The producer has a job that consists of many roles. Some of them happen in the studio, and some of them don’t. I’m going to spend a few articles talking about the various roles in the studio and what to expect from those fulfilling them. These aren’t going to be job descriptions; we’re going to look at the interactions that take place in the studio environment and how to make the most of them.
Tag Archives | Recording
Frequencies – You better recognise!
Working in studios with different producers and engineers you will no doubt hear varied slang terms for audio frequencies.
We know that each frequency has its own specific sound, and many times we use slang such as boom, whack, or sheen to illustrate our meaning further. It’s easier to say things like, “Can I get a little bit more air on those cymbals?” instead of saying “Can I get a little high frequency shelving boost at around 12Khz?” It sounds cooler, and makes communication easier.
Sample Management
Perhaps the most in-depth and critical aspect of writing music in the digital age is that of managing samples and presets. Fortunately, the vast majority of major software music applications acknowledge this, and have implemented systems for creating, saving and finding your source material. That said, here are some applications and ideas you may consider to assist you in your quest for library domination:
Microphones & Feedback
I’ve done my share of ranting on my blog so I thought I would write a semi serious music production/live music related post for a change seeing as I spend most of my evenings in recording studios. I’m going to cover the live use of microphones and the feedback that some less experienced artists/and or live engineers generate during their sets. I’m just going to dive in so here goes…
Feedback
Feedback builds up when the sound from the speakers gets back into the stage mics at such a level that the gain of the mic amps in the mixer causes the level to increase further each time the sound circulates around the system. Any system where the output is fed back to the input with a gain of greater than one at any frequency will rapidly turn into an oscillator! It is very important that you appreciate that feedback is a gain issue and not a volume issue. A loud singer is far less likely to have feedback problems than a quiet one, as the quite singer will require more gain to be heard.
Obviously you need a fair amount of gain to help any typical singer to be heard over an amplified backline, so, to prevent your PA becoming a very loud oscillator, you need to minimise the amount of sound from the PA system getting back into the mics. Using good-quality cardioid and hypercardioid mics helps, provided that you position your monitors appropriately, but the singer also needs to develop a good mic technique. In most cases this means working very close to the mic, because the closer you are, the louder the sound and therefore less gain needs to be used. Switch in the low-cut filter on the mixing console to help reduce low-frequency booming.
The Wire Basket
One thing that really winds me up is when I see singers cupping the mic in their hands or holding it very close to the business end! It is vitally important that their hand isn’t touching the wire basket, otherwise the vents that create the cardioid pickup pattern get covered, the mic becomes more omnidirectional and everything starts feeding back. It beats me why nobody has designed a mic with razor wire around the top to prevent this once and for all!… and hopefully let the XFactor contestants use them.
Moving Around
You can also run into difficulties if the singer moves around, because although you can optimise the mic position when it’s on a fixed stand, you have no control at all once the singer carries it away! In addition to the feedback risks, the singer may move out of range of their own monitor or into the range of another monitor that’s facing into the mic. The only solution is for the singer to be aware of potential danger areas, such as working in front of a loud backline or close to other stage monitors, and, as this is likely to be a member of your band (as this article is written for people taking their own music out of the studio), it’s up to you to spell out the rules.
Recording Situations
You should also be very aware that the vocal mic doesn’t just pick up the singer — it picks up everything it’s pointing at, so nearby guitar amps, drum kit or monitors will also be picked up and amplified. Clearly you’ll get the best results and retain the most control over the sound if the vocal mic points only at the vocalist and that nothing unduly loud is set up right behind him/her. If you have to have a loud guitar or keyboard amp behind the singer, then at least put it down on the floor so the majority of the sound passes below the vocal mic rather straight into it. In small venues or recording in the studio, consider hanging a temporary curtain or sound blanket behind the singer to absorb some of the sound.
And that’s that…
CJG.
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