How To

"Books are for nerds. I haven't read a book since high school. Why would I read a book when I could just watch tutorials on YouTube?” — An unsuccessful audio engineer Successful engineers in the music industry are lifelong learners. It doesn't matter if you have a degree in the recording arts and sciences, or even if you've cut 100 records — there's always room to learn something new. Continue reading →

Drums are something you want to get right the first time. You never want to say the phrase, “We can fix it in the mix,” at any point during the tracking process. Everything from the size of drums, tone and amount of sustain should be well thought out before you start recording. One of the most important elements to discuss when it comes to drums is the kick drum. Even if you're limited to a smaller selection of kick drums in the studio, there are a handful of techniques that can be used to give each their own unique feel for every song on the record. Continue reading →

Depending on what source you’re recording, there’s a million different ways to mic it up to reach the final tone you’re looking for. The kick drum is no exception, and in most music genres, it’s one of the most important elements within any song. Every drummer has a different way of setting up their kick drum. Variables like the drum's diameter, batter head, resonant head, port or no port, style of pedal and internal dampening will determine what microphones to choose and techniques to use. In this blog, I’m going to go over a few examples where the miking technique changes depending on the resonant head on the kick drum. I’m not saying these techniques are the gold standard, but something to have in your back pocket if a situation arises where the drummer has a setup you’re unfamiliar with. Continue reading →

Ever hear the phrase, “You can’t fit 10 pounds of stuff in a five-pound bag?” Well, gain staging is literally the art of doing just that. It’s the process of combing dozens, if not hundreds of channels together, without causing any clipping at all. There's a finite amount of space in a mix, and it’s your job as the mixing engineer to make sure you fit all of the tracks within that space. That’s where gain staging comes in. But to understand gain staging in a DAW, you’ve got to understand the basics of digital audio. Continue reading →

When it comes to selecting microphones in the recording studio, it may seem intimidating for those who are new to the process. There are so many mics regarded as studio essentials, where do you even start? With that being said, there are some tried and true microphones that are known to flatter specific instruments. In the first part of our new video series entitled "Selecting Microphones That Flatter Different Sources," Vintage King's Bryan Reilly will walk you through the many different types of microphones that are available. Watch below to learn what makes dynamic, large diaphragm condenser, small diaphragm condenser and ribbon microphones special in their own individual way. Continue reading →

A few weeks back on the blog, we talked about the basics of starting a career as a freelance studio engineer. Some of the things we covered were selecting your niche, setting your rates and finding your first clients. Congratulations if you took our advice and are on your way to your first freelance session!   While it's not as exciting as recording or mixing, Part II of this blog series will talk more about ensuring that you are compensated for your work and time investment. Read on to learn about collecting deposits, invoices and work-for-hire contracts. Continue reading →

Mixing is a process of diminishing returns. You make a lot of improvements very quickly, but you make fewer improvements the longer you mix. Eventually, you actually start doing more harm than good. A lot of this is due to ear fatigue. Ear fatigue kind of makes everything sounds the same after awhile. It’s typically caused by extended exposure to loud sounds. Like, oh say… A recording studio. Symptoms include "tiredness, discomfort, pain, and loss of sensitivity." So, how do you prevent ear fatigue? Continue reading →

With the announcement of more SoundGrid and Dante-enabled gear at NAMM 2018, including the Rupert Neve Designs RMP-D8 and Apogee Symphony, the world of sending audio over IP has blown wide open. The push towards sending audio over IP has been around as long as road crews and sound engineers have been carrying cables for every single input and output in their rigs. How does this technology help deliver pristine sound and save on chiropractor bills? Continue reading to learn about the many benefits of sending audio over IP. Continue reading →

Years ago, there was a tried-and-true method for becoming a recording engineer. You would find a studio willing to hire you as an intern, and work your ass off for a few months. Eventually you would catch a break and get asked to run a session. Slowly, you would start to get more work and climb your way up the ladder, until you became a full-fledged engineer with your own interns to boss around. It was the circle of life for audio engineers.  Unfortunately, there are no “Help Wanted” signs hanging in the windows of today's recording studios. Hell, some of today's studios don’t even have windows.  Continue reading →

Monitor controllers are all about improving your workflow. Most engineers start their home studios with a simple recording interface. When you’ve only got two inputs, a couple monitors and a set of headphones, it’s relatively easy to manage where the signal goes. As you bring in more gear and evolve your studio space, you'll soon come to realize that you've quickly outgrown this style of set-up. With expansion, it can become more difficult to route the signal where you want it to go. Continue reading →