T
tollbooth
New member
EQ on the way in
hello there
this is just something that works for me - i was always taught to keep the signal path as clean as possible onthe way down to 'tape' (HD in my case) as well, though i find Light's thoughts really interesting.
my input signal path is fairly basic - mic through tfpro P2 into MOTU 24i/o straight then into Digital Performer4.12
first thing - mike choice (for vocals - what type of singer, what do i have in the armoury, what's the song like? - for instruments,a few mins of careful placement and acouple of test recording snippits)
i do a very very gentle compression on vocals (really just a 0dB protection limiter if i think the singer might get a little wild) onthe way in - expecting it only to trigger if things get extreme.
no EQ except hi-pass at 60-80Hz just to cut real low rumbles (though i've stopped using that sometimes due to starting using a cool little Auralex Sonic Sculpture kit which includes a set of mike stand 'feet' of acoustic foam - and they work great!)
however...
one of the things i love about working in software is that i can demo a mix at a really early stage in the process, totally non-destructively. I find myself 'building' the track as i go along. so i may do my subtractive EQ just after i've recorded, just to see whether it's ok and what i was looking for.
vocal compressions go on, drum dynamics and eq go on. sometimes it can really help me decide where other sonic elements in the song need to sit, and often indeed, whether they even need to be there. next on are a few demo reverb auxs channels for vocals and instruments.
when i come to mix, i already have a few very very rough mixes under my belt - almost as my notes to work from. very little of the demo levels stay asthey were, i don't use this as a shortcut, but sometimes it can help.
to me - this feels a little bit like a halfway house between adding eq at tracking and not doing anything at all.
i just look at it that software allows you to play with plugs totally non-destructively, so i might as well use it.
this way, i also save the agony and stress of adding everything during tracking, and also since doing things this way, i've ended up holding my head in my hands far less as a result of horror stories at the tracking stage.
i get far fewernasty surprises when it comes to final mix and mastering.
i'd love to hear any thoughts on this approach - i've been doing things this way for a few years now and not really found a way that works better (for me!) yet.
cheers guys
paul d
tollboothmusic
www.tollboothmusic.com
hello there
this is just something that works for me - i was always taught to keep the signal path as clean as possible onthe way down to 'tape' (HD in my case) as well, though i find Light's thoughts really interesting.
my input signal path is fairly basic - mic through tfpro P2 into MOTU 24i/o straight then into Digital Performer4.12
first thing - mike choice (for vocals - what type of singer, what do i have in the armoury, what's the song like? - for instruments,a few mins of careful placement and acouple of test recording snippits)
i do a very very gentle compression on vocals (really just a 0dB protection limiter if i think the singer might get a little wild) onthe way in - expecting it only to trigger if things get extreme.
no EQ except hi-pass at 60-80Hz just to cut real low rumbles (though i've stopped using that sometimes due to starting using a cool little Auralex Sonic Sculpture kit which includes a set of mike stand 'feet' of acoustic foam - and they work great!)
however...
one of the things i love about working in software is that i can demo a mix at a really early stage in the process, totally non-destructively. I find myself 'building' the track as i go along. so i may do my subtractive EQ just after i've recorded, just to see whether it's ok and what i was looking for.
vocal compressions go on, drum dynamics and eq go on. sometimes it can really help me decide where other sonic elements in the song need to sit, and often indeed, whether they even need to be there. next on are a few demo reverb auxs channels for vocals and instruments.
when i come to mix, i already have a few very very rough mixes under my belt - almost as my notes to work from. very little of the demo levels stay asthey were, i don't use this as a shortcut, but sometimes it can help.
to me - this feels a little bit like a halfway house between adding eq at tracking and not doing anything at all.
i just look at it that software allows you to play with plugs totally non-destructively, so i might as well use it.
this way, i also save the agony and stress of adding everything during tracking, and also since doing things this way, i've ended up holding my head in my hands far less as a result of horror stories at the tracking stage.
i get far fewernasty surprises when it comes to final mix and mastering.
i'd love to hear any thoughts on this approach - i've been doing things this way for a few years now and not really found a way that works better (for me!) yet.
cheers guys
paul d
tollboothmusic
www.tollboothmusic.com