SFX Editing and Processing

Use the LISTEN editing mantra as a checklist throughout this assignment: listen, identify problems, signal process as needed, trim, examine fades, then normalize and name. Recheck the result after every change. The goal is a useful library sound that preserves the character of its source.

Part 1 - Editing

Use the five sources from Assignment 3 . Edit copies and keep the original recordings intact.

• Beds: Edit the large- and small-space recordings into two continuous, one-minute stereo beds.
• Details: Select and edit five distinct recorded takes from each of the three detail sources, giving you 15 mono effects.
• Remove slates and unwanted sounds, preserve natural attacks and decays, and use fades or crossfades for clean edits.

Total: 17 finished sounds.

Part 2 - Processing

1. Listen and compare: Identify a specific problem before applying EQ, compression, or noise reduction. Compare the processed sound with the original at similar listening loudness. Keep processing only when it improves the sound without damaging its character. A clean recording can remain unprocessed.

2. Ambience beds: Use EQ or noise reduction only where needed. Preserve the space’s texture and continuity. Avoid compression that makes the background audibly pump.

3. Detail variations: Use EQ, light compression, or cleanup only where needed. Preserve the differences between recorded takes and listen for softened attacks, lost decay, and noise-reduction artifacts.

4. Document decisions: Add a brief note for each of the five sources describing one problem and what you changed, or why you left it unprocessed. A sentence or two is enough.

Part 3 - Final Production

1. Final levels: After editing and processing, normalize each detail export to a peak of -0.5 dBFS. For each ambience bed, choose a peak target between -18 and -6 dBFS, following LISTEN. These are peak levels, not average loudness targets. Check the rendered files, since processing after item normalization can change the final peaks.

2. UCS naming: Follow the library organization lesson . Use UCS Finder to choose a CatID for each finished sound. In REAPER, open Item properties with F2 and name each item’s active take using CatID_FXName_CreatorID_SourceID, without the file extension. Use your initials as CreatorID and DAD310 as SourceID. Give each variation a distinct number within FXName, such as DOORWood_Knock Hollow Interior 01_TC_DAD310.

3. Exporting: Export all 17 finished sounds into a FINAL-SFX folder inside your REAPER project folder: two stereo environment beds and 15 mono detail variations. Use WAV, 96 kHz / 24-bit, matching Assignment 3. If your recorder required a lower sample rate for Assignment 3, export at that recorded rate in 24-bit and note it in your submission. For a mixed mono/stereo batch, set Channels to Stereo and enable Tracks with only mono media to mono files. Keep detail sources on tracks containing only mono media and beds on their stereo tracks. Check the output channel counts in the render file list or a dry run. If a detail source is stored as stereo or uses stereo effects, check its channel handling explicitly; use a separate mono render when needed. Each export must contain the complete sound: glue a finished bed into one item before naming it, or use a named region around the full bed. Choose Selected media items in File > Render and use $item for the filename. If the sound depends on track, bus, or master processing, use Selected media items via master and check the routing. For layered sounds, render named regions using $region. Preview the filenames for duplicates and listen to every export for clean starts, complete decays, and the intended processing.

4. Submission: Submit the zipped REAPER project folder with five clearly labeled source tracks and uniquely named finished items or regions. Include the five brief processing notes in the project or a separate document. Use colors if they help you navigate the session. Include the 17 UCS-named WAVs in FINAL-SFX and all source audio needed to open the project.

Grading Rubric (40 points total)

Total: ___ / 40