Real Explosions vs Movie Special Effects

[GO-NAD!]

This video contains audio from the detonation of a Mk48 torpedo. Just a short, sharp crack is heard. If you have little/no interest in submarines, skip ahead to about 13:00. Quite a contrast to what Hollywood would've done with it.

HMCS VICTORIA - A Long Beginning on Vimeo

Any of you who have fired rifles/handguns would know that they are quite wimpy sounding, compared to the movies.

 

[markw]

I hear ya. For movies, it's all low-end rumble that gets the attention. In real life there's a loud, sudden impact (KA-RAK!), which is well above the subwoofer range but it's the low rumbly decay that the movies concentrate on. It's more exciting and easier to reproduce.

If you want to hear realistic cannons, Telarc's 5.1 SACD version of Tchaikovsky's 1812 will be a eye opener. One would think that it's your subs that would get the workout, Guess what? You're wrong. IF you play it loud, your midrange driver better be able to handle some serious dynamics.

 

[Adam]

Any of you who have fired rifles/handguns would know that they are quite wimpy sounding, compared to the movies.

Well, sure...until you learn to hold them gangsta style.

 

[macddmac]

When I was in Iraq , we would get mortared on base pretty much daily (the place was nicknamed mortaritaville) and the sound was nothing like the Hollywood portrayals. More like the the sound of metal on metal (car crash) sort of sound. Still got your attention though..
Cheer, Mac

 

[avnetguy]

Any of you who have fired rifles/handguns would know that they are quite wimpy sounding, compared to the movies.

I wouldn't say rifles (except rimfire) sound wimpy in real life, they're very loud when you're close and I always wear hearing protection. They usually do sound different than in the movies, mainly action ones but some older westerns come pretty close.

Steve

 

[skizzerflake]

Movie explosions are usually made with a relatively small amount of gasoline (a few cups), vaporized and ignited in the air. The bright orange flame looks good on on the screen and makes an impressive rising flame ball. The sound is added later since the gasoline ignition just makes a big "whump" and not a big, bass-heavy boom. The gasoline burn produces very little shock wave, which is the main danger of explosions and which would destroy the set and actors.

 

[GO-NAD!]

I wouldn't say rifles (except rimfire) sound wimpy in real life, they're very loud when you're close and I always wear hearing protection. They usually do sound different than in the movies, mainly action ones but some older westerns come pretty close.

Steve

Of course they're loud. But, they certainly aren't as "impressive-sounding" as they're made out to be in the movies.

 

[majorloser]

I real life explosions have more impact due to the shock wave. It's more felt than heard.


Canada has submarines? And they work?

 

[Adam]

Canada has submarines?

Yep. They sure know how to go down.

 

[majorloser]

Yep. They sure know how to go down.

Going down is the easy part.

 

[Adam]

Going down is the easy part.

See, it's that can-do attitude that makes you are so popular in Twister.

 

[GO-NAD!]

I real life explosions have more impact due to the shock wave. It's more felt than heard.


Canada has submarines? And they work?

Sigh! Did you not watch the video I linked.

Yep. They sure know how to go down.

Going down is the easy part.

One of the most important equations you learn as a submariner, is to add up the number of times you dive with the number of times you surface. If you get an odd number, don't open a hatch...

 

[darien87]

That's one thing that's always bothered me about Hollywood sound effects. They seem to be too concerned with making things sound impressive and not realistic. Like when you see a movie that shows a train or subway. In the movies there's this low, ground-shaking rumble that isn't there in real life.

 

[j_garcia]

That's one thing that's always bothered me about Hollywood sound effects. They seem to be too concerned with making things sound impressive and not realistic. Like when you see a movie that shows a train or subway. In the movies there's this low, ground-shaking rumble that isn't there in real life.

The shaking is there, but it isn't just from infrasonic sound. That's their way of adding some rumble, just like any of the visual effects. Hollywood and "real life" have little to do with each other

 

[majorloser]

Sigh! Did you not watch the video I linked.

Yes, and I had to look up that class of sub to see who was stupid enough to give them to Canada. Looks like Britain unloaded of some of their problem boats.

 

[GO-NAD!]

Yes, and I had to look up that class of sub to see who was stupid enough to give them to Canada. Looks like Britain unloaded of some of their problem boats.

Ummm, I'm not sure how to take that....

I won't deny that they've had their problems and it's been a struggle to work them through. However, they are deathly quiet - like a hole in the water. A couple of years ago, one of VICTORIA's sisters exercised against a USN VIRGINIA-Class boat. Result? The embarrassed boat had nuclear propulsion. At least she could run away quickly...

 

[Tomorrow]

Of course they're loud. But, they certainly aren't as "impressive-sounding" as they're made out to be in the movies.

Guns are impressive sounding in the movies, but lacking that sweet smell of gunpowder. We need Yamaha to come out with a Smellovision AVS-2014.

 

[skizzerflake]

I real life explosions have more impact due to the shock wave. It's more felt than heard.


Canada has submarines? And they work?

Right, but since movies are such a visual medium, the big, bright orange flame of gasoline looks great, even it it is not generally accurate. They have gadgets that spray out some gasoline and then ignite a spark to get that big ball of fire, but that energy release is comparatively slow. Post production can make the boom sound like whatever they want. In real life, it's the shock wave and debris that do the damage. Often on film or video of a real explosion, there's not much smoke and flame, but you can actually see a compression wave spread out in a circle from the explosion, through the air, especially if it's a "fast" explosive, like plastic explosive, which releases a huge amount of energy in a tiny fraction of a second. It may have little smoke and visible flame, however, which makes it a bad special effect. Those are also not good for the health of nearby actors, for whom the shock wave would be like hitting a concrete wall at 80 MPH.

Not sure about Canadian Submarines, unless you're referring to sandwiches.

 

[Hocky]

I think the best LFE explosions are the ones that are just a very quick subsonic or near subsonic pulse that hits you in the chest like the shockwave that you're seeing on the screen might. Very fast and very dynamic, but not terribly rumbly or sustained.

 

[gmichael]

Is this any worse than when two ships in space shoot at each other in a Sci-Fi movie? Let's compare:
Movie: KA-BOOOOOOOMMMMMM.RUUUUUUUUUUUUMMMMMMMMBBBBLLLLLLLLLLLE.....
Real space: _________________________________________!