Archives
March 2009
When you're building your own studio and don't have a huge record-label advance to fund your wish list, it becomes very important to substitute brains for bucks. You want to be sure you're buying the right pieces when you go to the store... and you want to be sure you're getting the most out of the gear you have already. In this issue of RECORDING, we're bringing you some useful hints on getting the most from your gear, both old and new, with examples of how to repurpose your existing equipment, and strategies for sensible gear purchases.
And speaking of new gear: the NAMM show in January defied gloomy expectations and served up a huge helping of new equipment for your drooling pleasure. Check out Part 1 of our 2-part show report in the March issue.
Also in this issue, ace producer Jeffrey Wood of Fantasy Studios in San Francisco gives us an enlightening interview on what it means to be a producer in today's music world. There's a lot to learn from this honored industry veteran.
All this plus a slate of cool reviews (one of which you can check out in full right here on the website), our monthly columns, Readers' Tapes, and much more. You can't afford to make mistakes when buying gear these days—let the March RECORDING help you make the right choices!
Pick it up now on the newsstand... and so you get your next issue early (and save on cost), why not hit the big red Subscribe Now button on this page and have RECORDING delivered to your door each month?
Jeffrey Wood on the Process of Production
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Interviewed by
Lorenz Rychner
Jeffrey Wood on the Process of Production |
Interviewed by
Lorenz Rychner
The Studio Director of world-famous Fantasy Studios discusses the role of the Producer as a band takes some good ideas from a demo room to a finished album.
Fantasy Studios at Zaentz Media Center in Berkeley, CA, is one of a handful......Expand
The Studio Director of world-famous Fantasy Studios discusses the role of the Producer as a band takes some good ideas from a demo room to a finished album.
Fantasy Studios at Zaentz Media Center in Berkeley, CA, is one of a handful of studios where a huge chunk of America’s popular music has been recorded over time. These days it is headed up by Studio Director Jeffrey Wood, who has been involved in many facets of the industry before taking the helm at Fantasy. During an earlier visit to Fantasy, Jeffrey had expressed some views that interested us enough to warrant further questioning; in October 2008 we returned to Fantasy and had a quite enlightening conversation....
Read more in the March 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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Marshall MXL Genesis Microphone
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Reviewed by
Darwin Grosse
Marshall MXL Genesis Microphone |
Reviewed by
Darwin Grosse
A vocal mic with great tone and undeniable wow factor.
Perhaps the most critical microphone in our studio’s closet is the “go-to” vocal microphone. This is often the most expensive microphone in the collection, and is the first micr......Expand
A vocal mic with great tone and undeniable wow factor.
Perhaps the most critical microphone in our studio’s closet is the “go-to” vocal microphone. This is often the most expensive microphone in the collection, and is the first microphone that we will try with any vocalist. It is also a microphone that we will get to know intimately, and one where excellence is greatly desired.
MXL has built its business around developing high-quality microphones at a reasonable price. The new Genesis microphone is MXL’s shot at creating a microphone that can fill the role of go-to vocal mic at a reasonable price, and to create a piece of gear with both audible and visual appeal....
Read more in the March 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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Olympus LS-10 Linear PCM Recorder
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Reviewed by
Lorenz Rychner
Olympus LS-10 Linear PCM Recorder |
Reviewed by
Lorenz Rychner
A company famous for speech recorders takes a first step into capturing music.
Olympus makes dozens of pocket-sized recorders for voice recording, analog, digital, some with MP3 players, all roughly the size of the LS-10—but the LS-......Expand
A company famous for speech recorders takes a first step into capturing music.
Olympus makes dozens of pocket-sized recorders for voice recording, analog, digital, some with MP3 players, all roughly the size of the LS-10—but the LS-10 stands out because it is the only one in the Olympus line-up that records in CD quality and then some....
Read more in the March 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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Reviewed and Revisited: Solid State Logic Duende Mini
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Reviewed by
Paul Vnuk Jr.
Reviewed and Revisited: Solid State Logic Duende Mini |
Reviewed by
Paul Vnuk Jr.
SSL's powerful DSP engine in a portable form—without compromises.
Back in our July 2007 issue, Justin Peacock gave us our first look at the SSL Duende, a based DSP engine, which brings “the SSL sound to those who lack the SSL budget......Expand
SSL's powerful DSP engine in a portable form—without compromises.
Back in our July 2007 issue, Justin Peacock gave us our first look at the SSL Duende, a based DSP engine, which brings “the SSL sound to those who lack the SSL budget”.
To recap: the Duende (now called the Duende Classic) is a silver euro-chic, single rack space device with a glowing white power switch, a pair of rear mounted ports and a wall-wart style power adaptor. It is both Mac and PC compatible and comes bundled with VST/RTAS versions of the C-Series SSL channel strip and stereo buss compressor plug-ins. The Classic can run 32 mono or 16 stereo instances of said plug-ins at 44.1/48 kHz and half that at 88.2/96 kHz.
Essentially, the Duende Classic places the power of an SSL digital console inside of your DAW. While cheaper than a 6-figure SSL board, at $1500 the Duende is still a significant investment for many home and project studios.
Enter the Duende Mini....
Read more in the March 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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Plug-in Outlet
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Reviewed by
Devon Brent, Nick Casares, and Paul Vnuk Jr.
Plug-in Outlet |
Reviewed by
Devon Brent, Nick Casares, and Paul Vnuk Jr.
Schwa Oligarc; Softube Metal Amp Room; Drumstrip for SSL Duende.
Searching for a diamond in the rough—that’s what hunting for something a little different in the modulation effects category feels like these days. Most of the effects......Expand
Schwa Oligarc; Softube Metal Amp Room; Drumstrip for SSL Duende.
Searching for a diamond in the rough—that’s what hunting for something a little different in the modulation effects category feels like these days. Most of the effects included with popular DAW hosts and the plethora of freeware and payware effects are usable, but most have left me underwhelmed. But Schwa’s Oligarc, an analog-modeled multi-effects processor, is one of those rare gems. What makes it special? Read on....
Read more of this review, and find the other products mentioned above, in the March 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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Mackie MR8 Powered Monitors
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Reviewed by
Nick Casares
Mackie MR8 Powered Monitors |
Reviewed by
Nick Casares
A larger woofer yields better bass extension on these affordable nearfield speakers.
The Mackie MR monitor series is a new lineup that’s designed to be more affordable than the flagship HR series, without sacrificing Mackie quality ......Expand
A larger woofer yields better bass extension on these affordable nearfield speakers.
The Mackie MR monitor series is a new lineup that’s designed to be more affordable than the flagship HR series, without sacrificing Mackie quality and versatility. In June 2008, I reviewed the MR5 and found it to be a great bargain monitor for personal and project studios. Recently, I received a pair of Mackie MR8s, the big brother to the MR5. This review digs into the similarities and differences between the two....
This review is featured in full on our website. If you like what you see, you can read more of our reviews in the March 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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RECORDING'S Showcase of Sounds
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Reviewed by
John Rossi III and Mike Metlay
RECORDING'S Showcase of Sounds |
Reviewed by
John Rossi III and Mike Metlay
GForce Virtual String Machine; Cluster Sound Tech Producer DSP.
Back in the mid- to late ’60s the sound of Mellotron strings was a staple of many progressive and hippie rock bands. Mellotrons were prohibitively expensive, however, a......Expand
GForce Virtual String Machine; Cluster Sound Tech Producer DSP.
Back in the mid- to late ’60s the sound of Mellotron strings was a staple of many progressive and hippie rock bands. Mellotrons were prohibitively expensive, however, and it was the inability to afford a Mellotron that provided incentive to British engineer and keyboard player Ken Freeman to invent a device that would approximate its lush string choruses. The device, the Freeman String Symphonizer, is widely regarded as the first polyphonic string synthesizer....
Read more of this review, and read the other review in this column, in the March 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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2009 NAMM Show Report—Part 1
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Written by
Mike Metlay
2009 NAMM Show Report—Part 1 |
Written by
Mike Metlay
More new gear than we can pack into one issue! We'll start with hardware, and get to software next month. On with the show...
At the 2009 NAMM Show in Anaheim this January 15–18, there were lots of people in the aisles and lots of n......Expand
More new gear than we can pack into one issue! We'll start with hardware, and get to software next month. On with the show...
At the 2009 NAMM Show in Anaheim this January 15–18, there were lots of people in the aisles and lots of new products in evidence from industry stalwarts and new companies alike. Here’s a quick taste of what we saw....
Read more in the March 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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New Uses for Old Gear
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Written by
Michael Nickolas
New Uses for Old Gear |
Written by
Michael Nickolas
If you have unused gear lying around and some applications in need of the right equipment, maybe all you need is some ingenuity to tie them together.
I admit it—I hate to spend money. I may be cheap, but call me frugal. I use what I......Expand
If you have unused gear lying around and some applications in need of the right equipment, maybe all you need is some ingenuity to tie them together.
I admit it—I hate to spend money. I may be cheap, but call me frugal. I use what I own to its fullest before I run out to replace it with the latest and greatest. Sometimes that involves inventive less-than-usual applications....
Read more in the March 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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RECORDING'S Guitar Column
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Written by
Frank Gryner
RECORDING'S Guitar Column |
Written by
Frank Gryner
Part 2 of the Battle of the Bands—multiband compression, that is. Let’s get creative!
Last time we focused on multiband compression as a corrective measure used to fix problematic guitar tracks, as opposed to viewing it as a viable ......Expand
Part 2 of the Battle of the Bands—multiband compression, that is. Let’s get creative!
Last time we focused on multiband compression as a corrective measure used to fix problematic guitar tracks, as opposed to viewing it as a viable creative tool to enhance your guitar tone. Being able to compress designated frequency bands separately that then blend into one sound can get a little confusing. Old-school audio engineers often contend that spectral dynamic processing is dangerous in the wrong hands, but I think a little recording irreverence is badly needed these days. What happened to the kind of spirit that led to overdriving Telefunken V-72s, or pressing all the ratio buttons in on an 1176? You can’t stumble upon the good stuff without breaking the rules once in a while... and having said that, it may be helpful to review a few fundamentals before heading up your own recording rebellion....
Read more in the March 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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RECORDING'S Drum Column
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Written by
Rick Barrio Dill
RECORDING'S Drum Column |
Written by
Rick Barrio Dill
Is Less the new More? About the value of simplicity, with a tip of the hat towards Timbaland.
It’s time to record some drums. Maybe you have a home studio and all of your best drum mics are set up and ready to go. Or, maybe instead,......Expand
Is Less the new More? About the value of simplicity, with a tip of the hat towards Timbaland.
It’s time to record some drums. Maybe you have a home studio and all of your best drum mics are set up and ready to go. Or, maybe instead, you have time booked in a studio where you are paying by the hour and you need to maximize your investment. You have rehearsed countless hours to get everyone ready for the recording session and you just want the drums to sound like the heavens have opened up and the biggest, baddest drum tones ever imagined have found their way onto your recording.
You record everything the best you possibly can, you stack on some killer bass, nasty guitars, keys, background vocals, percussion, gritty lead vocals and anything else you can think of to make this the best recording ever. You then move onto mixing and you quickly realize you have succeeded in creating a nice massive wall of sound, but your drum tones aren’t nearly cutting through the track like what you dreamed of, and they aren’t even close to those of your favorite records.... What gives?
Read more in the March 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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Upgrading Your Gear
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Written by
Eric Ferguson
Upgrading Your Gear |
Written by
Eric Ferguson
Buying new stuff for your studio can be rewarding and fun... but these techniques will keep you from regretting that trip to the store.
Wow, do I like gear! Microphones, processors, computers, amplifiers, guitars, speakers, and plug......Expand
Buying new stuff for your studio can be rewarding and fun... but these techniques will keep you from regretting that trip to the store.
Wow, do I like gear! Microphones, processors, computers, amplifiers, guitars, speakers, and plug-ins! They are all so much fun... and distracting. While gear is necessary to make music in our project studios, the release and marketing of new gear constantly tells us we need to upgrade in order to make music better and faster.
When and how to upgrade is always a challenging question, and a subject my wallet knows well. In the 19 years since I acquired my first 4-track cassette, I have upgraded my recording system ten times! Two 4-tracks, a 6-track cassette, an 8-track reel-to-reel, and six different versions of Pro Tools hardware. I am an upgrade freak! Let me share some thoughts regarding upgrades....
Read more in the March 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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Fade Out
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Written by
Scott Dorsey
Fade Out |
Written by
Scott Dorsey
The China Syndrome.
The press has been reporting all sorts of incidents of melamine contamination in foods in China, but the media aren’t doing a particularly good job of describing what’s actually going on. Why do we care, and what......Expand
The China Syndrome.
The press has been reporting all sorts of incidents of melamine contamination in foods in China, but the media aren’t doing a particularly good job of describing what’s actually going on. Why do we care, and what does this have to do with the audio gear we buy for our recording studios and live rigs? Let me explain....
Read more in the March 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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