"Secret Weapons Of Audio Editing - Part 2"

In our previous newsletter, we discussed techniques for preparing non-looping audio material for internet streaming.  In this issue we will continue on that topic and get into additional techniques for improving the quality of your audio.

How High Is Your EQ?

One of the most important techniques for optimizing the quality of an audio recording is the proper use of equalization, or EQ.  For the uninitiated, this simply means the addition or subtraction of high and low frequencies - i.e. bass and treble to enhance or compensate for a less than optimal frequency response in your source material.

There are several reasons why your music or dialogue track might need adjustments in EQ: poor-quality mastering of the original audio material; poor quality capture of dialogue - i.e. not the best microphone choice or placement; or one of the most common reasons - a low-quality sample-rate or .mp3 conversion, which can cause a loss in frequency response.  This is due to the fact that as a lower conversion setting (bit-rate) is used to create and .mp3 file, a corresponding loss in primarily higher frequencies can result.  Adding back in a wider frequency response to a low bit-rate recording is more difficult and produces poorer results than properly mastering audio BEFORE .mp3 conversion, so anticipating your final bit-rate needs for .mp3 recordings is an important step, assuming that you are beginning with a CD-quality recording - i.e. .aif or .wav file at 44.1 KHz / 16-bit.  This is because it is much easier to compensate for loss in EQ in advance, than having to add back in frequencies that were lost during .mp3 conversion, which can often result in audio artifacts and no appreciable benefit to audio quality.

Just A Little Bit, Please.


We will be covering bit-rates for .mp3's in a later issue, but for now, let's assume that we are working with an .mp3 file that has been converted at a bit-rate of 128 Kbps or lower.  While there may have been some loss in lower frequencies, it is likely that the most benefit can be achieved by boosting frequencies from about 2-3KHz by about 2-3 db.  This is a very general recommendation and by no means would be appropriate for all audio source material.  However, it should give you a starting place to explore EQ settings and motivate you to take a more active role in listening to EQ in general when evaluating your audio.

In our next issue, we will continue our discussion of EQ and how to improve the audio quality of your recordings.

Until next time,

EZ Edit Music 

www.ezeditmusic.com

EZ Edit Music was born out of the idea that web-designers and interactive advertising agencies often do not have the time or budget to hire a commercial composer to create a specifically-tailored soundtrack for their website; but have also found it difficult to find music that not only fits the necessary mood, but is also prepared in a format that is ready for internet streaming.  All of our music tracks have been specifically composed and edited to be used as website background music soundtracks, saving you the time and cost of hiring a sound editor to prepare an existing licensed music track for internet streaming(which typically costs more than the license fee for one of our music tracks).  Our music library is constantly growing and offers a wide variety of music to suit many different industries and services.  We have also created a unique search engine to help take the guesswork out of choosing the right kind of music; plus the ability for you to audition and experiment with re-mixes for any song before you license a music track from us.  We invite you to explore what we have to offer by visiting us at: http://www.ezeditmusic.com.

"Secret Weapons Of Audio Editing - Part 1"

In our last newsletter, we completed our discussion of looping techniques for achieving seamless loops for your music tracks.  In this issue we will get into some more techniques for improving the streaming and playback of audio for your website.

Avoid The Clicks.

When selecting music or dialogue tracks for playback on your website, you will often be selecting segments or edits of longer tracks.  While we have already discussed looping techniques in past newsletters, there will also be instances where you will not be creating loops and only be concerned with playing an audio segment from beginning to end.  Often this will involve starting and/or ending at a point where audio is playing.  There may not always be a point where you can start/end a track during silence, so it is important to edit the audio to begin and end without an abrupt jump in volume - or worse, with an audible 'click'.  The most common technique for doing this is to use a 'fade-in' (at the start) and a 'fade-out' (at the end).  Assuming you have the appropriate audio-editing software, you can adjust not only where to place the fade, but also the duration and slope of the fade.  Using a fade will insure that your audio begins and ends at 'digital zero' which equals silence.

The length of the fade is important to consider, depending on the source material.  For instance, if you are editing a dialogue track, you will likely be using a very short fade-in - often a fraction of a second, just long enough to start from digital zero to the beginning of the waveform.  If you are editing a music track, then a longer fade-in/out may be more appropriate, also depending on the musical style.

Silence Is Golden.


In addition to using fades to edit your music or dialogue track, you may also consider adding a short amount of silence before the start of the audio - perhaps a quarter to a half a second (250-500ms).  The reason for this is that sometimes when audio is streamed over the internet, the process of buffering by your computer and audio hardware will cause the audio to be muted briefly at the start of playback, causing a listener to miss the start of the audio track.  By adding a brief amount of silence at the start of the track, we are compensating for this possible muting effect and insuring that the beginning will be heard.

When dealing with dialogue tracks, there may also be instances where silence can be used to clean up background noise between long pauses in the dialogue, making for a cleaner, more professional result.  I mention this now because it is an edit you might as well make while working on the start and end of a dialogue track.

In our next issue, we will continue our discussion of specific editing techniques for your audio.

Until next time,

EZ Edit Music 

www.ezeditmusic.com

EZ Edit Music was born out of the idea that web-designers and interactive advertising agencies often do not have the time or budget to hire a commercial composer to create a specifically-tailored soundtrack for their website; but have also found it difficult to find music that not only fits the necessary mood, but is also prepared in a format that is ready for internet streaming.  All of our music tracks have been specifically composed and edited to be used as website background music soundtracks, saving you the time and cost of hiring a sound editor to prepare an existing licensed music track for internet streaming(which typically costs more than the license fee for one of our music tracks).  Our music library is constantly growing and offers a wide variety of music to suit many different industries and services.  We have also created a unique search engine to help take the guesswork out of choosing the right kind of music; plus the ability for you to audition and experiment with re-mixes for any song before you license a music track from us.  We invite you to explore what we have to offer by visiting us at: http://www.ezeditmusic.com.