BBC sound effects for free.

[PhilJ W]

The BBC have released their sound archive on line for free.

https://happymag.tv/bbc-sound-effects-archive/?fbclid=IwAR26UKmXXBev9Zf59ePLwJX5zUFZn9ihnvO2DS3OWX0MPOm_7HHMlNSC7F0

[Phil Parker]

The full archive is here: http://bbcsfx.acropolis.org.uk/

 

YouTuber's with adverts switched on, beware the licencing conditions.

[pete_mcfarlane]

Somebody on Craggy Island is very happy with this.

[MarkSG]

There's some useful stuff there, with a bit of ingenuity you could create a homebrew version of Hornby's TTS sound van.

[brossard]

I was thinking of creating a town atmosphere on a loop on a DVD.  This could play at exhibitions adding a bit more life to the layout.

 

John

[KeithMacdonald]

Nice, thanks.

 

They've even got a category for The Archers.

 

http://bbcsfx.acropolis.org.uk/?cat=farms

 

[The Johnster]

Cwmdimbath on a mild, but wet, winter day, between trains.  The few birds around are too fed up to bother, but the odd sheep (and there are some vert odd sheep up here) bleats in that specific way Welsh ones have that only adds to the gloom.  The main sound is water, from the rain-swollen Nant Dimbath and from the rain swelling it.  This is steady and all-pervading, tapping on the metal platform lamp shades, gurglesucking in gutters and downpipes, and echoing in drains. 

In addition, the background clanking of the colliery’s waste buckets on their overhead cable loop up the mountain, a Valleys noise so pervasive that you were never aware of it until it stopped.  
 

I’m Welsh; we love a bit of misery...

 

[Ruston]

Can anyone recommend a (free?) program that could be used to put these sounds together as background noise for a layout?

[Tim V]

Audacity.

[cctransuk]

On 27/01/2020 at 15:17, brossard said:

I was thinking of creating a town atmosphere on a loop on a DVD.  This could play at exhibitions adding a bit more life to the layout.

 

John

 

Nooooooooooooooo !!!!!  Sound effects at exhibitions are anathema !!!!!

 

Everyone who does it thinks it's the bee's knees - and everyone who hears it thinks "B*ll*cks - what an infernal racket" !!

 

Regards,

John Isherwood.

[Philou]

@cctransuk But yes - can't you just see it - south coast, steam train passing Dawlish Warren with it's hissing and clanking and then the cry of the bl**dy seagulls 'smine smine' and the 'huUSHSHshsh' of waves dragging themselves over the foreshore - what's not to like? Or for the added extra - a stormy day with crashing of waves over the sea-wall drowning out everything else (literally)!

 

Cheers,

 

Philip

[PhilJ W]

2 hours ago, Ruston said:

Can anyone recommend a (free?) program that could be used to put these sounds together as background noise for a layout?

 

2 hours ago, Tim V said:

Audacity.

Could someone create some background sounds from the archive and post it here?

[Dave John]

I will have a look at those and see if anything appeals to me. I have played about with an ambient soundscape. Details of it here, and the previous blog. 

 

 

I would still consider it a bit of a work in progress, but the method used allows easy updating of sound files , or for that various sets of sound files by simply swapping the sd card. 

 

 

As mentioned above I used audacity to edit the files. In the blog I did say that I wasn't entirely sure about it all, but I find the whole thing catching me a bit. The track with the horses and carts going past with the distant church bells really does make me want to fill an old pipe with a dark tobacco and let a battered 812 class trundle past with a heavy coal train ..... 

 

 

[MarkSG]

39 minutes ago, PhilJ W said:

 

Could someone create some background sounds from the archive and post it here?

 

No, because RMweb is a commercial site (it's funded by adverts) and distributing the archive content via a commercial website is prohibited by the terms and conditions.

 

If someone wanted to remix the audio tracks and put them on their own, non-commercial website, and then link to it from here, that would be OK. But you can't upload any of the files, or any derivative works created from them, to any commercial website.

[MarkSG]

3 hours ago, Tim V said:

Audacity.

 

And for those who would prefer a link...

 

https://www.audacityteam.org/

[Nile_Griffith]

Happily recall many hours spent trawling through the BBC's SFX library looking for a suitable spot effect or atmosphere track for whatever production we were working on in the studio. We had a number of different libraries BBC, DeWolfe, Phillips, Decca and some interesting Libraries from France and "Hollywood Edge" libraries from the states. I'm old enough to remember recording individual tracks from the various collections that were all on vinyl onto quarter inch tape or Sonifex carts, so that they could be "Spun in" on cue rather than "dropping the needle" onto what were very valuable and greatly cared for 12" Vinyl discs.

 

From an engineers point of view it was a real step forward when those SFX libraries became available on the new fangled CD format. No more recording the effect to tape to be "spun in" as we could just cue up the CD player and hit the play button right on cue (anyone remember Technic's SLP-1200??). Our enthusiasm wasn't quite matched by the studio managers as replacing complete vinyl libraries for the same thing on CD represented quite a financial investment.

 

However. Just a note to anyone considering constructing a soundscape for their layout. It is very easy to over egg the pudding. The brain is very good at filtering out sounds that aren't important to it when it's focussing on something in particular. So in the real world when we are visiting some preserved railway or other our brains tend to filter out all this extraneous sounds around us while we are being captivated by whatever loco or rolling stock we are looking at. Our brains achieve this little miracle through the wonders of stereoscopic hearing. The grey matter's ability to sub-consciously determine distance and position of the sounds around us by and large allows it to hone on to the sounds we are particularly interested in. So when creating a sound scape that will be played through some arrangement of speakers that will minimise the amount of directional information that each sound has, it's always a good idea to think on what you want the viewer to be drawn to rather than creating a check list of all the things within the scene  that might be creating a sound and feeling that they should be included within the soundscape.

 

Another thing to consider is that sound changes over distance. Low frequencies travel much greater distances than high frequencies (think about a thunder clap). So any mechanical clanking FX  portrayed over a modelled scale distance over a couple of hundred feet will loose a lot of its high frequency when it reaches the listener at their God like position looking over the layout. Some more modern and up to date FX libraries try to provide recordings that are take from close to, medium distance and far away, so that sound mixers can get a more authentic recording. Also don't forget that the built environment changes sound also. With walls and hard surfaces creating echoes and reflections, that our listener in their over viewing position would hear.

 

There is a lot to making a convincing soundscape and is very rewarding when you achieve it.

 

 

[PatB]

Slightly off topic, but there's a layout that appears regularly at our local show which depicts a US loco depot/works. I find it an excellent demonstration of how several thousand dollars worth of sound chips can create a monotonous din of white noise, overlaid with an equally tedious clanging bell or bells. It discourages me from spending any time examining the actually rather nice models. 

 

I'm not against sound effects on layouts as such, but I do think they're a case where less is more. Too often they end up as the aural equivalent of all those CJ Freezer main-line-in-6x4 extravaganzas. 

Edited February 1, 2020 by PatB

[cctransuk]

11 hours ago, Philou said:

@cctransuk But yes - can't you just see it - south coast, steam train passing Dawlish Warren with it's hissing and clanking and then the cry of the bl**dy seagulls 'smine smine' and the 'huUSHSHshsh' of waves dragging themselves over the foreshore - what's not to like? Or for the added extra - a stormy day with crashing of waves over the sea-wall drowning out everything else (literally)!

 

Cheers,

 

Philip

 

I don't know about see it - but I can (unfortunately) hear it !

 

Model railway exhibitions are noisy places at best, without the added cacophony of several competing sound-tracks. Each ups the volume to overcome the background hubub, to the point where the sound is positively disturbing.

 

Humans are provided with a valuable resource - imagination. We don't need actual smog to envisiage a 1950s industrial area; the foul stench of a sugarbeet factory; or the 'aroma' of a gasworks. Why do we need spurious soundtracks to be able to recall the background noise of a railway station / locoshed / beach / bird-filled meadows?

 

It's just an unnecessry gimmick and an attempt at one-up-manship.

 

.... and as for sound-fitted locos !?!

 

Regards,

John Isherwood.

[MarkSG]

49 minutes ago, cctransuk said:

Humans are provided with a valuable resource - imagination. We don't need actual smog to envisiage a 1950s industrial area; the foul stench of a sugarbeet factory; or the 'aroma' of a gasworks.

 

Actually, I'd quite like to see a realistic recreation of smog on a layout. Although how it could be done without it leaking all the way across the exhibition hall is an entirely different question.

 

Fake loco smoke used to be quite a big thing - I had a Hornby loco with a smoke generator when I was a kid. The main problem with it was that it smelled completely wrong - oil rather than coal - and refilling the smoke unit was messy. They've gone out of fashion now. But it wouldn't surprise me to see a manufacturer re-invent that particular wheel.

 

Sound on exhibition layouts is a controversial topic that regularly gets an airing on RMweb. I'm not anti-sound, by any means, but I do think it needs to be kept very much at background level. It's better for some people to struggle to hear it at all rather than it be audible at a distance where it can interfere with people's enjoyment of other layouts nearby. But, of course, for a home layout, there's no reason not to use whatever soundscape you want.

[Ruston]

12 hours ago, MarkSG said:

 

And for those who would prefer a link...

 

https://www.audacityteam.org/

Thanks for that. I have managed to download it and make a background soundtrack for my scrapyard layout. I just need some means of playing it, other than the laptop that it's on.

 

Does anyone have any ideas on that?

[MarkSG]

25 minutes ago, Ruston said:

Thanks for that. I have managed to download it and make a background soundtrack for my scrapyard layout. I just need some means of playing it, other than the laptop that it's on.

 

Does anyone have any ideas on that?

 

A phone or tablet with a Bluetooth speaker hidden behind or under the layout would be my suggestion. You could probably even fit a small speaker inside a building.

[Nile_Griffith]

3 hours ago, Ruston said:

Thanks for that. I have managed to download it and make a background soundtrack for my scrapyard layout. I just need some means of playing it, other than the laptop that it's on.

 

Does anyone have any ideas on that?

 

The world is, as they say, your salt water crustacean when it comes to playing audio from a laptop or desktop computer.

 

You could go old school and just connect (if your device has it) the headphone output jack of your laptop to a conventional self amplified speaker, or pair of speakers. Prices range from a few quid to over a hundred pounds for a pair of Bose PC Speakers.

 

If you want to do away with the wires and if your laptop has bluetooth connectivity, again there are a whole plethora of compatible products available on line, that are capable of transmitting audio via a Bluetooth connection made with a similarly capable pair of self amplified speakers. Price wise you can spend anywhere from a tenner through to a couple of hundred quid.

 

There are also wifi enabled products too, but these tend to rely on being part of your home wifi's network, but the the theory is pretty much the same as with a Bluetooth connection in that your laptop sends the audio information via your home wifi network to the wifi enable self amplified speakers.

 

I've purposefully mentioned "Self Amplified Speakers" in my suggestions. Any speaker will pretty much need some form of amplifier to run it and create the volume of sound required. The voltage of the signal emanating from the headphone output of your laptop, or from the line level output of a Bluetooth capable receiver or a WiFi enabled device such as an Apple TV box. Would not be enough to "Drive" all but the very smallest piezo type speakers.

 

Hey! If you want to go full beans. Drag that old Hi-Fi components set out o the loft and connect a mini-jack to phono lead from your laptop into a line level input on your amplifier, connect those dusty speakers up and off you go.   (OK electronically speaking the impedance level of a headphone output is not ideal etc etc etc etc, but it will get you started).

 

As for other devices to play those sounds from. Well the second hand shops are awash with old iPhones and iPods that will be very capable of playing your sound recordings. A mooch around in the App Store will also reveal a number of applications that are designed for Users to playback sound effects or longer recordings by tapping a button from an on screen selection. The apps themselves vary in complexity but some will allow the playing of simultaneous sound cues. So for instance your Atmos track (the general sound of your layout) as we would call it in sound post production can be playing, but then you could then have more random spot FX cues (individual sounds) played at certain points in time as things happen on your layout by pressing (or tapping) an associated button. Guard whistling from platform, doors slamming etc.

Edited February 1, 2020 by Nile_Griffith

[Tim V]

15 hours ago, PatB said:

Slightly off topic, but there's a layout that appears regularly at our local show which depicts a US loco depot/works. I find it an excellent demonstration of how several thousand dollars worth of sound chips can create a monotonous din of white noise, overlaid with an equally tedious clanging bell or bells. It discourages me from spending any time examining the actually rather nice models. 

 

I'm not against sound effects on layouts as such, but I do think they're a case where less is more. Too often they end up as the aural equivalent of all those CJ Freezer main-line-in-6x4 extravaganzas. 

Had a layout like that today at a local show - they get everywhere! Have these layouts not heard of such a thing as a 'volume control'?

 

I tried sound effects on my layout many years ago - muted bird song, whistles of engines. Constructed sound effects using Audacity. Used a cheap MP3 player. It worked, but was a lot of faff setting up at shows, so I abandoned it.

[Ruston]

3 hours ago, Nile_Griffith said:

 

The world is, as they say, your salt water crustacean when it comes to playing audio from a laptop or desktop computer.

 

You could go old school and just connect (if your device has it) the headphone output jack of your laptop to a conventional self amplified speaker, or pair of speakers. Prices range from a few quid to over a hundred pounds for a pair of Bose PC Speakers.

 

If you want to do away with the wires and if your laptop has bluetooth connectivity, again there are a whole plethora of compatible products available on line, that are capable of transmitting audio via a Bluetooth connection made with a similarly capable pair of self amplified speakers. Price wise you can spend anywhere from a tenner through to a couple of hundred quid.

 

There are also wifi enabled products too, but these tend to rely on being part of your home wifi's network, but the the theory is pretty much the same as with a Bluetooth connection in that your laptop sends the audio information via your home wifi network to the wifi enable self amplified speakers.

 

I've purposefully mentioned "Self Amplified Speakers" in my suggestions. Any speaker will pretty much need some form of amplifier to run it and create the volume of sound required. The voltage of the signal emanating from the headphone output of your laptop, or from the line level output of a Bluetooth capable receiver or a WiFi enabled device such as an Apple TV box. Would not be enough to "Drive" all but the very smallest piezo type speakers.

 

Hey! If you want to go full beans. Drag that old Hi-Fi components set out o the loft and connect a mini-jack to phono lead from your laptop into a line level input on your amplifier, connect those dusty speakers up and off you go.   (OK electronically speaking the impedance level of a headphone output is not ideal etc etc etc etc, but it will get you started).

 

As for other devices to play those sounds from. Well the second hand shops are awash with old iPhones and iPods that will be very capable of playing your sound recordings. A mooch around in the App Store will also reveal a number of applications that are designed for Users to playback sound effects or longer recordings by tapping a button from an on screen selection. The apps themselves vary in complexity but some will allow the playing of simultaneous sound cues. So for instance your Atmos track (the general sound of your layout) as we would call it in sound post production can be playing, but then you could then have more random spot FX cues (individual sounds) played at certain points in time as things happen on your layout by pressing (or tapping) an associated button. Guard whistling from platform, doors slamming etc.

I was wondering about a cheap MP3 player as I don't want the need for having my computer on, or running down the battery on my phone.  Would an MP3 player be able to play through a larger speaker (larger than the headphones that usually plug in to them) without an amplifier?

 

The file that I have made lasts about half an hour and consists of a general scrapyard sound with the sound of scrap being tipped occuring twice in that time and that of a lorry driving past three times. I've also put in railway sounds that are off-scene and are meant to be on the main line that the scrapyard sidings feed into. These occur once each and are an Inter City 125 speeding by and an ordinary diesel passenger train. On scene train sounds will be from the DCC sound-fitted models.

[MarkSG]

56 minutes ago, Ruston said:

I was wondering about a cheap MP3 player as I don't want the need for having my computer on, or running down the battery on my phone.  Would an MP3 player be able to play through a larger speaker (larger than the headphones that usually plug in to them) without an amplifier?

 

Anything which has external sound via a headphone socket, including a phone and an mp3 player, will need an amplifier to power larger speakers. Although small speakers with a line-in socket will usually have in amplifier built in to it, for that very purpose.

 

Generally speaking, if the input to the speakers is via a jack socket (3.5mm or 1/4 inch), then the speakers have internal amplification. If the input is a phono socket, or bare wires (eg, as used in a home hi-fi system), then it doesn't and will need an external amplifier.

 

Any portable device will need to be recharged every now and then, or plugged in while in use. But supplying sound to a Bluetooth speaker isn't particularly draining on a phone battery.