advice on sound treatment for sound effects

[dedo nervoso]

on the subject, I would like to hear your thoughts and advice for processing sound fx, be it synth or recorded.

my problem is that I always end up with a muddy/flat result along with the rest of the mix, even if the source is actually ok on its own. this is a part of my mixing that so far has been consistently lacking.

I would like to get them to sound sharper, as in stock sounds made by pros, if you know what I mean. Anyway, I would at least like to get closer to that.

how is it any different from handling instruments and such? what are the sonic qualities I should be shooting for to get them to play that role in the mix? and what tools are most fit to achieve this result?

this is more of a sound design issue than a mastering issue, I guess, so I posted it here. hope it's ok.

thanks in advance for your ideas

 

[dvyce]

on the subject, I would like to hear your thoughts and advice for processing sound fx, be it synth or recorded.

my problem is that I always end up with a muddy/flat result along with the rest of the mix, even if the source is actually ok on its own. this is a part of my mixing that so far has been consistently lacking.

that is what "mixing" is all about. That is 99% of what mixing is-- getting the sounds to lay well together. It is more about how the sounds interact with eachother than how they sound on their own.

I would like to get them to sound sharper, as in stock sounds made by pros, if you know what I mean. Anyway, I would at least like to get closer to that.

That all comes from mixing skills, too. But a huge huge part of that sound is from having a high quality recording input chain, from converters to preamps to mics to instruments to rooms to technique.

To get closer to that: aside from making sure everything you have in your "studio" is as high quality as possible, you need to really practice your "sound crafting" skills (with an emphasis on EQ and compression... you need to understand how and when to use them.)


...and with regard to you wanting to be able to make sounds closer to "stock sounds made by pros"... I don't know when the last time i heard a sample CD that was worth buying... most (i.e., 99.9999%) of these "pro" libraries are pure crap (my opinion... just had to throw that in there.)

how is it any different from handling instruments and such? what are the sonic qualities I should be shooting for to get them to play that role in the mix? and what tools are most fit to achieve this result?

i am not sure what you are asking here in the first sentence...

...sonic qualities? each sound should have it's own "space" in the mix. Figure out where in the sonic spectrum each of your sounds belong... then craft them to fit into thair own space... sculpt them subtly... carve away the areas that are unnecessary.

Practice on various pieces of audio by boosting and cutting and sweeping EQ settings and see the results. Understand what is happening. This takes a lot of practice. Audio mixing/creation is a craft... an art... it takes time to come close to truly understanding it.

this is more of a sound design issue than a mastering issue, I guess, so I posted it here. hope it's ok.

Well, it is not a "mastering" issue at all, really.

thanks in advance for your ideas

your welcome