Sound editing in Final Cut Studio: audio editing and sound design with Final Cut Pro 7 and Soundtrack Pro 3

409 Pages·25.477 MB·English

by  Sobel, Jeff

Apple Pro Training Series
Sound Editing in
Final Cut Studio
Jeff Sobel
Apple Pro Training Series: Sound Editing in Final Cut Studio
Jeff Sobel
Copyright © 2010 by Peachpit Press
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ISBN 13: 978-0-321-64748-1
ISBN 10: 0-321-64748-3
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Contents at a Glance
Getting Started ........................................ 1
Lesson 1 Sound Editing Basics ................................... 8
Lesson 2 Sound Mixing Basics .................................. 44
Lesson 3 Getting to Know Soundtrack Pro ........................ 82
Lesson 4 Fixing Audio Files .................................... 112
Lesson 5 Editing in Frequency Spectrum View ................... 158
Lesson 6 Recording in Soundtrack Pro .......................... 182
Lesson 7 Editing Dialogue ..................................... 212
Lesson 8 Automated Dialogue Replacement
Using the Multitake Editor ............................ 244
Lesson 9 Spotting Sound Effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
Lesson 10 Scoring Using Loops ................................. 294
Lesson 11 Advanced Mixing Techniques .......................... 328
Lesson 12 Conforming Multitrack Projects ....................... 356
Glossary ............................................ 370
Index .............................................. 384
iii
Table of Contents
Getting Started ............................. 1
Lesson 1 Sound Editing Basics ......................... 8
Understanding the Sound Editing Process ................. 10
Cleaning Dialogue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Normalizing Audio .................................... 11
Normalizing a Group of Clips ........................... 14
Controlling Dynamic Range ............................ 14
Separating Signal from Noise ........................... 18
Controlling Audio Frequencies .......................... 23
Correcting Highs and Lows ............................. 26
Removing Hums ...................................... 27
Integrating Sound Effects ............................... 29
Constructing Ambiences ............................... 30
Editing Subframe Audio ................................ 34
Enhancing the Scene ................................... 38
Adding Music ........................................ 39
Lesson Review ........................................ 43
Lesson 2 Sound Mixing Basics ........................ 44
Mixing in Final Cut Pro ................................ 46
Fading In and Out .................................... 46
Using Audio Keyframes to Fade ......................... 50
Solo and Mute Controls ................................ 52
Engaging the Button Bar ............................... 55
Setting Audio Levels ................................... 56
The Audio Mixer Window .............................. 59
Setting Up Views in the Audio Mixer ..................... 61
Mixing On the Fly ..................................... 62
Controlling Keyframe Frequency ........................ 64
Resetting All Keyframes ................................ 65
Creating Perspective ................................... 66
iv
Contents v
Finishing Your Mix .................................... 68
Mixing in Soundtrack Pro .............................. 68
Sending to a Soundtrack Pro Multitrack Project ............ 69
Performing Basic Mixing Tasks .......................... 71
Muting and Soloing ................................... 71
Adding Fades ......................................... 72
Adjusting Levels ...................................... 75
Automating Level Changes ............................. 77
Returning to Final Cut Pro ............................. 78
Lesson Review ........................................ 80
Lesson 3 Getting to Know Soundtrack Pro ............. 82
Opening Sequences from Final Cut Pro ................... 84
Sending Sequences to Soundtrack Pro .................... 84
Exploring the Soundtrack Pro Editing Workspace .......... 87
Working with Panes ................................... 88
Working with Tabs .................................... 90
Using Window Layouts ................................. 92
Setting Project Properties ............................... 94
Setting the Sample Rate ................................ 94
Working with Timecode ................................ 96
Controlling Playback .................................. 97
J-K-L Playback ........................................ 99
Moving Around the Timeline .......................... 100
Positioning the Playhead .............................. 100
Using the Scrub Tool ................................. 101
Exploring the Track Header ............................ 102
Volume and Pan ..................................... 102
Mute and Solo ....................................... 104
Returning to Final Cut Pro ............................ 105
Lesson Review ....................................... 111
Lesson 4 Fixing Audio Files ......................... 112
Getting Ready to Perform Audio Restoration ............. 114
Sending Audio Files to Soundtrack Pro .................. 115
Exploring the File Editor Project View ................... 118
Using the Global Waveform View ....................... 122
Redrawing Waveforms ................................ 123
Analyzing an Audio File ............................... 125
Zooming In on Problems .............................. 129
vi Contents
Fixing the Problems Soundtrack Pro Detects ............. 132
Working with Actions ................................. 134
Locating an Action ................................... 136
Reordering Actions ................................... 139
Removing Actions .................................... 139
Reducing Noise ...................................... 140
Exploring Noise ...................................... 140
Setting a Noise Print .................................. 142
Using the Reduce Noise Dialog ......................... 143
Bypassing Noise Reduction to Hear Your Original Sound ... 146
Adjusting the Noise Reduction Level .................... 147
Applying Noise Reduction ............................. 148
Refining Noise Reduction Settings ...................... 149
Rippling Your Changes to Final Cut Pro ................. 149
Using Soundtrack Pro Scripts to Speed Up Your Work ..... 151
Lesson Review ....................................... 156
Lesson 5 Editing in Frequency Spectrum View ......... 158
Using Frequency Spectrum View ....................... 160
Exploring the Frequency Spectrum View ................. 160
Linear Versus Logarithmic Scales ....................... 163
Controlling the Spectrum ............................. 164
Setting the Frequency Range ........................... 166
Adjusting the Spectrum Power Controls ................. 169
Adjusting View Color Scheme .......................... 171
Resetting the Frequency Spectrum View ................. 172
Working with Frequency .............................. 173
Removing Frequencies ................................ 178
Finishing Up ........................................ 180
Lesson Review ....................................... 180
Lesson 6 Recording in Soundtrack Pro ................ 182
Opening a Multitrack Project .......................... 184
Using the Timecode HUD ............................. 186
Working with Tracks .................................. 189
Creating Tracks ...................................... 189
Reordering Tracks .................................... 191
Deleting Tracks ...................................... 191
Naming Tracks ...................................... 192
Locking Tracks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192
Contents vii
Setting Up for Recording .............................. 193
Choosing a Track to Record ............................ 194
Choosing a Recording Input ........................... 195
Choosing a Channel Configuration ..................... 196
Adjusting the Channel Setting .......................... 197
Displaying Recording Settings in the Track Header ........ 198
Recording a Single Take ............................... 199
Choosing a Recording Destination ...................... 199
Arming a Track for Recording .......................... 201
Setting a Recording Level .............................. 201
Resetting the Peak Indicator ........................... 202
Recording a Take ..................................... 203
Collecting the Project ................................. 205
Using Punch Recording ............................... 209
Lesson Review ....................................... 211
Lesson 7 Editing Dialogue .......................... 212
Using Soundtrack Pro’s Editing Tools .................... 214
Using the Selection Tool ............................... 214
Using the Blade Tool .................................. 217
Deleting Clips ....................................... 218
Using the Timeslice Tool .............................. 219
Arranging Clips ...................................... 220
Disabling Snapping Mode ............................. 221
Moving Clips in a Single Track ......................... 222
Nudging Clips Frame by Frame ........................ 224
Adjusting Clip Duration .............................. 225
Setting the Default Time Stretch Algorithm .............. 229
Truncating Overlapping Clips .......................... 230
Blending the Rerecorded Dialogue into the Scene ......... 234
Creating a Cycle Region ............................... 234
Adjusting Track Volume ............................... 235
Using Actions to Adjust Clip Volume .................... 236
Working with Ambient Noise .......................... 239
Lesson Review ....................................... 243
Lesson 8 Automated Dialogue Replacement
Using the Multitake Editor .................. 244
About Multitake Editing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246
Setting Up for Multitake Editing ........................ 246
viii Contents
Creating a Guide Take ................................ 248
The Multitake Editor ................................. 251
Converting a Clip into a Multitake Clip .................. 251
Naming Takes ....................................... 252
Cycle Recording in the Multitake Editor ................. 253
Deleting a Take ...................................... 255
Adding a Prerecorded Take ............................ 256
Reordering Takes ..................................... 257
Auditioning Takes .................................... 258
Slipping Takes ....................................... 259
Creating a Composite Take ............................ 260
Splitting Takes ....................................... 260
Selecting Takes ....................................... 262
Using Transitions .................................... 263
Adding Transitions ................................... 264
Working with Fades .................................. 265
Lesson Review ....................................... 267
Lesson 9 Spotting Sound Effects ..................... 268
Setting Up for Spotting ............................... 270
Exploring the Bin and the Browser ...................... 272
Previewing Files in the Bin ............................. 273
Opening the Browser ................................. 274
Locating Files in the Browser ........................... 274
Adding Browser Files to Your Project .................... 275
Using the Multipoint Video HUD ....................... 278
Spotting with the Multipoint Video HUD ................ 279
Three-Point Edits .................................... 282
Using the Search Tab to Find and Spot Sound Effects ...... 285
Setting the End of Project Marker ....................... 291
Additional Practice ................................... 293
Lesson Review ....................................... 293
Lesson 10 Scoring Using Loops ....................... 294
Setting Up for Music Production ....................... 296
Switching the Project to the Beats-Based Ruler ............ 296
Searching the Apple Loops Library ...................... 298
Opening the Search Tab ............................... 298
Looping vs. Non-looping Files ......................... 302
Using Snapping to Place Clips in the Timeline ............ 303
Contents ix
Setting the Tempo of the Project ........................ 305
Resizing Looping Files ................................ 307
Creating an Original Score Using Apple Loops ............ 309
Using Crossfades ..................................... 316
Choosing the Fade Type ............................... 318
Using Markers to Set Tempo ........................... 319
Using the Master Tempo Envelope ...................... 319
Adapting Tempo to Onscreen Video Cues ................ 322
Lesson Review ....................................... 327
Lesson 11 Advanced Mixing Techniques ............... 328
Preparing for Mixing ................................. 330
Naming Submixes .................................... 331
Routing Tracks to Submixes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 333
Mixing the Project ................................... 335
Adding Real-Time Effects to Mixer Tracks ................ 335
Using Voice Level Match .............................. 340
Blending Music and SFX .............................. 342
Using Busses and Sends ............................... 343
Creating a Bus ....................................... 344
Naming Busses ...................................... 344
Working with Effects on Busses. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 345
Using Sends ......................................... 346
Setting up for Surround Mixing ........................ 349
Returning to Final Cut Pro ............................ 353
Lesson Review ....................................... 354
Lesson 12 Conforming Multitrack Projects ............. 356
Working in Parallel ................................... 358
Importing Changes from Final Cut Pro .................. 359
Sending the Revised Edit to Soundtrack Pro .............. 359
Conforming Projects ................................. 361
Reviewing Changes ................................... 363
Viewing Clip Details .................................. 364
Approving Changes .................................. 365
Filtering, Sorting, and Grouping Clips ................... 366
Finishing ........................................... 368
Lesson Review ....................................... 368
Glossary ................................. 370
Index .................................... 384