What's limiting YOUR recordings??

What's the weakest link in your recordings?

  • My recording chain (mics, pres, etc)

    Votes: 156 18.4%

  • My monitoring chain (monitors, phones)

    Votes: 66 7.8%

  • My room(s)

    Votes: 258 30.4%

  • My own ability

    Votes: 368 43.4%
  • Total voters
    848
My own musicianship

I think anyone that doesn't at least consider themselves a small weak link in the chain needs a reality check. I expect (correct me if I am wrong) even the professionals admit they can still improve.
 
My room is pretty bad - its an overcrowded basement with zero treatment, but the thing that is truly limiting my recordings is none of the above. Its the thing that actually makes the noise, my crapy little practice amp. my toneport sounds better than it.
 
My biggest problem is me, Im getting lazy.

If a adda converter is stopping you, then you have bigger problems,
Look at what the albums of the past were recorded with..

Any new adda, preamp, mic, made today should be good enough to make a great record...dont blame the gear. I did until I finnaly admitied that it was me, I just keep upgradeing gear and never recording...drop the excuses and make some kick ass music everyone!:)
 
Lousy acoustics, and living in an apartment.

My gear is good, but the acoustics must be improved before I'll get anywhere real with it. Same story as in our previous apartment.

It is not until you start listening to a good mic through headphones that you realize how awful-sounding and noisy most human living spaces really are :rolleyes:

This subject is so universal that this thread probably will be going three years from now.



C.
 
...

Maybe acoustics is a universal subject in these circles, but there's not necessarily universal agreement.

F/I, there may be certain circumsances where specific parts of the home recording space (house/home/apt) might sound very good acoustically, au naturale & without treatment. It's not always about sound control, dampening and bass trapping,... D/I,... nearfields,.... etc. A natural ambience may sometimes be found that supports or enhances the basic sound recorded to track, from a natural or untreated acoustic environment. I understand to a large degree that many people want to record tracks as dry as possible and add ambience with processing, so a discussion of natural ambience may be moot. As always,... YMMV.

The limits of my gear or sound of my room has never "limited" my recording. To me it's more about time management, priorities, making time for the arts and practice of music recording, and finding the illusive inspiration that I feel I need to really make it happen. Nonetheless, I have a fairly solid practice ethic, & though I can be lazy as anyone, I have a desire to continue moving forward. I do find it more difficult to live/think/breathe music day in/out, like I did in my 20's & single days. That's probably another post altogether.

Cheers!:eek:;)
 
I don't have a great (or even good room) and my gear is old and/or cheap, but mostly, I am so new to real recording that I am my own worst enemy. Eventually my room will improve (i like my old gear) and all I will have to blame is myself. I'm trying to learn and improve and that's about all I can do.
 
Only thing limiting my recording is finding a drummer that just wants to record. Everybody always wants to form a band. I just need hired guns.
 
Gosh, that is so true!

Toker41 said:
Only thing limiting my recording is finding a drummer that just wants to record. Everybody always wants to form a band. I just need hired guns.
Click to expand...

I used to play with a drummer who wanted to record all day, as well as drink, smoke, party and just jam our asses off, but at the end of the day he still wanted to form a gigging band! He always knew of a friend who would be a "perfect" addition, but when all was said & done, it never happened. I've not been motivated to form or join a group, tho' playing with other people can be fun and rewarding. Flipside of the coin is sometimes it can be a drag and pain in the ass. I find solo work much easier. "Less" personality conflicts, unless you consider maybe having multiple personalities. Heh.:eek:;)
 
A Reel Person said:
I find solo work much easier. "Less" personality conflicts, unless you consider maybe having multiple personalities.
Click to expand...

That's huge for me!!! Too many people want to say how to do the song. I don't want that!!! Someday I may hire a backing band for some shows and we'll collaborate on live arrangements. but on the writing/recording end . . . . GET OFF MY KOOL AID!!! LOL
 
I especially like when the drummer shows up, and you quickly find out that he didn't listen to the song once, even though I sent it to him 3 weeks ago, AND THEN he wants to change it when he does hear it because he simply can't remember where the changes are.:rolleyes:


....and he thinks we are forming a band.:p
 
Toker41 said:
I especially like when the drummer shows up, and you quickly find out that he didn't listen to the song once, even though I sent it to him 3 weeks ago, AND THEN he wants to change it when he does hear it because he simply can't remember where the changes are.:rolleyes:


....and he thinks we are forming a band.:p
Click to expand...

Yeah, so true! The drummer I used to play with a lot would "jam" to songs that I know have very specific changes or accents, F/I, Ramones songs. Ramones songs have minimalist drumming and very specific cymbal hits. Anything outside of that sounds wrong in my ears, and technically is wrong. I don't nitpick, but there's a huge difference between Ramones drum tracks and "Deep Purple"-style drumming.

Then he wants to mooch beer & p@t off me endlessly, all the while claiming it doesn't affect his playing, or even makes it better! Well, it affects my playing/singing, and surely not for the better! At the end of the day he still wants to form a gigging band. Oh yeah, then when all is said and done, he needs a ride home, ~20 miles across town! I used to sacrifice a lot for the "live-in-studio" drummer or "group" experience,... but hardly ever any more!:eek::eek:;)

So, we're on the same page with that one. Ah, the good ol' days!:eek:;)
 
Everything lol. I am a college student, so I can't really dish out a lot of cash on nice equipment. In Auburn (where I am), I don't have my mesa stack, only my 4 year old line 6. I am in a dorm room with cement walls and the school radio station is right next to me so I pick up their broadcasts on my cable snake. I live with a roommate so I can never just record when I want.

I can go on, but I don't want to sound whiney haha.
 
Recording with a kbm412 on a bass drum and an es-57 on guitar is limiting, yet I haven't even come close to their potentials - it's always due to poor planning, lack of time, or some other unpredictable variable. I've never even gotten %80 percent as good of a recording as I think I could with the gear that I have.

I'm beginning to think that this 'dream' of getting everything right in a session is simply a ratio of your skills to your situation. Just like, for example, as a drummer, you may not always wake up to a new day of 'your best drumming ever', but since you practiced so much, you'll rarely wake up to a day of total shit.

From everything I've read, an engineer can at least have an affect on most of the situation, so I think that as my skills increase, that includes making higher quality recordings and more efficient management.

Any better gear will help, but I've already improved markedly from the last recording with the same equipment.
 
I definitely voted for myself. Although I don't have the best gear out there, I do know that I get great sound out of each of my individual tracks after I've done compressing / eq'ing, etc, etc. Then once I make a mix it seems like I'm fighting myself, going back and re-eq'ing, etc, etc. Then once I get the mix right, I start to add effects and everything gets all screwed up again. I don't know if its my process / methodology that is wrong, my mentallity, or just the way I'm doing each section, but I definitely need to talk to someone in a studio about how to do things once its to tape.:(
 
I definitely voted for my own ability. My gear and my room are good enough to make decent enough recordings. I find myself mostly fighting my own laziness and lack of musical ability. I do find myself improving over time but at a much slower pace than I dreamed of when I started all this.
 
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