The term “saturation” generally refers to a specific type of distortion that emulates the behavior of analog circuits when they’re driven into clipping, which creates harmonic distortion as a result. What most musician’s aren’t aware of is that there are actually 4 types of saturation, as outlined in this excerpt from the latest 6th edition […]
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On this week’s podcast episode, I talk with Grayson Sanders, CEO of Chordal, a sync clearing platform that’s simplifying how music gets licensed in the digital age. Grayson shares how his background as a film composer led him to co-found a company tackling one of the music industry’s most painful problems: sync licensing. We dig […]
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One of the things that I’ve always struggled with during mixing is de-essing. No matter the tool (and there are many), it’s difficult to strike the perfect balance between a natural sound and overdoing it. It’s especially difficult if you’re getting poorly recorded vocals, which is more the norm these days since so much recording […]
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On this week’s podcast episode, I sat down with Seamus Menihane, CEO of Armada, a company that’s redefining artist merchandise by going far beyond the screen printing most people expect. Seamus shares how Armada acts as a full-scale partner to artists, handling everything from e-commerce infrastructure to creative direction and merch fulfillment. We explored what […]
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One of the wonders of the modern audio playback system is digital control of the speakers for a more accurate sound. Although that’s built into many powered monitors, it’s limited in scope, which is why many studio owners prefer a DAW-based room correction system. The problem is that such a system often takes up a […]
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If you’re a guitar player, chances are you’re in love with the distorted sound that’s so easy to create these days, thanks to a variety of amps, pedals and plugins. In fact, it’s hard to imagine a time when guitar distortion didn’t exist, but believe it, there was a time when there was no such thing. […]
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On this week’s podcast episode, what happens when a Juilliard-trained violist falls in love with rock and roll? For Mark Wood, it meant tearing up the classical playbook and building a whole new world for string musicians. Mark’s story is one of rebellion, reinvention, and relentless creativity. Trained by the best, including Leonard Bernstein, he […]
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I can remember back when mixers didn’t have enough compressors to put one on the mix bus. That’s when they relied on the mastering engineer to get them the “competitive level” they needed. Flash forward a few decades and it’s a given that you’re going to put a limiter on your DAW mix bus, but […]
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On this week’s podcast episode, Barry Coffing reveals how he built a licensing juggernaut that now represents over 20,000 artists worldwide. From losing his opera scholarship to scoring films and landing syncs with major studios, Barry’s journey is packed with insight, honesty, and innovation. He shares how MusicSupervisor.com and WeGetArtists.com work, why flaws matter in […]
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There’s a new generation of plugins where you can manipulate multiple functions and effects with just one or two knobs for fast and easy setup. Most of the time they’ll get you in the ballpark, but if you’re doing serious mixing they really won’t get you close enough much of the time. There is one […]
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Here’s a post that I wrote a couple of years ago that I thought I’d revisit with an updated spin. It’s based on an excellent article on the Sweetwater blog about 10 music products that haven’t changed in a long time, and it got me to thinking about the currently-made microphones that haven’t changed in […]
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On this week’s podcast episode, I sit down with Francois Barrillon, Neural DSP’s plugins product manager and product lead for their new vocal plugin Mantra. Francois shares how he went from building guitar pedals in his spare time to leading development on one of the most innovative vocal tools available today. We talk about Neural […]
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When it comes to effects, Bob Clearmountain has always been ahead of his time. Going way back to the analog days of the late 70s and 80s, Bob’s effects chains went way beyond the basics, creating effects designed to pull the listener into the song immediately. One of those effects is the ping-pong delay on […]
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On this week’s podcast episode, I sit down with Ritesh Patel, the CEO and founder of Ticket Fairy, a next-generation ticketing platform helping promoters market and manage events. What makes Ticket Fairy unique is its built-in word-of-mouth referral system, where fans can earn rebates—or even free tickets—by getting friends to buy. Ritesh brings a wealth […]
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There are a lot of room correction and studio simulation packages available, but finding the perfect one that fits your situation may take some experimenting. Some of that has to do with the fact that these packages deal with the environment rather that your hearing itself. That’s what makes HEARS Perfection so intriguing. It’s like […]
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