Tips and Quotes
TIPS for Recording:
Here is some advice that may help improve your home recordings and mixes.
1. Monitor in mono. This is listening to what's on tape while you're overdubbing. You can hear poor intonation (pitch problems), conflicting eq or timbre between different tracks, phase problems, and syncopation issues much easier. If it sounds good in mono, it will sound great in stereo.
2. Keep your near field reference monitors (control room speakers) close together. It makes it easier to balance the left and right speakers. If they sound good close together, they'll sound even better spread apart.
3. If something bugs you, fix it. Otherwise, it will continue to bug you.
4. If you let a singer mix your song, in general, your mix will suck. Drummers make great engineers and producers. Give the drummer a shot at mixing.
5. Expensive microphones are overrated. My Audio Technica 4050 sounds really good compared to my Neumann u47. If you don't own a Shure 57, buy one.
6. If you compress or limit a track to tape, generally don't reduce the gain more than 3 to 7 db, and use a light ratio like 4:1. Also, use a moderate attack time. This will prevent you from destroying the dynamics of the music.
7. If you're getting a cool room sound or effect, print it on a separate track and don't wait to try and recreate it during mixing.
8. Good outboard mic preamplifiers are the way to go. If you can, buy a good 2 channel unit, like a Neve 1272 or api. They really make a difference.
9. It's better to not use a compressor or limiter at all than to use a cheap one. But, I like two inexpensive ones, the Alesis 3630, and the Really Nice Compressor. Both are cheap. If you can afford it, get some 1176s or big old tube limiters.
10. Mix quietly, and then monitor with headphones on vewy vewy quiet. See what falls out of the mix, and what's too loud. If you can get it sounding clear and balanced and exciting super quiet, it will sound great loud. After you think you've got it, crank it up and listen for detail in the low end. Ask for different opinions. Check the mix on different stereos, take a break, and make adjustments if you need to.
11. Use tracks sheets and take detailed notes for every signal path - write down settings for all instruments, including mic placement, preamps, eq, and limiters. This avoids headaches if you need to set back up and "punch in" to fix a part after you've torn everything down. It also makes getting levels by yourself later a breeze.
12. Keep a notebook. Buy a cheap three-hole punch and dividers, and maintain your track sheets, level settings, lyrics, and mix notes.
13. Be blatant when you mix. Keep things exciting. If you use an effect, mix it so people actually hear and notice it. People should feel strongly about what they hear. Don't bury things. If someone tracked a cool part, mix it loud. Don't be a wimp by "hiding" too many parts unless the piece calls for subelty. That shows a lack of confidence and musicianship and an inability to orchestrate. Let the drummer or someone who listens to Aerosmith too loud or the guitar player's girlfriend play with the faders, someone who'll actually fight for excitment and clarity. See guideline 4 above.
14. Don't ever strive to record a "demo," even if that's probably what it will be used for. Just do your best and be realistic. Keep working at it until it's good and you like it.
15. Develop good habits, like tuning often, practicing daily, getting a decent amount of sleep, taking walks, being nice to people, drinking tea, keeping a clear head, and staying enthusiastic about your music. Don't get complacent. Work at things every day.
16. Write good songs, and actually have something to say if you can. People like to sing-a-long, and royalty checks are nice, so don't worry about being commercial. If it has a big hook, sing a big hook. If it needs one, write one.
17. Less is more. Develop a good sense for when you should be done. Less, great-sounding tracks are usually better than more. A song conceived of and recorded while inspired is usually better than one that has been over analyzed and scrutinized in detail. Don't try and be perfect, otherwise you'll sound boring.
18. Record as much live as possible. If bleed is a problem, move the instruments closer together, because it's usually the delay that's sounding funky.
19. When recording vocals, keep the first few passes and then stop, pick one, and work on it with the singer. Having too many vocal tracks can become mind boggling on which parts from which takes to keep. I usually stick with three max.
20. Don't be afraid to put consenser room mics in the oddest places you can think of. Reflective surfaces can be your friend.
21. If you're having problems with plosives when singing an S or T or P, wave your hand in front of your mouth when you sing those letters. It softens the plosive and will give the de-esser less work to do when mixing.
22. If you use Pro Tools, use it as a tool. Too many people view it as an opportunity to shift every single beat slightly, or a way to cut and paste different pieces of takes for virtually every phrase of a lead, drum fill, or vocal line, trying to achieve perfection. I stopped using it for about a year because it makes me a better musician to record a good take than to create one through edits.
23. Mixing doesn't have to be complicated. Keep it simple. You don't have to limit and gate every track and compress stereo groups and add a bunch of effects to make it sound great or "rawk." Mixes done in 10 minutes are often better than ones labored over for hours.
24. If you're having trouble with a vocal line and feeding your voice through the headphones, try removing the headphones from one ear only and slip that side behind your ear. Punch in that way, hearing yourself in the room more than in the phones.