How to put together an ultra-portable, battery-powered iPad-based studio
LearningDid you ever dream of a totally mobile studio, a compact setup that can fit in a backpack? A rig that you can carry with you virtually anywhere, and record and produce music, even where there's no AC…
How to get the best results when recording acoustic instruments
LearningIf you’ve ever recorded an acoustic instrument, you already know that there’s more involved than just sticking a mic in front of it. Factors that influence how the recording will come out — besides t…
Using reverb when mastering
LearningIn this tenth episode, we will tackle an effect that is seldom used by people starting out in mastering, namely, reverb.
How to use broadband noise reduction software to clean up audio recordings
LearningMuch as we try to avoid it, there are occasions when noise gets onto our recordings. It could be a live recording where the source was too quiet and background hiss was picked up, or a passage on ele…
Be mindful of the psychological aspects of working with a singer
LearningIn part 1, we looked at mic choices, setup, and creating a monitor mix that’s comfortable for the singer. Here, we’ll delve into some producing techniques that will help you coax the best performance…
Using stereo enhancers in mastering
LearningToday, our journey across the mastering world takes us into the slippery terrain of stereo enhancers.
How to get the best results when a singer records in your studio
LearningProducing a singer for a vocal overdub session sounds like a pretty straightforward task, but to get good results, you not only need good engineering chops, but the ability to coax the best performan…
A look at the best digital reverb pedals
LearningIndispensable on the pedalboard of any guitarist — right next to the overdrive/distortion — the reverb pedal allows you to add some ambient or to modify the position of a sound in a mix. Naturally, i…
Using harmonic exciters and enhancers in mastering
LearningThis eighth episode of our home mastering series will deal with harmonic exciters, harmonic enhancers and company.
How much power does your amp need for rehearsals and gigs?
LearningThanks to "Doc" Emmett Brown, everybody knows that you need 1.21 gigawatts for a DeLorean to go back to the future when its flux capacitor runs out of plutonium.
Multi-band Compression in Mastering
LearningIn the previous article, we addressed compression within the context of home mastering with a classic compressor. It's time now to tackle multi-band compression.
Adding Fills, Crashes, and More
LearningPart 1 looked at the importance of variation in a full-length drum loop track, and also gave tips on customizing drum loops by editing. Here I’ll look at two very important aspects of your drum loop …
How to Make Loop-Based Drum Tracks Sound As Realistic As Possible
LearningI’m not a drummer, but I often produce tracks in my studio that include drum parts. Sometimes I’m fortunate enough to be able to use a real drummer, but in most cases it’s just not practical. Instead…
Remove Low-End Clutter from Your Mix with High-Pass Filtering
LearningGuitars, vocals, pianos, drums or virtually any track in your mix, has extraneous low-frequency information that can be filtered out without compromising the sound. While you may not notice anything …
Figuring Out the Unit That's Right for You
LearningPart 1 looked at how to interpret the specs you see in ads and listings for audio interfaces. This time around, we offer info to help you figure out the audio interface that best fits your needs, pre…
