Mixing It Up The Last Great Challenge For Game Audio Garry Taylor Audio/Video Manager Sony Computer Entertainment Europe

Introduction What Is Mixing? Getting The Tools Monitoring Case Studies Summary Overview

Lots of money spent on recording/acquiring audio assets Implementation of those assets is just as important In the past, mixing has not been given enough attention Introduction

The technical answer: Achieving clarity The artistic answer: Focusing and manipulating the player What Is Mixing?

Active Mixing –Triggering changes in the mix through in-game events Passive Mixing –Routing and the configuration of dynamics processors and how they interact with each other What Is Mixing?

Prioritization of Sound Effects Effective Sub-Grouping The ability to save mixer snapshots and recall them via in-game events Dynamics processors Getting The Tools

Routing Example

Ideally, you should mix your game in a critical listening environment If you don’t have a suitable room, hire one! Consumer surround systems are very variable. Monitoring

Case Studies

Case Study 12 Vehicles 12 Surfaces Mix states for each type of event (i.e. Heavy Collision) Configurable transition times between states

Case Study Maximum of 192 Voices Maximum of 31 Subgroups 3 main mix groups: Music/Dialogue/SFX Mixer zones specified within Maya correspond to mixer snapshots Cutscenes have their own mixer snapshots

Summary A good mix is extremely important Mixing = clarity and focus Invest in the right tools Monitor in an accurate environment