Studio Solutions 59
Using Varispeed in Your Recordings
Varispeed recording is a really interesting and easy studio trick that can add textures and otherworldly timbres to vocals and instrument tracks. I happened to be listening to some Ween recently and thought the way Gene’s vocals sounded on some songs had a slightly unreal quality to them. As I thought about it a second, […]
A Case for the Home Studio Mixer
It’s easier than ever to create a great-sounding record in the comfort of your own home, and that’s an incredible thing. More producers are creating hits at younger and younger ages due to the wide accessibility of studio gear, which should make any seasoned musician excited for what’s to come. But one thing that technology […]
The Wireless MIDI Keyboard Rig
Playing keyboards is my jam, but schlepping a lot of gear around is definitely not. My main gigging board is a Roland AX-Synth Shoulder Synthesizer — or a keytar, as it’s affectionately known. Besides the keytar’s distinctive look, the appeal of this board is its eminent portability. But there comes a time when you need […]
The Trials and Tribulations of DIY Sound Treatment
My band and I have been rehearsing in the same building since 2014. It’s one of those “warehouse-turned-band-practice-space-compound” type of deals that you come across in big cities like Chicago — except it never turned fully “practice space.” In its original form, our building was a cold storage facility in the Stockyards industrial district of […]
Side-chain Compression
Sometimes mixes can feel a little cluttered, especially when the song features a dense instrumentation. As audio engineers, we have to find creative ways to manage the density of the projects that we are working on. The side chain input on a compressor can be a useful tool for managing this musical density. Typically, a […]
True Peak Limiting
At first glance, limiting seems like a straightforward concept. Audio that peaks at -0.1 dB is audio that peaks at -0.1 dB, right? Well, unfortunately for people who are mastering their own tracks, it’s not quite that simple. But with a little knowledge of true peaks vs. sample peaks, and of how to set your […]
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, […]
Guitar Amp Microphone Placement
Recording electric guitars seems like a pretty easy feat of engineering. All you have to do is place a microphone in front of a speaker and call it a day, right? As it turns out, there’s a little more to the equation than that. In a process where fractions of an inch can dramatically change […]
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 […]
