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Getting SFX
January 30, 2007 06:05 AM
Hi everyone,
I'm entirely new to this, so I'd greatly appreciate if anyone could give me a little help on the following question.
How do people get SFX for their commercial games? I can possibly imagine the following ways:
1) Buy SFX/music from professional studios/composers
2) Download SFX for free (is this possible?)
3) Create SFX at home (maybe a half-professional microphone is enough? Is it possible?)
I've read the article on this site discussing (1) and (2), so please share if you have any experience in creating sound at home.
What is the best choice if you can't afford to pay for professional sound?
Thank you
January 30, 2007 07:12 AM
Hey, welcome to Gamedev!
I've made many SFX at home using a Schure PG-58 mic, SoundBlaster Audigy 2 Plat. and Sonar 4 Studio. As long as you have an environment that is relatively quiet I've found home recording to be fine. I've even taken my laptop out and recorded nature. The key is to pick a spot that doesn't have a ton of other noises in the background. There will always be some, but with Sonar (and many other programs) you can easily edit these out and give a clean sample.
You asked which option is best if you can not afford to pay for professional sound- and that is a hard one to answer. It really depends on what kind of SFX you're needing. If you just need some simple foley, than sure you can do that at home. If you're needing F-16s taking off, tanks and bazookas....well, unless you have a much cooler collection of toys at home than I do....that can be hard to capture.
What you can do is make some kind of compromise. Do all of the SFX you can on your own, then find a set that has the stuff that is too large for you to do on your own. Some sites offer an "a la carte" approach where you can buy only the SFX you need. Be very careful to read all of the fine print though. Many of these sites require you to recognize them as the creators of the actual SFX in your project.
That is what I'd do. Then when you make millions, you can have your own F-16, tank and bazooka. (And I'll probably want to take one of them for a spin :) )
I've made many SFX at home using a Schure PG-58 mic, SoundBlaster Audigy 2 Plat. and Sonar 4 Studio. As long as you have an environment that is relatively quiet I've found home recording to be fine. I've even taken my laptop out and recorded nature. The key is to pick a spot that doesn't have a ton of other noises in the background. There will always be some, but with Sonar (and many other programs) you can easily edit these out and give a clean sample.
You asked which option is best if you can not afford to pay for professional sound- and that is a hard one to answer. It really depends on what kind of SFX you're needing. If you just need some simple foley, than sure you can do that at home. If you're needing F-16s taking off, tanks and bazookas....well, unless you have a much cooler collection of toys at home than I do....that can be hard to capture.
What you can do is make some kind of compromise. Do all of the SFX you can on your own, then find a set that has the stuff that is too large for you to do on your own. Some sites offer an "a la carte" approach where you can buy only the SFX you need. Be very careful to read all of the fine print though. Many of these sites require you to recognize them as the creators of the actual SFX in your project.
That is what I'd do. Then when you make millions, you can have your own F-16, tank and bazooka. (And I'll probably want to take one of them for a spin :) )
Nathan Madsen
Nate (AT) MadsenStudios (DOT) Com
Composer-Sound Designer
Madsen Studios
Austin, TX
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