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40 Overview of Audio Mixing
Audio mixing is the process of blending the sounds of your
movie together by adding filters and adjusting levels and
pan settings.
This chapter covers the following:
 Audio Finishing Features in Final Cut Express HD (p. 561)
 Overview of Audio Sweetening in Final Cut Express HD (p. 562)
 Making the Final Mix (p. 565)
Audio Finishing Features in Final Cut Express HD
Once your movie is edited and the picture is locked, you “sweeten” the soundtrack by
adding music, voiceover, and sound effects. When all the audio elements are in place,
you mix the audio by adjusting levels and pan settings and adding filters.
You can finish your movie soundtrack directly in Final Cut Express HD, or you can
export your audio tracks to another audio editing application, create a final mix, and
then import the finished mix into Final Cut Express HD for final output.
Audio Sweetening Features
Final Cut Express HD provides tools for audio sweetening (including cleanup) and real-
time mixing. Audio sweetening features in Final Cut Express HD allow you to:
 Edit and synchronize audio and video clips. (See “Audio Editing Basics” on page 425.)
 Add voiceover and rerecord production dialogue in sync with your sequence video.
(See Chapter 45, “Using the Voice Over Tool,” on page 623.)
 Add additional audio tracks for Foley effects, sound effects, and music.
 Add audio filters for cleaning up original production sound by filtering out unwanted
frequencies and compressing or expanding the dynamic range of your mix. (See
Chapter 46, “Using Audio Filters,” on page 639.)
 Add audio cross fades to smooth over cuts between audio clip items in the Timeline.
(See “Adding Transitions” on page 507.)