Sometimes Little Improvements Add Up to Big Ones - Quieter Recordings - One dB at a Time
LearningThe whole is equal to the sum of its parts…as anyone who ever used analog tape will attest. Who can forget that feeling of hearing yet another contribution to the noise floor whenever you brought up …
Meeting Multiple Needs for the Biggest Night in Music - Live Sound: 53rd Annual Grammy Awards
LearningIt wasn’t the promise of a performance by Lady Gaga that drew me in to watch the Grammys this year, but rather, some added motivation in having the opportunity to check out the live and broadcast sou…
TC Helicon VoiceLive Touch Review - The TC Touch
Written testVocal effects are present more than ever in modern music, but if you want special effects, you don't give the control to the sound engineer. Loopers are also hip, especially for artists making solo p…
Panning According to Craig Anderton - Panning Laws Revealed
LearningThe idea of panning seems pretty obvious, right? You turn a panpot (real or virtual) to place a sound somewhere in the stereo field...
Red Witch Fuzz God II, Medusa, Pentavocal Trem and Tita… - Stomping Down Under
Written testMusic is universal — even people in New Zealand, who live down under, play music. They even make guitar stompboxes. And of course, that's what interests us more here at AudioFanzine. Focus on four an…
To Your CPU, Mixing Is the Ultimate Power Trip - Mixing in a Plug-In World
LearningYou gotta love plug-ins, but they’ve changed the rules of mixing. In the hardware days, the issue was whether you had enough hardware to deal with all your tracks. Now that you can insert the same pl…
The Microphone Preamplifier Comparison Test - The BIG Pre-Amp Faceoff
Written testA pair of audio heads with a studio based outside Tokyo recently contacted me with their first recorded mic preamp comparison tests. I was impressed and happy to have made friends from studio trench…
Schecter Diamond P Custom IV Review - Schecter Revisits the P Bass
Written testFollowing the Schecter Ultra Bass review published last summer, here we have a brand new product from the Asian manufacturer.
Have Fun with Noise Gates - Noise Gates Don't Have to be Boring
LearningNoise gates aren't as relevant as they were back in the analog days, when hiss was an uninvited intruder on anything you recorded. But noise gates can do some really cool special effects that have no…
Tips for Mixing Rap Vocals - Mixing Rap Vocals
LearningIf I had to pick the most frequent question I get asked on a regular basis – it would have to be “how do I mix rap vocals?” Or some variation thereof. At least once a week, if not more often.
Fender Blacktop Series Review - Fender Puts On a Spurt
Written testInstead of launching the umpteenth reissue of a catalog instrument, Fender decided to innovate by mounting high-output passive humbuckers on a new series called Black Top. This new product range incl…
All About Dithering - Much Ado About Dithering
LearningIt's a dirty job to go from high-res audio to 44/16, but someone's got to do it.
The Secrets Behind Wide, Spacious, Pro-Sounding Mixes - How to Create Wide Open Mixes
LearningHere are some secrets behind getting those wide, spacious, pro-sounding mixes that translate well over any system.
Fender Rumble 150 Review - Power on Casters
Written testI got a bit nostalgic when I wrote this review. I was 16 when my first amp was waiting for me under the Christmas tree. Not a 15-watt amp but a big one. To play in a band, do live gigs and be cheere…
Tonehammer Pianos Review - Pianos Like No Others
Written testThe launch of the Montclarion Hall Piano gives us the opportunity to present to you the full range of Tonehammer pianos, characterized by the same original approach of all the other instruments by th…
Exploring the Art of Filthy Signal Mutation - Extreme Drum Processing
LearningI like music with a distinctly electronic edge, but also want a human "feel." Trying to resolve these seemingly contradictory ideals has led to some fun experimentation, but one of the more recent "h…
Steinberg Cubase 6 Review - Cubase SiX
Written testWhile Avid and Cakewalk launched the new versions of their respective flagship sequencers just before Christmas, Steinberg chose NAMM 2011 to present the wistfully awaited version 6 of Cubase. This n…
Multi-Channel Micing for Live Sound - Capturing Guitar Amps in the Wild
LearningThere are almost as many ways to capture guitar amplifier sound with a microphone as there are for a piano. And as with piano (and kick and snare drum, for that matter) single-mic approaches can’t al…
All About DC Offset - DC Offset: Case of the Missing Headroom
LearningIt was a dark and stormy night. I was rudely awakened at 3 AM by the ringing of a phone, pounding my brain like a jackhammer that spent way too much time chowing down at Starbucks. The voice on the o…
SWR HeadLite Amplifier Head & Amplite Amplifier Review - Light Headed But Fully Packed
Written testOn today's menu, to get rid of the cold and warm up, we have a light but nourishing pair of SWR class-D heads (an amp/preamp combo and a power amplifier).
How to Compress a Guitar or Bass - Dynamics Processing Meets Rock Guitar
LearningDynamics processing with studio-oriented processors? Been there, done that. But have you re-visited it lately in a guitar context? Dynamics control for vocals or program material is very different co…
Curve Analysis and Acquision Software - Curves of Steal: Fabulous Frequency Felons
LearningBob Ludwig, Doug Sax, Bernie Grundman - they're masters of mastering. They produce hit after hit, with nothing at their disposal other than...well, experience, talent, great ears, the right gear, and…
ADAM A3X Review - The Tiny ADAM
Written testAn ADAM speaker for under $300? Yes, what used to be a dream is now reality thanks to the small A3X equipped with a 4.5" woofer and the German manufacturer's famous ribbon tweeter. Does it have every…
VSL Instruments Pro Mini-Review - Big Time VSL
Written testVienna Symphonic Library recently presented its Vienna Instruments Pro. What is hidden behind this virtual instrument? Is it just an aesthetic update or a real evolution?
Cables: The Most Important Piece of Gear - All About Wires
LearningNo matter how much caffeine you've consumed today, you're not as wired as your studio - or your stage rig. But how much do you really think about those little spaghetti-like critters that form the ce…
