© 2007 HS Recording

By HS Media

Recording is very enjoyable and worthwhile but can also be a time consuming and sometimes frustrating experience. It therefore makes good sense, for getting the best results, to be well prepared prior to committing time to it. Experienced musicians usually take most of the work in their stride but for the less inexperienced here are a few pointers.

 

1. Plan the songs that are intended for recording, i.e. those that work well and everyone is confident about.
2. Ensure that the songs are well rehearsed and each player knows their own part really well.
3. If processed sounds are to be used with your own instrument then ensure that the required sound can be easily reproduced in the studio, i.e. note down the settings on your processor unit or keyboard.
4. If vocal harmony recordings are to be made then make sure that all the singers know their part well and that all of the parts are harmonically correct as required by the song and the band.

 

Each 5 minute song can take around 1 to 2 hours to record when a four piece band is layering each instrument or voice, i.e. recording on to separate tracks one at time. This timing only makes allowance for each member to carry out 3 or 4 takes of their part. If more takes are needed then 4 hours can be easily consumed on one song. There is then the the processing, mixing and editing which takes around 40% of the time it took to record to perform.  Finally there is the preparation of master or demo copies of your chosen format.

 

Whilst the engineer is there to help achieve the best results for you he or she can not make time go any slower and time is what you are ultimately paying for.

 

The recording process is complex and consists of a few ingredients - You (band or artist), studio and it’s equipment, your equipment, the track laying, the mixing and finally, the mastering.

The, I’d-like-a-cd-quality-demo-of-5-choones-in-one-day scheme just doesn’t work. It is not doing your songs, your talent or your music as a whole any justice! Do a max of two or maybe three songs per day. 5 songs over 2 days is probably the preferred minimum time to spend.

It means we can work on your studio performances and it gives the engineer time to mix properly and take breaks and not feel like his ears are cotton wool at the end of a 5 songs-in-a-day session. No commercial records are ever made like this. They take their time.

Studio equipment

Treat the studios equipment with respect, it costs a lot of money and needs to be looked after to help make you sound good.

When recording, the path to computer is as follows: - mic, cable, preamp, desk, computer, out to desk, ( eq, compressors, reverb, etc…) monitors, and then back to a stereo track. Hey presto a song!

 

Recording preparation cont....