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Monthly Archives: May 2017

Is Getting A Good Mix Using Headphones Possible?

Mixing on headphones

Many producers using home or small studios are forced to use headphones late at night so they don’t disturb the family or the neighbors. That’s obviously not a method that many would recommend for a great mix, but it’s possible to attain something reasonable using headphones if you’re aware of the pros and cons involved, which […]

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Spotify Drops It’s Loudness Target So No Need For Loud Mixes Anymore

Spotify Loudness Target

Artists, producers and record labels have been obsessed over final mix volume levels for over 30 years now, as mix levels are raised to ridiculous levels where even distortion no longer matters. The problem is that we’ve known for a long time now that severely compressed low dynamic range mix levels are counterproductive and can even hurt it […]

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New Music Gear Monday: Wave Alchemy Revolution Drum Machine Emulator

Revolution drum machine emulator

When drum machines first came out in the 80s we loved the programmability but hated the sound limitations. It’s funny how things work, but today it’s those limitations that everyone remembers and wants to recapture. One way to do that is with Wave Alchemy’s Revolution, a virtual drum machine that emulates the authentic sound of […]

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Engineer Eric “Mixerman” Sarafin On My Latest Inner Circle Podcast

Eric Mixerman Serafin

Engineer Eric Sarafin has had great success with artists like The Pharcyde, Tone Loc, Ben Harper, Lifehouse, Barenaked Ladies, Amy Grant, and Foreigner, among many others. He’s a great engineer/producer, and certainly deserves all the accolades that he’s received for that, but you might know him better for his writing under the name of Mixerman. […]

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3 Techniques For Recording Bass Guitar

2 mics on bass cabinet

Just like the acoustic bass (and just about all instruments), a great bass sound is dependent upon the instrument itself, the player, the amp, and the room. The player has to be able to achieve the tone you’re trying to record with his fingers first and foremost. This excerpt from the 4th edition of my […]

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Producer/Engineer Sylvia Massy On My Latest Inner Circle Podcast

Sylvia Massy

Sylvia Massy has an incredible resume that covers Queens Of The Stone Age, Black Crowes, Smashing Pumpkins, Johnny Cash, Prince, Tool, Lenny Kravitz, and many more. But what’s so cool about Sylvia is that she’s absolutely fearless when it comes to experimenting in the studio (check out her “pickle filter” video from a recent post). […]

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New Music Gear Monday: Genelec The Ones Series Coaxial Monitors

Genelec The Ones series

I’ve been using coaxial monitors as part of my regular studio setup for a long time. As far as I’m concerned, there’s something about their “single-point source” nature that sounds right to me, and it’s something that other speakers with separated drivers just can’t seem to deliver, at least to my ears. Don’t get me wrong, […]

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Engineer Bill Smith Is The Guest On My Latest Inner Circle Podcast

Bill Smith

Bill Smith got a chance to do what most of us just dream about, and that’s assist for some of the engineering luminaries during his days as an assistant at Capitol Studios in Hollywood. But it gets better. For many years Bill was the personal assistant to the great Al Schmitt. There’s nothing like learning […]

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