Who went to school for recording? Who hometaught themselves?

[Clark Grizwald]

I attended 6 weeks of night classes (Recording Studio Techniques) at Charlotte Community College (CPCC).
I had to quit due to my job. (but I learned a few things)

My most memorable question was:

"How do speakers differentiate all the sounds they are pumping out?"

In other words, how can a 2-way speaker system (or even one-way) discern between 5 different instruments without having 5 different speakers/amp systems? (and still have a separate, individual sound)

The answer?

The speakers don't. Your ears do!
The composite signal is perceived by the ear, depending on the mix, as different instruments.

Might sound like a stupid question...but I was only 21 at the time.

 

[philbagg]

Lol Tod... What's funny is that there is so much to music that someone actually MASTERING it I would think is generally impossible. Even if you started at like 5 years old. You can master an area... but mastering ALL of music... Hmmmm.

I think I have mastered everything about music ever.

 

[cantthinkofname]

i majored in recording for a couple of years but quit because of a long story just before i got into the recording courses. because i had to go through all of the other prereq's first, i majored in recording for a couple of years and still came out knowing very little, i even paid for the expensive fat book.

i did attend berkley lol, but only because a prof there invited me to a free private lesson after meeting him after one of his performances, then he took me out for pizza before a broadway show he was playing in. lol i remember i made him late, and it was raining, and he was driving up on the curbs to get there on time, which is nothing new because it seems like most bostoners drive on sidewalks & curbs i sware

 

[TheSunsetsDown]

i majored in recording for a couple of years but quit because of a long story just before i got into the recording courses. because i had to go through all of the other prereq's first, i majored in recording for a couple of years and still came out knowing very little, i even paid for the expensive fat book.

i did attend berkley lol, but only because a prof there invited me to a free private lesson after meeting him after one of his performances, then he took me out for pizza before a broadway show he was playing in. lol i remember i made him late, and it was raining, and he was driving up on the curbs to get there on time, which is nothing new because it seems like most bostoners drive on sidewalks & curbs i sware

It's Berklee.

 

[cantthinkofname]

It's Berklee.

i do believe your right lol

 

[Chris108]

IF you can afford Audio engineering tuition do it.
It`s well worth it you can learn so much information in a year, that may have taken many years and frustation with out it.
It also teaches you the right kind of information & questions to ask for furture learning & research.
Particularly the way the methodology & technology changes.

I did back in 1992 & never regretted it.

Good Luck.
Chris108.

 

[Chibi Nappa]

I was self-taught until I knew enough to get a job (plenty of luck and other factors involved in landing that one). After getting the job, I learned the majority of what I know now from the old-heads I work along side of...plus countless hours of learning through doing.

 

[harbingertx]

yeeeuhhh

I've hometaught myself since I was almost 14. I'm now 16, I've learned a lot, but I do intend to go to UNT (University of North Texas) And get a degree in Audio Engineering.
I feel like there's a lot I'm missing.

 

[moresound]

Three years of formal training.
Three plus decades of on the job training.

 

[grimtraveller]

I can't say I "taught myself" ! But I can't say anyone taught me either. Like many hobbyists, I've picked up lots of stuff over the years, experimented, sucked, wondered why things didn't sound right, got certain things right and still love all this.

 

[dintymoore]

I mostly learned the basics from a friend of mine who's Dad had a nice pro studio. They had top stuff - Neve board, lots of vintage Neumanns and Allen Sides was a family friend and designed much of it. They recorded for Disney, Santana, Sly... all kinds of greats.

I'm mainly a drummer and went to university for that but quit after one year to play professionally.

You can learn pretty much anything by finding someone who can do it and asking them.

You could literally make a space ship by that method.

 

[haymedic]

there were some really, really helpful people on the way that showed me a lot. but otherwise trial and error.

s

 

[BIGSHAQDADDY]

i WENT TO THE REC W WHO ELESE DID IT RULES

 

[NCdan]

After diving head first into home recording, I thought that taking some classes on it would help a lot. I signed up for a class at the nearest community college. Actually, I didn't take it for a grade, I just audited it (cost about $35). And boy, am I glad I didn't take it for a grade, because it was the biggest waste of $35; the class was comprised of a bunch of wannabe rappers who wanted to learn how to "make music." The lessons consisted of in-depth concepts such as plugging in cables and learning how to cut and paste audio clips. I lasted about five classes, then I finally told the instructor what I really thought about the class and didn't come back. I guess they were more concerned with filling up seats for the course than teaching anything useful (even stuff like compression and EQ would have been about 50 feet above those guys' heads). Just my story about taking a college recording class. I'm just assuming that real recording schools are a bit better.

 

[WaveForm]

I started out young, as a live sound guy at the local venues, as in I was the kid that moved speakers for the old timers, and they occasionally showed me a thing or two behind the board. Then there was alot of trial and error recording in highschool, with some all-in-one boxes that didn't end too well. When i got to college at Rowan University, things took off. I landed a pro-sound job with the student activities board, and got to work with tons of great gear and acts like the Flobots, Saves the Day, and the Bouncing Souls. Some of my co-workers told me about the new Audio Recording minor that was getting launched that year, and i signed right up. I took four of the six courses in it (Project Audio Recording I &II, Computers and Music Technology, and Sound Communication ) before my academic and financial situation ended my college career a little early. From there on out I've been on my own, armed with a little formal training, a lot of bad experience, and a real tight gear budget.

 

[Terry Wetzel]

I learned by reading a lot of audio tech articles.

How many of you in this forum actually went to school for audio recording?

Well, I went to IPR (Institute of Production and Recording) about 3 years ago. I dropped cause I didn't think it was worth paying that much money to learn recording when you could get it for free from online forums like these. With that much money I could've got me some real nice gears for my studio.

What's your story?

I'm from the poor side of town. Back in the day I was a 6 night a week working musician with dreams of making it on that side of the glass. I got married and had to change my perspective and quick! I did go to night school to learn another trade which was more likely to garantee full time employment and good money,which it did. Over the years, the dream wouldn't go away so now, In retirement I'm persuing it again only from the production side of the glass. Particpating here has taught me a lot about computer and hard disk recording and a good bit about people. In the old days,(forgive me but here I go again), there were no schools or college coarses. If you could afford it financially and if you were lucky, you got hired as a gopher and had to learn from the ground up from the established engineers and producers you were exposed to and, if you had the ears, you moved up. It also helped if someone you were related to owned the studio but, isn't that so in every field of endeavor?

 

[nzausrec]

There was this (sort of) hippie commune in NZ and they had a barn which housed a full-on studio. I spent a week there on a course in the eighties. Also gained a bit of stuff from doing things in other studios and fooling with four tracks.
But, didn't so much more than that thru lack of money (being an abandoned youth) and not so industry savvy.
Am really glad now for the digital age (for editing and portability and for these websites!) and having a bit of money to renew the hobby and understand it in more depth.

 

[darrin_h2000]

I mostly learned the basics from a friend of mine who's Dad had a nice pro studio. They had top stuff - Neve board, lots of vintage Neumanns and Allen Sides was a family friend and designed much of it. They recorded for Disney, Santana, Sly... all kinds of greats.

I was set up by Lee Hazlewood...he was my great grandfather's nephew...but I interned locally.

 

[snellular5]

I'm currently at a place called the Harris Institute for sound engineering and producing. It's a great school but its in Toronto Canada

 

[cecerre]

I paid for 'training' at a place called "Right Track Studio" back in late 80's in Cleveland Ohio. I also got a degree in electronics from a local community college and while some may disagree, I think an electronics course (Not engineering per say) should be a required part of the audio engineering diet. The rest has been at my own pace and expense as both a musician and engineer, though I've never made audio/video my career. I do work in I.T. which keeps me in touch with the latest technology and I still learn something new from forums, experimentation, etc.