i've been doing some research into gain staging but still feel unclear about it. from what i understand, it's the process of keeping a consistent signal throughout the entire chain - from mic to mixer to daw, through effects and everything, right?
so if i'm recording acoustic drums, i'd set the faders of those mic inputs on the mixer to 0 db and adjust the gain pots to achieve a hot signal without clipping, with -12db being the standard. is that about right?
would i use the same settings for a mic'd guitar cab? vocals?
and if i'm recording something that's pretty stable, like a distorted rhythm track, would it be a bad idea to shoot a little higher than -12?
so if i'm recording acoustic drums, i'd set the faders of those mic inputs on the mixer to 0 db and adjust the gain pots to achieve a hot signal without clipping, with -12db being the standard. is that about right?
would i use the same settings for a mic'd guitar cab? vocals?
and if i'm recording something that's pretty stable, like a distorted rhythm track, would it be a bad idea to shoot a little higher than -12?