Now that you mention it......................I'll be kind and only mention two. Automatic transmission cars that have engine sounds like a manual shift during a chase. Tires squeals on dirt roads. I'll give you a pass on gun sounds (artillery, and naval guns too).
I have a default approach in which I want to get the sound of car engines to be correct or plausible. If I have a recording of the same car on screen, that’s my go to as a starting point. However, it’s really common for the car on screen to be doing all sorts of actions that you don’t have represented in the recording you might have in your library.
And of course, if it’s yet another chase or the car speeding around, very often the recording you have of that car engine lacks balls or urgency and won’t cut through. So you end up having to augment it.
I have a deficit and that I am not a car guy or a gun guy. So I sometimes have to ask some of my car, enthusiast friends “ what model is this and what type of motor is it using, and if I don’t have that motor what other type of car would sound like it?”
(same with guns if it’s an important gun)
Within the last couple years I haven’t had to do that because AI sort of came to the rescue. If I had a question about the type of car on screen and engine, I could take a picture of it using Google to identify the car model, and then I could ask ChatGPT what type of engine it used and if I didn’t have that engine, what other type of car or engine would sub in terms of sounding the same or similar. This worked really well! (for a while I was checking the answers with my car, enthusiast friends, and the AI was nailing it).
I just did a series in which one of the main characters drove a particular Porsche, there was involved in every action possible and many chases, so I had to get that right.
In the end, though, most of the time the producers don’t care about whether a car engine sound matches the actual car. They just want to ensure the drama or action is being supported.
Likewise, with guns. Doesn’t matter what size of the gun, they are always going to want “ bigger” so I usually provide a couple tracks that have a “ realistic” style gunshot if they want to go that way, but also some muted tracks of ever larger boosters so they can make it as big or small as they want.
swords don't make that metallic shwiisch sound when drawn either
Tell me about it.
But if I don’t put in that “schwing” when any blade of any sort is pulled out, even the tiniest knife, they are going to call for it.
I think it works when done subtly to underscore the action. But they don’t always mix subtly.
or a that meaty punch when someone figths
Honestly, that’s one of my pet peeves as well.
I generally dislike the exaggerated hits. I mean it’s really fun if I’m doing a more broad Fight scene with all sorts of kicks and punches. But they even push that stuff up for more realistic drama shows as well. I would say producing a realistic sounding kick or punch is actually one of the hardest things to do, and when I manage it, it’s very satisfying.
Especially if they keep it as I levelled, versus cranking it up. Mixing levels are everything.
