How normalize/optimize music for voiceover?

In a single music track can be many level variation.When the music must be in background for voiceover this variation can be a problem to lisen the voiceover. Manualy keyframe to keep the music at the same level take a lot of time. Can do a macro command like normalize/optimize for muzic?

I believe the audio guys call this "ducking" - lowering the background track to make room for the voice. Resolve has a built-in Ducker.
Not exactly an in-depth explanation, but now you know what to search for.

You could also actually mix it by moving the music track fader and recording automation in the Fairlight page.

I am delivering to YT, so overall Loudness needs to be less than -14LUFS. Check spec for your destination.

I will start and mass normalize all the dialogue to -16LUFS and BG music to -24LUFS. These two will add up to about -14lufs

Apply your dialogue effects, compression, NR, EQ, etc. Sadly the normalization doesn't take these into account. So you will need to adjust track level per ear to get back to reasonable level.

Resolve has had ducking via compressor and side chain for years. They added a new simpler ducking tool not too long ago. youtu.be/vpi94QYzkxM?si=zaD5zlDFIDHeAI8a

After that, play through and listen and tweak clip overall gain or keyframe to cut out coughs or what not. Its a long process for sure.



After done, again sadly Resolve doesn't have a one click option to check overall loudness.

The loudness tool in Fairlight is realtime, so the entire duration needs to play out for it to give you a loudness.

Or You can export everything, run it though Shutter Encoder and have it give you a loudness in 2s, and then adjust buss levels in Resolve accordingly, and re-export.

Or you can bounce everything to a new track, meter the loudness on that in few seconds in fairlight. Delete the bounce, adjust levels, re-bounce, meter again.

Or you can use the normalization in the deliver tab and have it move the overall gain to hit target (and pray it sounds good).

If the voice is mono and the music is stereo what is the good practice? Use Pan function from the Farilight Mixer or convert mono to stereo using Clip Atributes and duplicate the mono channel?

Simply pan the mono track to the centre. No need to convert at all.

If the Voice is mono, it should go on a mono track.

If the background music have many variation of level, rhytm, accent how to keep it at same level perception during the dialog or voice over?

With music or voice that has a wide dynamic range it can be reduced by using a compressor on the track, and adjusting its settings to bring the dynamics under control. You can also use a compressor to add punch to a voice.

I will add that if the music has instrumentation or pacing that conflicts with the voice, then it is the wrong music.

This short 4 minute tutorial explains how to set up semi-automatic audio ducking.

When you click on it select "Watch on YouTube".

I tried ducking function, slidechain, and AI audio assistent and i am not happy with results.My projects ist a indie documentary movie and i am dobt that at festivals will accept the sound make this way. I want to combine old school with new automation tool. I already set the voiceover and dialog level but the problems remain the music. The limiter function from the Dynamics keep it hte music at same limit -30 db but when i have a small pause of voiceoer or dialog i cant to increase manualy the music level with Keyframe.The limiter effects its not efficient like limitter from Dynamics. How to solve this?

How to solve this?

Hire a skilled Sound Editor?

Seriously. For a Festival Doc, it maybe worth it.

Final Cut Pro has a very quick audio ducking method.

Click on the R key and drag your cursor along the timeline to select the range for ducking.

Then drag the volume line down and 4 keyframes are automatically applied to ease the volume in and out.

If it needs fine tuning you can drag the keyframes.

There is a free 90 day trial of FCP>

https://www.apple.com/uk/final-cut-pro/trial/

This screenshot shows the semi-automatic ducking and the keyframes in the timeline.

zzz-1.jpg (255.35 KiB) Viewed 571 times

How to solve this?

Hire a skilled Sound Editor?

Seriously. For a Festival Doc, it maybe worth it.

Its a very low budget documentary. And already i do it a lot of the job.Now need solution to finished.

If you are on a Mac you could export the project as an XML and open it in Final Cut Pro to do the audio ducking quickly as mentioned above.

What computer are you using?

If you are on a Mac you could export the project as an XML and open it in Final Cut Pro to do the audio ducking quickly as mentioned above.

What computer are you using?

I work on PC .Davinci Resolve also have ducking but the results its ok for Youtube content not for documentary.Resolve have a very good Limiter function in Dynamics but its incompatible with manualy keyframe adjustment.

Resolve have a very good Limiter function in Dynamics but its incompatible with manualy keyframe adjustment.

Note that both the Fairlight Limiter AFX and Fairlight Dynamics Processor may be automated via the Fairlight automation system.

Fader level may also be automated. The Fairlight automation system's Preview mode allows defining dip levels and fade values for each cue.

For a documentary I would suggest that ducking is not the right tool but actually moving faders and writing automation is. Yes, it's harder moving faders with a mouse than a control surface, but the results are worth it. Moving faders gives much more feel when mixing. The pic shows the fader automation applied to the music and FX tracks to fit with the V/O.

Mix Automation in Fairlight.jpg (368.24 KiB) Viewed 497 times

If you want to hear the result you will find it here. The V/O comes in at 1min 57secs.

I want to use "Limiter" function from Dynamics. But i have a problem with this method. If the main music is in one track and some cut music fragment is in another track to edit with keyframe, when music jump from first track to second track i hear a noise. Both tracks have same Dynamics attribute. How i can to remove this noise at transition from one track to another one?

In the Fairlight dropdown menu click on Bus Format and click Add Bus, then OK.
In the pic I have routed the output of both music tracks to Bus 2. Bus 2 is routed to Bus 1. The Limiter is placed on Bus 2. The fader of Bus 2 now controls the level being sent to Bus 1 of both music tracks. If you wish you can still alter levels with the faders on both music tracks.
You can use automation on Bus 2 if you wish.

Bus Routing.jpg (176.52 KiB) Viewed 405 times

For those that may not know, if you are using dual screens you can place the Track and Bus faders together by clicking on the 3 dot menu in the Mixer view and selecting Single Mixer View.

For those of you using a single screen, this is what you would see. If the Buss Outputs don't appear just turn Meters off. What is shown in the Mixer is selected in the 3 dot menu.

Bus Routing 2.jpg (358.92 KiB) Viewed 398 times

Note: The picture in my previous post was taken on a dual screen system.

Some feedback would be nice.