Field Recordings, Part 2

Here's part two of my article on field recordings - part one of which can be found in the archive. This will give you an idea how much work goes into preparing the sounds I've collected for use in audio projects.

Once I have the raw recordings transferred from the Zoom H1 to my hard drive, it's time to edit them. Because I record a lot of sounds these days, I've made it a habit to announce what I'm recording at the beginning of each file. Before I started doing this I had trouble keeping track - especially if I didn't get around to editing files right away.


Step 1: I load the raw file into Sound Forge, my audio-editor of choice. I then trim the ends a tiny bit to remove the click noises produced by the Zoom's record button. When recording, I take special care to make sure the audio doesn't 'peak' (a techy term for overloading the mic, resulting in a distorted recording). As a result, the raw recording is often very quiet. So I normalise (increase the volume of) the file to 98% (2% below 0db or maximum).

Step 2: I remove any rumble from the recording if it requires it. Some of the lower bass frequencies can muddy a recording, so as a rule of thumb I EQ out anything below 80hz, which is about as low as the human ear can hear. If there's traffic noise in the background or particularly troublesome bass frequencies I'll go as high as 225hz. Mild wind noise can sometimes be scrubbed out in this manner too.

Step 3: Dynamics/compression. Oftentimes with digital recording the sound you capture is but a shadow of what was heard at the time. Compression allows an increase in volume while preventing the high peaks (the parts of the sound that have hit the 98% volume ceiling) from distorting. It also lifts subtleties such as ringing sustains, reverb, etc... that are naturally present but too quiet to discern in the recording's raw state. The downside to this process is it makes the background noise louder as well. But luckily there's a secret weapon to deal with that in step 4. Compression works best for very loud sounds, such as metallic objects being struck. Softer sounds, such as birdsong and streams, etc... are usually left as-is.


Step 4: Noise reduction. Once I have my file optimised for volume, it's time to scrub out some of the annoying background noise. I use a program called Goldwave for this. Its noise reduction filter allows you to feed in a sample of the unwanted background noise and magically scrub those frequencies from the recording. It requires some restraint, though, because being heavy-handed with this feature can harm the recording rather than improve it. I listen carefully to each file and adjust the settings to reach a natural-sounding balance. In some cases I'll apply a preset called 'gentle hiss/rumble reduction' if noise reduction affects the sound too much. Unless the sound is too problematic to clean (in which case I fall back on some extra EQ or discard it) the end result is a nice clean-sounding file.

Step 5: The final step is to load the cleaned file back into Sound Forge for final editing. I cut out parts of the file that have microphone or wind noise, or other unwanted sounds that haven't been completely removed by the scrubbing process. This is also when I cut files containing multiple takes into single pieces or 'one-shots.' These can then be used as-is, or loaded into a sampler and played as an instrument.

I've worked with these techniques on and off over the years, but this is the first year I've combined them as an archival process. I'm learning things all the time about how certain sounds respond: how much compression to use here, and how much noise-reduction to use there. There's still no substitute for capturing the cleanest sound possible in the first place, but when you're at the mercy of a noise-polluted environment or a sudden gust of wind, a little software can do wonders.

General Update

So here's what I've been up to. Work continues on the soundtrack project. Some really good songs are coming together after a bit of an uneven start.

I hope to start mixing Episode 1 of Tales in December. In the meantime, I'm concentrating on getting the last three scripts finished and editing sound effects. With winter setting in, I won't have access to the woods for much longer. More sounds are needed for the new scripts that I could have been collecting in the summer. There will likely be a fair bit of cheating in the studio!

I also hope to find the time to write a short story to submit for a collection called The Bell Club.

The Saga of the Typewriter

Introduced in the first episode of Tales of Elves and Trolls is a contraption called a 'type-writter.' In essence, it's a typewriter to the Nth degree: a steam-powered lump of metal, pistons, cogs, and keys. In order to create the sound of this beast, I set out to find a typewriter to record in-studio. This was easier said than done!

I've frequented thrift shops, flea markets, and garage sales for years. A lot of the electronic toys that I turned into circuit-bent instruments have been sourced from them. And, yes, I've seen my share of typewriters in them too. But when it came to actually needing one, none were to be found. I came close: I found a monstrosity of a thing at the Re-Use Centre, which looked like it came from a WW2 army hospital. Unfortunately, it didn't sound as big as it looked, so it remained hidden away on its dusty shelf.

Months passed. I located no less than two electric typewriters, and had a local antiques dealer keeping an eye out for a mechanical one. It was time for plan B. I sent my aunt an e-mail. She teaches at the local college, so I figured if anyone could find me a typewriter it would be her. Lo and behold, a few weeks later I was loaned this 1925 Remington 12:


It weighs as much as a small planet, but fulfills all the requirements and is blessed with a wealth of character. Just gazing upon it is a treat. I gave it a rudimentary clean and set about working out what sort of microphone configuration would best capture its sound.

After a little experimentation, I settled on placing my contact mic beneath it (it's open at the bottom) and suspending the CAD GXL1200 above it on a gooseneck stand. The typewriter produces an incredible amount of vibration despite its weight, so the stand had to be placed on a separate surface to the one supporting the typewriter to avoid unwanted 'mic stand wobble' noise. There wasn't much choice with the contact mic (which in this case is acting as a pickup rather than being attached to the surface of the sound source), so a towel was placed underneath.


As with my breeze block experiment some weeks ago, I recorded using both mics at once, on separate channels. My plan is to mix both recordings together after I've edited and pitch-shifted them. There's a surprising amount of variation in the sound of each keypress, so I recorded the entire sequence I need for my production (two takes) as well as additional sounds such as carriage return, bell, paper-winding, etc...

My only worry at this point is the length of the recordings. Not counting the extras, they add up to several minutes. The scene in the story should realistically be under a minute. I have a feeling I'll need to speed the typing up or edit keypresses closer together or ... something. Oh, the joys of real life vs. fiction! At any rate, there's a lot of other work to be done on these recordings before I reach that stage. The GXL1200 source will need compression, to bring out the nuances lost to the low headroom of digital recording, and the contact mic source will need noise reduction and possibly EQ. I'll explain that process in more detail in 'Field Recordings Part 2,' whenever I get around to posting it.

You may be wondering why I've gone to so much trouble when I could just as easily have used a couple of generic typewriter sounds from a sound effects collection. Well, for one it's a lot of fun, and as I mentioned before: each keypress has a unique sound depending on which bit of the antique mechanics it activates, and how hard you press it. There are also subtleties such as parts of the typewriter vibrating from the sheer momentum behind the tension of the carriage. All these things, I hope, add up to a unique and expressive 'performance' rather than a stale computer-generated facsimile (not that there's anything wrong with the latter).

New Equipment

In anticipation of the soundtrack work and the sound effects I'll be doing, I've picked up some new bits and pieces for the studio:


CAD GXL1200 pencil-style condenser mic. I already had a vocal mic by CAD, the GXL2200, but it's an upright mic and not very practical for positioning in front of instruments or devices. This one is tailored for instruments and acoustic sounds. I bought a gooseneck for it as well, so it can be positioned with some degree of precision.


ElectroHarmonix Small Stone Phaser (Nano). I've wanted one of these for ages, and finally found an excuse to buy one. This is the Nano version, which is technically the same as the vintage model only smaller. It has a unique sound and was famously used by Jean Michel Jarre on his 1976 album 'Oxygene,' to process synthesized strings and rhythm boxes, among other things. I have pretty much the same use in mind.


Danelectro Spring King. I have something of a fascination with the sound of springs. I even went so far as to build my own spring reverb out of a small slinky and a poster tube once, but it didn't work very well without amplified input and I never got around to building an amp for it. So, I bought this instead. It has its own built-in amp circuit, some real springs, and a digital delay circuit inside: all to emulate spring reverbs found in vintage guitar amps (and, as a friend of mine reminded me, found in the ARP-2600 synthesizer). I doubt very much if a guitar will be going anywhere near this. It will mostly be used with my synths, keyboards, drum machines, and circuit-bent devices.

New Soundtrack Project

Well, things have been a little quiet here but I've not been idle. I have several posts in the drafts folder awaiting completion, and have been busy behind the scenes on several projects.

I'm about to start work on a soundtrack project, for a show to be released by Gypsy Audio. Beyond that I can't really say much, as I don't wish to give away any spoilers. Suffice to say that everyone involved with the project is excited about it and anxious to get started. As with Tales I'll be keeping records of my work, but won't be posting about it until the project sees a release.

Wish me luck!

Tales: Casting Update

The first auditions for the Tales Audio Drama are now over, and all roles for episodes 1-3 filled. I won't say it was an easy process. There were times I felt a cast wasn't going to gel. But overall it's been a success and the scripts have all been sent out.

Having characters that are very close to my heart brought to life is a mixed blessing. They've been part of my life now for almost ten years. I've come to know them inside and out; to hear their voices in my head. To match an actor to the voice is no mean feat - especially with a limited number of applicants. I've been very lucky though to attract some amazing talent to the project. The voices might not match my vision 100%, but the characters will forge new and exciting paths, in the hands (mouths?) of their new caretakers.

Tales Music: Turned To Stone

Another transition piece for Tales Episode 1, 'Turned To Stone' marks the demise of the Troll Tree Removers after they're petrified by the sun's rays. I wanted it to have a haunting quality. The first idea that came to mind was the sound of tingsha (Tibetan prayer cymbals). These are small cast bronze cymbals on a leather strap which produce a high-pitched ringing when struck together. They're more like bells in that respect. Each cymbal is supposed to sound identical, but possibly mine are slightly out of whack because they produce some harsh harmonics. This just adds to the character though, making them all the more suitable for this track.

I started by recording several takes into my CAD mic and selecting the best ones. If the cymbals wobble about too much you get a wobbly-sounding recording, so after some experimentation I got some clean takes. You can be sure I kept the wobbly ones too, though - you never know when they might come in handy!

I loaded the sample I was happy with direct into Sonar (my multi-track software) and repeated it every couple of bars. I applied reverb to soften the sound a little, but had to tweak it quite a lot. Certain frequencies were bouncing around and sounding horrible. This served as my guide for adding other instruments.

Next I added a plucked spring sound, sampled from my 'Spring Thing' which is nothing more than two dishwasher springs mounted on a board. But hooked up to a contact microphone it sounds fantastic. This already had a reverb all its own, but I added extra software reverb and it totally stole the show.


For the third element I turned to the K-Station synth, with the intention of adding a slow, bright, metallic arpeggio. My tweaking produced a detuned sound - not unlike bells that have been really messed up - more suited for melody, so a melody it was. In an attempt to fit melody to tempo, I threw in a bass-drum sample to play to. That lead to the mimicked sound of a slow hearbeat, which echoes the plight of the poor trolls and further enhances the track.

Oh yes, I almost forgot about the growls. I took a sound from my modified Yamaha PSS-140 FM keyboard and pitch-shifted it way low in shortcircuit. To me it sounds like the growl of an alien animal. No real reason for adding it except that it adds some spookiness.

By then the track was pretty much finished, to my mind. But there's always the temptation to add more, and later on I thought of some string parts and had to try them out. I called upon my trusty Crumar Performer analog string synthesizer for this. I dropped the bottom and mid-range out via the on-board EQ, and modulated the pitch. The latter is a trick I used on the Doctor Who: Mechalution soundtrack / Let's Build Mecha e.p. to give the strings a wailing, melancholy quality, not unlike tape-wobble.

The final element I added was a Chinese woodblock (also called a 'wooden fish'). This was again recorded using the CAD. It sounded too bright in my first version so I pitch-shifted it about an octave lower and EQ'd out some high-end.