I posted this few years ago on my other blog, but the question keeps popping up so here’s an updated version. Where do you find acoustic panel materials (like Owens Corning 703) so you can build your own panels? At one time, most of the excellent acoustic panel materials weren’t found at your local Home Depot, but […]
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Producer/engineer Sylvia Massy is fearless when it comes to trying things in the studio, especially if it involves guitars. Guitar players are usually willing subjects for experimentation since the search for the perfect sound continues seemingly forever, but how many players have ever considered a big fat dill pickle to use as a filter? Sylvia (who will […]
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There’s nothing like the ears and expertise of a mastering engineer to finish off a project, but when that’s just not in the budget, you have to do it yourself. It’s true that a ton of mastering tools are on the market, and many of them do the job very well, but none are as […]
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The DIY ethic is running deep in the audio and recording business once again as a variety of manufacturers now provide kits to build everything from preamps to compressors to microphones to ???. It’s a great way to not only learn how your gear ticks, but also get some great sounding gear at a very […]
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While we live in an period of unlimited DAW tracks, there’s still much fascination with the time where there were far fewer variables, and that means the mono world of the 50s. In that era and the one that immediately followed, mixing held little resemblance to today, since all the magic took place in the recording. Placement […]
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Over the last few years I’ve received what seemed to be the same request from many of my mailing list members. “I would gladly register for your 101 Mixing Tricks program (or other programs) if only it were available for a monthly fee.” Let me tell you, I’ve heard those emails loud and clear. That’s why I’ve created […]
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If you’re a Pro Tools user you hold your breath with every announcement from Avid. The thought that comes most often is, “How much will it cost me this time?” The next question usually is, “Is this for the stockholders or for the users?” The latter question comes to mind first with Avid’s recent announcement about […]
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When it comes to portable recording, it’s hard to beat anything made by Sound Devices. The company has consistently made some of the highest quality recording gear that’s become a standard on any television or movie set. Now the company looks more towards musicians, podcasts and YouTubers with a penitent for quality with its new […]
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You may not know my guest Paul Wolff’s name but you certainly know his products. As a former owner of the console company API, Paul was not only responsible for the acclaimed Legend and Vision series, but also the creator of the 500 series racks and modules, for which he was rewarded with a membership […]
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Radio airplay has always influenced how songs were produced, chiefly the length, as for years it was felt that 3 minutes was the ideal length to keep the listener engaged. In fact, today songs are sped up routinely in order to have more plays per hour. Now a pair of new studies published in Musicae Scientiae, […]
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Eventually every singer has some voice trouble, and if you’re not careful, it can really lead to long term damage. That’s why it’s important for a singer to learn to be especially aware of the need to take care of him or herself. Here’s an excerpt from the band improvement book How To Make Your Band […]
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If you’re like me, you probably hate trying to do any serious recording on anything smaller than a laptop. A friend once described iPads and iPhones in a nutshell as “output, not input devices” and that’s true for many of us used to the heavy duty studio rigs that we own. But a new generation […]
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Multiband compressors are some of the most useful tools you’ll find on a mix buss or for mastering, but many engineers don’t have the patience to set them up correctly. That’s where the new Drawmer S73 Intelligent Master Processor plugin comes in. It takes much of the setup out of the engineer’s hands thanks to a number of […]
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Gavin Lurssen started as a protege of the great mastering engineer Doug Sax (the very first indie mastering guy) but quickly forged his own way and sound, first at the famed Mastering Lab, then at his own Lurssen Mastering in Hollywood. Along the way he’s mastered projects for everyone from Foo Fighters, Queens of the […]
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We’ve always liked visuals that are synergistic with music, with a history that dates back to the light organs and wet light shows of the 1960s. Today, just about any LED-based stage light has a mode that will listen to the sound around it and respond with the appropriate colors and intensity. What’s even cooler is […]
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