Audio Engineering & Music Production
Course 15: Time Based Fx

Time-based effects, along with many other tools found in the modern studio, are catalysts for creativity, and they have a wide range of uses in the studio and onstage. When applied to the audio signal, tools such as delay or reverb will alter the space and time of a given sound in the stereo field, depending on certain variables.

In this course, you’ll learn about time-based delays and how they are integrated into music naturally and synthetically. Pro Tools offers a variety of delays and you’ll learn how to set their parameters to reach the sound you want from the music. Reverb is also naturally occurring and can be demonstrated by talking or singing in a variety of settings (shower, small room, auditorium, or outside).

There are many different ways to add reverb to a track, such as emulating what room effect you want to produce. Pro Tools offers a variety of menus to help you attain the sound you want. There are other forms of time-based effects you’ll cover in this course, including flanging, chorusing, phasering, and others.

Adding these effects to your mix via Pro Tools is your assignment for the course. Experiment with different methods and decide if a track would benefit from an effect or not. But you should try to familiarize yourself with the options you have at your disposal.

Objectives

• Delay
• Reverb
• Other Time-Based Effects
• Mix Assignment Continued
• Chapter Quiz
• Blog Entry