Downturn In Streaming Numbers, Smart Monitor Future, And Ninja Tune/Coldcut Co-Founder Matt Black On My Latest Podcast

My guest on the podcast this week is Matt Black, the co-founder of the leading indie record label Ninja Tune and electronic music pioneer duo Coldcut.  Coldcut has remixed and created productions for the likes of James Brown, Queen Latifah, Eurythmics, INXS, Blondie, and many others, while Ninja Tune has been visionary with it’s selection of artists emphasizing […]

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New Music Gear Monday: Ayaic Ceilings Of Sound Pro Hyper-EQ Plugin

When it comes to plugins, it seems like all the ones based on vintage analog gear are just about played out. Today’s engineers don’t have the same affinity to analog and their emulations that the classic engineers had, and are looking for things that are a modern mix of control and speed. I think that […]

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Yes, The Acoustic Camera Is A Real Thing

You might have never heard of the term “Acoustic Camera” or even connected the two words together before, but it really is a useful tool now employed in a variety of applications all over the world. It’s an imaging device used to pinpoint where sounds are coming from, and consists a microphone array along with […]

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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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Imposed Downtime, M.I. Trade Wars, And Artist Branding With Laura Bull On My Latest Podcast

My guest on the podcast this week is Laura Bull, who spent ten years with Sony Music Entertainment where she became one of the company’s youngest executives at the age of twenty-eight.  During her tenure, she spearheaded development and marketing for globally recognized artists including Carrie Underwood, Brad Paisley, and Johnny Cash among hundreds of other artists from […]

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New Music Gear Monday: Eventide Physion Structural Effects Plugin

Transient shapers have become an integral part of the sound of a modern mix, but sometimes you need more adjustment than what is normally available, especially when it comes to sound design. That’s why transient shapers have entered another realm to become “structural effects processors” where a sound envelope is not only broken down to […]

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HD Vinyl Could Be The Answer To The Vinyl Industry’s Lacquer Crisis

The vinyl industry has been in a tizzy since the Apollo Masters fire that destroyed its plant. The company was the largest supplier of vinyl lacquer masters, which are used in the initial step of vinyl record manufacturing. There is only one other company that manufactures the discs and they are already at capacity. Although […]

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The Story Behind The Highly Inventive Abbey Road ADT

If you’ve ever tried to intentionally double track a vocal track you know that it can be a lot tougher than you think. Trying to match the timing and nuances of a vocal takes a lot of time and can be super frustrating for both the singer and the production team. That’s why Abbey Road chief engineer, […]

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Streaming Network Payouts, Liquid Distortion, And Drummer/Producer Tony Braunagel On My Latest Podcast

My guest on the podcast this week is Tony Braunagel who has been the drummer for a wide variety of artists including Bonnie Raitt, Robert Cray, Rickie Lee Jones, and Taj Mahal, among others. It was with Taj that Tony gained a named for himself as a producer, working on the Grammy-award winning Shoutin’ in Key album that […]

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New Music Gear Monday: Cranborne Audio 500R8 USB Interface And 500 Series Rack

One of the problems with analog summing boxes is that the connection to your DAW can get rather elaborate, which means it can sometimes be difficult to repeat the setup during a recall. And wouldn’t it be nice to have easy access to that 500 series rack that you always carry around? Luckily there’s a […]

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How To Recone A Speaker

Many people think that if a woofer has a ripped cone or the cone is seized up that it’s destroyed, but it’s possible to resurrect it yourself with only a little patience and the proper replacement parts. You can easily recone a speaker today and it’s easier than ever thanks to the premade kits available, […]

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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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AI In A&R, Subwoofer Sneakers, And Music Marketer Jay Warsinske On My Latest Podcast

My guest on the podcast this week is Jay Warsinske, who’s been in music marketing, promotion and artist development for over 40 years. In that time Jay helped launch the music for celebrated artists like U2, AC/DC, Dr. Dre, Metallica, Guns ‘n Roses, Eminem, Black Eyed Peas, Lil Wayne, Green Day, Snoop Dogg, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Janet […]

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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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