Recording & Mixing

Paul White and Hugh Robjohns pick their software and hardware highlights from the last 12 months. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:16 - Universal Audio Waterfall Rotary Speaker 03:25 - Boss GM-800 Guitar Synthesizer 04:24 - Tokyo Dawn Records Simulathe Cut 06:33 - PreSonus Eris 3.5 Studio Monitors 07:32 - Prism Audio Dream ADA-128 10:07 - Walrus Audio Fable Granular Soundscape Generator 10:59 - Bl...

In the third and final part of this series, Rob Toulson focuses on recording drums and talks us through the issue of frequency cancellation in a multiple mic setup, details how to choose the recording sweet spot in a room and explains the various stereo mic technique options that are available. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:52 - Phase Coherence 03:00 - Time Delays 05:10 - Comb Filtering 07:53 -...

In part 2 of this 3-part series, Rob Toulson explains how to optimise the drum sound for recording by experimenting with drum head, damping system, tuning and drum shell combinations. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 01:09 - Drum Heads 01:44 - Mersenne's Laws 04:05 - 1 and 2 Ply Drum Heads 05:45 - Damping Systems 07:10 - Centre Dot Drum Heads 09:27 - Choosing Your Timbre 11:44 - Selecting Your Drum S...

Rob Toulson dives into the science behind how drums produce sound in this three-part series. In part one he talks us through the different pitches, frequencies and overtones, to help producers, recording engineers and indeed drummers to better understand the essentials of tuning. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 01:16 - Dealing With Multiple Frequencies 05:19 - Tuning The Fundamental Frequency 10:56...

Eddie Bazil dives into some of his favourite plug-ins and gives us a series of examples on how to use these tools creatively for designing unique and interesting beats, sequences and mixes. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:21 - What Makes A Tool Creative? 03:25 - Example 1: A Cinematic Piano Effect 07:03 - Example 2: Creating A More Dynamic Beat 10:19 - Example 3: Sequencer-Based Multi Effects On...

In this fourth and final episode, David Mellor, a sound engineer and the founder and Course Director of Audio Masterclass, delves into Gain Staging your plug-ins and how to avoid clipping during the mixing and mastering stages. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:50 - Gain Staging Your Plug-ins 08:08 - 32-Bit Float 11:35 - Mixing And Mastering 16:27 - Gain Staging The Mix 19:32 - Headroom 21:50 - Mas...

David Mellor, a sound engineer and the founder and Course Director of Audio Masterclass, introduces us to Gain Staging in a brand new series of podcasts. In the third episode David continues looking at preamps, outlines the use of VU Meters and talks about the benefits of balancing a track prior to mixing. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:56 - More About Preamps 05:38 - Preamps With Valves 09:20 -...

David Mellor, a sound engineer and the founder and Course Director of Audio Masterclass, introduces us to Gain Staging in a brand new series of podcasts. In the second episode David focuses on gain staging during recording, by balancing mic input, preamps and gain within your DAW to achieve the optimal sound level. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:40 - Dynamic Microphones 05:19 - Capacitor Microph...

David Mellor, a sound engineer and the founder and Course Director of Audio Masterclass, introduces us to Gain Staging in a brand new series of podcasts. In this first episode he teaches the correct use of terminology and gives his three golden rules of Gain Staging. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 01:38 - Using The Correct Terminology 05:56 - Why Use Gain Staging? 11:04 - The Benefits Of Gain Stagi...

Eddie Bazil demystifies Compression and Expansion with a detailed explanation of their uses and with a range of practical examples using plug-ins. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:22 - Compressors And Expanders Explained 01:33 - Compressor Behavioural Types 02:40 - Common Compressor Topologies 06:06 - Example 1: Boz Digital Manic Compressor On Drums 10:26 - Example 2: FabFilter Pro MB On A Synth L...

Paul White takes us through the history and evolution of guitar synths, from early attempts at creating onboard sounds and audio to MIDI pick-ups, through to using pedals and plug-ins to emulate synth effects. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:13 - Types of Guitar Synths 04:03 - The Introduction Of MIDI 05:19 - Pitch To MIDI Pickups 08:04 - Alternative Systems 10:38 - Using Pedals To Emulate Synths...

Paul White explains how to get the best out of Amp Simulation software, from getting a good guitar input signal, setting up effective monitoring for encouraging the best performance and tips on achieving the desired end-effect. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:50 - Getting A Guitar Signal 03:39 - Dealing With Latency 04:42 - Monitoring 05:54 - Using Your Own Pedals 08:15 - Using Speaker Cabinet Em...

Paul White and Hugh Robjohns pick their hardware and software highlights from the last 12 months, plus feature some late arrivals. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:14 - ASM Hydrasynth Deluxe 02:01 - Boss RE-202 Space Echo / IK Multimedia Amplitube X-SPACE Reverb / Red Panda Particle 2 Granular Delay 02:57 - Moogerfooger Plug-ins / UAFX Amp Emulator Pedals 04:12 - IK Multimedia Amplitube TONEX Amp...

In the final episode of this 5 part series, Mark Mynett, sound engineer and senior lecturer at Huddersfield University, gives us an in-depth look at how to process and mix the various elements of a song recorded using live instruments. Chapters 00:16 - Introduction 01:36 - Mix Preparation: Performance Edits and Mix Groups 01:00 - Polarity Summation 07:27 - Waveform Edits and Gating 09:48 - Multing...

Mark Mynett, sound engineer and senior lecturer at Huddersfield University, presents part four of his recording series. Here he details how to prepare a vocalist for studio recording and how to select and set up your recording equipment for optimal results. Chapters 00:15 - Introduction 00:31 - Preparing For Vocal Recording 05:08 - Recording Vocals At Home 06:53 - Microphone Selection 14:41 - Micr...

Mark Mynett, sound engineer and senior lecturer at Huddersfield University, details best practices for setting up and recording rhythm and lead guitar parts. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:40 - How To Manage Distortion 06:10 - Pre-Recording Preparation 07:16 - Double Tracking And Quad Tracking 09:07 - Finding A Clear Midrange Tone 14:20 - Isolation And Ambience 15:46 - Microphone Selection 19:23...

Mark Mynett, sound engineer and senior lecturer at Huddersfield University, talks us through prepping for and recording a bass session, including ways to generate multiple layered tracks for use in your final mix. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 01:30 - 1. Intonation And Tuning 02:54 - 2. Active DI Boxes 06:00 - 3. Amp, Cab And Mic Setup 14:01 - 4. Layering Bass Sounds 17:51 - 5. Introducing Distort...

Mark Mynett, sound engineer and senior lecturer at Huddersfield University, talks us through the setup and recording of live drums. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:36 - Recording Multiple Instruments 01:12 - Pre-Recording Preparation 03:46 - 1. Miking The Kick 12:08 - 2. Miking The Snare 24:24 - 3. Miking The Toms 29:24 - 4. Miking The Cymbals 38:54 - 5. Overheads For Room Ambience Mark Mynett Bi...

Grammy Award winning engineer Bob Clearmountain details his unique approach to mixing music in Dolby Atmos using an analogue desk. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:26 - Mixing In 5:1 04:16 - Setting Up Studio Monitoring 06:24 - Upgrading For Atmos 08:24 - How To Approach Atmos 11:14 - Placing Sounds 15:25 - Beds And Objects 19:11 - Working From An Analogue Console 23:11 - Using The Centre Speaker...

In this Behind The Brand feature, Nuno Fonseca of Sound Particles talks to Paul White about their rapid rise in the film and audio industry and how they are using their sound particle plug-in technology to bring exciting new developments to sound design and audio recording. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:13 - Launch In The Film Industry 02:59 - Moving Into Music 04:53 - Controlling 3D Sound 07:2...

Tony Ni from Soundtoys sits down with Sam Inglis to discuss his mixing workflow and to explain how he uses core Soundtoys plug-ins to achieve his sound. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 02:54 - 21 Plug-ins 05:44 - Workflow Tools 07:05 - Getting The Balance Right 11:24 - EQ And Saturation 21:22 - Parallel Processing The Drums 28:38 - Using Saturation On Vocals 35:07 - Adding And Automating Echo 47:06...

Matt Johnson of Jamiroquai talks us through five favourite processing tips that he uses to create movement and interest in synth parts. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:53 - Tip 1: Reverb And Sidechained Compression 02:48 - Tip 2: Panned Effects 04:47 - Tip 3: Chopped Audio 06:53 - Tip 4: Adding Effects To Duplicate Tracks 09:55 - Tip 5: Adding Reverb Before Compression All music composed and perf...

Eddie Bazil gives six sound design tips, using various plug-in filters to create unique instrument sounds and to add interest and movement to mixes. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:56 - The First Filters 02:23 - Modern Filters 04:37 - Example 1: Filtering A Triangle Wave Into A Sine Wave 06:15 - Example 2: Using Self-Oscillating Filters To Generate Tuned And Tracked Tones 07:27 - Example 3: Addin...

Howard Gray gives us a fascinating look behind the scenes of recording and engineering some of the biggest tracks of the 80s. James Gardner chats to him about his journey, starting out as a tape op through to becoming a highly regarded freelance engineer. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:48 - A Tape Op At Manor Studios 02:25 - A Typical Day At The Manor 03:45 - The Engineers And The Bands 06:01 -...

Paul and Hugh wax lyrical about the things they dislike about today's gear. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 00:18 - Power Supplies 02:32 - USB Connectors 03:07 - Software 04:37 - Audio Specifications 06:15 - Digital Meters 08:02 - Detented Potentiometers 09:01 - OS Upgrades 10:28 - Non-Removable Batteries 11:39 - Impractical Hardware Paul White Biog Paul White joined the Sound On Sound team in 1991...