I received a phone call yesterday from one of my clients. He hired me to mix and master a song a few days before. He was calling because he had a friend give him feedback about the song. Negative feedback….Now even though my client had lots of positive feedback from other friends, the only feedbackContinue reading “Don’t rely on other’s opinions”
Tag Archives: music
Does 1 de-esser plug in do the trick?
Today I want to write about something that I had to learn over the years. One of those things where when you know the rules….you can break them! I always thought that using 1 de-esser plug-in was some sort of rule. If I used more than one then it would hurt the audio. While thatContinue reading “Does 1 de-esser plug in do the trick?”
Don’t experiment during vocal sessions….
As an engineer, you should do your experimenting and playing with plug-ins in your off time or when mixing the song. During recording sessions, it’s best to put on some plug ins you know that will work for the time being and move forward. It can be a real vibe killer for an artist thatContinue reading “Don’t experiment during vocal sessions….”
One ear off or press headphones firmly….
One thing that I have learned over the years is that you can’t hear that well in headphones while recording. You also don’t want to turn them up too loud because then you will get headphone bleed into the mic. There’s 2 methods that work wonders though. The first method is the “one ear off”Continue reading “One ear off or press headphones firmly….”
Free plug-ins and included DAW plug-ins go a long way!
I want to share with you some great insight! You may overlook free plug-ins or not realize that there are free plug-ins but you shouldn’t sleep on this! I use a mixture of free and paid plug-ins every day and I definitely need both! I could even get by with just the free plug-ins ifContinue reading “Free plug-ins and included DAW plug-ins go a long way!”
What separates you from the next producer?
Have you ever thought about this? Why should someone hire you instead of someone else? It’s important to know your strong qualities and really use them to your advantage. Maybe you are great with lyrics and add value by suggesting small changes while working with artists. Maybe your like me and you have a reallyContinue reading “What separates you from the next producer?”
Writing vocal melodies that compliment the singer’s range….
One thing I have run into lately is songwriters writing songs for other people without keeping the vocal range in mind. My wife does a lot of singer-for-hire jobs remotely online and we have run into this a lot. A man will write a vocal melody intending a girl to sing the song and he’sContinue reading “Writing vocal melodies that compliment the singer’s range….”
Sticky subject, but what do you do when you are recording someone that can’t sing very well?
First off I want to clarify that this isn’t coming from a disrespectful place. There has been times a singer has sang completely off key and completely off time. I’m talking about drastically off, not something subtle. Everyone is off a little bit, we aren’t robots. I want to share my experience with recording artistsContinue reading “Sticky subject, but what do you do when you are recording someone that can’t sing very well?”
How do you know how much compression to use on a vocal?
There are a lot of opinions when it comes to vocal compression. I was taught in recording school to never get more than 3 db of gain reduction. Although that may work sometimes, its definitely not always the case! Odds are, a singer will belt a high note 15db louder than the previous note andContinue reading “How do you know how much compression to use on a vocal?”
Compression is cool, eq is too, but dynamic eq is awesome!
Vocals are unlike any instrument ever when it comes to mixing. I’ve heard problem frequencies in almost every area you can think of! Sometimes singers sound really muddy, or super harsh, or the sibilance on an “s” word can cut right through glass! Others sound chesty and don’t have any brightness in their voice. TheContinue reading “Compression is cool, eq is too, but dynamic eq is awesome!”
Perfect Vocals Academy 