boosted a wider frequency range in the EQ, making the sound more powerful and impactful.

( The completed Fireworks sound effect )

Three Punching

( The editing screen of Punching sound )

( The editing screen of Punching sound, First punch EQ )

( The editing screen of Punching sound, Second punch EQ )

( The editing screen of Punching sound, Third punch EQ )

( The editing screen of Punching sound, First punch Other parameter )

For the exercise of creating three punch sounds, unlike the previous two sound designs, I didn’t layer sounds. Instead, I recreated them using EQ, delay, reverb, echo, PAN adjustments, and volume settings. First, I thought about the order in which the punches would be thrown, imagining a left-right-left sequence, and applied PAN adjustments accordingly. Next, I set the EQ: for the first punch, I boosted the low frequencies to simulate a punch near the face. For the second punch, I boosted the high frequencies, imagining a hit to the stomach. The third punch was envisioned as a big, final hit, so I boosted the high frequencies less than the second punch, allowing for more resonance to remain afterward.

As for reverb and other effects, I applied none to the first punch, a slight amount of reverb to the second, and a much stronger reverb, delay, and echo to the final punch to leave a strong lingering impact. The goal was to make the last punch feel like a powerful, climactic blow.

( The completed Three punching sound effect )

In this exercise, there were many factors to consider, such as what kind of EQ adjustments would achieve the ideal sound, and what other techniques besides EQ should be applied. Since there wasn’t a clear right answer, it was quite challenging to decide on the parameter settings and the types of plugins to use.