1 Educators providing Sound Engineering courses in Edinburgh

Employing a mix of practical exercises and critical reflection, this introductory day course provides an overview of fundamental techniques for recording and editing voice, ambiences and sound effects for podcasts, video/film and art installations or just for fun. The course uses industry standard software and introduces a range of popular, high quality microphones and portable recording devices. The course has enough flexibility to be steered by the individual interests of the participants, but you will generally cover; the properties of sound, microphone selection and placement, gain structure, effective planning, noise limiting and reduction, sound editing, dynamics, sound processing and spatial effects. If desired, we can look at a variety of techniques for improving sound quality and recording audio from video conferencing, as we all find ourselves working and interacting in this manner every day. Computer experience is required. Morning Microphone Selection – why and when to use Applications, characteristics, limitations Microphone type – Dynamic, Condenser, Lavalier, Shotgun, Boundary, Stereo, Binaural Polar Patterns – Omni, Cardoid, Attenuated and others Practical microphone placement and technique Critical distance, proximity effect, shielding, simple acoustic treatments, filtering Lavalier microphone – positioning, preventing distortion & rustles Booming – positioning, preventing microphone bumps Stereo Mics – phase issues Afternoon Editing techniques (fades, looping) Building a mix Basic sound processing, noise reduction and dynamics (channel strips, EQ and compression) Insert effects (modulation, filtering, distortion) Send effects (delay, reverb) Automation (of volume, panning etc) Bussing (sending signals to multiple fx) Mastering effects (limiting) Exporting and file types   Courses are subject to minimum enrolment. Please register early, within five days of the start date, to reduce the likelihood of course cancellation. Please read our cancellation policy before booking. Students, anyone over the age of 65, and those in receipt of any form of benefits can claim the concessionary price, offering a 10% discount on the full course price. Valid proof of eligibility must be produced on the first day of the course. Please use the code CONCESSION when prompted at checkout.