Home Recording's Dirty Little Secret

[Melvin McSnatch]

Does pirated software give you a more pro sound than legally bought stuff?

Hehe. I suppose it adds to the danger and excitement of the recording, so yes.

But since most recording studios use ProTools anyway...(I called 10 studios in my local area to find out their equipment, they all use ProTools), that's not the piece of the puzzle that's holding anyone back. Legally obtained or not.

I don't participate in or condone piracy - unless you wear an eye patch while doing it.

 

[Amos McWoods]

^^^ that's probably not a great analogy. I'm sure the microphones The Beatles recorded on easily outclass anything anybody here has, and even some pro studios....U47, U48, U67, C12, Royer and RCA ribbons, etc. etc.

You're right SF, that does tip the scale a bit. I actually haven't read this whole thread (just joined yesterday or the day before and 26 pages is a lot of reading!) and I see now just going back a couple pages the Beatles' equipment analogy has been brought up already...and the argument was not that digital sounded better or worse than analog, as it seemed...

Regardless I guess what I'm trying to say is that as far as good sound quality goes the gear used to get it is not as important as the set of ears and hands using it. Give the RCAs and Nuemanns to the 12 yr old, the $99 mics to the seasoned engineer, and I believe the latter would still turn out a better sounding record.

 

[Amos McWoods]

Care to show us an example of fake instruments that sound like real instruments?

And no, that piano done in fruity loops doesn't sound like a real piano. Sounds flat (not flat as in pitch, just flat as in the depth of the notes)

+1

Add to that, with vst instruments you lose the option to mic it differently, or use a different mic/pre altogether. All you can do is EQ and tweak someone else's recording...not the same thing as recording your own.

You may fool the average listener on a quick A/B comparison, but recordings done this way will always lack that certain something that comes from a recording starting from scratch, everything being done a certain way to acheive a certain sonic goal.

Doesn't matter for rap music I guess, I've heard hit rap songs that sound like the strings/synth parts came out of a cheap Casio. Sound quality doesn't matter as much with hip hop, only how much money the guy is rapping about having, lol.

Seriously though like I said earlier I would love to have a better sounding Mellotron VST but if I had the dough and a place to put it, I'd much prefer a real one (and yes, I know what a Mellotron is and where the sound comes from ). I'm also staring at a Hammond M-3 crammed into my middle bedroom right now and you couldn't talk me into selling it and using a tonewheel organ VST if you tried.

 

[Seafroggys]

it is funny, I love the string sounds done on a mellotron on In the Court of the Crimson King. Yes, I know its not very realistic sounding, but as a stand-alone tone I think it sounds fantastic. Yet with all the freeware Mellotron VSTi's I try out, only a few get close to that sound I like.

 

[Amos McWoods]

I've been using one called "Nanotron" and it's sounds ok by itself. Once you bounce it to audio it degrades a little...I've found it sounds a little better if I eq it before doing so. It's still very strong in the low mids though and gets ratty when you try to add more prescence to it. Not that great when part of a big mix.

I've seriously considered putting up an ad on Craigslist seeking out a flute player for a quick $100 session just to end my aggravation.

 

[lollygagger8]

Hell, with all the latest albums coming out that are clipping to hell and back (ya you metallica and plenty others) I'm starting to think maybe us home studio guys had it right all along.

Enigineers today need to learn wtf HEADROOM is, and stay BELOW 0db !!!!

 

[darrin_h2000]

Regardless I guess what I'm trying to say is that as far as good sound quality goes the gear used to get it is not as important as the set of ears and hands using it. Give the RCAs and Nuemanns to the 12 yr old, the $99 mics to the seasoned engineer, and I believe the latter would still turn out a better sounding record.

Well my 11 yo nephew beats me at every computer game known to man...what makes you think that Pro tools would be any different...lol.

 

[LeeRosario]

Lets have a show of hands....how many of you got interested in home recording thinking you'd be able to make home recordings that would sound similar to the recordings of your favorite commercial artists....and were sadly dissapointed after spending much money, time and effort in an attempt to do so? This is directed at the average home recordist of moderate means....not the guys who have decked out home studios.

I paid 40grand worth of school to learn how to make anything sound good. So I think in the end, I still got screwed

 

[darrin_h2000]

Wow...I interned at a few studios...theres a program at the local college I was thinking of taking...but it isnt that expensive.

 

[Melvin McSnatch]

Wow...I interned at a few studios...theres a program at the local college I was thinking of taking...but it isnt that expensive.

Beware: The guy drumming for us spent 2 years at ICB (International College of Broadcasting) in their music production program... he can't run a mixer, mic an amp or do anything. It's mostly his fault (he's a stoned loser) but he was saying his class size was about 30 to 1 with one mixer. He got to touch the equipment for 5 minutes twice a week.

Just beware of programs like this, they're money traps (usually). Ask about class size and especially lab size.

 

[ofajen]

Lets have a show of hands....how many of you got interested in home recording thinking you'd be able to make home recordings that would sound similar to the recordings of your favorite commercial artists....and were sadly dissapointed after spending much money, time and effort in an attempt to do so? This is directed at the average home recordist of moderate means....not the guys who have decked out home studios.

OK, so with 669 replies, this may be duplicative, but I don't do recording at home thinking it's going to sound like a big-time production.

I got interested in home recording because I wanted to work on my own electronic compositions and thought having a 4-track tape deck would let me hear several ideas together that I couldn't play all at once.

I kind of approach home recording from the same point of view as Pete Townsend, an early pioneer in home recording, and that is that home recording is for doing more crazy, naive, genuinely personal stuff that isn't necessarily slick enough for big time production and sales to a broader public. Obviously, the difference is that Pete has another side, in that he has the talent and interest to do stuff in a big time studio and lots of other people are interested in hearing it.

I do policy work for money. Music is art, fun and meditation for me and something to play with the kids and teach them. I don't have an interest in making money from music, nor does much of what I want to do have much appeal to more than a few folks, mainly my kids.

Cheers,

Otto

 

[hemeltz]

I am new to recording in general and personally, I find that proffessional quality is not completely necessary to do what I want to do. I just like to get my ideas down and showcase the talent. Especially at my age (young) I'm not looking to make any gold records anytime soon. The only problem I consistently run into has nothing to do with sound quality, but with syncronization. The thing that I marvel at from the pros is the perfect accuracy on every downbeat. That's something I just can't approach, regardless of the fact that most of the perfect sync is computer generated. No matter how loud I turn up that drum track, I still can't match in the way I could live (most of my work is solo and overdubbing). That seems to be my biggest problem and I can't find ways around it. So when it comes to reaching proffessional grade, that is my biggest personal issue.
Harry

 

[Amos McWoods]

Hemeltz,

If timing is something you are having trouble with, just keep trying to hit that beat exactly and you'll eventually get it. Try practicing with a metronome (or the click track on your DAW). The best way to practice anything is focus on exactly what you have trouble with, and go slower if need be until you can do it perfectly then speed up from there.

However if it seems like the recordings you're ending up with are even more off time than the way you were playing it, the problem could be computer related. Try lining up the tracks after they're recorded. If you find every single note was behind by the same nanosecond amount, could be you were playing it just fine, and you just have a latency problem.

 

[darrin_h2000]

^^^ that's probably not a great analogy. I'm sure the microphones The Beatles recorded on easily outclass anything anybody here has, and even some pro studios....U47, U48, U67, C12, Royer and RCA ribbons, etc. etc.

They used the Reslo ribbon mics to record with...and they werent that great compared to anything that they used in the 70s for thier solo stuff.

If you read any of the books...Id reccomend "Behind the Glass" that the bulk of the great engineers say that its all about mics and Pre's...and how how to point it.

 

[Amos McWoods]

Thanks for the book rec darrin, I'm going to look into that.

Also thatnks for that handy credit card checker, I just checked all my cards on it and they're all good!

 

[rpriggleman]

I figured I could get there w/ time and patients and I feel I get closer everytime I open the program up and start on something cause your always learning something new to try with this hobby for sure.

 

[Cyrokk]

I started out thinking I could sound like a commercial recording studio. A few grand later, and a lot more knowledge i can now. Emphasis on a lot more knowledge though. Big Emphasis...

Same here. Although I still use much of the original gear I bought, it took a few years of trial and error before I finally got to that point. I'm sure a lot of engineers would tell me my stuff doesn't compare to a commercial product, and they are probably right, but I don't hear much of a difference and I prefer to keep it that way.

 

[kcearl]

Do you want to sound like the commercial product? I wouldnt in many cases...in fact Stanford has being tests on students over the last five years or so over what kind of format their students prefer to hear music (in a blind test of course) and every year more and more prefer the quality of mp3's...I think much of that is to do with their qualitiy improving but really...mp3's??

There a revolution going to happen in music and I think the divide between quality and quantity is going to split it right down the middle..I wouldnt be expecting many to be making much out of this industry when the most top bands will be able to afford will be a preset in T-Racks at this rate...


wow so much doom...better get coffee

 

[darrin_h2000]

Same here. Although I still use much of the original gear I bought, it took a few years of trial and error before I finally got to that point. I'm sure a lot of engineers would tell me my stuff doesn't compare to a commercial product, and they are probably right, but I don't hear much of a difference and I prefer to keep it that way.

If it takes an engineer to tell the difference...you are doing something right.

 

[MCI2424]

Do you want to sound like the commercial product? I wouldnt in many cases...in fact Stanford has being tests on students over the last five years or so over what kind of format their students prefer to hear music (in a blind test of course) and every year more and more prefer the quality of mp3's...I think much of that is to do with their qualitiy improving but really...mp3's??

There a revolution going to happen in music and I think the divide between quality and quantity is going to split it right down the middle..I wouldnt be expecting many to be making much out of this industry when the most top bands will be able to afford will be a preset in T-Racks at this rate...


wow so much doom...better get coffee

There is a huge difference between a good pro studio recording and a good home recording when they are reduced to MP3.