I’m the Bass, Drums and Effects Merchandiser at zZounds. I enjoy fuzz pedals, house cats, and Michigan history facts. I can be seen playing any variation of Telecaster.
A Guide to Finding Your Perfect Snare Drum
The centerpiece of your drum kit, the most addictive thing to collect in all of drumming — the punchy, fat or attacking snare drum. It’s no secret that the snare drum is one of the sexiest pieces of modern drum kits, and with so many different materials, colors and sizes, it’s easy to get lost […]
A Lesson in Preparing Drums for Studio Recording
Here at zZounds we’ve covered what it takes to prepare for your next recording session. But we need to get specific on the real backbone of the band’s recording session, the drums. The percussive rhythms coming from behind the lead singer are extremely important in not only keeping time, but emoting the overall feel and […]
How Skyhook Uses Studio Gear to Livestream on Twitch
Livestreaming on websites like Twitch, YouTube and Facebook have transformed the way creative content is taken in by viewers all over the internet. Creators can now engage directly with fans through live chat and publish the content that best fits their demographic instantly. Sam Crescenzo is a creator on the popular livestream hosting website Twitch.tv, […]
Roland Releases TD-17 Drum Module
Roland’s highly anticipated new V-Drums module is finally here! The Roland TD-17 sound module features a sound engine inherited from the flagship TD-50 kit. This allows the kit to produce pro-quality, expressive sounds that can faithfully reproduce the playability of an acoustic kit. The TD-17 also has an array of built-in coaching functions to help […]
Layering Acoustic Guitar in a Mix
In modern songwriting, the chorus is often king, supplanting the main ideas and melodies of a track in one easy-to-digest arrangement. When a big, presence-filled chorus is needed, layering additional full range instruments like an acoustic guitar is a great option. By learning the technique of properly mixing and tracking an acoustic guitar for the […]
Doubling Guitar with Synthesizers
Many engineers have employed a “secret sauce” for mixing thick bass tracks that involves adding a synthesizer-doubled track to create a sonic profile with seemingly endless low end (at least to the human ear.) This is common knowledge to most recording artists and has been practiced for years on countless records and sessions in most […]
Mix Character into Drum Tracks with Wurst
A drum track can make or break a song, or even a record as a whole, so it’s of huge importance to nail the recording process of drums, and — in a perfect world — accomplish the tricky feat of adding character to your tracks. This is where the “Wurst” drum mic method comes in. […]
Using Dynamic Microphones for Recording Vocals
For many of us, the age-old picture of a recording studio likely includes the large console with motorized faders, bass traps and sound diffusion panels mounted on the walls, and of course a large diaphragm condenser microphone equipped with pop filter. Though this isn’t a misrepresentation by any means, it muddies the waters in what […]
Studio Take: Fender American Elite Telecaster
With the American Elite series, Fender took it upon themselves to create a modern take on their classic models that would fit in with the ever-changing “pro-level” tier of guitars. The Fender American Elite Telecaster is the latest incarnation of a true American classic, updating virtually all of its components, starting from the pickups and ending […]
