Archives
November 2009
November is Guitar Month at RECORDING! In this issue, we bring you wit and wisdom on the tracking of tone. Fernando Curiel's amazing article "The Hybrid Guitar Recording Method" not only offers up a deceptively simple way to get the absolute best recorded guitar sounds, but walks you through examples and provides audio content as well. It's not to be missed!
Also in this issue, we hear from some of the greatest guitarists of all time. Joe Satriani, Ted Nugent, and Eric Johnson weigh in on the topic of tone, and we have an exclusive interview with the late Les Paul on his discoveries in the realms of electric guitar and multitrack music recording.
To go with the technique, we also have technology: reviews of some amazing guitar-friendly recording products from Radial Engineering, Eventide, Line 6, and BOSS, plus a close look at the unique and fascinating Vibesware Guitar Resonator, a cool effect that must be heard to be believed!
Beyond the world of guitars, we have reviews on some very cool new Shure mics, an unusual and effective Lexicon audio interface, sweet soundware from MOTU... and a comprehensive and painstaking review of Cakewalk's amazing SONAR V-Studio 700 audio interface/control/DSP system like none other you'll find in print. All this plus our usual features, a controversial guest editorial from a Grammy-winning engineer, and more. Guitars and beyond, you'll find lots to read about, think about, laugh about, and learn about in the November RECORDING!
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?
The Hybrid Guitar Recording Method - Part 1
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Written by
Fernando Curiel
The Hybrid Guitar Recording Method - Part 1 |
Written by
Fernando Curiel
This method matches the tonal beauty of real amp heads with the endless variety of virtual cabinets in your DAW's software. Crank the gain if you must—preserve the amp tone and find the perfect speaker match for it. Read the how, the what, and the......Expand
This method matches the tonal beauty of real amp heads with the endless variety of virtual cabinets in your DAW's software. Crank the gain if you must—preserve the amp tone and find the perfect speaker match for it. Read the how, the what, and the why... all in the November 2009 issue of RECORDING!
Audio files for this article should appear below. They'll play back in your browser or you can download them. Enjoy!
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Recording's Guitar Column
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Written by
Brian Tarquin
Recording's Guitar Column |
Written by
Brian Tarquin
Eric Johnson, Joe Satriani, and Ted Nugent weigh in on the all-consuming topic of tone.
Engineers have been grappling with this problem for years—how to have the guitar stand tall in the saddle without overpowering everythin......Expand
Eric Johnson, Joe Satriani, and Ted Nugent weigh in on the all-consuming topic of tone.
Engineers have been grappling with this problem for years—how to have the guitar stand tall in the saddle without overpowering everything else. For starters, you have to consider the genre and how the guitar is being portrayed (e.g., blues tune, pop/rock, or stand-alone guitar instrumental). Then—will you need to eq or compress the tone?
This brings us to the forefathers who made this all possible: Seth Lover, who invented the double humbucker (hum-cancelling electric stringed instrument pickup), and our dear departed friend Les Paul, who masterminded the solid body electric guitar. Without them, the guitar would not be the aggressive dynamic beast that it is today, not to mention the backbone of rock-n-roll as we know it! With that said, I had to pick the brains of Ted Nugent, Eric Johnson, and Joe Satriani, and ask them how they go about achieving their signature tone in the studio....
Read more in the November 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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Fade Out
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Written by
Marc Urselli
Fade Out |
Written by
Marc Urselli
The New Now Of Music.
The future of the music business is uncertain and exciting. We would probably draw larger benefits from old-school business models and yet I am very aware of the fact that it is never going to be like i......Expand
The New Now Of Music.
The future of the music business is uncertain and exciting. We would probably draw larger benefits from old-school business models and yet I am very aware of the fact that it is never going to be like it was—ever again.
I came to an alarming realization: major players and their lawyers haven’t yet understood how radically everything has changed and are still hoping to find ways to monetize the sale of music. Meanwhile, everything keeps moving towards the point of no return (old business model = 100% obsolete). In fact, I think we have passed that point of no return—this change has happened and there is no turning back....
Read more in the November 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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Les Paul Speaks
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Interviewed by
Rod Tanaka
Les Paul Speaks |
Interviewed by
Rod Tanaka
In an exclusive interview, the recently-departed father of modern recording, and the inventor of the electric guitar as we know it, talks about his beginnings, his journeys, and an unexpected return.
Rod Tanaka conducted an ......Expand
In an exclusive interview, the recently-departed father of modern recording, and the inventor of the electric guitar as we know it, talks about his beginnings, his journeys, and an unexpected return.
Rod Tanaka conducted an hour-long video interview with Les Paul (1915–2009) on Jan 7, 2005, during a trade show in Las Vegas. Les Paul was much in demand as a generous and entertaining interviewee and as a fabulous raconteur. His many pioneering accomplishments are well documented, in print, audio and video. We’re glad to bring you the following exclusive excerpts that demonstrate, once again, just what a lively and charming man we’ve lost in Les Paul, who passed away in August of this year at the age of 94. Take it away, Les...
Read the interview and see exclusive photos in the November 2009 RECORDING!
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Cakewalk SONAR V-Studio 700
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Reviewed by
John Rossi III
Cakewalk SONAR V-Studio 700 |
Reviewed by
John Rossi III
Dive into this comprehensive audio production system for Windows computers and be amazed at all its creative options. A hardware-software match made in heaven.
Roland and Cakewalk have established bonds that date back to the......Expand
Dive into this comprehensive audio production system for Windows computers and be amazed at all its creative options. A hardware-software match made in heaven.
Roland and Cakewalk have established bonds that date back to the mid-’90s when Roland took over all Japanese distribution rights for Cakewalk products. In the ensuing years, Roland acquired the North American distribution rights and most recently acquired a majority share of Cakewalk in 2008.
Over the years Roland contributed software synthesizers (e.g. TTS-1, Groovesynth) and audio processors (e.g. V-Vocal) to Cakewalk products including SONAR, Project5 and Kinetic, but the music world still anxiously awaited a truly collaborative project from the new Cakewalk-by-Roland brand. Earlier this year the wait was ended with the announcement of SONAR V-Studio 700....
Read more in the November 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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Radial Engineering JDX and Phazer
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Reviewed by
Fernando Curiel
Radial Engineering JDX and Phazer |
Reviewed by
Fernando Curiel
Two remarkable tools for capturing wicked guitar tone... and more.
This company’s products solve problems you didn’t even know existed! Radial Engineering realized that mic placement is so critical to a guitar players’ sound......Expand
Two remarkable tools for capturing wicked guitar tone... and more.
This company’s products solve problems you didn’t even know existed! Radial Engineering realized that mic placement is so critical to a guitar players’ sound, that miniscule variations can radically alter the tone. Since surrounding the perimeter with crime-scene tape would not work with audio engineers, roadies, or recording musicians, Radial put on their thinking caps and came up with the JDX...
Read more in the November 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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Shure SM27 and SM137 Microphones
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Reviewed by
Paul Vnuk Jr.
Shure SM27 and SM137 Microphones |
Reviewed by
Paul Vnuk Jr.
One is a rebadged old favorite, the other an important new design. Both are worth investigating.
Shure creates microphones that are the very definition of “workhorse”. I don’t think I have ever set foot inside a recording st......Expand
One is a rebadged old favorite, the other an important new design. Both are worth investigating.
Shure creates microphones that are the very definition of “workhorse”. I don’t think I have ever set foot inside a recording studio or on a stage that did not have Shure microphones on hand.
With a line that still includes well-respected models, some of which are decades old, Shure takes its sweet time in development before bringing a new model to market. The two newest members of the Shure line are the SM27 large-diaphragm condenser and the SM137 small-diaphragm condenser. The SM designation places them above Shure’s budget PG-series in performance and quality; our tests show that they come very close to the level of the flagship KSM line....
Read more in the November 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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Eventide PitchFactor
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Reviewed by
Nick Casares
Eventide PitchFactor |
Reviewed by
Nick Casares
The power of the famous Eventide pitch and harmonization effects, harnessed in a new guitar pedal.
Eventide has long had legendary status in the audio world as a maker of stand-out digital effects processors. Its flagship ef......Expand
The power of the famous Eventide pitch and harmonization effects, harnessed in a new guitar pedal.
Eventide has long had legendary status in the audio world as a maker of stand-out digital effects processors. Its flagship effects have always been pricey, but in recent years Eventide started developing a range of products that deliver the Eventide sound at a more affordable price, now taking this one step further with the introduction of three new models: TimeFactor, ModFactor, and PitchFactor. They each deliver classic Eventide sounds in a rugged stomp-box package. For this review I received the PitchFactor Harmonizer®; the TimeFactor and ModFactor were reviewed in our November 2008 issue...
Read more in the November 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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Lexicon I•ONIX U42S Recording Interface
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Reviewed by
Mike Metlay
Lexicon I•ONIX U42S Recording Interface |
Reviewed by
Mike Metlay
A bold new design puts a slate of useful features right where you need them.
Lexicon raised some eyebrows with the new I•ONIX USB 2.0 audio/MIDI recording interfaces, for the simple reason that they’re the most unusual-looki......Expand
A bold new design puts a slate of useful features right where you need them.
Lexicon raised some eyebrows with the new I•ONIX USB 2.0 audio/MIDI recording interfaces, for the simple reason that they’re the most unusual-looking interface boxes on the market right now. Throwing away the book of conventional interface designs (rackmount? half-rack? tabletop box?), Lexicon considered what computer-based recording musicians actually needed, and came up with a design that’s definitely unorthodox, and works surprisingly well for a small recording setup...
Read more in the November 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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Recording's Showcase of Sounds: MOTU Electric Keys
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Reviewed by
Jim Combs
Recording's Showcase of Sounds: MOTU Electric Keys |
Reviewed by
Jim Combs
A warehouse full of classic keyboard sounds, plus amp and mic simulators.
MOTU’s Electric Keys version 1.01 upgrade was released in early May 2009. The upgrade features some under-the-hood improvements and subtle user interf......Expand
A warehouse full of classic keyboard sounds, plus amp and mic simulators.
MOTU’s Electric Keys version 1.01 upgrade was released in early May 2009. The upgrade features some under-the-hood improvements and subtle user interface updates. There is no update to the beautifully recorded 24-bit 96 kHz sound library that came in v1.0, and the interface “skins” still suggest the keyboards they were designed to emulate. Since we haven’t looked at Electric Keys yet, here’s a walkthrough of the latest version....
Read more in the November 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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Vibesware GR-1 Guitar Resonator
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Reviewed by
Greg Hurley
Vibesware GR-1 Guitar Resonator |
Reviewed by
Greg Hurley
Who says there's nothing new under the sun? Check out a brand-new way to make your axe sing.
In a marketplace filled with seemingly endless choices of guitar effects and plug-ins (both hardware and software), German company ......Expand
Who says there's nothing new under the sun? Check out a brand-new way to make your axe sing.
In a marketplace filled with seemingly endless choices of guitar effects and plug-ins (both hardware and software), German company Vibesware has met the challenge of creating a truly unique device. The GR-1 Guitar Resonator gives the player a way to get many of the feedback effects that can be coaxed from a cranked-up guitar amp, but does so in a way that’s quiet, controllable, expressive... and fun....
Read more in the November 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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BOSS ME-70 Guitar Multiple Effects
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Reviewed by
Mike Metlay and Fernando Curiel
BOSS ME-70 Guitar Multiple Effects |
Reviewed by
Mike Metlay and Fernando Curiel
Killer tone and surprising extras in a compact and affordable effects pedalboard.
n the world of guitar effects, there’s a fertile middle ground between the world of stomp boxes and the realm of high-end all-in-one guitar ef......Expand
Killer tone and surprising extras in a compact and affordable effects pedalboard.
n the world of guitar effects, there’s a fertile middle ground between the world of stomp boxes and the realm of high-end all-in-one guitar effects systems. Stomp boxes are inexpensive and easy to chain together and tweak, but they require a lot of extra cabling, which can lead to noise problems, and there’s no easy way for the guitarist to set up multiple favorite tones and have them quickly recallable. All-in-one systems are compact, programmable, and packed with features from built-in tuning to USB interfaces, but their display-and-menu programming systems can be offputting, they may be loaded with extra effects the guitarist doesn’t want, and the fanciest models can be quite costly.
BOSS, with its decades of experience creating both kinds of guitar effects, has also demonstrated a keen eye for the needs of the guitarist who’d like a simple pedalboard that’s compact, programmable, laid out like a set of stomp boxes, offers a solid set of widely-usable effects with a few cool extras mixed in, and won’t break the bank. Let’s take a closer look at the ME-70....
Read more in the November 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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Line 6 BackTrack and BackTrack + Mic
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Reviewed by
Nick Casares
Line 6 BackTrack and BackTrack + Mic |
Reviewed by
Nick Casares
Wouldn’t it be nice if there was a way to magically capture all your guitar-playing ideas as you played them, without having to think about it? Now there is.
Line 6 makes it easy to record songwriting ideas and practice sess......Expand
Wouldn’t it be nice if there was a way to magically capture all your guitar-playing ideas as you played them, without having to think about it? Now there is.
Line 6 makes it easy to record songwriting ideas and practice sessions, with the introduction of the Backtrack pocket recorders: Plug in, play, and all of your ideas get saved as easy-to-use digital files. No configuration, no software, and no wasted time when the inspiration strikes...
Read more in the November 2009 issue of RECORDING!
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