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| What is this Guide? | |
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All the rules have changed in the past
few years for putting together a recording studio and they keep changing. It used to be that you needed
expensive multi-track recorders and mixdown machines, a roomful of
outboard gear and processors, and more cables than you would want to count.
Of course, you still can make a large studio with tons of outboard gear (which
sounds better than ever), or you can let computers and modern digital multi
track machines replace hundreds of functions that used to require separate
hardware units.
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When you see this "TweakSpeak" Icon, you know important terms are defined or F.A.Q are answered. |
| What is a Recording Studio? |
| A Recording Studio is a number of devices that allow you to capture different "takes" of performances and assemble them into a finished audio product. It includes microphones, recorders, instruments, a mixer and audio processors. With the exception of microphones, these may come in software forms as well as hardware. |
| What is a Sequencer? |
| A sequencer is a computer application that allows you to record both digital audio and MIDI data and blend the sounds together in it's software mixing console. There are editing tools that let you control every aspect of the production down to very fine details. Effects and processors of high quality are increasingly being added to these applications. The modern sequencer now can fulfill many recording studio functions that were possible only in expensive studios a decade a go. |
| What is a multi-track recorder |
| A multi-track recorder is a recording device that allow you to record audio directly to separate tracks. Once all the tracks are added, they can be mixed down to a stereo master recording. Today's digital multi-tracks have built in effects so you can add varying amounts to each track. The major difference between a hardware multi-track recorder and a computer sequencer is that the sequencer can record and edit MIDI data and the multi-track cannot. |
| What is MIDI? |
| MIDI is a form of computer data that keyboards and computers can send back and forth that turn on notes. You can write musical notes on a computer screen and the data turns notes on and off on the keyboard or sound module. Likewise you can play notes on your keyboard and the computer will "record" these commands to turn on and off notes. |
We are not talking about a cheap, hissy,
unprofessional sound, like we used to get with old 4 track cassette studios.
Those days are gone. With
the dawn of modern recording software (called sequencers), with their full-featured digital mixers built right into
software, you can expect your sound to rival the big boys in the
studios downtown. Yes. It's true. For a modest investment in microphones,
preamps, audio interfaces and software you can be well on your way. I'm
going to tell you all about today's gear, tell you what you
need and what you don't need, give you strategies for gear acquisition
that are tried and true, and show you where you can save money and exactly where
you should not compromise.
But don't think just because you have the gear
you will sound like a million bucks, automatically. No, friend, it does not work
that way. You need a musical understanding to write music and you
need to know how to use the gear or software that you have. Musical
talent is important. But that doesn't mean you need to know how to play an
instrument, like the keyboard, with proficiency.
Basically, we consider the
studio itself to be a musical
instrument. Like any instrument, you get good by practicing, trying
different things, experimenting, mimicking, tweaking, mixing.... After a
while, it dawns on you that making music is a craft, and the studio is
it's workbench. You supply the creativity, your musicality, your quest for
musical beauty. You capture your tracks then tweak it down to a
work of art. This process is the focus of TweakHeadz Lab. The goal of the studio
tweak is to create art in its highest form of
expression.
The great masters of the recording arts learned their
techniques by devoting their lives creating, capturing and tweaking sound. These secrets are
hard earned, and used to be passed down from the pros to their apprentices at big studios. You would set
up mics, sweep the
floor, run for coffee and take out the trash, then, one day they let you help
them at the console.
Those days are almost gone. TweakHeadz Lab is the modern day equivalent of
that apprenticeship. If you read my articles carefully you will find many
secrets of audio production. Of course, I don't know everything, no
person does. but I do know
a lot. Enough to get you on your path.
In your recording studio, you get to have three roles--musician, audio engineer, and producer. What stands between you and the masters is simply knowledge and experience. Their knowledge translates directly-- the tools in the modern software studio have the same names and functions as the classic hardware machines in a pro facility and are used in the same way. The big studios downtown have compressors, limiters, vocal processors, delays, reverbs, equalization, multi track recorders, computer automation and massive consoles that hook it all together. If you have a modern software package or hardware digital multitrack, you have all these tools too. They know exactly when and how to use EQ to clean up a track, when to use compression, the precise place to put reverb in the mix, how to record vocals, guitars, drums and how to level everything to make a stunning audio image. I am going to be your guide to acquiring all these skills.
Tweak's Studio Oct 2007
I will tell you the things that you
absolutely must know for music production in a clear, simple, even entertaining
way. While much of this knowledge is technical, I'll avoid bogging
you down with unnecessary technical details. We are not flying to Mars
here (except maybe musically), so we can have a little fun. After all, our
music is something we want people to enjoy.
Because you may be running your studio on a computer,
we'll cover that too. You
need to know how to tweak your computer as well as you know how to tweak your musical score. Then there is the
matter of Understanding MIDI and digital audio and how these work
together (yes they ARE different). This is a core concept
underpinning
how the contemporary computer-based home studio works, so we'll get to that first.
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While knowledge is technical, results can be artistic. Think of it
this way, in your hands is the most powerful musical instrument human beings
ever invented. It is
so powerful that human beings have only
begun to tap into its possibilities. You can do 100 track scores with hundreds of
instruments playing together if you want. Its as vast as your musical mind
and has the capability of sounding better than your store bought CDs. If you have musical inspiration
and technical know-how, you have the boundless universe of musical form at your
fingertips. A dream? Yes, but with effort and a good guide, it's a dream
that comes true. |
Browse down the left frame of this page to the
topics you are interested in. At any time you can jump to a forum
specifically devoted to the topic. At the bottom of nearly every class you will see a link that says:
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Want to talk about this
topic? |
Since this is the newbie topic the above link
will take you directly to discussions among newbies. The Mic page takes
you to the forum on Microphones. By jumping back and forth, you can read
the basics here in the Guide, jump over to relevant questions and answers and
learn really quickly.
Well, I have been asked questions on building home studios for over 15 years. I have answered thousands of emails and wrote these so I could direct people to these answers rather than write everything out again.
That's me! I have studied music, philosophy and sociology and have a graduate degree in the latter. I've spent much of my life teaching by day and learning the recording arts by night. I've been doing recordings on computers since the first sequencers came out and as you see by the list, I have a lot to show you. I started this site back in 1996 and am constantly improving it, thanks to your support.
If you like these articles and I have helped you out, may I suggest buying your gear at zZounds or SameDayMusic from my product links? Please enable your browser to accept cookies and I will get credit for anything you purchase at these stores. TweakHeadz lab is an expensive operation in both money and time and needs your support to survive. To those who have supported the TweakLab in the past, you have my thanks. With your help, this site has become what it is today.
Buying at zZounds or SameDayMusic is better than buying elsewhere. They both have an easy return policy on most items too, in case you have trouble with what you buy.
Real Newbies with No Experience will want to
check out the "Fast Overview"
or if you think you can handle it
Go to the
Studio 101 Class
Best of luck in your studio enterprise!
I am,
Rich the TweakMeister
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Cool Quote: "Music … can name the unnamable and communicate the unknowable." Leonard Bernstein (1918-90) American Composer in The Unanswered Question
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