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Optimum audio levels in FCP
Can anyone offer any help for what different audio sources should peak at in FCP please? Obviously the final mix should not peak above zero db, but what about interviewee or voice over speech, and what about about music? Would between -9 and -6 db be about right for speech? Any help greatly appreciated.
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3 Replies
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You’re mix should correspond to your tones. Tone in FCP play back at -12DB in the timeline. I do not PEAK anything past -9. When recording you can afford to leave yourself some headroom as there is no margin for error in digital recordings.
When mixing for final output I try to keep peak levels Below -9. This then matches the tone well. So that anyone who lines up your tape with the tone can expect to get roughly the same levels fromthe rest of the program.
A few pointers.
1. Pan all Dialog tracks to the center
2. Leave FX and music in stereo pairs.This helps the dialog puch through the music.
You might also want to put a compressor on the Dialog so that it keeps a nice smooth level throughout your mix. This also helps the dialog cut the mix better and keeps levels more even.David
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
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Many thanks David. Is there an easy way to bring the whole level down with some sort of ‘master’ fader? My mix is OK but my overall levels may be a bit high. Thanks again.
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Nest the sequence into another sequence and bring the levels down. That is the fastest way to affect levels on the whole mix.
David
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
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