Music Production Tips – The Stereo Bus Blog

This post focuses on the use of analog tape’s warm, unique compression as an effect.

When engineers and producers started to make the switch from analog to digital, they found that digital was not only cleaner sound, but it was also somewhat unforgiving.  Most producers were quite fond of ‘driving’ the tape a bit by sending it slightly higher levels than the tape was normalized for.  Turns out that the sound produced by this overdriving was a subtle compression resulting from the saturation of the magnetic medium.  If you try to throw signal at digital above and beyond what it is normalized for, you’ll end up with brick-wall distortion.  This is one of the reasons why tape is considered by many to be warmer and ‘fatter’ sounding.  Drums, in particular, work extremely well with tape because the compression allows for a rounding of the transients and a certain punch not typically found in the digital domain.  I know some engineers who still track drums to 2 inch tape.

Digital captures exactly what it’s given, whether good or bad.  As a result, piping in warm, punchy signal from an analog tape machine will be captured warm and punchy.  So, if you have access to a high quality tape machine, why not take advantage of it?

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This post focuses on the use of MIDI Time Code (MTC) and MIDI Machine Control (MMC) to synchronize multiple DAWs together.

SMPTE timecode was create for the purpose of synchronizing audio systems together, such as tape machines, computers, and other time sensitive audio devices.  MIDI timecode is an extension of SMPTE timecode into the MIDI format and is very useful for synchronizing MIDI enabled devices, such as DAWs, together.  Some possibilities for these sorts of arrangements include using one DAW’s transport to control other machines, using transport controls on your keyboard or controller to control the transport in your DAW, syncing sequencers/samplers to your DAW, and tempo-synching filters in synthesizer systems.
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This post focuses on the process of getting the vocal chain right for the given performer.

The signal chain for vocals is probably one of the most important production choices in pop music.  Of course, it helps to have a healthy selection of devices to choose from.  Every voice has unique qualities, some of which should be emphasized and some of which should be de-emphasized.  The tools available to accomplish this are, in order of affectiveness: microphone selection, mic placement, and preamp selection.

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This post focuses on the topic of using direct injection/input to bring clarity to traditionally recorded tracks.

When you were first starting out in the world of audio, you probably tried something along the lines of plugging a guitar or bass directly into your audio interface or mixer.   I know I did this and learned very quickly that the tone that results is less than stellar or interesting.  It’s extremely dry, lacks harmonic content, and sounds brittle.  But, in the right situations, these very same qualities can be a godsend when blended with a regularly amped sound.  Hence we end up with the technique of blending DI sounds with their amped counterparts, which is most commonly used with electric bass.
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This post focuses on how to create your own cables using raw connectors and bulk cable.

There are some great advantages to making your own cables: you determine the quality, you choose the length, it’s usually cheaper, and you learn in the process.  Cables are one of the most marked-up categories of things sold in stores.  My first job was cashier at a CompUSA and I was shocked that the USB cables sold there had nearly a 1,000% mark-up.  It’s not much different in the audio world.  Cables are sold with high margins to make up for the low margins on more price competitive, expensive items. I find that I can save between 60-85% by making my own cables, when compared to cables of similar quality in the store.
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This post focuses on what sorts of adaptors or connectors you’ll likely want to have handy in your production studio.

It’s usually cheaper and more flexible to have raw connectors and cable than it is to have a ton of pre-made adaptors.  Tomorrow’s post I’ll go into how to make your own cables.

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This post focuses on some basic techniques for keeping your DAW running in primo shape.

It’s easy to take our computers for granted, but sometimes it seems like if you turn your back for a moment, your computer will destroy itself.

The reality is that computers are incredibly complex machines and that small, day to day things add up to create a catastrophe that seems to have come from nowhere.  Since we digital artists invest so much time, money, and love in our digital media, it’s important to treat the medium with respect.  Enclosed are some tips to help keep your DAW runnings strong.
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This post focuses on how monitoring with different kinds of speakers will help you achieve better mixes.

One of the things that sets professional studios apart from hobbyist studios is their collection of monitors.  Most studios have at least a couple pairs of monitors, from nearfields to farfields.  Many have boomboxes and ‘hi-fi’ stereos to give even more diverse listening options.  Having monitoring diversity helps reveal weak spots in the way the music translates from system to system.
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This post focuses on the basics of the differences between various amplifier (and preamplifier) types, namely class A, B, and AB.

When we first start out learning about audio equipment, there’s an awful lot of terms to sort through.  One in particular that escaped me for years was what exactly the various ‘classes’ of amplifiers amount to.  You hear ‘Class A’ thrown around quite a bit in the preamp industry.  What does it mean?

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This post focuses on the technique of comping, or creating a composite performance from various elements of multiple performances.

It used to be that in order to get a recording of a performance the performers had to run straight through the material.  But ever since the invention of overdubbing people have been changing the way music is made and performed for recordings.  In the analog days, tape was cut a spliced together to create edits in the material.  Now this process is even easier with computers.  A standard practice for many producers is ‘comping’, or the creation of a track that incorporates the best sections of multiple performances.  This is in contrast to another common technique called ‘punching’, where a performance is overwritten for a while with new recording passes until the desired performance is captured (at which point the recording continues with the material already on tape).

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