For recording , there's a couple of questions to consider before looking at your options:

What other instruments are to be in the recording? What recording technique do you prefer?

  • guitar on it's own, or guitar & vocals, or mellow guitar sound as in jazz?
    • you're probably looking for a warm, full, natural sound
  • guitar in band - for example, with drum'n'bass and keyboards?
    • here the guitar needs to cut through the sounds that overlap its frequency and tonal space

Depends on the room of course, but assuming a reasonably lively acoustic space, you'll get warmer, fuller sounds from a larger diaphragmed with cardioid pattern.

Models to consider, depending on your budget*:… Read more

Filed under Home Recording Studio, How to Record, Guitar Mics, Music Recording by Glen.
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, with vocals, in probably the most common experience for the singer-song writer.

This tutorial discusses how to record the . Getting this one right is about as difficult as it gets for any instrument.

We happen to use Pro Tools as the . But you'll be able to do everything we cover in your chosen at home. It's a matter of applying the same principles, whether in Pro Tools or other recording software.

Choosing Your Microphones
Before starting to record you must choose the mic you want to use. But you might use one of two different techniques for acoustic guitar. Which you decide to use will affect your choice of Read more

Filed under How to Record, Guitar Mics, Music Recording by Glen.
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"How can I record my old LPs" is a question I get asked from time to time.

It's actually pretty simple, provided you have the right connectors and some . No need for any sophisticated or software in this case. Keep reading to find out how I set this up… Read more

Filed under How to Record, Music Recording by Glen.
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Autocom Pro-XL MDX1600 limit a signal's dynamic range to within settings chosen by the .

Why would you want to do that?

Does that not take a way from producing a faithful recording of the original sound?

Consider some of the challenges you face as a recording engineer:

  • When signal levels get too high for your recording equipment to handle, you'll hear distortion on the output. Worse, they can even damage your equipment (or your ears!)
  • If one instrument, (for example, an amplified acoustic guitar) has a naturally wider volume range than the other instruments in the band, it'll risk not be heard above the drums during quiet passages, but can be overpowering when played at full strength.

Audio compressors and limiters help by reducing the maximum levels of sudden transient sounds that could distort your recording.

They are also used for cutting tracks and adjusting the mix. By smoothing out sudden or large volume changes, and automatically adjusting the dynamic range and balance of a track.

So how does that work?…
Read more

Filed under How to Record, Dynamics Processors, Music Recording by Glen.
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Neil from Taylor - bassist and music recording engineerSo you decided to set up a studio at home? Cool, isn't it!

But if your like 99% of us out here, you'll just about have blown your whole budget, before you even start to learn . Trouble is, when you get started on your first couple of sessions, you'll realize you've either missed something critical, or, just as likely, overspent on non-essentials.

One very-well funded project I heard of recently did a great job of selecting top of the range gear and software (Pro-tools, with Neve pre-amp etc) then put it all in a cramped hut in the back yard! They also completely forgot about headphones…

So here are 5 key items you must include in your budget before you consider your initial set up plan "complete". (Of course, it'll never be complete - you'll always want to add this, change that, etc…)… Read more

Filed under Home Recording Studio, How to Record, Music Recording by Glen.
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