A review of the Audient ASP800 8-channel mic pre and ADC - Why Not Add Eight?
Written testNot long ago we reviewed iD14, a two-channel audio interface from the British console maker Audient, which features the same type of mic preamps that are in its mixers. Audient recently started shipp…
Join us on a visit to one of Nashville's major studios - [Video] Inside Ocean Way Nashville
LearningIf you want to make a high-quality recording, nothing beats the gear and acoustics of a well-designed commercial studio. Unfortunately, the number of such facilities has dwindled down to a relative h…
The Perfect Cadence...and More - Harmony Basics - Part 7
LearningIf you think of music as a language, then you could say that it's made up of phrases, with cadences acting like punctuation marks.
How to Make Good Use of Presets - A guide to mixing music - Part 53
LearningTo close the chapter regarding dynamics processing once and for all, I'll give you my take on making good use of presets for this type of processors.
Get the Most from Your Album Release - A step-by-step plan for maximizing exposure when you release your album
LearningToday, it's easy to get your music distributed. But if you want to maximize your promotion, it helps to put together a timeline and plan your release. Promotion is time-sensitive, but if you can coor…
Ten Tips for Tracking - Helpful advice to make your recording sessions more efficient
LearningMixing gets the lion’s share of attention in how-to stories about the production process, but tracking —actually recording audio — is obviously quite important, too. It’s crucial to capture high-qual…
The Other Degrees of a Major Scale and the Minor Mode - Harmony Basics - Part 6
LearningAs we saw in the previous article, the I, IV and V chords of a major scale are themselves...major!
Expanders, De-essers, Limiters and Dynamic EQs - A guide to mixing music - Part 52
LearningIn this penultimate article dedicated to managing dynamics during mixdown, I'll briefly mention some other processing options sometimes used at this stage, as well as the reasons why I won't look int…
Your Ears, Your Music, Your Hearing - The Loudness War - Part 12
LearningIn this final installment of the series, we present a Q&A with Dr Thierry Briche, ENT specialist, and the former chief of the prestigious Val-de-Grâce Hospital in Paris, France. He was kind enough to…
If You're Thinking About Getting a Pedalboard - Part 2 - Pedal order, powering, and securing effects to the pedalboard
LearningIn the second and last installment, we’ll cover three main issues that you need to work out order to get your pedalboard up and running: The order of the pedals, how to get power to them, and how to …
If You're Thinking of Getting a Pedalboard - Part 1 - Whether you're buying or building a pedalboard, here's what you need to know
LearningWhether you’re upgrading to a new pedalboard, switching over from an all-in-one digital unit, or getting your first pedalboard, there are endless options. The aim here is to give you the info you nee…
Metering and Correction Software - The Loudness War - Part 11
LearningIn this, the penultimate installment in our series discussing the consequences of volume on music, sound and human ears, we look at tools for measuring loudness.
The Best Noise Gate Plug-Ins - A guide to mixing music - Part 51
LearningThere is plenty more to say about the possible uses of a noise gate, especially from a creative point of view. However, that would divert us from the subject at hand. Besides, by now, I hope you have…
A review of the FabFilter Pro-C 2 compressor plug-in - All Compressors to All People
Written testDo you know what ice cream and compressors have in common? Both are better when you have a choice of flavors. FabFilter’s new Pro C-2 is a veritable ice cream store of compression, offering eight d…
Ducking with a Noise Gate - A guide to mixing music - Part 50
LearningThis week we'll take a look at yet another technique specific to noise gates, namely ducking. Personally, it's not my cup of tea, but when you don't have the time for other solutions, it can really …