New Sound Effects: Dystopian Drones, Small Fires, Underwater Exploration, Handcuffs - And More!

Posted February 11, 2018 by Adriane Kuzminski in New sound effects libraries

In this new recap, we have 7 new libraries that will give you the detail, professionalism, and immersion that only be conjured by the masters. We have intricate libraries featuring the inner workings of a hybrid vehicle, instructional video sounds taken to a highly entertaining level, mood-setting light sources, Smith & Wesson handcuffs, and the sonic synesthesia of city dwellers. We also have sound libraries that will convince your audience that modern society has ended or that they embarking on an underwater exploration. Enjoy these audio treats!

Small Fires

Fire Sound Effects Small Fires Play Track 46 sounds included, 43 mins mins total
Rated 5.00 out of 5
$40
This library was made for the small stuff. I have always had a hard time finding small fire sounds. I work mostly in games, and trying to find a small fireplace sound, or torches on the wall in a castle, or perhaps a candle or oil lamp sound, are impossible to find in commercial libraries! I've always been unhappy with what I had to make for those elements. So, I went to work getting small and delicate fire sounds.

It took multiple field recording trips using a variety of different materials to find the best small fire sounds. Finally, after a lot of hard work (and smoke to the lungs), here is the Small Fire SFX Library!
- Small fires with a variety of different materials including cloth, cotton, hand sanitizer, a multitude of different woods, Vaseline, and pure alcohol
- 1.22 Gigs, 43+ mins, 46 files
- Stereo & Mono 96Khz, 24bit
- Metadata included for programs like Soundminer
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'Small Fires' is a library born out of necessity. Noticing the lack of fire sounds for very common sources in games - castle torches, candles, oil lamps, fireplaces; you know, the things that give an environment life! - The Sound Keeper decided to make his own collection and share it with us. These small, delicate fire sounds are perfect for the items described above as well as campfires, burning cloth and money, and even the blue blaze of hand sanitizer. As usual, these sounds come in 96kHz and include Soundminer data. For over 40 minutes of flames to enhance your scene, check this one out.

EXPLNR Sounds Vol. 1

Foley Sound Effects EXPLNR Sounds Vol. 1 Play Track 1181+ sounds included $42

Need sound effects for your explainer videos? The EXPLNR sounds series is a collection of sfx libraries designed and produced with the classic 2d animated explainer video in mind. These sounds will give quick and useful coverage to the common moves used in this style.

Vol 1 is an excellent all-around base library that includes whooshes, clicks, pops, swells, ratchets, slides, rips, drags, flicks, crumples, and dings – all custom designed with the playfulness and clean edges required to match the explainer video style.

To help cover repetitive visual movements, multiple iterations of each sound are included. A host of designed sounds will quickly cover more complex movements.

The next time you have an explainer video in the house, you know your starting point.

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'EXPLNR Sounds Vol. 1' by echo | collective is an interesting collection of sounds for animated instruction videos - though you don't need to be working in PowerPoint to find these useful! With 1,181 sounds of pops, clicks, whooshes, rips, crumples, dings, swells, and more, this library will give your video a clean, playful feel no matter how dry your topic is. It also includes sounds for repetitive movements and multiple iterations, making it not only useful for presentations and user interfaces, but even cute little machines, too. Give it a listen!

Cuff 'Em

Foley Sound Effects Cuff ‘Em Play Track 2285+ sounds included, 51 mins total $15

Cuff ‘Em is a collection of all things handcuff. Lock up the villain using the Smith & Wesson 100-1 series nickel plated carbon steel handcuff. Use the key to unlock and unlatch to make your escape. Pick up and drop the cuffs on numerous surfaces. Surfaces include: Wood Table, Resonant Wood Table, Carpet, Carpeted covered Hardwood, Hardwood Floor, Two Metal Tables, Resonant Metal Table, Chaise Lounge, and Leather Drum Stool. Also included is opening and closing of the latches, fidget and jiggle around, spin on different surfaces, and more!

60 files, 51 minutes, with over 2,285 sounds in total! Recordings decoded from MS into stereo using the Sennheiser MKH8050, MKH30 microphones into a Sound Devices Mix Pre-6 Recorder.

All files are metadata tagged and updated using the Universal Category System in Soundminer, Basehead, and Soundly.

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Does your project take place in the Wild West or at a police station in Brooklyn? Then 'Cuff 'Em' by All You Can Eat Audio may help you out with your next scene. This library gets you 2,285 sounds of this intricately-designed securing device. Featuring a nickel-plated carbon steel set of handcuffs by Smith & Wesson, you get sounds of the cuffs latching and unlatching, clinking together and jingling, as well as being twirled, picked up, and dropped on various surfaces like wood, carpet, metal, and different types of furniture. If your project has a bit of law and justice, this is an easy buy!

Urban & Suburban

City Life Sound Effects Urban & Suburban Play Track 140+ sounds included $135

If you're after city ambiences, URBAN & SUBURBAN provides a solid foundation for any sound designer to create a believable acoustic backdrop right out of the gate with common ambiences in varying intensities, daytimes and configurations. Easily accessible public places are captured in excellent quality, yet enough balance and distance to support the scene in the background and embed more prominent sounds into the mix.

COMMON VS UNUSUAL
While URBAN & SUBURBAN provides all the necessary basics, it also goes the extra mile by providing more isolated environments as well as recordings of special events that will come in handy when a change of scenery or dramaturgy is required. Various forms of traffic, groups of people, buildings, animals, wind and many more sound sources that make an appearance in this library ensure that you are able to craft an experience complete with the necessary components.

INCLUDED SOUNDS – KEYWORDS:
Urban, Suburban, Area, Mowers, Sprinklers, Traffic, Babble, People, Cars, Trucks, Horns, Sirens, Light Traffic, Traffic Echoes, Train Horns, Traffic Roars, Electricity Crackles, Emergency Vehicle Sirens, Car Passes, Cobblestones, Celebratory Car Horns, Car Horns And Shouts, Shuttle Bus, Luggage Wheels, Footsteps, Airport Interior Ambiences, Security Announcements, Chair Movements, Food Circus, Tsa Security Checkpoints, Train Station Entrances, Toll Stations, Coin Tosses, Underground, Rumbling, Arrival, Departure, Backgrounds, Trains, Park Morning, Park Day, Sidewalk, Cathedral Bells, Crowded Indoor Spaces

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'Urban & Suburban' by BOOM Library gives you professional backgrounds for your city scenes. These sounds aren't just quick guerilla recordings during a vacation, they insightfully capture the details of city life with a focused ear. With honking traffic, cooing pigeons, lonely crickets, busy subway stations, echoing intercoms, commuting pedestrians, and more, you get over 140 recordings that instantly put you in the heart of the city. You also get daytime and nighttime recordings and multiple intensities, and nearly all the recordings loop, too. If you need reliable city sounds that you can revisit time and time again, this one's got 'em.

The Underwater Bundle

Water & Ocean Sounds LT Underwater Bundle 1 Play Track 1057+ sounds included, 290 mins total $116

Check out the SPACE DIVERS MINI for free!

Get ready for your next project with this unique combo! Grab SPACE DIVERS together with DIVE DEEP – 1057+ sounds in total – at a very special price:

DIVE DEEP – a pack of more than 50 underwater ambiences, divided into categories like “Water Flow”, “Bubbles”, “Distant” and more.

SPACE DIVERS – a unique sound design project that takes you from deep sea dives to space walks, with resonant impacts, movement, breathing, machinery and much more.

Exclusively on A Sound Effect!

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'The Underwater Bundle' by Lukáš Tvrdoň is a bundle of his two beloved and well-crafted libraries 'Dive Deep' and 'Space Divers'. This collection (which basically gives you 'Dive Deep' for free!) has immersive bubbles, resonant impacts, true-to-life protective suit experiences, and sonorous soundscapes. Altogether you get nearly 5 hours of sounds that will make your audience instinctually hold their breath. If you are looking into either one of these libraries, this bundle should be a delight!

Electric Vehicles vol. 1: Renault Fluence

Car Sound Effects Electric Vehicles vol. 1: Renault Fluence Play Track 111 sounds included, 123 mins total $50

Looking for electric car sounds? This library delivers 111 files / 123 minutes of 96k recordings in mono and stereo of the Renault Fluence Dynamique electric vehicle.

The Reanult Fluence was one of the first medium sized electric vehicles in Europe, originally produced in 2012. The car is based on the Renault Megane conventional vehicle.

In these recordings, we have recorded the engine with contact mics, capturing the raw sound of the otherwise very quiet electric engine.

We also have a lot of tire sounds on different surfaces, gravel, asphalt and rumble strips on the highway, as well as passby sounds.

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'Electric Vehicles vol. 1: Renault Fluence' by Morten Green Sound FX is a collection with over 2 hours of recordings from this French automaker's hybrid vehicle. It captures it in a unique fashion: with dozens of contact mic recordings, you hear the mechanical workings of its quiet electric engine. You also get sounds of it driving on gravel and in traffic, as well as sounds of the alarms, buttons, doors, male and female navigation voices, and more! If you're looking for a car library that has more than just driving and accelerating, this one's for you.

Dystopian Drones

Drones & Mood Sound Effects Dystopian Drones Play Track 233 sounds included, 227 mins total $45

Dystopian Drones sound library features 200+ high quality drone sound effects that instantly evoke unsettling feeling and post-apocalyptic images of a machine-dominated world, destroyed dystopian cities, deserted landscapes and sci-fi machine rooms, reactors and engines!

Perfect for creating disturbing industrial ambiences and dark otherworldly soundscapes, these sound effects will work great as a background for any dark futuristic sci-fi scene full of tension and suspense.

You can choose between different types of drones ranging from intense pulsating ones, dynamic and evolving ones to the constant drones. Whether you’re working on a post-apocalyptic video game, movie, tv show or if you need dark ambient textures for a music production, this sound library has you covered!

Dystopian Drones sound library contains 7.39GB (227 minutes total) of high definition 24bit/96khz stereo WAV files, embedded with metadata to speed up your workflow and separated into three categories: 1. Evolving Drones 2. Pulsating Drones 3. Constant Drones

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'Dystopian Drones' by Sound Response celebrates the decades-long culture of dystopian cinema with sounds that make you want to go and re-watch anything directed by Ridley Scott, James Cameron, or John Carpenter. With over 200 unsettling drones, you'll be able to add dark qualities to your soundscape with disturbing feedback, synthy pulses, tense tones, eerie noises, and more. These drones are perfect for your horror, sci-fi, and retro projects! If you need overpowering post-apocalyptic suspense, this will have your project dripping with it in no time.

Need more sound effects? See all the latest SFX releases here

Popular sound effects this week:

Cinematic & Trailer Sound Effects Magic – Alchemy Play Track 4213 sounds included ~~From: $135~~ From: $108

SONIC SPELLS WITH REAL PERSONALITY

MAGIC – ALCHEMY is a professional sound effects library built from real chemical reactions and elemental forces. It delivers short, character-rich magic sound effects perfect for spellcasting, magical UI design, and fantasy storytelling. Designed to sit cleanly in a mix and shimmer with personality, these spell sounds are ideal for games, trailers, audio dramas and more. Real reactions, recorded with obsessive detail.

Magic Sounds from Real Chemical Reactions

No digital fakery here. Every sound in MAGIC – ALCHEMY began as a live experiment — alcohol burning in jars, butane growling through pipes, fuses igniting, water swirling in glass. These are true-to-life textures, captured in a lab-grade recording setup. The result? Magical sound with depth, realism, and spark..

Short, Sharp, and Ready to Use

These are not long, cinematic flourishes. This library is about immediacy — short, dry, punchy magic effects that are easy to slot into your project. Ideal for game asset design, magical feedback sounds, and trailer moments where clarity counts.

Three Spell Flavours: Holy, Cursed, Neutral

Need a healing chime, a cursed hex, or something more ambiguous? The Designed section is grouped into Holy, Cursed, and Neutral categories — giving you emotional options that match your scene’s intent, whether you’re crafting a fantasy RPG or a subtle magical interaction.

Built for Professionals, Whatever You Create

Whether you’re layering magic for a fantasy film, adding interactive audio to a mobile game, or creating rich textures for audiobooks or theatre, MAGIC – ALCHEMY fits right in. It’s mix-ready, flexible, and full of sonic character.

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Foley Sound Effects Grenade Foley Play Track 1374 sounds included $15

A focused collection of grenade foley, captured with precision using replica units. This library provides the essential, clean sounds of tactical handling, interaction, and impacts.

Recorded at 96kHz/24-bit across various surfaces including steel plates, carpet, wood floorings, soil, and grass, this library offers variation for different environments. The recordings feature grenade shakes, surface impacts and rolls, pin pulls, spoon lever ejections, spoon drops, and tactical gear foley, all captured with Lewitt LCT 540 S and Shure SM7B.

This is a practical toolkit for sound designers working in film, games, and other media, providing a tonal and versatile foundation for building realistic military action.

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Game Audio Packs - Game Sound Effects Libraries Spells Variations Vol 4 Play Track 255 sounds included $10.20

Spell Variations Vol. 4 marks the grand finale of our magical sound series, delivering a diverse and powerful collection of spell effects. Inside, you’ll find summonings, blood spells, petrifications, healing spells, dark incantations, and much more!

This volume includes 255 high-quality sound effects, organized into 27 distinct spell types, each with multiple variations (3 to 17) to ensure no spell sounds the same, even when reused across your project.

Each spell type is carefully named and sorted into individual folders, giving you intuitive navigation and maximum flexibility for magical scenes, game effects, or cinematic transitions.

Recorded, edited, and mastered in 192 kHz / 24-bit, these sounds deliver exceptional clarity and full adaptability for pitching, layering, or creative processing.

A must-have library for professional sound designers seeking drag-and-drop magical sounds for video games, trailers, animations, or any audiovisual production.

More about the pack
– Intuitive file naming
– All you’ll ever need regarding magical sounds [Use them again & again
Use the sound effects over and over, in any of your projects or productions, forever without any additional fees or royalties. Use the SFX in your game, in your trailer, in a Kickstarter campaign, wherever you need to, as much as you want to.
– Totally mono compatibility
– All sounds have several variations.
– Use your imagination and feel free to use any sound for a creature other than the one described, remember that the world of sound is totally subjective.
– For any questions or problems: khronstudio@gmail.com

Features
– 255 spell sounds
– Number of Audio Waves: 255
– Format: 192KHz / 24 bits
– Win/Mac: Yes
– Minutes of audio provided: 19:21

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Updated in real-time, so it always shows 3 of the most popular SFX libraries from the past week

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THE WORLD’S EASIEST WAY TO GET INDEPENDENT SOUND EFFECTS:

A Sound Effect gives you easy access to an absolutely huge sound effects catalog from a myriad of independent sound creators, all covered by one license agreement - a few highlights:

Foley Sound Effects Grenade Foley Play Track 1374 sounds included $15

A focused collection of grenade foley, captured with precision using replica units. This library provides the essential, clean sounds of tactical handling, interaction, and impacts.

Recorded at 96kHz/24-bit across various surfaces including steel plates, carpet, wood floorings, soil, and grass, this library offers variation for different environments. The recordings feature grenade shakes, surface impacts and rolls, pin pulls, spoon lever ejections, spoon drops, and tactical gear foley, all captured with Lewitt LCT 540 S and Shure SM7B.

This is a practical toolkit for sound designers working in film, games, and other media, providing a tonal and versatile foundation for building realistic military action.

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Game Audio Packs - Game Sound Effects Libraries Magic Spell Impacts Sound Effects 2 Play Track 105 sounds included, 4 mins total $11.99
Bring your fantasy world to life with our 105 Carefully Crafted Magic Spell Sound Effects pack. This versatile collection features a wide range of high-quality sounds designed to enhance magical moments in your game, film, or video project. From mystical incantations and powerful energy blasts to enchanting spellcasts and magical transformations, these effects are perfect for a variety of scenarios. Whether you’re creating epic battles, immersive fantasy environments, or magical interactions, these designed sound effects will add depth and excitement, making every spell cast feel impactful and immersive.

Features:
- Fast Spells – 84 sounds
- Medium Spells – 21 sounds
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Trucks, Buses & Van Sounds Renault Master 2.3 dci – Diesel Van Play Track 102+ sounds included, 132 mins total $40

The Renault Master 2.3 dci diesel van sound library is a go-to pack for many transportation-related scenes. It features 102 96kHz files, more than 130 minutes of audio covering different aspects of using the van. Inside you’ll find engine sounds recorded under the hood, stereo recordings from the cabin during driving, exterior passes and different maneuvers and foley recordings.

The library contains:
• 6 engine under-the-hood onboard recordings while driving (38 minutes)
• 10 interior cabin recordings, 6 in sync with engine (54 minutes)
• 70 exterior passby / driving files
• 18 foley sound effects

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Explore the full, unique collection here

Latest sound effects libraries:

Electricity Sound Effects Extra Storms Play Track 153 sounds included, 242 mins total $9.99

EXTRA STORMS – is an auxiliary sound library containing 153 unique sound effect files of storms. From distant brewing storms and slow growing showers to windy thrashing torments and bombastic cracks. Whether it’s a background of booming thunder and rain or a windy storm you’re looking for; This Extra sound effects library will help supplement the moody weather needs, of your next project. Extra Storms comes in at over 4 hours and was recorded at 192kHz / 32bit using an ultrasonic microphone. All of our libraries comply with the Universal Category System naming convention standard, allowing for accurate and easy granular searches.

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Car Sound Effects Renault 4 1961 subcompact supermini car Play Track 189 sounds included, 46 mins total $65

All files are recorded 32bit, 192 kHz, with RØDE NTG1, Line Audio Omni1 and FEL Clippy XLR EM272 microphones, Sound Devices MixPre-6 II recorder. Library contains wav files of driving, interior and exterior foley, mechanical and electrical sounds. It is also available in UCS.

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Bundles Surround Sound LAB Complete Collection (perpetual subscription) Play Track 6000+ sounds included $799
Surround Sound LAB Complete Collection

Unlock the full potential of your audio projects with the Surround Sound LAB Complete Collection. This bundle offers our entire Surround Sound Lab catalog in one comprehensive, perpetual one-time subscription.

Over 800 GB and +7,500 premium sounds. +5.100$ in value. And always growing.

The Ultimate Audio Resource

Our Complete Collection is the ultimate audio resource, meticulously curated and updated with our newest releases. Deliver your best work with the most extensive collection of world-class sound effects we’ve ever offered. This flagship collection is perfect for creators, post-production professionals, video editors, game developers, and more.

Our equipment is proudly part of Blacktone Studio team in Madrid, a studio with over 10 years of experience in sound post-production for cinema and TV.

Exclusive Benefits
- 🚀 Future Releases Included: Purchase once and receive all future libraries for free, directly to your inbox.
- 🔊 Ambisonic and Surround Recordings: Experience the richness of third-order ambisonic and surround recordings, capturing the most immersive audio environments.
- 🎧 Pristine and Consistent Quality: Enjoy pristine, high-quality sounds with consistent audio fidelity across all files.
- 🎤 State-of-the-Art Recording and Mastering Equipment: We utilize the best recording gear available, including cutting-edge third-order microphones and the latest technologies. Your sound experiences are crafted with meticulous attention to detail, edited, and mastered in our 9.1.6 Dolby Atmos immersive mixing stage.
- 📦 Massive Library: Over 6000 files, totaling more than 600 GB of premium audio.
- 🏷️ UCS Compliant: Fully compliant with the Universal Category System.
- 📋 Detailed Metadata: Each file comes with descriptive, embedded UCS metadata. View the sound list in XLS format.
- 💻 Flexible Delivery: Choose between download and hard drive delivery options.
- 💰 Royalty-Free: Use all sounds without any additional fees.
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User Interface (UI) Sound Effects UI Interaction Elements Play Track 277 sounds included $40

UI Interaction Elements by Cinematic Sound Design delivers a meticulously crafted sound effects library designed to enhance every click, swipe, tap, and notification in your user interface. This collection brings your apps, games, websites, and software to life, providing a rich auditory experience that makes every interaction feel responsive, intuitive, and satisfying.

Inside this library, you’ll find over 200 high-quality sounds, ranging from subtle, crunchy clicks and soft taps to layered futuristic swipes, innovative button presses, toggle switches, and alert notifications. Each sound has been professionally recorded and mastered to ensure clarity, balance, and versatility across any platform or device.

Whether you’re designing a mobile app, developing an interactive game, or building a modern web interface, UI Interaction Elements provides sounds that seamlessly integrate with your visual design, enhancing user feedback and engagement. The library has been meticulously designed, with each sound layered down and optimized for a maximum performance.

Bring your interfaces to life and create a tactile, immersive experience for your users. Make your UI unforgettable, one sound at a time.

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Animal Sound Effects Forests and Mountains Play Track 96+ sounds included, 220 mins total $110

Forest and Mountains features nature and wildlife sounds from California, Washington, and Oregon. Included are a number of bird recordings and forest ambiences, along with some insects, winds, rivers, and rain.

These were recorded over the past three years in various forests, foothills, and mountain environments. A lot of these took place in or near Southern California’s Angeles Forest and San Gabriel Mountains, an area that spans 1200 Square Miles and varies vastly in terrain.

Also included are some sounds from Northern California, along with recordings from the Pacific Northwest.

The recording techniques for this varied as sometimes I went with the recorders running unattended to capture night, dawn and early morning. Other times I’d record while being close by.

Working as a Sound Effects Editor I’ve curated this collection with Editors in mind. Background Ambiences and Spotted FX can really bring a location to life and give it so much story and character and that was a lot of the inspiration behind putting this all together.

The Locations

California (61 Files) – This is where a majority of the sounds from this library were recorded and specifically Southern California. Variety of areas and different environments, mostly around Angeles Forest, from Lower Elevation Foothills to more rugged mid-elevation Mountain Canyons and then much Higher Elevation and more remote terrain. Also included are a few recordings from the Eastern Sierras and Northern California.

Washington (19 Files) – Southern WA in Gifford Pinchot Forest and various Northwest Forest areas near Puget Sound.

Oregon (16 Files) – Lakeside Recordings in forest and marsh at Klamath Lake in SE Oregon.

The Birds

Prominent / Specific Birds (36) (Closer Mic Perspective and more detailed) (* denotes multiple versions)

Acorn Woodpecker, Barred Owl, Black-headed Grosbeak, California Towhee, *Canadian Geese, *Fox Sparrow, *Great Horned Owl, *House Wren, Northern Flicker, Oak Titmouse, Pacific Wren, Pileated Woodpecker, *Raven, Robin, *Song Sparrow, Spotted Towhee, Swainson’s Thrush

Other Birds Featured (17) (Mixed together from various perspectives, calm to busy depending on time of day, and then closer to more medium and distant sounds.)

Acorn Woodpecker, American Coot, California Quail, California Towhee, Cassin’s Finch, Fox Sparrow, Great Horned Owl, Hose Wren, Mallard, Mountain Chickadee, Northern Flicker, Nuttall’s Woodpecker, Oak Titmouse, Pied-billed Grebe, Common Poorwill, Raven, Red-tailed Hawk, Spotted Towhee, Steller’s Jay, Western Tanager, Western Wood-Pewee, White-breasted Nuthatch, Wilson’s Warbler, Wrentit, Yellow-throated Blackbird, Zone-tailed Hawk

General Forest (9) – A mix of some wildlife (Chipmunk, Deer, Bullfrogs), and more general lighter forest ambiences.
Insects (7) – Crickets from various perspectives and different forests along with some Grasshoppers.
Rain (4) Light to heavier in a canyon with dense vegetation, some with distant birds.
Rivers (5) Smaller detailed creeks to faster moving rivers.
Wind (11) A mix of calm to heavier with gusts, vegetation, and tree creaks.

Metadata
Detailed with descriptions and markers and photos to easily navigate and allow for options when searching. UCS was used to categorize and various bird species are identified. I’ve also labeled the metadata with what I consider Lower Elevation (up to 1500 feet), Middle Elevation (2000-5000 feet), and Higher Elevation (above 5000 feet). Included are the season of the year which was mostly Spring and Summer. Using Open-Tier in Soundminer you can use these to help get a bit more specific to particular environments.

The Gear

Sound Devices MixPre-3 & 6 | Zoom F3 & 6 | Sony PCM-D100

Mics

Sennheiser MKH 8020 | Sennheiser MKH 8040 |

Sennheiser MKH 30 | Clippy EM 272

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