How to Make a Voice Sound Like It’s Coming From a TV: Futz Track Tutorial

Overview

This tutorial shows how to create “futz tracks”—processed audio that sounds like it’s coming from a TV, radio, phone, intercom, laptop/stereo, or game console—using EQ cuts/rolloffs and a “pinching” technique in post-production sound mixing.

What “Futzing” Means

As explained in the tutorial, futzing is fussing up the audio so it sounds smaller and more distant, typically by:

• Removing low end (reducing bass/body)
• Shaping/emphasizing mid/high content to simulate limited device bandwidth and harshness
• Applying overall EQ changes to create a sense of perspective (e.g., sound through a wall, door, or other space)

Core Workflow

1. Start with any EQ

   • The instructor demonstrates with FabFilter Pro-Q3, but says the approach works with any EQ plugin.

2. Apply baseline EQ

   • Use a baseline EQ on tracks, typically with slight rolloffs.

3. Switch to “futz” EQ presets

   • Use prebuilt presets to quickly transform a channel into a device-like version.

Presets Provided (Instructor’s Main Feature)

The instructor uses three main futz presets, plus an extra one for games:

• Futs 1

  • More like the sound is outside/around a wall or door
  • Less extreme than the others

• Futs 2 (named the winner)

  • More pinched and device-like
  • Used often for TV realism

• Futs 3

  • More described as “wholeer”
  • Less common

• Game Futs

  • Super pinched
  • Designed for game console through a TV
  • Emphasizes a sharper, more device-like sound

The “Pinching” Concept (Key Analysis)

“Pinching” means bringing in the low and high edges while narrowing/squeezing the sound, making it more bandwidth-limited and more device-ish.

The tutorial compares the presets:

• Futs 2 is more pinched than Futs 1
• Game Futs is the most pinched

Practical Mixing Guidance

• EQ futzing often reduces perceived level/volume because you cut frequencies.
  • You may need to boost overall gain afterward so it remains audible in the mix.

Typical EQ moves referenced include:

• High cut / high rolloff (around the high end, ~28 kHz mentioned)
• Low cut / mid shaping (low cutoff region around ~480 Hz mentioned)
• Additional mid reduction/boosting (a bell around ~400–420 Hz mentioned)

Demonstrations by Content Type

1. Crowds / Band / Football Game

• Demonstrates switching between:
  • “Outside stadium” (normal)
  • “TV background / watching on a TV”
• Suggests boosting the pep band layer, since futzing can make it quieter.

2. Music

• Shows how applying Futs 2 makes music sound like it’s coming through a TV/transistor-radio-like device.
• Compares Futs 1 vs Futs 2 vs Futs 3, again emphasizing that Futs 2 tends to work best for the device realism.

3. Dialogue

• Demonstrates making dialogue sound like it’s coming from:
  • Radio/transistor radio
  • Phone
  • Intercom/phone-like distance
• Notes futzing can improve intelligibility because pinching helps words cut through.
• Recommends adjusting volume if futzing reduces level too much.

Replicating the Presets Without Pro-Q3

• The instructor recreates the futz curve using a generic EQ (e.g., EQ7 / 7-band EQ3) to show the concept is transferable.
• Advice: pause and take screenshots of the frequency shaping so you can copy it into your own EQ.

Optional Commercial Alternatives Mentioned

The tutorial briefly references tools/plugins that can generate device-like effects using presets or interfaces:

• FutzBox
• Speakerphone

However, it emphasizes that EQ-based futzing is still the core approach, especially for training your ear.

“Free Futz” Method Suggestion

If you want the effect without dedicated plugins:

• Use EQ with futz/preset-like shaping
• Add reverb to simulate space/perspective based on where the device is in the scene

Main Source / Instructor

Mastering Post-Production Sound — the instructor/host “friend,” demonstrating EQ workflows using FabFilter Pro-Q3.