Dave Derr: Behind The Gear with Empirical Labs
by Walt Szalva
In many a studio the Empirical Labs Distressor is as much a common sight — and sound — as a guitar amp or coffee machine. And for good reason — it works well, it's highly...
articles
Interviews, tutorials, etc. All about the art of music recording.
Analog Tape SP: Analog Tape as a Signal Processor
by Mike Caffrey
This article is about changing your perspective. Regardless of your personal preferences between analog and digital recording mediums, each have their own strengths. There's no question that digital...
DIY Shockmount: Build Your Own Microphone Shock Mount
by Tom Rogers
Here's a ridiculously cheap and simple way to make a pretty nice microphone shock mount. Cost is under 10 bucks (way under if you build more than one) and it shouldn't take too much more than a...
Pre Production: Pre-Production Primer: Fixing Your Songs
by Neal Schmitt
A vital, cost-effective and often neglected step in attempting to put your music on tape is the concept of pre-production. Planning ahead can save money (and time) in the studio. Budget...
Noise Gates: Gates: Not Just for Noise Anymore
by Larry Crane, David Patterson
Audio gates are one of the most powerful, yet often overlooked, tools in your recording arsenal. A properly set gate can tighten your drum tracks, clean up your vocals, reduce leakage from other sound...
Home Studio Pop Quiz
by John J. Volanski
We didn't announce it, but that is why they call it a pop quiz! This month we are going to test your knowledge on several aspects of the home recording studio. Below are ten...
Poor Man's Mellotron
by Bruce Harvie
You just can't beat a Mellotron or Chamberlin for adding texture and interest to any track. This precursor of the modern digital sampler utilized pre-recorded tapes that played as the keys were held...
Ronan Chris Murphy
by John Rodd
You are known for doing tons of really complicated rock records like the King Crimson double trio or that Bozzio/Levin/Stevens record you just did.I do seem to attract some of the crazier projects....
Experimental Sound Studio
by Philip Von Zweck
Housed in a former bakery in Chicago's Andersonville neighborhood is the Experimental Sound Studio. ESS has been a staple of Chicago's art and music scene for nearly 16 years with a unique purpose. It...
Calvin Johnson: The K Records Studio
by Shawn Parke
In 1981 Calvin Johnson began putting out cassettes on his label K and started a revolution and an empire... Shawn Parke gets the story while John Baccigaluppi shoots the film... ...Since that...
Phil Elvrum: The K Records Studio
by Bryan Bingold
Phil Elvrum is the man behind The Microphones, one of the coolest- sounding bands/recording projects out there. He records at Dub Narcotic all the time.
Solex: Sampling bad vinyl in Amsterdam
by Pam Nicholas
I was driving along a sunny strip of highway in the middle of nowhere, fighting off road trip hypnosis and the potential disaster that goes with it, when the mix tape supplied by a friend suddenly...