Today's FAQ : What's a DI?

DI is short for 'direct input' and it means you take a direct signal from a source. Usually a DI will be used for recording guitar, bass, and keyboards.

"Why should I use a DI, when I have a perfectly good amp that can be mic'd?"

Good question. If you like to mic up your amp, go ahead and do it. As a secondary back up, I'd suggest splitting the signal and tracking a DI along with your amp. You'll get a nice clean track along with your amp track to work with when you mix. Think of it as a safety net in case the amp track doesn't work out. Maybe the mic didn't capture the tone you wanted, but the performance was epic. If you tracked a DI, then the performance has a chance to be relived & re-amped!

Re-amp your performance with the DI track. You can now play back the clean DI track and feed the signal into your amp. Move the mic around until you find the tone you desire. Now you have lots of options with minimal effort and you look like a seasoned pro. There are other options like using the DI track with amp emulated software. This way you can shape your tone with digital ease. There are so many possibilities with digital software that you can try out many different sounds to hear what works best for your mix. There are so many options at the fingertips of engineers, this is a great time in musical history. Take advantage of the DI and begin to explore what your music can become.

Mixing | Don't over-produce your music

Mixing can be an overwhelming task. Don't let it get too complex. When you start a mix, start simple. Do a rough mix in a short amount of time. Take the mix and listen to it for a few days. Get an idea for what you want to achieve with your mix. This will be the best approach to getting a final mix that you're very happy to put out publicly. If you really want to try and get a decent mix in a short amount of time, set a timer for 10 minutes. Mix as much as you can and when the timer goes off you stop. Repeat this as many times as you want and then take the mixes with you for a day or two. Listen to them and hear what works and what needs to change. This will train and sharpen your mixing skills to expedite your workflow and lower your stress.

Mastering | CD or MP3

Many of my clients have been asking me if they should release their music on CD or MP3. In many ways, this is a no-brainer answer for most engineers. Yet, there are advantages to both formats. I'd say it has to ultimately come down to your budget.

CD audio is scientifically a higher resolution, but also comes at a higher cost. MP3 audio is easier to distribute and has the advantage of encoding metadata directly into the file. If you have the budget, go with CD masters, trust me, your fans will appreciate the increased audio quality. MP3 files can always be encoded from the CD audio.

If you do release MP3 files for your music, please use a quality codec and encode the files at 320 Kbps. Audiophiles like myself can hear a noticeable difference in the quality of audio as the Kbps encoding is lowered. A quality codec will also dither and render your audio without adding too many artifacts.

This topic can go on and on, so please leave any comments or questions and I'll respond as soon as I can. Thank you for reading this blog post.

Mixing | The loudness war

The loudness war is finally coming to an end. Many of the studio clients are asking me to determine the overall level of the mixes. This gives me the ability to mix more dynamic range into the audio instead of smashing the audio to squeeze as much volume as possible out of the tracks. This makes me so happy to hear quality music being produced at the studio.

Mixes that are smashed and hyper-compressed are lifeless and have no soul. The industry is flooded with this garbage and now we have a generation that will have to live with some form of hearing loss. I'm not sure what record execs were trying to achieve. They didn't sell any albums this year. Only Taylor Swift went Platinum and her album is not hyper-compressed. Go figure.

Recording | Rock Vocals

Rock vocals can appear to be an easy task, but they're most likely the hardest vocals to capture. Many rock songs have different levels of vocal intensity and this makes them tough to record. Unless the vocalist is a seasoned studio professional, you're going to wind up doing a few different takes and then composing a final track from multiple playlists. So, let's be up on how to approach this task.

First, have the singer go all the way through the song and get a feel for the level of intensity at each part of the song. Mark where there are significant changes to the vocal intensity. Start with the softer / quieter parts of the vocals. Position your mic so that there is no capsule distortion. (See my earlier post on mic placement) save the screaming / high intensity parts for the end. This will save the vocalist's voice and not put too much strain on the vocal cords.

Now a big part of the recording is emotion, so you need to encourage the vocalist to express their emotion. Listen to the recording and decide if you believe the lyrics and feel the emotion that the music is conveying. Rock vocals are the glue to the song and they need to be convincing.

Mixing | Rap Vocals

The compression on rap vocals is vital to the sound and success of the song. There are a few techniques that you can use, but I'm going to share one with you that is popular with my clients. Duplicate you main vocal track or if you have multiple main vocal tracks, bus them to an aux send. On this new track, add a compressor that has controls for attack, release, threshold, ratio, and output gain. I prefer the Waves Renaissance Compressor, but you can use any comp that has similar controls. Set the attack and release to be very short. Play the track and bring down the threshold until you start to have the compressor engage. Now drop your ratio down to around 8:1. This will squish the track and give you a nice even volume level for the vocals. Adjust the threshold and output volume to get a nice balance of compression and volume.

Now play this track along with the original vocal track. Keep the original vocal track up in the mix. This is your main vocal track that need to be up front. The new squashed track is mixed into the background. Bring the level up slowly until you hear the overall vocal level filling out the space in the mix. This technique keeps the vocal up front in the mix regardless of how much presence the vocalist put into the recording. This even tone of vocals will give your rap vocals a polished sound that is professional and captivating. Now you may need to adjust levels and ride the faders, but done correctly, this is an easy way to get big vocals into a bass heavy mix.

Recording | Hip Hop Vocals

In Hip Hop music, the vocals are 99% of the performance. So why not put 99% of your effort into mixing the vocals? Clients that record vocals at the studio are always pleasantly surprised at the clarity and detail our system provides. Plus many years of experience of EQ and adding effects is just the cherry on top.

The first thing with recording vocals is to make sure the mic is in the right place. Some vocalists have a forceful way of singing, so an off-axis mic technique is better suited for them. You have to listen to the recording and make sure the mic capsule is not overloading. Standing close to the mic can give lots of tone and presence to the vocals, but if there is capsule distortion, the performance is tarnished. Move the mic around ( or the vocalist) until you find a spot that is a good balance of clean signal and presence.

Mastering | What to expect

I regularly get the question, "what is mastering?" So let me break it down to the fundamentals. Mastering is basically checking your mix for any problems and then optimizing it for release to the public. I have had some mixes come in for mastering that are ready to go and don't need any adjustments. There are also the mixes that come in and need to be sent back to the mixing engineer. Mastering cannot fix a bad mix, so don't send your mix in if you don't like the way it sounds. A good mastering engineer takes a good mix and makes it better without squishing the dynamics out of the mix. Putting a limiter on the master buss is not mastering.

Here at Shine On Studio, we master your track with precision tools to enhance your mix. We do not alter the mix or make drastic changes to the EQ spectrum. You spent a lot of time working on your mix and we ensure that your masters sound clear and dynamic.

We do offer a class on how to master music. If you'd like to enroll or get more info, please comment or contact the studio.

Mastering | Getting your mix ready

I'd like to offer some advice about mastering. Many tracks come in to the studio for mastering and sometimes the mixes are not ready to be mastered. So here are a few tips on how to get your mix ready for mastering.

The primary thing to keep in mind when mixing is to make sure that you leave enough headroom in the mix for a mastering engineer to work their magic. So many times I get a mix that has absolutely no headroom. The dynamics of been squished to a point of no return and it is virtually impossible to master these tracks. Be conservative with the volumes of your mix. If you want your music to be louder just turn up the volume on your monitors. Do not use a limiter or a compressor to squish the music and boost the level. It's a good idea to not sacrifice the dynamics of your mix for increased volume levels. Use meter software and make sure that your mix has at least 6dB of headroom. This means that the maximum peak level of your mix does not exceed -6dBFS.

Dither is another area that can be confusing. To keep things simple, don't use dither if you have no idea what it does. If you track at 48KHz | 32 bit when recording and mixing, then make your mix at the same settings. The mastering engineer will do the dithering for you and make sure that the audio fidelity is maximized. If you convert your files to a different sample rate w/o dither, then you could induce artifacts or digital distortion into your mix.

If you're not quite sure how to deliver your files for mastering, then just ask your mastering engineer. Be sure to send the best quality files, too. Don't send MP3 versions if you have WAV files available. There are many sites that allow you to transfer big files for free. Sites like wetransfer.com is a great site for file sharing.

Hope this gives you a little more insight. Please leave comments and questions.

Mixing Guitars | Wall of Guitars

Getting a solid guitar sound in your mix can be frustrating. I know it's not easy, so here are a few tips to help you along the right path to make your guitars big and loud.

First, track your guitar as you normally would. Use a little bit of EQ were some effects and you're done. That was easy.

Next, record your guitar again as a second take. This time change a few of the settings on your amp or choose a different pick up on your guitar. This will give you a new tone that will help separate the sounds of the guitar when you go to mix the tracks.

Now do a third take and this time use an EQ to pull out the bottom of the tone. Give this guitar an effect that sounds like it's on the radio by filtering out everything below 250 Hz.

Pan the first two takes slightly right and left in the mix. Adjust compression as needed and you should be getting a bigger sound out of your guitar mix.

Please leave a comment if you'd like more info on this technique.

How to mic tablas

Recent clients have had some tabla tracks on their album and these little hand drums can be tricky to record. There are usually two drums that rest on the floor supported by a circular cushion. The musician sits on the floor and plays the drums with their fingers and palms. Just to give you an idea of what I'm about to describe for the mic setup.

The drums have a rich tambour and resonating swell that are characteristic of the drums. I first started with a sm7 on the wooden drum that has a higher pitch and a Beta52 on the lower pitched brass drum. Focused the mics on the sweet spot of the drums and angle them away from each other to help control the bleed. This gave me good results, but it wasn't quite the sound that I was trying to capture. After listening to the recordings a few times, and talking to the musician, I decided to try a more traditional drum approach. I set up two condenser mics, one directly over the drums slightly in front of the musician about the same height as the musicians ears. The other mic was set up just off to the side of the musician about the same height as the top of the drums. This gave us a great sound for the over all presence of the Tablas drums. However, we lost some of the low-end the came from the brass drum. So I decided to put the Beta 52 just off to the side of the brass drum. This brought all the low-end presence back into the mix and gave us a solid performance the musician was happy to put on the CD.

Trade Gear for Studio Time | Get More From Your Gear

You have gear just collecting dust and that's not the plan you had in mind when you bought it. You don't want to sell it on eBay cause you won't be able to get hardly anything for it. Now you're stuck with gear that is just taking up space.

Here's a solution that will benefit you and also help Shine On Studio & the studio's students that are trying to make the start in the music industry. I'm always looking to try new gear and add gear to the studio. Options for gear allows musicians to get the sound that's in their heads. Plus, studio interns donate lots of time to helping with sessions and doing work in the off hours. This will be a great way for me to repay them for all their hard work.

Contact the studio for further details.

Mixing Snare Drums

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Robi Bean & Justin Fawsitt tracking in the studio.

Snare is the pulse of a rhythm section. It pumps movement into a song and supports the kick drum. However, the snare drum can be one of the more difficult sounds to mix. Snare is usually so prominent that it resides up front in the mix and usually sits right behind the vocals. So here are a few tips for good mixing techniques to get the snare in the pocket.

First, use good mic placement to capture the tone and ring of the snare that is desirable for the track. Typically a SM57 is used for snare tracking, but you may want to experiment with other mics to see if they give you a sound that is more desirable. I've used a Sennheiser e606 with great results for rock and punk snare recordings. Paired with the right preamp, you can really sculpt a tone that is your signature.

The next step is EQ. See if you can find the frequency that is prominent in the vocal track and then notch out just a touch of that frequency in the snare track. Also, use filters to help shape the tone of the snare so that it fits nicely into the mix with the other drum mics. As a sidenote, be sure to monitor your overhead mics as they will have plenty of snare sound. Sometimes there is a boxy sound to the snare around 300 Hz. Sweep your EQ around this frequency range and find the Boxee sound. Once you found the undesirable tone in the snare just notch it out a dB or two. This will help your snare cut through the mix and sit nicely behind the vocal track.

Behind the Scenes | Recording Engineer Clean Up Work

The recording engineer's work is not done after the session is over. The engineer must spend time working on the audio files to clean up unwanted noise in the files and make sure that fades are properly applied to smooth transitions. Back up copies need to be made and even though the engineer doesn't sit there and watch the computer transfer files, the engineer has to wait and check after the transfer is done to make sure that all the files transferred properly.

I'm usually in the studio hours before a session to check on timing issues and pitch correction. Returning to a session after taking some time off allows me to hear the tracks again with fresh ears. This way I'm more likely to catch little mistakes and focus on the recording's blemishes. This also gives me time to focus on ways to approach and produce the recording. I usually take this time to make notes for mixing the tracks. This way I am prepared for mixing as soon as the client arrives at the studio. If any re-tracking is required, will usually start there and then proceed to mixing. It's the little things like this prep work that keep my clients happy and keep them coming back to record more at Shine On Studio.

Recording Studio Tips | Record the Right Way

Studio time is very precious. Do a little prep work before you head into the studio. Get your tracks ready and plan out what you'll be working on during your studio session. Most importantly, go in to the studio excited to work on your music. Your attitude will reflect in the music. Bring comfort food and wear comfortable clothes that you can relax in while you are in the studio. Pack up for the studio the night before your session. This will ease your mind and help keep your blood pressure down with little stress as you embark on a momentous occasion.

Recording Studio Tips | Turn your phone off

When you're in the studio, turn off your cell phone. There is nothing to be gained by allowing the outside world to interrupt your genius. Focus on the music and let the moment unfold with your undivided attention.

If you use your phone for lyrics or notes, that's obviously something you need handy. Just move it into airplane mode and resist the temptation to play any games. If you take photos with your phone, save the social media sharing for after the session. Unfocused time in the studio is wasted time in the studio.

Recording Studio Tips | Bring a Back-Up Hard Drive

A good rule of thumb is to always bring an external hard drive or flash drive as a back-up for all your studio recordings. You've invested your heart, soul, time, and money into the recording, so be sure to make an extra copy (or two) of your session files. Things happen and you don't want to loose all your hard work only to wind up starting over from the beginning. Now that storage media is so affordable, there is really no reason you shouldn't back up all your work. There are lots of great websites to get a good price on storage media. Check http://www.macmall.com or http://www.amazon.com for great deals. If you need any advice on purchasing storage media, just contact the studio.

Preparing Tracks for Mastering

The recording and mixing is finally completed and you're really happy with the final mixes. Now, you're ready to get your tracks mastered. There are a few things you need to make sure are in place before you send your tracks over to the mastering house.

First, make sure your peaks don't exceed -6dBFS. There needs to be some headroom for the mastering engineer to work. When you send your mix with no headroom, the mastering engineer is limited by what they can do. When I've worked on tracks that have no headroom, I have to spend time with the gain structure to allow for any adjustments that will enhance the mix.

Second, send uncompressed .wav files for mastering. It is never a good idea to send in .mp3 files for mastering. The lossy codec of the mp3 has stripped away rich audio details that the mastering engineer will need to deliver a quality master. It's best to send files from their original sample rate and bit depth. If you tracked at 96KHz, then send the mastering engineer 96K .wav files to master. The mastering engineer will do the final dithering and make sure that all files are formatted for public distribution. If you're unsure of what to send a mastering engineer, just ask them. A mastering engineer will be more than willing to provide you with details about what to deliver. This will save a lot of time if there are any problems with the files you send over.

No Platinum Albums in 2014

DeathandTaxesMag.com has an article out talking about the fact that no albums went Platinum in 2014. Now could this be because there wasn't any outstanding music in 2014? I highly doubt it. With albums from the Black Keys, Beck, & Jack White hitting the store shelves this year, the odds are in favor of music being available to go platinum. The new Taylor Swift album just hit shelves and is trying to make a big push for the holiday season, but it might be too late to save a bleak year in music sales.

Just in general, CD sales have steadily declined since the era of MP3 players. Buying a CD is not translating to the younger generations. They have no interest in collecting CDs when they can just easily download and share music digitally. Companies like Rhapsody are single handedly killing the music industry CD sales. For only $10 per month, listeners can have access to almost all the music in the world. Then they can rip the music and share it with their friends that don't have a Rhapsody account. Digital media has changed how people listen to music and the listeners will no longer pay high prices for CDs ever again...if they ever do buy CDs again.

When I go to local shows, I buy a CD from the bands for a few reasons. First, I want to support local musicians and independent music. This is where the focus of the music industry should be. If we don't support the local music scene, then we won't have any new music. Second, I like collecting unique and rare band albums. Some of these bands will only be around for a short while before the music industry gobbles them up and forces them to find another way to earn a living. So I like that my CD collection is comprised o music the most of my friends have never heard. In addition to all the great music that is recorded a the studio, I have a collection of songs that no one else on this earth has heard.

Now I'm not encouraging readers to go out and buy CDs to help stimulate the market or help main stream musicians reach platinum status. I am encouraging readers to buy CDs from indie bands and help stimulate the local music scene. Be supportive of local musicians that write and perform original music. This is the essence of music that connects us spiritually to one another and to the universe. So get off your couch once in a while and go out to see a live show. Cheer on a band you've never heard before. Support music so it can go on inspiring us and future generations.

A client has posted the 'No Platinum Albums' article link on his FB page: https://www.facebook.com/binsacca/posts/10152794615819190

Keep your vocals in good condition

Singing professionally is a tough business. Vocalists constantly condition and exercise their throats to stay in good form. When you make a living using your voice, it's can be a constant discipline to keep it in shape. Regular breathing exercises and proper fluids tend to be excellent choices for the marathon singers that perform almost every night.

Before a long day of tracking vocals in the studio, it's a good idea to have done some prep work. Don't drink any cold fluids before you start your recording session. It's also a good idea to drink warm tea or something that will soothe your throat. Take a decongestant if your sinuses are acting up and don't do anything that would cause you to sneeze constantly. Things like dusting the house before a recording session can be disastrous to your vocals.

If you're singing in a band or getting regular work to sing professionally, take time each day to warm up your voice. Keep exercising your lungs, throat, and jaw muscles. Just as runners need to stay in shape for the marathon, vocalists need to stay in shape for the performance.