Audio Sounds Flat on TV

[hua02]

Hello,

So I keep running into the same problems with sound quality when I export FCP:
QuickTime Movie>Compressor>DVD BEST QUALITY 90 MINUTES

Once it gets on a DVD and in the DVD player on TV's or on soundsystems, it just sounds flat,(Specifically terrible bass) like you can tell it was obviously a homemade project, regardless of all the B,S & T that went into it.
I do a sound mix in FCP and it sounds great on my computer speakers, with great low end. Am I not exporting right? Or with the wrong settings?

Thanks in advance

 

[kwoff]

At the risk of asking an obvious question, does the TV on which you are playing the DVD actually have the ability to reproduce lower frequencies?

 

[hua02]

At the risk of asking an obvious question, does the TV on which you are playing the DVD actually have the ability to reproduce lower frequencies?

Yeah. It sounds like it's supposed to for normal TV shows and movies but when I put my own DVD's in there it sounds flat. Should I be using another audio codec in compressor?
Right Now it's Dolby Digital Professional 2.0
2.0 Dolby Digital audio at 192kbps

 

[adkimery]

When you play movies on your computer what do they sound like? You want your audio monitors to have as flat a response as possible and unfortunately consumer speakers are designed to color the sound to make it more appealing. Just like consumer TVs color the image to make it look more vibrant.


-Andrew

 

[Joe Calabrese]

How did you edit your sound. I normally get great results doing the same thing.

I would put a bass roll off on your master audio track and complete get rid of frequencies under 20 hz, maybe even 30 hz.

 

[Alex H.]

I do a sound mix in FCP and it sounds great on my computer speakers, with great low end. Am I not exporting right? Or with the wrong settings

You're mixing on inaccurate speakers, and mixing within a program that isn't designed to mix sound.

Computer speakers are not mixing monitors. What sounds right on them probably won't sound the same on any other system. You really need to have some true audio post done on your edits if you want the mix to hold up outside of your computer. There's a lot that goes into those shows you see on TV, even more that goes into films you see in the theaters. FCP doesn't have the tools to do what needs to be done, and if you start using audio filters on bad speakers, there's no telling what you're actually doing to the sound.

 

[hua02]

Thanks for the advice. Would it be better to export the audio to Soundtrack, use the right tools to mix it there, and then re-import to FCP?

 

[NoahK]

Thanks for the advice. Would it be better to export the audio to Soundtrack, use the right tools to mix it there, and then re-import to FCP?

Sure of course that would improve your sound. More than anything however would be proper, accurate speakers. For those it would depend on your budget.

-Noah

 

[Alex H.]

Sure of course that would improve your sound. More than anything however would be proper, accurate speakers. For those it would depend on your budget.

-Noah

Exactly. Mixing in SoundTrack won't do you much good if you're still using the same, cheap computer speakers.

Also worth mentioning, the best speakers in the world won't help if the room isn't properly treated. Get some absorption and diffusion on the walls (and even the ceiling), and get some bass traps into the corners.

You're looking at $600 - 1000 for reliable monitors (see: Genelec, some Mackie and some Yamaha). Add another $500 - 600 for some basic acoustic treatment with some bass absorption.

Good audio isn't cheap. You have to have the right equipment and the right environment. Applicable, working knowledge also helps. For the projects that count, and that have the budget, you may be better off hiring out for audio post-production.