A Collaborative post
written by BOOM BOX POST
As sound editors, we’re constantly coloring our audio clips on the timeline hundreds of times throughout the workday. Color-coding sound effects becomes second nature, something we hardly think about (check out #3 in this blog post from Kate Finan on color-coding!). In the same way that each of us has our own unique approach to sound selections and design, I’d hypothesize we each have our own individualized color-coding habits as well. Do some people seriously color-code magical chimes as anything other than yellow?? My curiosity motivated me to do a simple survey around the office—asking each editor exactly which color from the Pro Tools Color Palette they’d choose for specific sounds. The results were fascinating! Many similarities but plenty of vastly different answers from editor to editor. Check out the results below!
The survey sounds
Here are audio examples of the eight different types of sound effects I used for this survey. Keep in mind these were not played back for participants during the survey but rather for your reference as you review the results. My goal when choosing these sounds was to cover a wide range of styles but also select those that ranged across different frequency groups and evoked different colors for me.
The results
I assigned letters and numbers to the rows and columns of the Pro Tools color palette for this survey. You can use this image as a reference while reviewing the results of our editors!
VIVIAN WILLIAMS
Sound Effects Editor
Shimmers / Chime Gilssandos: A12
Chewing Eating: B05
Earthquake Rumble: C10
Off-screen Dog Bark: C23
Metal Wronks/Creaks: C01
Human Punch Impact: A08
Telemetry: B19
Designed Whip Crack: A04
KATIE JACKSON
Sound Effects Editor
Shimmers / Chime Gilssandos: A05
Chewing Eating: C11
Earthquake Rumble: C11
Off-screen Dog Bark: A11
Metal Wronks/Creaks: A08
Human Punch Impact: A15
Telemetry: A15
Designed Whip Crack: A03
JAYSON NINER
Sound Effects Editor
Shimmers / Chime Gilssandos: A12
Chewing Eating: A6
Earthquake Rumble: C11
Off-screen Dog Bark: B10
Metal Wronks/Creaks: C21
Human Punch Impact: A09
Telemetry: A14
Designed Whip Crack: B03
KYLE STOCKBRIDGE
Office Administrator
Shimmers / Chime Gilssandos: A12
Chewing Eating: B07
Earthquake Rumble: C10
Off-screen Dog Bark: B11
Metal Wronks/Creaks: C23
Human Punch Impact: B11
Telemetry: A18
Designed Whip Crack: A10
KATE FINAN
Co-owner, Re-Recording Mixer
Shimmers / Chime Gilssandos: A12
Chewing Eating: C10
Earthquake Rumble: C11
Off-screen Dog Bark: C10
Metal Wronks/Creaks: C01
Human Punch Impact: C10
Telemetry: A04
Designed Whip Crack: A05
JAMES YAIULLO
Sound Effects Editor
Shimmers / Chime Gilssandos: A04
Chewing Eating: B10
Earthquake Rumble: C10
Off-screen Dog Bark: B04
Metal Wronks/Creaks: C23
Human Punch Impact: B07
Telemetry: A15
Designed Whip Crack: A11
TESS FOURNIER,
Supervising Sound Editor
Shimmers / Chime Gilssandos: A12
Chewing Eating: C13
Earthquake Rumble: C11
Off-screen Dog Bark: A21
Metal Wronks/Creaks: C22
Human Punch Impact: B15
Telemetry: A15
Designed Whip Crack: A10
TIM VINDIGNI
Studio Engineer, Sound Editor
Shimmers / Chime Gilssandos: A04
Chewing Eating: C13
Earthquake Rumble: C04
Off-screen Dog Bark: B10
Metal Wronks/Creaks: C23
Human Punch Impact: C08/A08
Telemetry: A15
Designed Whip Crack: A07
Disclaimer: A general representation of the color distribution, but not color-accurate to the actual palette.
Glissandos have two camps: Pink or Yellow… meanwhile a punch impact received five different color preferences… and we’re almost all in agreement on using browns for earthquake rumbles… but not a single sound in the survey received a unanimous color vote amongst our editors. Isn’t it interesting to see how our minds are drawn to the exact same colors for certain sounds while also polar opposites for others? We had a ton of fun with this survey and comparing our results. Thank you for reading!
how would you color-code these sound effects in your session?
Let us know in the comments!
If you enjoyed this blog, check out these:
How To Use Markers For Sound Effects Editorial
Five Things I’ve Learned About Editing From Mixing
Ten Common Sound Editorial Mistakes You May Not Be Aware of