# Sound Design



## germancomponist (Jan 22, 2011)

On many websites you can find people by claiming himself to be sound designer. When I listen to the audio examples I am often very frightened about what 's being marketed as sound design... . :mrgreen: 

Perhaps you can post examples/links to good and not so good sound design?

What do you think?


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## RiffWraith (Jan 22, 2011)

I know exactly what you mean.

If you are looking to hire a sound designer, check IMDB to see if they have any listings, and if so what. Also check their website for their credits.

Gunther, if you actually need a SD, I can recommend a few people to you who have worked on feature films. PM me if you would like me to forward your info along.

Cheers.


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## noiseboyuk (Jan 22, 2011)

I'm guessing you mean sound design in the film / TV sense, Gunther? (I've seen the term also used for synth patch programmers).

I've just bought The Sound Of Star Wars, focusing of course on the greatest living sound designer imho, Ben Burtt. A fantastic and weighty book, with a digital audio player thrown in! The man is peerless, still as innovative and brilliant today as in 1975 when he started on Star Wars. I was just reading a great bit where he was away for a week in New Mexico's White Sands, hoping to record some huge rockets and engines for the spaceship sounds. He ended up using the broken air conditioner in his motel room! It's his ability to hear the unusual and transform its application completely that is so inspiring.

Skip Livesay is another deeply cool sound designer. I was first really aware of his stuff on Barton Fink - superb.

I do sound design on a humble TV level. I read about the months spent acquiring sounds for feature films and drool! All we have the time / budget for most of the time is to use and adapt stuff from sound effect libraries...


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## germancomponist (Jan 22, 2011)

Hi Riff,

I am not looking to hire a sound designer, but I thought it is worth to discuss this theme here, because...... .

Thank you for your kind offer!


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## chimuelo (Jan 22, 2011)

I think everyone should learn various synthesis methods and construct their own sounds since only you know what you need.
Even if you just learn the basic methods, it will help assist anyone you might employ to work for you.

Personally I have involved myself into DSP based Modular synthesis since I have a massive array of modules and tools built over a 12 year period.
Sure I would love to own these in hardware, but it's almost impossible to build some of them, and the costs would be astronomical.

But what I did do was have one of my converters changed around electronically so I could use a few custom Filter modules that are Analog.
It's like the best of both worlds actually.
Oscillators, be it in Digital or Analog are not noticably different, especially the basic Sine/Square/Triangle/Pulse/Saw/Random, but Wavetable and Sample Oscillators are much better from the Digital/DSP world, especially since I can use as much RAM per Oscillator as I see fit now that we're x64.

But the Filters are where the rubber meets the road, and Digital Filters still have purposes I suppose, but they are nowhere near as Fat Juicy and warm as the real McCoys of Analog are.

Sound design is so much fun and when combined with your selection of musical phrases and notes, is what makes YOU sound like YOU.

I have always thought Omnisphere is the best sound design tool around. Many of us have been doing what Omni does for years already, but not in a single application.
Imagaine having a few Analog synths, and several hardware samplers and effects units 10 years ago.......
Thousands of dollars of gear.
Omnisphere gets you going for a fraction of that cost.

But I like my hardware " Omnisphere " better... :mrgreen:

If you really want an excellent SOund Design platform, I still think Symbolic Sounds Capy/Paca's are the apex of real sound design.
The finest DSP platform for that type of work.


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## Synesthesia (Jan 22, 2011)

All good ideas emerging.

My personal favorite story of sound design is the Terminator 2 opening: the skulls crunching under the foot of the terminator skeletons are created by pointing a pencil small diaphragm condenser at a pistachio nut between to steel plates which are then tightened together until it shatters.

This is the kind of sound design I love!

Cheers

Paul


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## David Story (Jan 22, 2011)

Ben Burtt is great. So are Randy Thom and Walter Murch. They all are great public speakers, and have interviews on youtube.

This article is genius:
http://transom.org/?page_id=7006

My friend Richie Nieto is an amazing sound artist:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBG-qQMs ... r_embedded

His video makes it easy to observe how much of the story is in sound.

I'm finishing a mix for a show where I served as music and sound supervisor. Highlights:
1) It's hard to properly mic a shopping cart. 
2) Designing an earthquake.
3) Mixing dialogue and fire breathing.


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## germancomponist (Jan 23, 2011)

noiseboyuk @ Sat Jan 22 said:


> I'm guessing you mean sound design in the film / TV sense, Gunther? (I've seen the term also used for synth patch programmers).



Hi Guy, I mean sound design in the film / TV sens. 

Synth patch programmers are using the same term, but are not true sound designers, yes, no?


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## Ned Bouhalassa (Jan 23, 2011)

David, thanks for the link to the amazing Murch article!


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## germancomponist (Jan 23, 2011)

Yes, a good article, David. Thanks for the link and thanks to chimuelo and Paul.

Any other suggestions, links, stories?


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## Ned Bouhalassa (Jan 23, 2011)

Gunther, I'm not sure if it's still being updated, but there's a ton of great reading here: http://filmsound.org/


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## germancomponist (Jan 23, 2011)

Hey thanks Ned, very much infos there.


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## noiseboyuk (Jan 23, 2011)

Doesn't get much better than this!

http://benburttinterviews.blogspot.com/ ... -wall.html


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## germancomponist (Jan 23, 2011)

noiseboyuk @ Sun Jan 23 said:


> Doesn't get much better than this!
> 
> http://benburttinterviews.blogspot.com/ ... -wall.html



Cooool!


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## wst3 (Jan 23, 2011)

germancomponist @ Sun Jan 23 said:


> Hi Guy, I mean sound design in the film / TV sens.
> 
> Synth patch programmers are using the same term, but are not true sound designers, yes, no?



This may be an unpopular view, but I don't think there is a large difference between sound designers who create sounds for film and sound designers who create sounds for synthesizers or samplers.

The thing that differentiates a sound designer of either camp from the rest of us is the ability to imagine a sound, and then create a means to realize it.

I've done sound design for live theatre for years, and it is a variation on the other two categories, but the basic steps are the same. First you have to imagine it, then you have to create it, and in this case you have to create it in a way that is repeatable.

My own preference is for effects that are created live, on stage. If you can do it that way it adds to the realism, if real is what you are going for. I do use a LOT of electronic sound creation and playback tools as well. Recently I had the opportunity to design sound for a play titled "Ghost Train" - which is famous for the stuff they built to create the sounds! I opted for electronic sounds, and when I created the sounds of the train I chose not to use any train sound effects. It was fun!


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## germancomponist (Jan 23, 2011)

wst3 @ Sun Jan 23 said:


> This may be an unpopular view, but I don't think there is a large difference between sound designers who create sounds for film and sound designers who create sounds for synthesizers or samplers.



The difference between creating sounds for film and creating sounds for samplers is not large, I agree, because you are allowed to sample whatever you want and tweak it in any way you want.

But creating sounds for a synthesizer, I would only call sound-programming. You only can use what is there inside the synth and you will not get beyond these limits. No matter how good the synthesizer is. If your idea asks for more options, then it is useless for this idea. :D


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## chimuelo (Jan 23, 2011)

Well let's give the Foley Artists their fair share of credit then.
I still love the 3 Stooges for the crazy crap they did back in the late '30's.


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## wst3 (Jan 23, 2011)

germancomponist @ Sun Jan 23 said:


> But creating sounds for a synthesizer, I would only call sound-programming. You only can use what is there inside the synth and you will not get beyond these limits. No matter how good the synthesizer is. If your idea asks for more options, then it is useless for this idea. :D



An interesting observation! And I suppose it is true if you are talking about an ARP 2600<G>, but even that beast can create a pretty amazing variety of sounds.

I think modern, software based synthesizers have fewer limitations... I've used tools like Alchemy to create sounds that I might have otherwise chosen to sample.

Design vs. Programming - yes, interesting division!


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## wst3 (Jan 23, 2011)

chimuelo @ Sun Jan 23 said:


> Well let's give the Foley Artists their fair share of credit then.
> I still love the 3 Stooges for the crazy crap they did back in the late '30's.



Believe it or not I think that is, in an odd sort of way, the goal of most sound designers... to be able to do as much with modern tools as the brilliant minds that created sounds for cartoons and shows like 3 Stooges.

I watch things like that and it makes me crazy that they did so much with what we'd have to call, today, a limited tool set.

It is part of the reason I still have lots of little noise makers and hand percussion lying around<G>...


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## germancomponist (Jan 23, 2011)

wst3 @ Mon Jan 24 said:


> Design vs. Programming - yes, interesting division!



...and also worth to discuss, I agree. o/~


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## germancomponist (Jan 23, 2011)

Rudi Rüssel, a german foley artist:


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