Why Headroom is Important - Keep Your Levels Down and Your Headroom Up, and Your Music Will Sound Better
LearningYou’ve probably heard the term “headroom” thrown around a lot. What it is, essentially, is a margin of safety between the loudest peaks of your track — or tracks, in the case of a mix — and 0 dB on y…
Mastering at Home - Part 4 - How to Use EQ In Mastering — The Theory
LearningIn mastering, EQing could be your best friend or your worst enemy. Which of the two depends on your grasp of the word: subtlety!
Mixing: A 12-Step Program - A Helpful Approach for Efficiently Mixing Music
LearningHere at Audiofanzine, we’ve covered many individual aspects of mixing, and offered detailed information on what to do in preparation for a mix. But we've also gotten requests for an overview of the e…
Learn From Other Mixes - How to Analyze a Mix
LearningJust like painting, photography and, obviously, music — mixing is an art in itself. And, as such, it also requires some training.
Long-Distance Collaboration - Work Together Remotely via DAW File Sharing
LearningSharing tracks over the Internet makes it possible for musicians to work together remotely, whether they're around the corner from each other or around the world.
Mastering at Home - Part 3 - A Great Workflow for Mastering Music at Home
LearningIn this third part of our Home Mastering series, we will write about the process to follow in order to make the right decisions at the right time.
Mastering at Home - Part 2 - Prepare for Your Mastering Session
LearningIn this installment, we'll offer some tips that will simplify your life when mastering.
Comparing Two Approaches to Drum-Track Creation - MIDI Drums vs. Audio Drum Loops
LearningIf you’re not a drummer, but you need drum tracks for your productions — and assuming you don’t have the budget and facilities to hire and record a real drummer — you’re going to need to use either M…
AudioTouch C-Buss Review - The Analog/Virtual Symbiosis
Written testInnovation awardIn terms of hardware compressors, the latest products are too often expressions of the same theme, variations on a mythical device that has already proved its worth. Fortunately though, on rare occas…
Mastering at Home - Part 1 - An Introduction to Mastering Audio
LearningIf you're fortunate enough to be able to afford professional mastering with a dedicated engineer in a well-designed and equipped mastering studio, that's clearly the route to the best quality results…
Minimize Drum Bleed in Your Home Studio - Reduce or Eliminate Leakage When Tracking Drums and Other Instruments Together
LearningSo, you’ve got a band, you’ve got some recording gear, and you’re ready to start cutting your album in your home studio. If you’re recording with a drummer and you want to do a “live” basic-tracking …
KRK Rokit 8 G3 Review - The Return of the Yellow Cones
Written testRokit speakers ─ the entry-level product range of Californian manufacturer KRK ─ have found their way into numerous home studios for many years. But until the recent release of the third-generation o…
Panning Strategies - Advice For Placing Elements in the Stereo Soundscape
LearningPanning seems like a simple enough task. You turn the panning knobs to the positions you want your tracks to be situated in the stereo image and you’re done, right? Well there’s more to it…
Phase – The Solutions - Everything about Phase Problems - Part 3
LearningAfter having seen the theory and the cases where you could have phase issues, in this final installment we will see different ways to identify eventual problems. And we will also go through the vario…
Phase — Practical Cases - Everything about Phase Problems - Part 2
LearningAfter a simplified — but not simplistic — approach to the theoretical aspects of phase in our last article, today we will see in which cases you may find yourself having to deal with phase problems.
Audio-Technica AT5040 Review - AT a Premium
Written testSince its introduction, Audio-Technica's new high-end mic has provided plenty to talk about.
Improve Your Microphone IQ - Understanding the Differences Between Mic Types Will Improve Your Mix
LearningIf you're not sure of the difference between condenser mics, ribbon mics, and dynamic mics, or what a polar pattern is, here’s a quick overview that will get you up and running when it comes to micro…
Understanding Phase - Everything about Phase Problems - Part 1
LearningIf you are into audio, you have surely heard about phase many times — whether in reference to mixing or recording live in the studio — and usually in a negative way.
Producer/engineer Jesse Cannon on mixing, mastering, an… - Engineering in the Trenches
LearningAn interview with producer/engineer Jesse Cannon (Animal Collective, The Cure, The Misfits, Man Overboard) where he discusses mixing, mastering and his upcoming free online seminar.
Zoom H6 Review - Six Inputs of Separation
Written testBest Value awardThe H4n isn't the crown jewel of the Zoom recorder range anymore! The H6, with more inputs and interchangeable mics, has arrived to take its place.
Hercules DJ Monitor 5 Review - Give me Five!
Written testWell-known for its interfaces and control surfaces for DJs, Hercules surprised us with the XPS 2.0 DJ Monitors and their excellent value for money. If you are curious to hear the DJ Monitor 5, which …
Presonus Sceptre S6 Review - Helter-Sceptre
Written testDuring the last NAMM, Presonus came out big and introduced two new series of monitor speakers: the entry-level Eris, which were very convincing in the review we previously did, and the Sceptres, whos…
Best Large-Diaphragm Condenser Mics from $150 to $300 (… - The top large-diaphragm condenser microphones between $150 and $300 (€100 and €200)
LearningAn indispensable tool in any studio, condenser mics allows us to record vocals as well acoustic instruments. Today, many brands offer large-diaphragm FET condenser mics for home studios on moderate b…
The Best Large Diaphragm Condenser Mics Under $150/€100 - The Top Large Diaphragm Condenser Microphones Under $150/€100
LearningAn indispensable tool in any studio, condenser mics allows us to record vocals as well acoustic instruments. Today, many brands offer large-diaphragm FET condenser mics for home studios on limited bu…
Presonus Eris E8 Review - Eris Ramazzotto
Written testBest Value awardIn Greek mythology, Eris is the goddess of discord, but also of emulation: In the Iliad, Zeus asked him to inspire the Greek war chiefs on the battlefield. Does this first PreSonus monitor speaker in…
