I've been experimenting with the  mid-side (MS) recording method. So I understand how to do it.  When I look at the phase relationship of the three signals on a spectral form (in Ozone 3), the signal is out of phase. When I hit the mono activator just the middle mic is remaining.  Should the overall […]

Stupid question: What does the 10dB switch on a mic do? The only stupid question is one that's not asked! The -10 dB switch you see on some microphones is a "pad" switch, which attenuates the output of the microphone by 10dB.  You would use that when recording a very loud source where the microphone […]

In a previous post to me you wrote: If I use a high-pass filter it will be set to very low frequencies (10 or 20Hz at most) just to remove any possible DC offset and really low sub rumble that I don't want.  I use Izotope's OZONE and it has the option of using the […]

I'm curious as to what level you record at?  Do you try to get the signal as hot as possible without peaking either on your software, in my case  Cubase SX3 input level or your interface, or do you leave some headroom on both?  If so, how much do you leave.  Let's assume that we're […]

When you are mixing, do you use a low cut filter on the final mix and if so where? For example, on a mix will you set the low cut at 50Hz, or even higher?  If so, then how do you make the bass low end audible? Also, how do bands like The Roots get […]

Many young engineers, and home recording enthusiasts, have never worked with an analog console before, and they only mixer they have ever used is that built into their DAW software of choice. They may have had no formal training, and thus may be unfamiliar with the way channel inserts and effects sends, or aux sends, are traditionally used, especially in the big studios with big analog consoles. While there is no right or wrong way to do anything, and modern DAW software and computers have enough power to do almost anything you want, there are reasons why the more traditional methods of using inserts and sends were established.

This next part in the series will focus on several "studio standard" microphone choices and recording tips for electric guitars. Although there are a wide variety of digital amp simulators available today that allow you to plug your electric guitar in direct and get a wide range of sounds, there still is nothing quite like […]

Carrying on with the theme of popular microphone choices that many pros use for various instruments, this article will focus on various microphones commonly used to record acoustic guitars. The choice of microphones and placement for recording acoustic guitars can vary quite a bit depending on the style of the music and the role that […]

One of the most popular questions that beginning recording enthusiasts ask is "What microphone should I use to record _blank_?", where blank is an instrument or voice or whatever it is they want to record.  In this series of articles, I'll cover some of the more common or "standard" microphone choices that you'll find in professional studios that […]

Neumann TLM-103 Microphone After finding out that the Studio Projects C1 microphone was sometimes too bright and somewhat harsh with certain vocalists, I set out to find another "vocal" microphone to add to my collection. One of the companies I had bought several items from was blowing out their stock of Neumann microphones, since they […]