Curtis Judd 6/17/24 Curtis Judd 6/17/24

Sound for Video Session — Leveling vs Compression for dialogue sound & Q&A

When evening out dialogue or spoken word audio, most of us turn first to a compressor to do the job. It's the fast and easy way to get the job done. But, it isn't the only way and some suggest it isn't always the best approach, at least not on its own. Let's look at other techniques you can use to even out dialogue and how they each sound.

If you’d like to learn how to make great dialogue audio for your film and video projects, please have a look at my courses including processing dialogue audio in Adobe Audition and DaVinci Resolve/Fairlight, recording sound, how to use the Zoom F4, F6, F8, and F8n, and how to get the most from the Sound Devices MixPre series of recorders. We have a course on sound for live-streaming with the ATEM Mini, Introduction to Izotope RX for Dialogue Audio, and Mixing fundamentals in DaVinci Resolve Fairlight.

Gear I often use or that we mentioned in this episode. The links below are Amazon.com, B&H Photo, Sweetwater, or other affiliate links. As an affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases:

- Mackie DLZ Creator XS adaptive audio mixer — B&H, Sweetwater, Amazon

- Mackie DLZ Creator adaptive audio mixer (the original, bigger one) — B&H, Amazon

- Earthworks ETHOS microphone — B&H, Sweetwater, Amazon

- Allen & Heath SQ5 digital mixing board — B&H, Sweetwater, Amazon

- Sound Devices MixPre II Series Recorders - B&H, Sweetwater, Amazon

- Sound Devices 888 field recorder/mixer with Dante — B&H, Sweetwater

- Panasonic GH5 camera - B&H, Amazon

- Teleprompter Ikan 17" high bright — B&H

- Canon C200 Camera - B&H

- Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 lens — B&H, Amazon

- ATEM Mini Extreme & Extreme ISO - B&H, DVE Store, Amazon

- Rupert Neve Designs Shelford Channel, pre-amp, EQ, compressor - Sweetwater, B&H

- Universal Audio 6176 channel strip pre-amp, EQ, compressor — B&H, Sweetwater, Amazon

The intro and outro music for this episode is from Musicbed. Take your films to the next level with music from Musicbed. Sign up for a free account to listen for yourself.

Curtis Judd 8/15/21 Curtis Judd 8/15/21

Leveling Dialogue Audio with Izotope RX or any other Leveling Plugin

In this episode, we demonstrate how to use a leveler to even out audio levels between two different people recorded on a single microphone. We do this particular demonstration in Izotope RX, but the same principles apply to other apps and plugins. Adobe Audition, for example, has a similar leveler plugin.

If you’d like to learn how to make great dialogue audio for your film and video projects, please have a look at my courses including processing dialogue audio in Adobe Audition and DaVinci Resolve/Fairlight, recording sound, how to use the Zoom F4, F6, F8, and F8n, and how to get the most from the Sound Devices MixPre series of recorders. Our latest course is Sound for Live Streaming with the ATEM Mini.

Support my work creating videos by donating at Ko-Fi.com.

Gear used or mentioned in this episode. The links below are Amazon.com, B&H Photo, Sweetwater, DVEStore, Perfect Circuit, or other affiliate links. As an affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases:

- Izotope RX - B&H, Sweetwater

- Earthworks SR-314 microphone - B&H, Sweetwater

- Sound Devices MixPre II Series audio recorder - B&H, Sweetwater, DVE Store, Amazon

Take your films to the next level with music from Musicbed. Sign up for a free account to listen for yourself.