Sony Room Tone : how to use it ?

[Kubler]

Hi everyone !

I discovered this freebie recently and was a bit puzzled at first. I guess it is meant to add an element of realism and cohesiveness to a mix made of perfectly processed virtual libraries. I read someone's comment that said it added some kind of subtle "texture" to the sound.

What do you think about it ? I suppose the trick would be to balance it in a way where it has an actual effect on the sound without seeming to be an annoying parasite thing. How would you guys tweak the levels ? Would you process it in any way (upstream in the mastering chain for instance) or just let it as it is, as the final touch to your track ? … Any thought is appreciated ^^

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[erica-grace]

I wouldn't. The noise is already there with sample libraries (same way it is with the recording of a full orchestra). And if you layer samples, you have way MORE noise than the recording of a full orchestra.

Unless you are adding right before and after the music starts and ends, or to VSL's silent stage recordings, adding noise to virtual libraries that are never perfectly processed, is just adding noise on top of noise.

 

[alexkishmusic]

Though I don't use it often, I've found that on sparse tracks with periods of silence between entrances it can help mask the abrupt end of sample tails, where a track becomes awkwardly silent in an artificial way after a sample stops. One strategy might be to gate the room tone track so it's only audible during these periods.

 

[TimCox]

Room tone is useful for silence between sections as Alex just said, particularly if there's a lone soloist since the recorded room tone will cut out with said soloist. Absolute silence in a mix is a no-no!

 

[Kubler]

I understand better ! I will probably give that a go just to see how it affects the result. Thanks for your feedback everyone