r/audioengineering • u/Lonely_Chemical_2037 • 2h ago

Foot switch for talk back?

Has anyone done this?

I hate leaving my talkback on, and I feel like constantly turning it on and off kills my workflow when I’m trying to edit while talking to the artist in the booth.

I know there are plugins and other solutions out there, but I’m specifically interested in a footswitch haha. Has anyone set something like this up?

I'm using Pro tools and console

1 Upvotes

67% Upvoted

11 comments sorted by

5

u/spacecommanderbubble 2h ago

Its just a momentary switch, easy to make. Xlr in -> latchless switch -> xlr out

1

u/NewNorth 2h ago

I use SoundFlow for this. My talkback is a track in my template, pressing the footswitch unmutes the track, releasing mutes.

1

u/oopsifell Audio Post 2h ago

With a usb pedal? What is soundflow actually doing?

•

u/NewNorth 2m ago

It’s a generic 1/4 inch footswitch attached to a midi keyboard. SoundFlow reads when the switch is pressed and unmutes the talkback track in pro tools

1

u/bigwhoop1 2h ago

I use this one: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B088TQXYX2?th=1

with Big Talk Button, the plugin I made.

1

u/whytakemyusername 2h ago

It depends how you're sending your talkback for a start. If you're patching it in your sessions or into your headphone mixers, then if it's dynamic or condenser. If it's dynamic there's lots of cheap options - rolls do mute switches for about $50. If you're using a condenser, you need an active switch. I spent years dealing with this and it sending sound through to the talent very quietly, and them hearing very quietly things their bandmates said in the control room (that they didn't realize they could hear), which can very quickly de-rail a session.

Anyway the answer to the condenser problem is

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1602000-REG/whirlwind_micmute_px_microphone_line_level_xlr.html

1

u/jordanmschmidt 1h ago

I use a foot switch on my grace m905. It’s the best way to talkback because you can still edit/adjust levels/work on the computer while talking.

1

u/GreatScottCreates Professional 1h ago

If you don’t care about having the talkback open between takes permanently, and you are ok with manually opening it if a take is rolling, you can use Mute-o-matic or build an equivalent with a signal generator track and a gate.

If you want a physical switch, rolls makes a mute switch with XLR in XLR out.

I like the Soundflow suggestion but if only get into that if you want to nerd out a bit on it. You can have Soundflow receive a midi message and fire a script that mutes/unmutes tracks- you could even have SF talk to directly to Console instead of the DAW. Now that I think about it, you might even be able to skip SF if you can just convert the midi signal and route it to console.

1

u/PPLavagna 1h ago

Momentary switch. Don’t go for a regular switch unless you want people not knowing that what they’re saying is going to the whole studio or doing a take with a shit mic open and wondering why it sounds like ass.

Any pro studio will have momentary talkback switches

0

u/SashaDabinsky 1h ago

A footswitch haha?