Really? Is it true? Welllll........ Let's talk about it. The first CD players that came out had a harsher sound by far than most people were used to BUT they didn't have any hiss, surface noise, and could deliver a lot more detail than a vinyl record, hence the initial attraction AND the initial criticism. Without trying to explain the tech side of it, CD's got better, but the digital vs analog war was on. In the rush to supply content many CD's that came out were cre

The advantages of recording at home are many---low cost, unlimited hours and dress code (you don't have to wear clothes!), and instant access being the obvious ones. But maybe you want your masterpiece to go down in history and you have some cash stashed, what will you gain by using a larger commercial studio? This blog will break down the bullet points for you. 1) Drums. Drums always, and I mean ALWAYS, sound better in a larger well treated room. Back in the day many dru

Besides microphones, good monitor speakers are the most important tools in your studio. Over my 25 years selling and using monitors, I've learned some basic truths that will help you get the most out of your speakers and choose a pair that will enhance your mixes, and bring joy to your ears. 1) How to buy. Try before you buy! If at all possible you need to hear them first. Establish a price range you can afford and listen to as many as you can. One pair is going to stand

I swore I never would do it. I'm never going to have a mixer with no physical faders. Sigh But I did it. The amount of channels and features available per dollar spent just got the better of me. I've always travelled light when providing PA for my band. Mixer, powered speakers---done. That's fine if you never want to EQ the monitors or the mains for that matter. I was getting by. My these days my not-so-trusty Soundcraft FX8 I'd had since the 90's (no not 1890's---c'm

Today I want to explain the difference between quarter inch guitar plugs and TRS quarter inch plugs. TRS plugs can be used in three distinct and different ways and can be the source of confusion, so hopefully this blog post can help. Quarter inch plugs were first used by the telephone industry hence the term "phone plug." Later, electric guitars, basses, and keyboards adopted the design and all of a sudden you'll hear them called "guitar plugs." Seems legit. The other te

My biggest advice to anyone building a studio space is if there's anyway to do it, include a window. Even if you have to plug it up when you're making loud sounds, give yourself a window to look out of. It will restore your sanity. It will make long editing sessions more bearable. It will inspire you when the lyrics just aren't coming out right. Windows are wonderful. Here's some windows at Hallowed Halls recording studio (where Astro Audio PDX is hiding) Here's the vie

Ever get a great idea in the middle of the night, but by morning it's gone? Ever lose a great take because you were in pause not record? Ever have a computer file get lost with your grammy winning song on it? Gear can be as frustrating as it is inspiring. It's easy to go down the rabbit hole chasing the perfect edit or cleaning up a drum track and lose sight of the feel of the song. The most important rule ever in the studio for me is the KISS rule. Keep it Simple Stu

One of the coolest pro recording studio techniques is called re-amping. Using this easy trick can open up all kinds of creative options for your production. Here's how it works. Record a guitar part straight into your DAW clean, no amp - no distortion. Now you can send the clean track BACK to the amp for another pass using the Reamp box. This allows you to change the guitar amp settings for a different sound, or use another amp altogether. Another way is to split the g

Everybody who records wants to sound "good" right? So how do you get there? Ten thousand dollar vintage German microphones? Wouldn't hurt, no doubt, but I thought I'd speak to some simple, easy, and affordable ways to get your best foot forward when you go to record your new song. There's three crucial elements we should consider to improve the sound of a recording. The mic, the positioning/level setting, and the room. Other things like the convertor, plug-ins, instrument

What's a mic pre and why do I need one? The proper term is microphone pre-amp. It's an actual amplifier that takes the very low wimpy signal that comes out of professional microphones, and boosts the signal to make it usable in modern electronic gear such as mixers, tape machines, or other audio equipment. Without a mic pre your mic signal would be so low you could barely hear it. No bueno. Often you have a mic pre and might not know it's there. If a mixer or other sound

Well---yes and no. The most important thing about mics to learn is positioning. Where do you put it? Close? Closer? If the mic can't show on camera, and you can't hide it really close---then you must back off a little, but almost every other situation will benefit from positioning the mic really close to the vocal. We're really used to hearing recordings made with expensive German microphones from four inches away! That's what sounds good to us after years and years of TV

Everybody has their favorite mics, just like colors to paint with they give your music personality. Every sound is valid if YOU like it. I always advocate try before you buy, a big reason small local stores are a big advantage. Many (like us) will let you do a home demo. Your ears matter more than anyone else. SO---- Having said all that, I'd like to give a list of some of my favorite mics. Neumann KM-184. Small diaphragm condenser usually sold in pairs for acoustic guit

There's a LOT of ways to record sound from analog tape decks to computerized systems, and they all have certain advantages. If you are on a budget and are setting up to record at home, allow me to toss a couple tips out here that will reap you huge rewards down the line as your skill level and gear acquisition syndrome (GAS) increases. To get a recording to sound good, three things matter more than anything else. Microphone, the room, and speakers. Microphone It all starts h

Hey folks! It’s Kai here, ready to tell you some horror stories I’ve come across these last 5 years, why they happen, and how to avoid them. Every once in awhile, someone will send us an email along the lines of “I want to print CDs through you, but “abc” company charges “xyz” amount less!” True they do friends, true they do. I’m here today to tell you how big business and online based companies are able to offer those prices, and why it’s not worth it for anyone that wants t

Many times when shopping for pairs of microphones, often small diaphragm condenser mics, you'll see them offered as a matched pair. What is this and is it worth extra money? IN MY HUMBLE (or often not so humble) OPINION----- Probably not. Man am I gonna piss off manufacturers by saying this, but it's very often not necessary. So for starters, what is a matched pair? Microphones can be tested to see exactly how they respond to all the different frequencies that make up the so

Two common types of magnets go into microphones and speakers: Neodymium and Alnico. You know those magnets that stick to the fridge so hard you can barely get em off? Those are sometimes called rare-earth but the correct term is Neodymium. (Knee-oh-DIM-ee-um) Useful in speakers because the magnet can be much lighter making the speaker and cabinet a LOT easier to stuff in the ol Miata. Engineers can easily get more output from a microphone and the sound is often more live

And why do I care? Hi there---second in a series of blogs designed to help inform first time #microphone buyers, or hobbyists what they need to know to get the most out of their gear. Knowing how a mic works will help you understand why certain mics work better in some situations than others. Kick drum mics don't work very well for acoustic guitar or piano for example. Right here I have to say that rules are made to be broken and mics are colors to paint with so realize tha

First in a series intended to assist the first time buyer or hobbyist. We'll start with how, and later move on to what, and why #microphones Tune in again soon to find more pro tips. After over two decades of helping people pick out mics, I've found some things I know will help a first time buyer or hobbyist to get a microphone that will be both sonically pleasing and a valuable tool as time goes on. For this issue of the blog I'm going to focus on vocal studio mics and