Audio effects, we all know
what they are, sort of. They are used to manipulate
audio in ways that are not available with traditional
playing and recording techniques. In music production,
using effects can be for either aesthetic purposes
or technical purposes. Effects are used to help
us better shape the sound as we want it. Effects
are an integral part of music production, whether
we are working in the analog realm or the digital
realm.
Though there are a large
number of effects available today - especially
when we work in the digital music production
realm - all of these effects fall in one of
either three types. The three types of effects
are as follows:
1. Dynamic Based
Effects - These are the effects that
alter the dynamics of an audio signal. Altering
the dynamics translates into the alteration
of the level. Examples of dynamic based effects
are: the compressor family, including limiters,
maximizers, and expanders. These are used so
we can manipulate the dynamics of the performance
(soften parts that are too loud, or raise parts
that are too soft).
2. Frequency Based
Effects - These are the effects that
alter the frequency content of an audio signal.
By changing the frequency content of the signal
we can achieve a brighter or darker sound. This
is helpful when the recorded audio file lacks
in either of these qualities we want - such
as adding "air" to a female vocal to make it
sound crispier. Examples of frequency based
effects are: equalizers, distortion, and the
Wah-Wah.
3. Time Based Effects
- A personal favorite of mine, time based effects
are essentially delays and the derivatives.
Although there are reverbs, echoes, choruses,
flangers, phasers, these are all derivatives
of delay - the difference is in the time difference
between these effects: choruses have a shorter
time between two repeating signals than echoes
do, while reverbs are a cluster of delays. Time
based delays help us to shape the depth and
dimension of the sound within the mix.
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