Twenty Thousand Hertz

Since the earliest days of commercial radio, companies have been using sound to worm their way into our brains. And over the decades, they’ve come up with all kinds of sonic tactics to make us want, crave and remember their products. In this episode, we take a whirlwind tour through the sounds of persuasion. This story was adapted from Under the Influence with Terry O’Reilly.

Twenty Thousand Hertz is produced by ⁠Defacto Sound⁠.

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Episode transcript, music, and credits can be found here: https://www.20k.org/episodes/soundsthatsell

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The sound of a roaring combustion engine is a fixture of modern life. But as electric vehicles become more and more common, these mechanical sounds will gradually be replaced with artificial tones that have been designed from scratch. And once self-driving cars start to take over, there will be an even bigger need for creative and intuitive sound design. In this episode, we explore the future of car sounds with Audio UX Co-Founder Dexter Garcia and Creative Consultant/Futurist John LePore.

Twenty Thousand Hertz is produced by ⁠Defacto Sound⁠.

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Episode transcript, music, and credits can be found here: https://www.20k.org/episodes/autotone

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For more than seventy years now, filmmakers have been using and reusing a particular scream. Without a doubt, this is Hollywood’s most famous sound effect. Many people even know it by name. But despite how widely-known this sound is, lots of people still don’t know its surprising origin story. To set the record straight, we’ve remixed one of our classic, early episodes. Featuring Steve Lee, sound designer, film historian, and creator of the Hollywood Sound Museum.

Twenty Thousand Hertz is produced by ⁠Defacto Sound⁠.

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Episode transcript, music, and credits can be found here: https://www.20k.org/episodes/wilhelmscreamix

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In recent years, the dialogue in movies and TV shows has gotten harder and harder to understand. No one seems to agree on who or what the main culprit is, much less how to fix the problem. In this episode, we wade into the murky waters of The Great Dialogue Debate, and maybe, just maybe, find a solution. Featuring Production Sound Mixer Tom Curley and Slashfilm Senior Writer Ben Pearson.

Twenty Thousand Hertz is produced by ⁠Defacto Sound⁠.

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Mark Mangini is one of the most prolific sound designers of all time. He’s been credited on over 150 films, including Indiana Jones, Star Trek, Aladdin, Space Jam, The Green Mile, Anchorman, Mad Max: Fury Road, Dune, and tons more. In this episode, Mark joins us to count down six of our favorite sonic moments from his career, and reveals the secrets behind how these iconic sounds were made. This episode was made in partnership with Pro Sound Effects.

Twenty Thousand Hertz is produced by ⁠Defacto Sound⁠.

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Many of us talk to ourselves in our heads pretty much all day long. But it turns out that there are plenty of people who don’t. In fact, thinking comes in many shapes and sizes, and no two minds are exactly alike. In this episode, we explore the peculiar world of how we think, and consider the pros and cons of inner speech. Featuring psychologists Charles Fernyhough and Russell Hurlburt, and lots of 20K listeners.

Twenty Thousand Hertz is produced by ⁠Defacto Sound⁠.

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Episode transcript, music, and credits can be found here: https://www.20k.org/episodes/voiceinside

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The original Zelda game featured three melodies that would come to define the franchise: the Secret Unlocked Sound, the Treasure Chest sound, and the classic Zelda theme. Throughout the series, these melodies have been transformed again and again. Each version reflects the hardware it was made for, and Nintendo’s evolving approach to these iconic games. Featuring Thomas of Thomas Game Docs, and Kirk Hamilton of Strong Songs.

Twenty Thousand Hertz is produced by ⁠Defacto Sound⁠.

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Episode transcript, music, and credits can be found here: https://www.20k.org/episodes/zeldatones

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Music is a quintessential part of the Zelda series. And some of Zelda’s most iconic melodies go all the way back to the original game, on the Nintendo Entertainment System. These tunes were born in an age of 8 bits, and 5 lo-fi channels of audio. But those limitations forced composer Koji Kondo to make them as distilled and powerful as possible. Featuring Thomas of Thomas Game Docs, and Kirk Hamilton of Strong Songs.

Twenty Thousand Hertz is produced by ⁠Defacto Sound⁠.

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Episode transcript, music, and credits can be found here: https://www.20k.org/episodes/zeldabeep

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The history of recorded sound stretches back over a hundred and fifty years, starting with a device that could “record” a voice on a piece of paper. Today, we can enjoy lossless streaming anywhere we go… but getting here wasn’t easy. In this episode, we worked with Qobuz, the high quality music platform, to chart the history of audio mediums, from cylinders made of tin foil and wax, to vinyl, 8-track, cassette, CDs, and mp3s. Along the way, we explore the innovations and quirks of each format, with memories sent in from our listeners and the 20K team. Featuring Adam Tovell from the British Library Sound Archive.

Twenty Thousand Hertz is produced by ⁠Defacto Sound⁠.

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Episode transcript, music, and credits can be found here: https://www.20k.org/episodes/fromcylinderstostreaming

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Baseball fan or not, there’s one song that virtually every American knows… or at least, we think we do. “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” is one of the top three most recognizable songs in the country, next to “The Star Spangled Banner'' and “Happy Birthday.” But if you dig into the lyrics, you’ll find a forgotten message buried among the peanuts and Cracker Jack. This story comes from the Smithsonian’s Sidedoor podcast.

Twenty Thousand Hertz is produced by ⁠Defacto Sound⁠.

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Episode transcript, music, and credits can be found here: https://www.20k.org/episodes/seventhinningstretch

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