Category Archives for "Book Excerpt"
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Using The Environment To Fine Tune Your Studio Ears
One of the biggest attributes for an engineer or producer to develop is what’s known as “studio ears.” That’s the ability to discern between minute changes within the music that you’re hearing. Is that guitar slightly out of tune? What frequency is the vocal harshness coming from? Is the keyboard part coming in slightly early […]
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Producer/Engineer Mack On Getting Great Guitar Sounds
With a who’s who list of credits such as Queen, Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, The Rolling Stones, Black Sabbath, Electric Light Orchestra, Rory Gallagher, Sparks, Giorgio Moroder, Donna Summer, Billy Squire, and Extreme, the producer/engineer who goes simply by the name Mack has made his living making superstars sound great. Having recorded so many big […]
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The Producer/Engineer/Musician Checklist For Getting Paid
Your not a music professional if you haven’t been screwed out of money at least once. That’s par for the course and part of the learning process, but it obviously becomes a real problem if it continues to happen. Regardless of what end of the music business you work in, as an independent contractor it’s your […]
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5 Things To Keep In Mind When Miking An Audience
I’ve received questions about miking an audience a few times in the past week so it seems like a good time to repost this how-to from a few years ago. It goes without saying that if you’re recording a live performance, then you want to pick up some of the crowd reaction to make it […]
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The “Can’t Seem To Get This Sound To Work” Tracking Checklist
Did you ever try to record something that just didn’t sound quite right no matter what you did? It’s a lot more common situation than you might think. While it’s easy to just try a bunch of random things, sometimes that makes you more confused than ever. That’s when it’s time to break out this […]
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A Guide To Saxophone Miking
The saxophone is a relatively new instrument, invented in the 1840s as a means for woodwinds to keep up with the brass instruments in volume and projection. Although most saxes are made of brass they’re still classified as woodwind instruments because sound is produced by an oscillating reed in the mouthpiece of the instrument. Saxes […]
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How A Production Rehearsal Can Take Your Live Show To The Next Level
One of the things that all major touring acts do before going out on tour is have production rehearsals. These are literally weeks of rehearsals where the stage show, as much as the music, is rehearsed. A big show with lots of sound, lighting, pyro, video, moving stages, guitar changes, wardrobe changes, and a host of other […]
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Thank You, Ed Cherney – Part 2
Over the years the engineer/producer Ed Cherney, who sadly passed away recently, contributed mightily to many of my books and podcast. You probably know this already, but Ed had deservedly great credits as he recorded and mixed projects for The Rolling Stones, Iggy Pop, Bob Dylan, Was, Michael Jackson, Elton John, Bob Seger, Roy Orbison, […]
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The 6 Track Editing Tips Every Mix Engineer Should Know
Mix engineers are called upon to do so much more than ever before. Individual track editing used to be done by the producer way before the mixing stage, but mixers now find that it’s part of the job they’re expected to do as part of the mix. Here are some tips for tweaking track timing […]
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Studio Musician 101: Your Ears, Chops, And Feel
Studio musicians are known for their musicality, which consists of their ears, chops, and feel, as well as their judgment. Session players have enough experience to know what to play and when to play it. They know how to best interact with the artist, other musicians, the engineer, and the producer to make the session […]
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11 Considerations When Recording Background Vocals
Recording background vocals is a distinctly different process from recording solo vocals because of how they will eventually fit in the mix. That requires a different technique for both recording and production in order to get the best result. Here are 11 background vocal-related points lifted from the 4th edition of my Recording Engineer’s Handbook […]
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The Reason Why You Can’t Hear Your Bass On Small Speakers
It’s happened to us all. We get a mix that’s just rocking out of our main monitors, yet when we play it on some tiny computer or phone speakers the bass instrument completely disappears. Here are some steps to take to ensure that the bass on your next mix will speak on just about any […]
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My Favorite Guitar Amp Miking Technique
There are about as many ways to mike an electric guitar amp cabinet as there are opinions on which music is the best, but there’s one that’s always been my favorite. The reason is that it provides a lot of versatility in sounds, something that we’re always looking for especially when guitars tracks are stacked. […]
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Ken Scott On Working At Trident With John Lennon And George Harrison
In an excerpt from his autobiography Abbey Road To Ziggy Stardust (which I was lucky enough to co-write), legendary producer/engineer Ken Scott describes what it was like to work at the famous Trident Studios in London with former Beatles John Lennon and George Harrison. “Trident Studios was located at 17 St. Anne’s Court, just off […]
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10 Points To Consider Before Recording Electric Guitar
There’s so much more that goes into recording an electric guitar that goes beyond just slamming a 57 up against the grill cloth of the speaker cabinet. Here are 10 points culled from the 4th edition of my Recording Engineer’s Handbook that you might want to consider before your next guitar recording session. 1. An […]
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