5 obstáculos comunes en la edición, síntesis y producción de audio.

Crear audio de alta calidad no es sólo una cuestión de talento y trabajo, sino también de identificar y superar desafíos tanto técnicos como psicológicos que pueden obstaculizar tu flujo de trabajo. Hablemos de 5 problemas comunes y algunos consejos para superarlos…

Ya es bien sabido que pasar periodos muy largos de tiempo sin descansos en una misma actividad no es bueno para la salud ni es eficiente en el trabajo por sí solo.

En el campo de la producción de audio y música no es diferente. Escuchar audio durante períodos prolongados puede nublar su juicio, su capacidad de interpretación se vuelve turbia e incluso puede dejar de escuchar detalles.

Además, en el ámbito de la musicalidad, la percepción del tiempo puede confundirse y las ideas que transmite la música empiezan a perder significado, similar a lo que ocurre en la mente cuando repetimos muchas veces la misma palabra… ¿Lo intentaste alguna vez cuando eras niño? ? ?. En definitiva, esto puede convertirse en frustración y llevarnos a querer abandonar un proyecto.

El proceso de audición, además de ser una transmisión de información al cerebro, que en principio genera sensaciones corporales o respuestas físicas, también resulta en una respuesta psicológica y emocional, muchas veces necesaria y útil como alimento de inspiración, por eso es tan delicado. este asunto. No sólo perdemos precisión en la calidad del audio sino también ganas de seguir produciendo.

Mi consejo sería: tomar descansos regulares y disciplinados, no más de 45 minutos frente al ordenador, escuchar a niveles moderados y si la emoción lo amerita, subir el volumen en determinados momentos. Puedes descansar escuchando otro tipo de música, o mejor aún levantándote de tu silla, aunque sea por un par de minutos. También funciona para intercalar proyectos, si no sientes un cansancio físico real o ligeros dolores de cabeza.

Un sistema de monitoreo de baja calidad no le permitirá escuchar con precisión los matices de su audio, o digamos que tendrá menos colores en su paleta de texturas auditivas, lo que puede provocar una mezcla desequilibrada.

Obviously, the first solution would be to invest in some good near-field studio monitors or quality headphones, however, in the event that we are drawing up an idea possibly outside the studio and there is no such option, you can calibrate your listening with a song that you know and admire the sound quality or some detail that you want to use as a reference, that way you will know what is the maximum in terms of the perception of the definition of sound that you are having at the moment.

Use reference music to study the system you are in so you can compare. Calibrate your monitoring system to ensure you’re hearing an accurate representation of your mix.

In most electronic musical genres we work with a strong “low end”. Club music is based almost entirely on the low frequencies of bass and the punch of electronic kick drums.

Personally, a mistake I used to make, especially when I started producing Drum&Bass, was adding too many elements in the music that shared the same frequency range. So, between a kick drum, a tom, a sound effect of ocean waves, a dubstep-style synth and a sub bass, it was impossible to distinguish any of them and the result was a muddy terrain of quicksand, like auditory mud, a really sound. resounding and painful.

First, to attack this problem is simply to try to simplify the elements that share rank, or at least have a dynamic between them, not all together at the same time. The other solution, which is almost always used in electronic production in one way or another, is the “sidechaining” technique.

Sidechaining consists of applying a compressor to temporarily attenuate the intensity of one of the colliding instruments at the moment in which the other instrument is playing, creating sound space.

This type of compressor would be applied to the most continuous sound, for example the bass line, and it would be fed with a “control signal” this would be the other instrument in question, usually: the bass drum.

Finally, equalization can also be used to sculpt the frequency space of each instrument, giving each other space in the spectrum without sacrificing its power.

Sometimes we may feel that some sounds lack strength or presence, perhaps they are not protagonists, but this should not be the reason they get lost in the mix.

Siempre me ha gustado trabajar con ruidos, efectos sonoros, capas de ambientes o elementos no tonales que ayudan a moldear la emoción en los temas, me refiero a que casi siempre caen en la categoría de arreglos musicales, y a veces el camión de música que está al frente no los deja expresarse.

In this case, a good tip is to experiment with compression, we will not be losing its volume or “flatness” while providing presence and intelligibility. Also using a stereo expander can help to subtly underline some of these sounds while preserving and enhancing their natural character, and the stereo expander is a tool that can take the piece to another level.

Electronic music composition ends up being performed by a computer, and it itself is quite cold. In other words, if we map out a rhythm track through pure programming, writing every kick drum and every hihat into our DAW of choice, it may lack groove and will sound robotic and lacking natural dynamics.

Use velocity automation subtly to simulate natural variations in performance. Explore creative programming of synth envelopes to create a more organic sound. In some cases, a live musical performance can inject more life than automation, try recording some elements with MIDI tools that add expression.

In the case of percussion, excessive quantization can make electronic rhythms sound stiff. One solution would be to apply selective micro-quantization to certain elements of the beat to give it a bit of “swing”.

Some DAWs have “groove” algorithms that generate these random variations in speed and time to make computer-made pieces warmer. The key is to find the balance between technical precision and musicality.

Ultimately, trust your ears and your ability to feel the music beyond hearing it…overcome these obstacles to take your audio production to the next level.