AUDIO EFFECTS

• Audio effects are hardware or software

devices that manipulate how an audio signal
sounds
• Time-based effects—Reverb, Delay and Echo
• Spectral effects—EQ and Panning
• Dynamic effects—Compression and Distortion
 Frequencies
• All sounds — everything you hear — are
essentially vibrations that we can visualize as
waves moving up and down at different speeds,
or frequencies
• The faster the wave moves, the higher the pitch
• Measured in Hz (Hertz)
• Hertz measures how many times (i.e., the
frequency) a wave completes an up-and-down
cycle in 1 second
• The decibel (dB) is the unit of measurement
used to express volume level or loudness
• Using equalizer means that you are increasing
or decreasing the loudness of that particular
frequency.
 EQUALIZATION

• the cutting or boosting of a particular

frequency (or range of frequencies) in the
frequency spectrum
• Adding some beef to low end or taking a bite
away from the treble
• By cutting or boosting certain frequencies, EQ
shapes the tone and character of your sound
• An Equalizer (EQ) divides the spectrum into
sections (called ‘bands’) that you use to cut or
boost parts of your sound
• Three band equalizers-
- Bass
- Treble
- Mid-range
• Bass and Treble = Shelving equalizers
• Mid-range= Peaking equalizers
 EQUALIZATION
• Bass means low pitched Low frequency
sounds like sounds of bass guitar, kick drum,Lo
Fi sounds from synths and male baritones
• Treble means high or medium
pitched/frequency sounds like piano
sounds,acoustic guitars, cymbals and female
voices and HiFi synth sounds
• Bass frequencies start on the left,
• with midrange frequencies in the middle
• and treble on the far right (like a piano)
• Prefer peaking over shelving filters-
Peaking cuts or boosts the desirable frequencies
Shelving cuts or boosts all frequencies in bass
and treble range
 Why use equalizers?
- Reduce scratch noise of old recordings
- Shelve low freq. and boost high freq. of older
recordings
- removal of hum and other unwanted
recordings
- Cutting high end will make your sound darker
- Boosting the high end will make it brighter
• Equalization not a substitute of proper
placement of microphone
• Keep in view the maximum limit of audio
mixer in handling highest possible level ( no
distortion occurs)
 Artificial Reverberation
- to compensate for acoustically 'dead' studios
- only mechanical reverb devices like spring and
plate used earlier
- digital reverb devices can even be operated
remotely
Reverberation
 What is reverberation ?
- An echoing sound
- When you bang on a big piece of metal, you
can hear the reverberation even after you
stop banging
- The repeating, often low, booming sound that
follows the strum of an electric guitar or the
thump of a drumstick on a cymbal is called
reverberation
• Reverb occurs when a sound hits any hard
surface and reflects back to the listener at
varying times and amplitudes to create a
complex echo, which carries information
about that physical space
• The most obvious examples of reverberant
spaces are tunnels, cathedrals, halls and caves.
• Reverberation time is the time required for the
sound to “fade away” or decay in a closed space
• used in studios to add depth to sounds
• changes the perceived spectral structure of a
sound but does not alter the pitch
• one of the oldest of all audio effects
• aims to recreate the natural ambience of real
rooms and spaces
• Gives vocals more fullness and sustain, and
will have a more “natural” sound to them
• Longer decay times give the impression of
larger spaces
• Digital reverberating effects simulate or
exaggerate natural reverberations.
 COMPRESSOR/LIMITER
• An audio compressor is a specialized amplifier
that reduces the gap between the loudest part
(peak) and quietest part of a signal
• Loud sounds made softer and soft sounds
made louder
• LIMITER: just a compressor that is used to
make sure a signal doesn't get much louder
than the threshold level
• Compressors are used to compress the sound
• Making more quiet sounds stand out more
• Done to sound natural on a recording
• For example: Imagine a whisper and a scream
on the same audio track. If they were the
same difference in loudness as they are in real
life, it would be very distracting!
• Compressors fix it by attenuating the loudest
parts of your signal and boosting the result so
the quieter parts are more apparent
 PANNING
• the distribution of a sound signal in a stereo
(or multi-channel) field
• creates the illusion of a sound source moving
from one part of the soundstage to another
• Stereo sound systems have evolved from a
single speaker to a set of two, left and right.
This has allowed us to move from mono to
stereo sound playback
• Panning works by letting through more or less
of a signal into each speaker, creating various
spatial effects
• lets you prevent muddiness and masking in
your mix (when two sounds cover each other
up)
 Echo and Delay
• Delay is an audio effect that records an audio
signal for playback a set period of time after
the original signal
• Delay can be played back in different ways to
achieve sounds such as echoes that decay
over time, or a pronounced repeated doubling
effect that adds new layers to a recording
• Most delays work by playing back the dry
signal while also playing back the wet or
‘delayed’ signal shortly after the original
• Shorter uses of delay, like slapback or doubling
effects, are useful for filling out a
performance, especially vocals or guitar
 DISTORTION
• Distortion is an overloading of the audio circuit
that causes the signal to clip
• warmer” sound impression, or a harsh one
• Distortion changes your original signal by
pushing the sound to clip and compress. This
adds harmonic content and colors the sound in
a pleasant way
• makes your sound fatter and fuller
• adds complexity and body to your sound
 Reference links
• https://blog.landr.com/audio-effects-plugins-g
uide
/
• http://blog.dubspot.com/understanding-audio
-effects-an-overview
/