DUCKING — PRACTICE RECORD Videomontazher / Fairlight / AI · Voice Reference review: 8 October 2026 TASK Connect dialogue to music attenuation, check every speaker, and choose depth and timing from a word entry, a short gap and the end of speech. Work in a project copy. This record contains no pre-approved results. 1. PROJECT AND ROLES Resolve version and edition: ____________________________________________ Project / duplicate timeline: ___________________________________________ 20–40 second comparison range, in / out: _________________________________ Target track containing Ducker (for example A3 MUSIC): ___________________ Source 1 (for example A1 DIALOGUE): ______________________________________ Source 2 (for example A2 DIALOGUE): ______________________________________ Additional sources: ____________________________________________________ Ordinary music level without Ducker: ____________________________________ Other processing / level automation: ____________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ 2. SCOPE AND SOURCES Open Ducker on what should get quieter: the music or an environmental bed. Mixer → Track FX; if needed, Mixer → Visible Track FX → Ducker. Assign dialogue tracks in Source. In the target track's Audio Inspector, use + beside Source 1 to add Source 2 and further source fields. This is Track Mode: individual clip controls are a different scope. Check separate lines from both speakers. For a single speaker, use two different lines and record that the multiple-source scenario was not performed. Only Source 1 selected — response to first line: _________________________ Only Source 1 selected — response to second line: ________________________ Source 1 and Source 2 — response to first line: __________________________ Source 1 and Source 2 — response to second line: _________________________ Overlapping lines — observation: ________________________________________ Unwanted sounds in selected sources: ____________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ 3. FIVE PARAMETERS Window labels: Duck Level, Lookahead, Rise Time, Hold, Recovery. Manual text: Duck Level = Duck Amount; Recovery = Recovery Time. Documented defaults: 2.7 dB / 15 / 10 / 150 / 750 ms. These are a starting point, not a mandatory preset. Duck Level: original ______ dB; version A ______; version B ______; final ______ Lookahead: original ______ ms; version A ______; version B ______; final ______ Rise Time: original ______ ms; version A ______; version B ______; final ______ Hold: original ______ ms; version A ______; version B ______; final ______ Recovery: original ______ ms; version A ______; version B ______; final ______ The manual illustration shows Lookahead at 0–500 ms, and Rise Time, Hold and Recovery at 0–1 s. This source does not establish a numerical Duck Level limit. The browser example's 0–12 dB scale is a teaching-model window. 4. DEPTH Compare two attenuation amounts, such as 3 and 6 dB, with identical timing. These are teaching comparison points. Listen to words and the musical role. Reference line: ________________________________________________________ Version A — words / music: ______________________________________________ Version B — words / music: ______________________________________________ Chosen depth and reason: ________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ 5. ENTRY, GAP AND RECOVERY Change one parameter at a time on the same passage. Lookahead sets anticipation, Rise Time sets time to reach attenuation, Hold retains it, and Recovery returns the level. In the native display, gray represents the incoming signal and yellow represents Ducker action; a dip means target attenuation. First consonant / time: _________________________________________________ Changed Lookahead, observation: _________________________________________ Changed Rise Time, observation: _________________________________________ Short gap / time: _______________________________________________________ Changed Hold, observation: ______________________________________________ Changed Recovery, observation: __________________________________________ Long gap / end of speech: _______________________________________________ Music return: too early / appropriate / too late / uncertain Explanation: ___________________________________________________________ 6. COMPLETE PASSAGE Play the scene without stopping. Disable Ducker itself for comparison: Effects In does not bypass Track FX. Then enable all intended changes. Both speakers' words: ___________________________________________________ Musical character under speech: _________________________________________ Short gaps and breathing: _______________________________________________ Overlapping lines: ______________________________________________________ End of speech and the next picture accent: ______________________________ Combined action of Ducker and automation: _______________________________ What needs work on the dialogue sources themselves: _____________________ _______________________________________________________________________ 7. SAVING AND DELIVERY Project reopened / date: _______________________________________________ Source after reopening and after rearranging tracks: ____________________ Reference file / date: __________________________________________________ File observation on the same lines: _____________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ What improved: _________________________________________________________ What distracts or remains uncertain: ____________________________________ Next action: ___________________________________________________________ REFERENCES AND SCOPE DaVinci Resolve 21 Reference Manual: chapter 44, pp. 952–953; chapter 170, p. 3837; chapter 181, pp. 4091 and 4094–4095. https://documents.blackmagicdesign.com/UserManuals/DaVinci_Resolve_21_Reference_Manual.pdf https://www.blackmagicdesign.com/products/davinciresolve/fairlight Ducker changes target level from assigned source signals. This is not a Threshold/Ratio sidechain-compressor recipe or an independently established AI Ducking mode. The browser envelope is a teaching diagram, not the native detector or exact Resolve curve. This record is not a preset or a listening test.