Design document
Sound Basics: Recording and Mixing
Why the course is built the way it is.
Problem and goal
Recording, mixing, and release are taught as separate topics, so beginners can name the gear without understanding how a sound travels from a voice to a listener. This course teaches that one path end to end.
Performance goal: after the course, a learner can follow a sound from source to listener, explain what each stage does to it, and make two safe choices: a recording level that does not clip, and a listening level that does not damage hearing.
Target audience (assumed for this sample)
- Adults new to audio: hobbyists, podcasters, and new hires on media teams.
- No audio vocabulary assumed, and no math beyond simple ratios such as doubling. No prior software needed.
- Likely on a phone or laptop, in short sittings. The 32 minutes is split into eight modules so a learner can stop and return.
This sample has no real learner data. The audience above is an assumption I made to drive design decisions, and the evaluation plan below says how I would test it.
Alignment: objective, practice, assessment
| Objective (learner can…) | Practice | Check |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Define frequency and amplitude, with units (Hz, dB). | Module 2: frequency scale, decibel steps, and a waveform with frequency and amplitude knobs. | Module 2 knowledge check and quiz Q1, both on frequency. Known gap: amplitude and dB have no direct check. |
| 2. Describe the path from source to listener. | Module 3: interactive signal path, mic types and patterns, gain and converter demos, a mini DAW, and an ordering activity. | Module 3 checks; quiz Q4 (ordering) and Q5 (clipping). |
| 3. Explain how tracks combine and route to the master bus. | Module 4: mix signal flow and a four-stem mini mixer with EQ, compression, reverb, and a mono check. | Module 4 check (aux sends); quiz Q6. |
| 4. Compare preparing sound for digital release and for vinyl. | Module 5: one master compared across formats. | Module 5 check only. Known gap: not in the final quiz. |
| 5. Identify the parts of the ear and the cues used to localize sound. | Module 6: the ear, the cochlea, and a localization demo with time and level cues. | Module 6 matching check; quiz Q2. |
| 6. State a safe listening limit and the risk of exceeding it. | Module 6: a hearing-budget demo with three reference sounds. | Module 6 check; quiz Q3. |
Key design decisions and why
- Demo first, explanation second. Pitch, loudness, and clipping are hard to learn from a definition. Most ideas start with something to play with.
- Every sound is also shown. Waveforms, spectra, and meters sit beside the audio, so the course works with sound off, for deaf and hard-of-hearing learners, and in a quiet room.
- The signal path is a spine. A path bar across the top highlights where each module sits, so new facts attach to one picture instead of a list.
- Required interaction on key demos. A short gate (“turn all three knobs”) makes sure the learner sees the contrast the demo is built to show. A “Browse freely” option lifts the gates for reviewers and returning learners.
- Gain staging gets a hands-on knob. Clipping is the costliest beginner mistake because it cannot be fixed later, so the learner hears too-low, healthy, and clipped levels on purpose.
- Plain readouts, one instruction line. Each activity page has a “Try it” line and simple numbers, to keep attention on the idea and off the interface.
- Shuffled answer order. Choices reorder on every attempt so a retry tests the idea, not the position of the answer.
Storyboard excerpts
Module 3: Gain staging
On screen: a gain knob, a level readout, and a waveform.
Learner does: turns the knob to a too-low, a healthy, and a clipped level. Gate opens when all three are tried.
Feedback: at the clipped level the waveform peaks are drawn flattened in red, with the advice to lower the gain.
Objective: 2
Module 4: Mini mixer
On screen: four stems (drums, bass, guitar, vocal) with EQ, compressor, reverb, and a mono switch.
Learner does: tries all four tools and hears the change on the full mix.
Feedback: meters and a spectrum show what the learner is hearing.
Objective: 3
Module 7: Quiz item
On screen: one of six items, such as a three-choice scenario question with the choices shuffled, or an ordering task.
Learner does: answers.
Feedback: every choice, right or wrong, gets a reason. A miss links back to the lesson page that covers it. Pass mark is 5 of 6.
Objectives: 1, 2, 3, 5, and 6 (see the gaps noted above)
Assessment design
- Six items, one per core idea, using scenario stems where possible (Q3: a learner monitors at 91 dBA; Q5: a track is harsh at 0 dBFS).
- Distractors come from likely misconceptions, such as confusing frequency with loudness, or ILD with ITD.
- No time limit and immediate feedback. The purpose is to confirm understanding and route learners back, not to rank them.
- One low-stakes knowledge check per module keeps the final quiz from being the first test of anything.
Accessibility
- Full keyboard operation, with visible focus.
- Reduced-motion support.
- Text alternatives for diagrams, and live-region announcements for changing readouts.
- No information carried by sound alone.
Evaluation plan (not yet run)
| Level | What I would collect |
|---|---|
| 1. Reaction | The end-of-course survey, which today asks for a 1 to 5 clarity rating and one thing to change. I would add a question about pace and about which demo helped most. |
| 2. Learning | Quiz score by item, to find weak objectives. For example, a first-attempt miss rate above about 40% on an item would suggest the lesson or the item needs a rewrite. |
| 3. Behavior | A follow-up task two weeks later: record a test take and report its peak level. |
| 4. Results | Fewer clipped or re-recorded takes in the audience's real work. |
For an LMS release I would package the course as SCORM or send xAPI statements for page views, demo completion, and each quiz answer. This sample does not do either.
Known limits and next steps
- Objective 4 (digital versus vinyl) is checked in Module 5 only, and amplitude and dB (objective 1) have no direct check. I would add a final quiz item for each.
- Audience and evaluation are assumed, not measured. I would pilot with five to eight beginners and revise.
- Demos are hand-coded, so content changes require editing code. In a team setting, I would keep the custom demos and manage the text and quiz content in an authoring tool so non-developers can maintain it.