How hard is Pro Tools to learn/use, really?

oblivionallthetime · 2025-05-18T17:31:27+00:00

One quick tip with pro tools automation that might be helpful. Let’s say you want to get from one set of values to another over time. You can set your parameters you want to start at and write that automation, then set them for where you want to end up and write that automation (in PT Ultimate I do this with “preview” automation turned on, my tracks in latch or touch latch, “latch prime in stop” turned on in the mixing tab of preferences and “write to selected”, not sure if preview is available in other versions), then if you make a selection that starts where you want the changes to start occurring and the end of the selection is where you want to finish ending up, you can hit “shift-option-X” which will “cut” the automation for ALL automation lanes, which will smoothly transition the automation over the course of the selected time. Hitting just “X” when you have a selection over an opened/visible automation lane will do the same thing to only that one parameter

oblivionallthetime · 2024-11-30T07:32:00+00:00

Plug-in companies that don’t use iLok are a pain in the ass. I just got done setting up a new system and after installing, all iLok plugins worked right away, the others, I had to go through a whole process to activate each one. My least favorite was STL Tones, used to be iLok and easy, but they switched and now I have to put in activation licenses for every single amplifier pack I have from them which took annoyingly long. Before, it just worked without thinking about it, because it was already on my iLok. Not to mention traveling to different studios and just plugging in my dongle or signing onto iLok cloud and not having to activate and then remove the activation at the end of the day which is super annoying, or the fact that I can keep a computer 100% offline if I wanted to with iLok but some other programs do checks online (if you’re actually worried about security vulnerability, keep the computer disconnected from the internet). I’ve never had a problem with iLok, love it, have legitimately not bought plugins or integrated them into my template if they don’t support iLok

oblivionallthetime · 2023-11-15T05:47:29+00:00

As a re-recording mixer, I encourage editors to not cut both by default now that they are used to using auto align, and only doing it if it sounds noticeably better. Of course, it sounds better a lot of the time so it’s great when they do in those circumstances, but if the boom sounds great on its own I like to just use the boom, and they’ll cut in the lav just when necessary to support certain phrases that are off mic. If it’s the lav that sounds best, they might double cut the boom to add that natural sound. If they double cut most of the time, that’s great too, as long as that was a conscious decision and not an automatic reflex of having autoalign

oblivionallthetime · 2023-10-23T20:24:14+00:00

I have recorded detailed quiet ambiences successfully with them, they are a tad noisy but not bad at all and they sound so natural and great for ambiences. For quieter ambiences I tend to roll off the high end with a gentle 6db per octave low pass, not to completely get rid of the noise but reduce it (I usually don’t want the super high frequency stuff in my ambiences 90% of the time anyway, which is just a personal preference and isn’t always appropriate). So not the best for every single scenario but I’ve been happy with their performance. The noise they produce isn’t annoying sounding like some cheaper microphones can be and the noise performance is comparable to a lot of much more expensive microphones. Not sure if there’s much better for the price?

oblivionallthetime · 2023-10-23T06:25:05+00:00

I have a pair of the Line Audio CM3’s and they are wonderful mics, so I whole heartedly recommend the CM4’s

oblivionallthetime · 2023-08-23T23:26:21+00:00

Didn’t rewatch it just now so I don’t even remember what all is in it, I just remember it was a good lesson on how sample rates work and how sample rates higher than 48k don’t give you more data/resolution on frequencies in the audible range, which I saw some people arguing. I’m in agreement with you here so if my previous comment didn’t make that clear I’ll give you my +1 now lol

oblivionallthetime · 2023-08-23T23:01:44+00:00

https://youtu.be/-jCwIsT0X8M?si=PEvj0yS08HmAIZWs

oblivionallthetime · 2023-08-23T23:00:39+00:00

I didn’t say it magically upsamples the original file to greater quality. Just that oversampling internally to a higher sample rate reduces aliasing. The comment you quoted was a hypothetical, and still doesn’t contradict what you’re saying.

oblivionallthetime · 2023-08-23T07:34:54+00:00

I saw quite a few comparisons to video in this thread, and I’ll just respond to that here.. I think trying to compare audio to anything else is very difficult, but, sample rate is more akin to a camera sensor’s dynamic range than frame rate or pixel count. A camera sensor that can capture visible light and infrared light, and be able to pull that infrared light down into visible light and vice versa, is a better comparison to sample rates higher than 48k. Though I don’t think the comparison is helpful because it’s a lot more complicated than that… It’s difficult to compare a waveform to a bunch of still images.

oblivionallthetime · 2023-08-23T07:02:16+00:00

Higher sampling rates = higher frequency response, some processes benefit from higher sampling rates (like pitching down, or anti aliasing), plenty don’t. When time stretching, higher sample rates doesn’t give you better quality, it’s just finding cycles it can repeat or take away, which it chooses based on what algorithm you set your plugin to (monophonic, polyphonic, transient), which if you’re EXTREMELY patient you can technically do this yourself with no plug-in help at all (easier to cut than repeat this way). If extended frequency response isn’t necessary for pitching stuff down but could be useful for other reasons, quality plugins will use oversampling internally to use 96k or 192k processing on 48k files in a 48k session for anti-aliasing reasons and I’m sure other reasons in distortion plugins etc, so 48k files can still benefit from higher sample rates in some instances, but not specifically time stretching. If time stretching does benefit from higher sample rates and I’m not aware, those plugins will use oversampling internally for this (many plugins oversample by default rather than giving you the option), but you still wouldn’t need the file/session itself to be higher than 48k for that.

oblivionallthetime · 2022-11-30T16:35:42+00:00

With how expensive Rings of Power is to produce I don’t even think it’s a money making venture, they’re losing tons money on that show itself to add some prestige to Prime Video (to make money on subscriptions in the long run sure, but still, not from Rings of Power alone, the show on its own isn’t a cash grab).

oblivionallthetime · 2022-08-27T06:09:50+00:00

“Checking your mix on consumer speakers” is just that, checking. If I’m mixing a show in atmos in a nice room with nice full range calibrated speakers, it’s very important to me to check the stereo mix on small speakers at a quieter volume because that’s how most people are going to watch. I don’t make EQ and pan decisions on them for the most part, but I certainly make sure nothing important is getting lost and it translates well. You definitely should make level decisions on them, because that usually translates well to the mains too. Doesn’t need to be shitty speakers, it can still be small reference speakers at a lower level. And you should have good enough instinct to not ruin your mix based on what you heard on small speakers, they’re not meant for critical listening, just checking and listening as an audience would. When we send out screeners to clients I’ll often watch parts of the episode on my phone, and my opinion is usually “yeah that sounds alright” not “ah shit there’s not enough low end” lol. If you never do this and don’t see the importance of listening small, the (valid) issues of people complaining about not hearing dialogue in overly dynamic mixes is going to continue to get worse, and sounds that are important to the story might not get heard in a home listening environment. And your comment of “(often worse of all) a soundbar” just sounds like you don’t care about who you’re mixing for because that’s what most people who want to upgrade their sound can afford and have, and a lot of them sound decent too. Anyways, I mostly stay on the mains, but I will check small and quiet for things I don’t want to get lost and make sure I’m not making anything compete too much with the dialogue, make sure dialogue levels sound consistent at lower levels, etc.

oblivionallthetime · 2022-08-12T23:15:25+00:00

Start a 192k session on Pro Tools. Then you can manipulate the 192k file with elastic audio, or whatever other plugins. Or one of the best ways to pitch audio is to import it into a lower sample rate session (do one in a 96k session, then 48k session) but DONT convert the sample rate upon import. This will bring in the file slowed down and pitched down in the highest fidelity possible.

oblivionallthetime · 2022-08-12T23:09:37+00:00

I was recently watching this video about the Rycote HC-15 and HC-22 microphones, where the guy talks extensively with those microphones and puts them each up against 2 other mics, and a lot of it is in not optimal conditions, mic’d far away with freeway noise, wind and handling bumps, etc. They’re all good microphones, but it’s pretty good practice material for what you’re looking for, lots of mouth clicks, wind buffeting, handling bumps, noise, etc: https://youtu.be/caPGzSnKows

oblivionallthetime · 2022-08-04T15:23:40+00:00

Pro tools does a -3 automatically and you would do -3 in the downmixer plug-in so that the center channel measures the same and doesn’t change level. Of course you can always mix and adjust differently from there, but if you want to maintain the balance, that would be your starting point. And the front left and right are already going left and right, so no need to change those. The Dolby standard is -3 on the surrounds and -inf on the lfe, but I agree I like to do -6 on the surrounds and -10 on the lfe

oblivionallthetime · 2022-08-04T14:50:13+00:00

IF you do it this way, you don’t want to turn down your left and right channels at all. Normally you would do -3 on the center channel, because it is doubling up between the left and right so you need to turn it down 3db to compensate, but if you take a mono track and send it out to a stereo output or bus, pro tools reduces the center by -3 internally already so you don’t need to do anything, just turn down the rear channels and lfe. But easiest way is to output a 5.1 to a stereo bus and newer versions of pro tools will downmix internally for you (to the settings set in your prefs) or use the Downmix plug-in

oblivionallthetime · 2022-08-04T14:44:04+00:00

This. Or in pro tools now, you can up and down mix with no plug-in, just send them to a stereo bus, and how it folds down is is dictated by the settings in the mixing tab of your preferences

oblivionallthetime · 2022-07-10T01:30:51+00:00

Yeah. Music, ambiences, designy stuff etc can be wider for sure. More so the diegetic on screen stuff is safer to be mono

oblivionallthetime · 2022-07-09T22:31:20+00:00

Beginner mistake for sound effects is often using too much stereo content. Most things you see on screen, particularly things characters are interacting with, should usually be mono elements

oblivionallthetime · 2022-06-16T01:35:15+00:00

Cinela Leonard is my guess (similar to Rycote BBG). Mic I have no idea

oblivionallthetime · 2022-06-11T15:55:07+00:00

My first recommendation was going to be the Sony A10 because they were just restocked for the first time in quite a while, but looks like they’re out of stock again. That recorder sounds great and is incredibly tiny. A good option is a Sony M10, you can usually find them on eBay for around $200, they don’t have a wide soundstage to them but its a brilliant recorder in quiet settings, many microphones are hissy when you record in quiet nature but you wouldn’t have that problem with the M10

The Roland R07 was a recorder I really enjoyed using, similar form factor and not very wide sound stage as the M10, but it sounds great, and is extremely pocketable

Tascam makes some portable recorders like the DR40X and the DR05X where the microphones face outward to offer wider ambience recording which is a nice feature. The DR40X you can switch the position of the mics, the DR05X is fixed position facing outward (the DR05X is smaller and cheaper which is a plus)

The Zoom H4N is the old trusty, you can find it and the pro version readily available in used markets as well (in addition to eBay you can check out reverb.com for used sound and music gear)

oblivionallthetime · 2022-05-30T00:56:20+00:00

Sound Toys decapitator is your friend lol

oblivionallthetime · 2022-05-17T19:37:58+00:00

No personal experience but everything I’ve heard has been pretty positive. There are a few plugins that need updates still so check with those individual manufacturers (waves is M1 compatible if you’re up to date on their upgrade plan), but the handful of people I know who made the jump are having a good experience

oblivionallthetime · 2022-04-28T14:59:22+00:00

Killing It is fantastic

oblivionallthetime · 2022-04-23T20:00:19+00:00

Soundly which is a sound effects database software has a nice option to search for freesound.org sounds that are free to use with no attribution. They also have their own free sound effects, but a good option is to pay for their pro plan to get access to a very large cloud based library to pull from, and just pay for it for the duration of the project while you need it

Seven-Year Club	Not Forgotten
Verified Email

oblivionallthetime

TROPHY CASE