RedStone
Active member
When I was new to audio, I had to rely on the opinions of others on what I should buy for gear. What I've learned is that there is a lot of "snake oil" in the audio industry, and it's mixed with pixie dust for good measure.
Now that I've been at this a while, have gotten some seriously great mentorship, and have explored technical aspects of recording engineering with some depth, a few things stick out as being "essential" to get started on the right foot so that you can grow reliably in your perception of high fidelity sound while learning this craft.
1. Skip a meal or two out and get a pair of headphones that comply with a Harman curve, like the 7hz Salnotes Zero, HifiMan HE4000 SE, or Crinacle Zero:Red. Use these as a beginner's reference point for hi-fi sound. Listen to your favourite songs on them and learn what they sound like.
2. Most audio interfaces do a decent job these days. Get one that matches your needs, but make sure the output impedance of the headphone amp is low, and make sure the preamps aren't too noisy. It's a bit complicated to sus out in a post, but the basic idea is low impedance output on a headphone amp = able to drive more headphones without changing the frequency response of the headphones. I've always liked the Focusrite Scarlett line, but if you have some cash and don't need a lot of inputs or outputs, go for higher quality with an RME babyface, Apogee Duet, UAD Apollo, or something in a similar class.
3. If you are using Nearfield Studio Monitors, make sure they have a flat frequency response. Many do not. The Rockit 5s are a nice starting option. People knock them, but they are more flat and neutral than much more expensive options - they have limitations in their bass response, but it's all about understanding the compromises and learning what high fidelity is supposed to sound like.
And don't believe marketing hype or reviewer hype. Believe measurements. Understand that your room is also going to change the neutral response of your speakers. If your room isn't treated at least for 1st and 2nd early reflections at the listening position, as well as with bass trapping in the corners, mix at low volumes and take some time to set up your listening spot with your speakers placed centred along a short wall a couple of feet out from the wall. This will help at least tame down some of the issues to start, but it won't completely fix anything - it's just a solid starting point that you won't need to change later once you do work at treating your room, upgrading speakers etc.
4. If you live in an apartment or can't use speakers to mix, don't worry about it. Take what you would have spent on speakers and buy a good pair of open-back headphones like Sennheiser HD650, Hd600, Mass Drop HD6xx or closed-back headphones like AKG 271, or even a pair of In-Ears like the Zero:red - these are all specific recommendations because they sound accurate to what a good set of speakers in a well treated room would sound like. No gimmicks, just good tuning out of the box. They place things where they are supposed to be in a good mix - the exception is that most open-back headphones lack bass and need some EQ help to really make them sing. And you need to fiddle with finding the right gels for your in-ears to give you a good seal and full bass response.
Lucky for all of us, for $99 you can invest in something like Sound ID, and waves makes a similar product that goes on sale for even less. Slate also makes something similar, but requires a subscription to their plugin bundle. Or you can do your own free research (more on that below) to figure out what kind of custom EQ tuning needs to be done for your headphones to make them sound their best. I've found these sites to be invaluable resources for coming up with helpful tuning curves and other goodies:
5. Manage your hearing. Don't crank the volume except for perhaps short bursts (And even then, avoid going too loud) to avoid permanent damage. I can't stress that enough. at sound pressure levels of 94db, you've got a little over an hour before you damage your hearing. At full blast on a pair of In-Ear Monitors (and most headphones), you've got around 2 minutes before your ears are permanently damaged.
6. Don't believe the hype on the latest and greatest "professional studio mics", especially in the sub-$500 world. Almost all of them rely on the same basic design and components. If you don't have $1200 to buy a higher-end mic like a Neumann TLM,or an AT4050, there are reliable options like Rhode NT1a. They have extremely low noise and distortion and a pleasing tone that can be transformed into something special. Sub-500, there isn't much else that is better, although MXL V67s are pretty darn good as well for the price.
7. Daws: If you have a newer Mac, just get and learn Logic Pro. The value you get is outstanding, and it comes packed with some pretty incredible features, instruments, A.I. session players, and tools of the trade. On windows, there are many good options like Studio One, Reaper, Ableton Live and Fruity Loops. If you want to use what the industry uses for mixing, you need to use Pro tools and import stems of your songs from your other daw to that. But honestly, it's probably not worth the hassle unless you are working for, or with a major production studio and are being forced to use it.
8. Plugins: When I started, I had to rely on as many free plugins as I could find. I still use freeverb too. Nowadays, subscriptions offer an interesting way to tap into some really high-quality plugins for mixing and even mastering. Waves, Plugin Alliance and Slate Audio all have options that can fit just about any need. I personally like Plugin Alliance because they give you a couple of free plugins each year with your subscription. Waves Plugins get knocked a lot in the home audio community, but they make some excellent plugins. Their CLA releases are stellar, as well as their SSL, Abbey Road and API plugins. Reaper's plugin suite can also be downloaded for free and can be a really good base set of plugins for mixing. The bottom line with plugins is that there is a lot of hype and fairy dust in the plugin world. It all boils down to needing a couple of flexible EQs, a few different compressors (including at least 1 limiter and 1 de-esser), a good-sounding and flexible reverb, and a good delay plugin. Having a channel strip like an SSL G series is also helpful. That's it. The rest is making sure your source tones sound good and then being strategic with how you use these tools.
Now that I've been at this a while, have gotten some seriously great mentorship, and have explored technical aspects of recording engineering with some depth, a few things stick out as being "essential" to get started on the right foot so that you can grow reliably in your perception of high fidelity sound while learning this craft.
1. Skip a meal or two out and get a pair of headphones that comply with a Harman curve, like the 7hz Salnotes Zero, HifiMan HE4000 SE, or Crinacle Zero:Red. Use these as a beginner's reference point for hi-fi sound. Listen to your favourite songs on them and learn what they sound like.
2. Most audio interfaces do a decent job these days. Get one that matches your needs, but make sure the output impedance of the headphone amp is low, and make sure the preamps aren't too noisy. It's a bit complicated to sus out in a post, but the basic idea is low impedance output on a headphone amp = able to drive more headphones without changing the frequency response of the headphones. I've always liked the Focusrite Scarlett line, but if you have some cash and don't need a lot of inputs or outputs, go for higher quality with an RME babyface, Apogee Duet, UAD Apollo, or something in a similar class.
3. If you are using Nearfield Studio Monitors, make sure they have a flat frequency response. Many do not. The Rockit 5s are a nice starting option. People knock them, but they are more flat and neutral than much more expensive options - they have limitations in their bass response, but it's all about understanding the compromises and learning what high fidelity is supposed to sound like.
And don't believe marketing hype or reviewer hype. Believe measurements. Understand that your room is also going to change the neutral response of your speakers. If your room isn't treated at least for 1st and 2nd early reflections at the listening position, as well as with bass trapping in the corners, mix at low volumes and take some time to set up your listening spot with your speakers placed centred along a short wall a couple of feet out from the wall. This will help at least tame down some of the issues to start, but it won't completely fix anything - it's just a solid starting point that you won't need to change later once you do work at treating your room, upgrading speakers etc.
4. If you live in an apartment or can't use speakers to mix, don't worry about it. Take what you would have spent on speakers and buy a good pair of open-back headphones like Sennheiser HD650, Hd600, Mass Drop HD6xx or closed-back headphones like AKG 271, or even a pair of In-Ears like the Zero:red - these are all specific recommendations because they sound accurate to what a good set of speakers in a well treated room would sound like. No gimmicks, just good tuning out of the box. They place things where they are supposed to be in a good mix - the exception is that most open-back headphones lack bass and need some EQ help to really make them sing. And you need to fiddle with finding the right gels for your in-ears to give you a good seal and full bass response.
Lucky for all of us, for $99 you can invest in something like Sound ID, and waves makes a similar product that goes on sale for even less. Slate also makes something similar, but requires a subscription to their plugin bundle. Or you can do your own free research (more on that below) to figure out what kind of custom EQ tuning needs to be done for your headphones to make them sound their best. I've found these sites to be invaluable resources for coming up with helpful tuning curves and other goodies:
- https://www.audiosciencereview.com/f...pages/Reviews/
- https://crinacle.com/graphs/headphones/graphtool/
5. Manage your hearing. Don't crank the volume except for perhaps short bursts (And even then, avoid going too loud) to avoid permanent damage. I can't stress that enough. at sound pressure levels of 94db, you've got a little over an hour before you damage your hearing. At full blast on a pair of In-Ear Monitors (and most headphones), you've got around 2 minutes before your ears are permanently damaged.
6. Don't believe the hype on the latest and greatest "professional studio mics", especially in the sub-$500 world. Almost all of them rely on the same basic design and components. If you don't have $1200 to buy a higher-end mic like a Neumann TLM,or an AT4050, there are reliable options like Rhode NT1a. They have extremely low noise and distortion and a pleasing tone that can be transformed into something special. Sub-500, there isn't much else that is better, although MXL V67s are pretty darn good as well for the price.
7. Daws: If you have a newer Mac, just get and learn Logic Pro. The value you get is outstanding, and it comes packed with some pretty incredible features, instruments, A.I. session players, and tools of the trade. On windows, there are many good options like Studio One, Reaper, Ableton Live and Fruity Loops. If you want to use what the industry uses for mixing, you need to use Pro tools and import stems of your songs from your other daw to that. But honestly, it's probably not worth the hassle unless you are working for, or with a major production studio and are being forced to use it.
8. Plugins: When I started, I had to rely on as many free plugins as I could find. I still use freeverb too. Nowadays, subscriptions offer an interesting way to tap into some really high-quality plugins for mixing and even mastering. Waves, Plugin Alliance and Slate Audio all have options that can fit just about any need. I personally like Plugin Alliance because they give you a couple of free plugins each year with your subscription. Waves Plugins get knocked a lot in the home audio community, but they make some excellent plugins. Their CLA releases are stellar, as well as their SSL, Abbey Road and API plugins. Reaper's plugin suite can also be downloaded for free and can be a really good base set of plugins for mixing. The bottom line with plugins is that there is a lot of hype and fairy dust in the plugin world. It all boils down to needing a couple of flexible EQs, a few different compressors (including at least 1 limiter and 1 de-esser), a good-sounding and flexible reverb, and a good delay plugin. Having a channel strip like an SSL G series is also helpful. That's it. The rest is making sure your source tones sound good and then being strategic with how you use these tools.
