How To

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 →

Reverb is something that can be overused very easily in a mix, but when done tastefully, it can add depth and vibe. There are so many options for reverb available these days in the hardware and software domains, it’s pretty easy to find a setting that can fit just right in every mix and on any source. Continue reading →

If you’ve ever been in a conversation about iconic drum sounds, surely at some point you found yourself on the topic of John Bonham and Led Zeppelin. For decades, Bonham has been acclaimed as one of the best drummers in rock music and musicians all over the globe have been trying to recreate the feel and tone of his performances. This drum tone was the result of a combination of several key elements; amazing playing, beautiful drums, a great live room and some studio magic. I’m sure you’ve all heard stories of how Zeppelin recorded. They would go hide out for months at a time at the Headley Grange mansion in England. In the late 1960s and early 70s, Headley Grange hosted a handful of artists including Bad Company, Genesis, Fleetwood Mac, Peter Frampton and many more. The mansion was a way for bands to get away from the everyday hassles of the real world and really “live” the music while recording an album. The mansion also consisted of countless rooms, cavernous hallways and echoing acoustics, making it ideal to shape any type of tone from up close and personal to larger than life. Continue reading →

We’ve all been there. You have a question about a piece of gear that you’re too afraid to ask. You figure you’ll just fake ’til you make it, but it goes on for so long you decide you finally have to ask… “What the hell is a DI box and how do I actually use one?” Don’t worry, we’re here to help! Continue reading →

A few weeks back, we posted a blog talking about "how to get a big vocal sound" like Damien Rice, Ray Lamontagne and Beck. We received a lot of comments on social media and we want you to know that we heard you loud and clear:"How do I get that huge, warm, breathy, colorful, rich vocal sound… without wiping out my savings account?”Not everyone can afford vintage tube gear at this point in their careers. That’s OK! While there is nothing like the magic of a vintage U47, you can fake it ’til you make it with these tips for getting a big vocal sound. Continue reading →

A key question often posed by our esteemed clients is "How do I get that huge, warm, breathy, colorful, rich vocal sound that I hear on records by some of my favorite singer songwriters like Damien Rice, Ray Lamontagne, and Beck?" Often times, these amazing artists have access to the best vintage microphones and outboard equipment in existence, but here are some tips to get that super up-close and intimate vocal sound on a variety of budgets. Continue reading →

Getting the snare drum to sit just right in the mix is one of the hardest things to do as a tracking and mixing engineer. Nine times out of 10, the final tone starts at the source, so you’ll want to take some time and get it right while tracking rather than trying to fix it in the mix. In this blog, I’m going to explain a couple different techniques for getting that final snare tone during the tracking process. Continue reading →