BACKGROUND: You already know how to do some very basic recording using either the Sound Recorder or Vegas. This unit will help you to go a little farther than that.

PROCESS: To start, we simply need to know how to use our sound editing program. The program is called "Audacity" and it is on most of the computers in the room. Grab a set of recording headphones (we currently only have 4 sets, so you might have to share...) and plug them into a computer. Open up the Audacity Program.

Head to the website: "Recording with Audacity". This site focuses on the use of Audacity and walks you through the setup of all of the switches needed for recording. You will be stepping along through about 5-6 webpages of information that will teach you how to set up your computer for recording, how to save files and how to add effects.

Before class is up, get a copy of the announcements for the day and record them using Audacity. When you have the entire announcement read, click on File>Export as an MP3. This will save your announcement in MP3 format that we could podcast or publish on the web. HOWEVER, the first time you use this function, the program will ask for a LAME ENCODER. This file is on the V: Drive in the RESOURCES folder. Point the program to the file and it should export just fine!

DELIVERABLES: You will be responsible for a couple of deliverables for this unit:

• "The Daily Announcements": I will be giving credit for that first Daily Announcement recording that you create, make sure to save it and turn it in!
• "TOP FIVE": You will use Audacity to record your FIVE favorite musical pieces of all time. You can use any online source that you wish to get your music. Then, you will edit them altogether, with you as the DJ introducing each song and telling why the song is in your top five. Count the songs up from number five to number one.
• "The SOUND EFFECTS MIX": Using your editing skills, combine AT LEAST 10 different sound effects clips or music loops into one mixed piece that is at least 60 seconds long. This will probably end up sounding like a weird techno song. Burn it out as an MP3 for all to hear. Try checking out these websites below for some good sound loops and sound effects:
  • Flashkit.com: A good site for sound fx and loops of all sorts. I recommend downloading MP3 files, whenever possible, as these come straight to your computer. WAV files come zipped and need to be unzipped before you can use them.
  • freesound.com: An online collaborative, with tons of great content, a little hard to navigate, though, try searching for the sound you need.
  • free-loops.com: decent site, with a good deal of loops and clips. Not the easiest site to browse, though.
  • looperman.com: site with 5000+ clips and loops.
  • audiosparx.com: A decent looking site, with searchable clips, most of it is pay to download, but you can preview clips, with leading and trailing "Preview!" voiceovers. Creative use of recording software might be useful here.
• "The Movie Sound Mix": You will use Audacity and Vegas to provide the soundtrack to a piece of film. You can download the following two files and save them to your V: Drive Folder, but I recommend COPYING THESE TWO FILES FROM THE RESOURCE FOLDER ON THE V: DRIVE!:
  • "Strange Chase" MPG Movie.
  • Strange Chase Vegas Project File, complete with FOUR blank audio layers.
• Open the Project File in Vegas. The program will likely say that it is missing the MPG clip. Tell Vegas you will locate it and browse until you find the MPG in your folder. Then you are ready to do some sound engineering. 
  • Review the movie clip.  Become familiar with the action on the film, so that you can find appropriate sounds for your mix.
  • You will need to provide ALL SOUND for this clip.  Including, but not limited to:
    • Dubbing of character voices.
    • Sound effects: Car engines, sirens, screeching wheels, crashes, etc.
    • Background music:  as appropriate
    • Other sounds:  Gulping noises, lighters flicking, background birds, etc.
  • Collect or create your sounds using your microphone or the sound effect websites above.
  • Mix them as necessary in Audacity, then place them into Sony Vegas. You can have up to FOUR audio tracks on a Vegas project. Don't be afraid to use them!
  • When you are done, "MAKE MOVIE" out of your final clip.  Place this into the V: Drive DROPBOX, call the movie "lastname_movie_mix"