Sonic Design : Task 1 - Sound Fundamentals

Sonic Design

Task 1 - Sound Fundamentals

Start from 23.9.2025

23.9.2025 - 21.10.2025 /Week 1- Week 5

LI XIN LI / 0379305

Sonic Design  / Bachelor of Interactive Spatial Design 

Task 1 - Sound Fundamentals

Exercise 1

In Exercise 1, we mainly feel the sound changes and use the AU equalizer to change the practice sound to make it more like the standard example.

Here are my exercises:

Sample Audio:

eq1：

Before：

After:

eq2:

Before：

After:

eq3：

Before：

After:

eq4：

Before：

After:

eq5:

Before：

After:

eq6:

Before：

After:

Exercise 2

Exercise 2 is an exercise to simulate different environmental sounds and the use of reverberation.

Here are my exercises:

Sample Audio:

1. Telephone

2. In the closet

3. Walkie-talkie

4. Bathroom

5. Airport

6. Indoor stadium

Exercise 3

In exercise three, we tried to make the sound three-dimensional. In class, the teacher led us to try to adjust the sound effects of the jet plane and the life broadcast in the previous class to make them three-dimensional.

Jet plane Sample Audio:

Adjusted sound effects:

Original broadcast sound:

Adjusted sound effects:

The teacher asked us to try to use voice broadcast to simulate the sound changes of "the first person walks into the cave and then comes out."

Sound after debugging:

Environmental sound practice

The teacher recommended two material websites to us, from which we can choose the sound materials we need.

First of all, we must distinguish the primary and secondary relationships and the position and distance relationships of things in the environment.

Environment 1:

Through this photo, I want to create the feeling of a sci-fi laboratory, using laboratory sound effects as the background and adding some more sci-fi sound effects. There are people in the photo, so I tried to add some communication and footsteps, the sound of typing on the keyboard, and at the same time there is a giant water tank petri dish in the visual center, with plants growing in it, so I tried to add the element of water and the sound of plants growing.

Final environment sound:

Final environment sound document:

Environment 2:

The most obvious thing about the Environment 2 exercise is the laser emitter in the center. Secondly, its environment also looks like an experiment, so I chose a laboratory as the background sound effect and the laser as the main sound effect. The space is large, so I used a lot of reverb tools during production, and added some vocals as an auxiliary.

Final environment sound:

Final environment sound document:

REFLECTION

Throughout this sound design practice, I explored how different techniques in Adobe Audition could be used to shape perception, emotion, and spatial depth. By experimenting with tools such as the Parametric Equalizer, Reverb, and Automation, I gained a deeper understanding of how each parameter influences the atmosphere of a sound environment.

Creating spatial effects like the cave ambience and later developing the laser reactor laboratory ambient scene helped me realize the importance of layering, timing, and frequency balance. I learned that effective sound design is not only about finding the right sound but about controlling how those sounds interact — through blending, space, and rhythm.

One of the key takeaways from this exercise was the role of subtle adjustments. Small changes in EQ or reverb levels could completely transform the sense of space or tension. Working with multiple layers also trained my ear to listen analytically and make creative decisions based on balance and narrative purpose.

This exercise strengthened my confidence in using Adobe Audition and deepened my appreciation for the creative potential of sound. It taught me to think of sound as a design medium — one that builds emotion, time, and atmosphere beyond what visuals alone can express.