New Music Gear Monday: United Plugins FirePresser Multi-Compressor Plugin

Many times a track requires multiple compressors to get it under control and we’ll mix different types, like an FET-style 1176 with an optical LA-2A, to make that happen. More processing means you’re using more computer resources, which can become a problem in a large mix. What if there was a compressor that combined all […]

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Guitar Center Credit Rating Downgraded Again

Guitar Center had its credit rating downgraded again as its notes have fallen even lower into junk bond territory. Moody’s decreased its rating for GC from Caa1, which was already low, to Caa2, which it considers “highly speculative,” and “reflects the risk that the company may not be able to refinance its debt at par […]

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Bobby Owsinski Reveals 5 Essential Microphone Locker Tricks

I’m frequently asked to recommend a microphone and I have to say that it’s a difficult request to fulfill. The reason is that so much revolves around your budget and musical tastes that it’s difficult to get too specific. Instead I’ve come up with some general categories that I feel are essential to a microphone […]

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Spotify Accounts Hack, Music Gear And Tech, And Post Engineer Leslie Gaston-Bird On My Latest Podcast

My guest on the podcast this week is Leslie Gaston-Bird, post-production engineer, governor-at-large for the Audio Engineering Society, and former Associate Professor of Recording Arts at the University of Colorado Denver. Leslie’s first gig was at National Public Radio headquarters in Washington, D.C. where she worked on shows like “Morning Edition.” “All Things Considered”, “Talk of the Nation” […]

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New Music Gear Monday: Fuse Audio VPRE-2C Tube Amp Plugin

No matter how far away from the glory days of analog that we get, there’s still a yearning to go back for a piece of that sound. You’d think that all the tube emulations from that era have been mined by this time but there’s still more to be found to provide that valve lushness […]

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Have Tinnitus? Help Is On Your Phone

Just like 1 to 3% of the population, I have tinnitus. It rages in the morning, but I’m one of the lucky ones in that I’m able to tune it out by around 10AM. Not so for many others, as the high pitched sound drones on all day and night, becoming a major distraction to […]

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A Look At Modulation effects And Their Differences

Modulation refers to an external signal that varies the sound of an instrument or vocal in volume, timing or pitch. This includes effects like chorus, flanging and phasing, which are pretty standard mixing tools, to tremolo and vibrato, which are used mostly on guitars, synths and electric pianos. Between reverb, delay and modulation, modulation is […]

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The Health Of Major Streaming Services, 6F’s Of Taking A Gig, And Drummer Daniel Glass On My Latest Podcast

My guest on the podcast this week is drummer Daniel Glass, who has worked with a wide variety of artists that range from Brian Setzer to Bette Midler, to the Budapest Jazz Orchestra, to KISS front man Gene Simmons.  Daniel has been voted one of the top five R&B drummers in the world by readers of Modern Drummer […]

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New Music Gear Monday: Kolude KD-K1 Computer Keyboard-Hub

We don’t think about it very much, but a computer keyboard is our central and most used input device in our every day professional lives. If you’re like me you probably quietly suffer with the keyboard that came with your current computer, or maybe you have an old one that you really like that is […]

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Inner Circle Podcast Named #2 Best Audio Podcast

Many thanks to Feedspot for naming my Inner Circle Podcast at #2 in their list of Top 10 Audio Podcasts. After 300+ episodes I think we’re getting the hang of this podcast thing! Seriously though, thank you for your support as that’s what keeps me going. I make no money from the podcast so it’s […]

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This Miking Formula Is Worth Remembering

Contrary to what many recording novices might think, just having great recording gear doesn’t automatically guarantee a great recorded sound. It’s easy to believe that just having a high-quality mic or preamp is automatically going to provide a stellar recording, but there’s much more to it than that. This excerpt from the 4th edition of […]

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Could The Fire At Apollo Masters Mean The End Of Vinyl As We Know It?

Vinyl record sales have been impressive lately, featuring double digit gains over the last 10 years. Although the figures for 2019 have not yet been released, it’s expected that the number of vinyl albums sold would crack 20 million. The vinyl success story is likely over now though thanks to the recent fire that burned […]

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Submitting To Playlists, Reasons Behind USB-C, And Legendary Producer John Boylan On This Week’s Podcast

My guest on the podcast this week is the legendary producer John Boylan, who started in the business as a member of the burgeoning folk scene in the Village in New York City that set the tone for the explosion in the music business to unimagined heights.  He then went on to become a songwriter in the famed […]

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New Music Gear Monday: IK Multimedia Sunset Sound Reverb Plugin

Sunset Sound in Hollywood is one of the oldest and most iconic recording studios anywhere. There have been so many hits recorded there that at its 25th anniversary party they played for 4 hours straight without repeating one. Van Halen, the Stones, the Beach Boys, Led Zeppelin, the Doors and hundreds of other music giants […]

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Behringer’s New Music Tribe Marketplace Designed To Compete With Reverb And Ebay

Don’t look now but MI giant Behringer has something new up its corporate sleeve. It’s a brand new gear marketplace called Music Tribe and its designed to go up against the likes of Reverb.com and Ebay. Music Tribe is free and, according to the company, “is an online marketplace where buyers and sellers interact about […]

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