As the final field recording practical research for my guide, I decided to create an asset pack consisting of take-off and landing recordings from Manchester airport. The asset pack would therefore be more specialised than the previous field recordings since the main differences would come from the types of planes landing at the airport. I was also hoping that the end product would mean I had made use of the sounds I typically try to avoid when out on field recordings. In order to tailor these recordings towards use within video games, I wanted to also include looping tracks and get some variations where possible. Goals of the Asset Pack:
To produce high quality and clean recordings of planes taking off and landing
Compare capabilities of difference equipment
Loops of engine sounds
Have recordings available in 24Bit 96kHz
What I needed:
Time – as soon as possible for use within this guide
Budget – mainly travel costs to and from the airport
Location – open space nearby the airport
Equipment – mics, field recorder, blimp (windshield), cables etc
The guide needed to be completed as soon as possible in order to be used as evidence for the guide, meaning that the asset pack is not a large compilation of recordings which it would ideally be. This also therefore meant that the recordings would take place only over a couple days. This in turn would have advantages and disadvantages. It meant that the overall number of recordings would be lower and that long sessions would have to be conducted in a day. But it also meant that travel costs would in total be lower than if I had to return multiple times over a few weeks.
Location
I knew from the beginning that the main location would be the nearby airport that takes national and international flights. The main issue with using a location like this is that getting the ideal recordings I wanted would be difficult since I could only record from nearby the airport. Upon scouting the airport I found that there were two viewing areas that people could watch flights from.
One of those is the viewing park that I used to go to as a child which had only recently reopened due to relaxation of government lockdown rules. Since most flights taxi past this area once they have landed, it would typically be a good area to get engine noise and loops from. The biggest issue with this location would be the fact that the area is open to the public and since there is a museum and visitor centre there, it would be quite busy during the day, not ideal for recordings of just the aircraft. Plus, this area is also further down from the main runway where some planes land, meaning that some landings might not be as well captured there.
The other location is a viewing area on the other side of the runway but that very few people use. It is an open area that can be accessed from a footpath but cannot be easily accessed by car. Drawbacks from this location that became apparent when scouting the area included some birdsong from nearby trees and bushes, the occasional person walking their dog or cycling past on the footpath ahead and that to get there I would have to transport the equipment on foot. However, in comparison to the other location I believed the drawbacks here could be easily rectified. This location became location 1.
Location 1
Location 2
Location 2 was on the same side of the runway but further up and closer to the centre of the runway yet on the orbital footpath. Using this location meant that recordings would be physically closer to the area where take-offs and landings took place as well as less noticeable birdsong. On the other hand, it would so mean there is a higher chance of interruptions from people.
A note about scouting these locations
When looking at the areas in person to check if they were still accessible, when I got there, sudden snowstorm took place – in April. This did discourage me on the day since strong winds would certainly disrupt my recordings and it would be uncomfortable and difficult to conduct recordings in that weather. It would also affect visibility so looking out for incoming aircraft would be difficult.
Even with all this, I continued and once the weather subsided, I noted the levels of birdsong and the visibility. If I had not then checked the forecasted weather for the week, I would likely have been deterred from conducting the recordings when I did. When I did the recordings, the weather was warm, sunny, calm and clear, just days after I had scouted the locations. The point to make here is to keep an eye on weather forecasting and try to wait until any weather like this subsides when scouting a location if possible.
Equipment
The decision was made to book more than one microphone and a different type of field recorder in order to test their capabilities for the purpose of the guide. The mics chosen were a RODE NTG1 and a Beyer Dynamic MCE86 for use as directional shotgun mics. A Zoom H6 and a F6 were booked out but only the H6 was available, meaning I did not get to test the difference in quality and useability differences. This highlights a problem when booking and hiring equipment in comparison to owning them.
Since I still had the main equipment available that I needed to conduct the recordings, the H6 was used with it’s stereo mic attachment for comparison with the Shotgun mics. To protect the Shotgun mics, a Windshield Blimp was also used to block out wind interference with the diaphragms. The only issue with using this is the associated worrying issue of holding such equipment nearby to an airport – it might seem like a security risk to point this equipment at an aircraft as it is taking off or landing.
Equipment list:
RODE NTG1 & Beyer Dynamic MCE86
RODE Blimp Windshield
Zoom H6 Field Recorder
Batteries
SD Card
XLR cables x2
Headphones + spares
Camping chair
Water
Snacks
Umbrella
Further Planning
Checking the weather also meant I knew how to appropriately dress and not carry too much or too little clothing with me. However, since the weather had been changing so much before the recordings, I thought it useful to double check the weather predictions each day. This also influenced the decision to add an umbrella to the equipment list in the case of a sudden downpour to protect the sensitive equipment (that did not belong to me).
Another important aspect to check included the times of flights, both arrivals and take-offs. Using a flight tracking app that I had used previously in order to avoid flight noise in recordings, I could schedule the times to arrive and when to leave to get the most recordings at peak times. Whilst this was definitely useful, it did expose a large issue that the airport was not running at usual levels of flight traffic since international flights were reduced because of current government restrictions. This issue meant that the overall number of flights recorded would be far less than if recorded at other times.
Outcome
What went well:
Got a good number of recordings considering flight traffic and time constraints
Avoided problems with weather and people when possible
Got a good variety of aircraft types
What did not:
Birdsong was still an issue
Problems with equipment availability
Difficult to create looping tracks
Lessons learned:
Double check equipment availability
Dedicate more time to projects like this
Slate each recording or keep track of what is in each (which aircraft is landing)
Capabilities of the two shotgun mics
The recording sessions did provide good opportunities for a good variety of aircraft landings and take-offs. When planning this session, the main things to worry about such as bad weather were not a hindrance to the actual recordings. Also, considering that it could be seen as suspicious to be pointing the equipment at an active runway and airport, it could have been halted altogether. Thankfully the questioning received during the two days came from some members of the public walking past. Some issues did occur that influenced the overall outcome and asset pack such as the issue of less air traffic than usual. This meant that less recordings were possible but does make the asset pack more unique since it was recorded during a time where international travel was restricted. Overall, this meant that during moments between landings and departures left the area fairly quiet when usually engine sound would be constantly heard from the active terminals. One goal for this asset pack and field recordings was to find the differences and capabilities of different equipment. There are some notable differences between the Rode NTG1 and the Beyerdynamic MCE86. Since the NTG1 is a condenser shotgun microphone and the MCE86 is a hypercardioid shotgun microphone, there are differences in the way they record sounds. Plainly, the latter is more attuned to recording what is directionally ahead of it without as much interference from sounds either side of it. Therefore, less birdsong can be heard in the tracks using it compared to the ones using the NTG1 or even the Zoom H6 XYH-6. However, it did introduce slightly more high-end hiss. I cover this topic further in the guide so check it out when you can.
When it came to editing the recordings, only some of the aforementioned issues could be rectified. The hissing could be rectified slightly using noise reduction, but this should not always be relied upon as it can take away too much of the high frequency content if overused. Birdsong, however, could not be rectified as well as I have done in the past as the necessary plugins were not available for use. This meant that some of the recordings have very prevalent birdsong that can distract from the recordings. Even with some of the editing tools, it might not have been fully possible to fix the issue. I do suggest that if someone does want to use these sounds without the birdsong then there are plugins that allow for this that you should check out.
Considering all the issues faced, the asset pack could benefit from further work and more recordings overall for it to be even more useful to a game sound designer. However, it did achieve the main goals set out at the beginning of planning which is testament to the workflow used in planning and production of the asset pack.
Thanks for reading through, let me know if you have any thoughts about it and if you want to listen to the recordings or use them then check out the Free Sounds tab and download them from there.
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