Buzzing/clipping speakers and headphones.

[Gerry 1943]

Recently wrote a tune and on replay there is a buzzing/clipping in my speakers and even in my headphones.

In all the years I have been doing this, this has never happened before.

What could I have done incorrectly to cause this buzzing?

Thank you for any help.

Regards.

Gerry

 

[Max Arwood]

It sounds like you had the volume too high. It would be hard to diagnose without seeing the waveform or hearing the audio. Sometimes the recording is not damaged. Just the output. Volume is set up too loud. You could try turning down the main volume on the bus.  
 

[Gerry 1943]

Thank you for the info Max.

Upon further tests, the buzzing/clipping is happening on the baas and kick only. Not on any of the other instruments.

But even when reducing the volume on the bass and kick it still happens.

Maybe if I redo the bass and drums, it will go away on it's own?

Again thank you and any input would be greatly appreciated.

Regards

Gerry

[Max Arwood]

Yes, if that high volume is recorded into the track you will have to redo it.  Recording super loud does not help the quality of digital. Back in the day, louder helped to cover some of the quality issues with analogue gear. Not so with Digital.  

[Gerry 1943]

Thank you Max. 

Regards

Take care and stay safe.

Gerry

 

[mettelus]

On 10/27/2024 at 2:57 PM, Gerry 1943 said:

But even when reducing the volume on the bass and kick it still happens.

Maybe if I redo the bass and drums, it will go away on it's own?

Low frequencies carry more power... and that increases the lower you go. Try something aggressive at first, like a low shelf set to -12dB and slide the value up the frequency spectrum... the buzz should disappear at a certain point (like 125Hz or so). Just get a feel for where that is and shut it off. To rectify that, you want only the crux (usable portion) of the bass/kick to poke through that spectrum range.

1. To find the "crux" of the instrument, use a parametric EQ bell curve (highest Q it will do, high gain) and scoot frequency around till you are getting the sound that best fits your piece. That is the focal frequency you want to keep (kick is simpler than bass). The term "frequency microscope" is often used for doing this.
2. Once you know that value, you can use a combination of HPF (to remove all low end below that frequency), roughly 10-20Hz below the focal point you found. Then adjust the bell curve Q/gain down to bring back in frequencies to fill the sound out (roughly 1 or 2 dB gain, but keep the Q above 1 so you roll off frequencies on either side).
3. Many instruments have low end frequencies that do not contribute to the sound, yet add power to that low end (adding to the buzz). For this reason, a lot of instruments that are not kick/bass have a HPF applied to remove everything <100Hz (roughly). You can isolate that region with a LPF to listen for yourself as to what is there to check, but that "unnecessary power" removes overhead room for the kick and bass to be adjusted.
4. That said, don't blindly apply "generic settings," the above is more how to find/rectify them.

Basically removing frequencies from things not adding to the piece lets you raise gains on frequencies that do without making speakers rattle. I am pretty tame with bass settings for playback, but every once in a while I will get even commercial tracks that cause my subwoofer to "rattle the room."

Quick edit: The below video is by far the one I have shared most over the years. It is 14 years old now, but highly relevant, and he covers a lot of techniques in 10 minutes. The beginning of that video specifically demonstrates what I typed above (you can do the same with any EQ).

 

Edited October 29 by mettelus

[Gerry 1943]

Thank you Mettelus.

Greatly appreciated.

Take care and be safe.

Gerry.