The Truth About Recording & Mixing

Welcome to Episode 8 of The Truth About Recording and Mixing podcast. This week's guest is Dan Alexander, who has a new book out chronicling his adventures in making records, building studios and making thousands of vintage gear deals throughout the last four decades. It's call Dan Alexander Audio - A Vintage Odyssey (link).

0:00 Introduction2:10 Send us questions about studio interconnects!3:05 Listener question about 500 series rack gear6:25 Listener question about analog tape hiss and noise reduction10:10 Disclaimer: Zoom audio disclaimer11:30 Welcome to Dan Alexander12:55 Dan's history as a guitar dealer and his new pandemic hobby building acoustic guitars19:20 Meeting Allen Sides and realizing vintage gear was better than current gear.21:20 Tewksbury history23:30 Demoes with Jonathan Richman & Earthquake27:20 Founding Tewksbury and transitioning into buying and selling gear32:20 The beginning of the vintage gear quest41:15 Traveling to Europe and Asia to buy gear47:45 Dan's plug for the Fretboard Journal50:00 Listener question about Rupert Neve and the importance of Neve consoles1:05:00 Listener question about upgrading a home recording setup from basic collection of mics and an interface1:15:00 More thoughts on the current vintage gear market and current gear makers1:24:30 Buying guitars in pawn shops and the guitars that Dan's building today

Our sponsor for this episode are Caddis Eye Appliances and iZotope.

Submit your questions for Johnny by sending us a voice memo or email to [email protected].

The Truth About Recording & Mixing is a bi-weekly podcast produced by the Fretboard Journal magazine, loosely based on our Truth About Vintage Amps Q&A podcast.

www.johnnysangster.com www.cracklepopstudio.com www.fretboardjournal.com

Topics mentioned: Logic Pro, CAPI filtered XLR 500 series rack and units, API, Chander, Retro, Neve, Tree Audio, Hairball Audio Lola, Shadow Hills, Hairball Fet 500 compressor, Spectra1964, Spectra STX100, Spectra STX600, iZotope Software, Caddis Life readers, Sennheiser HD650 headphones, Genelec speakers, Soyez Microphones, Telefunken, Royer, STC 4038,

People mentioned: Allen Sides, Rupert Neve, Peter Duncan, Don Larking, Malcolm Jackson, John Southard, Stax, Aretha Franklin, Al Jackson, Duck Dunn, Queen, John Cuniberti, Paul McCartney, Paul Scoles, Ironwood Studio, Conrad Uno, Egg Studio

Welcome to episode 7 of The Truth About Recording & Mixing hosted by Crackle & Pop's Johnny Sangster. In this episode we speak to producer and sought after mix engineer Martin Feveyear about his career and insights into producing and mixing. Martin grew up in rural England and after a few tours with the Screaming Trees decided to buy a one-way ticket to Seattle. He's been producing and engineering top quality records since.

Topics mentioned:

01:55 Listener question about mastering for vinyl as opposed to CD as opposed to Digital Streaming02:35 Listen comment about speaker design, polarity and whether to flip the polarity of your kick drum rather than the overheads. 05:30 Listener comment about Jack Endino episode and the discussion of '60s & '70s records with varying degrees of tape hiss and track bouncing.07:40 Martin Feveyear and how did he get into recording? Cassette bouncing between two boomboxes, getting a 4-track and recording all the local bands, seeing some recognition.13:30 Getting a job engineering at Wildlife Studio.18:20 Pursuing his band at the time.22:50 Doing live sound and touring with other bands. 27:30 Meeting and touring with the Screaming Trees.32:00 A one way ticket to Seattle.42:00 Thoughts on producing - a listener question on a band preparing to go to the studio.51:50 What is the job of the producer?57:00 Budgets? What budgets?01:05:30 Listener question on routines and approach when setting up a mix.01:12:45 Philosophies on using EQs & multiband compressors.01:18:20 Listener question about De-Essing01:25:15 The possibility of a Martin Feveyear solo album?

Gear / software mentioned: Wildlife Studio, Trident Console, Jupiter Recording, SSL Mixing Console, Waves F6, Waves C6, TC Electronics Clarity M, Fab Filter EQ, Massy DeEsser, UAD Precision DeEsser, Waves R DeEsser, Uptone Studio

People mentioned:

Mark Lanegan, Presidents, Brandi Carlile, Duff McKagan's Loaded, The Briefs, Damien Jurado, Kings of Leon, Screaming Trees, Nigel Palmer, The Outfield, A Thousand People, The Fuzztones, Herb Garden, Sister Psychic, Christian Fulghum, QOTSA, Model Rockets, Mudhoney, Hammerbox, Pete Droge, Green Apple Quickstep, SuperDeluxe, Mark Pickerel, The Hotels, Andrew Joslyn, Rusty Willoughby, Jason Staczek, Andy Davenhall, Mike Squires, Whitney Mongé, Shaina Shepherd, Hunter Lea

Our sponsor for this episode are Caddis Eye Appliances and iZotope.

Submit your questions for Johnny by sending us a voice memo or email to [email protected].

The Truth About Recording & Mixing is a bi-weekly podcast produced by the Fretboard Journal magazine, loosely based on our Truth About Vintage Amps Q&A podcast.

www.johnnysangster.com www.cracklepopstudio.com www.fretboardjournal.com

Welcome to the sixth episode of the Truth About Recording & Mixing, hosted by Crackle & Pop!'s Johnny Sangster. This week we talk to Andrew Joslyn, violinist and orchestral arranger for people like Macklemore and Michael Bolton about a range of projects from creating huge sounding arrangements from his home studio to writing orchestrations for the Seattle Symphony.

1:40 - Another Mid-Side Demo4:45 - Listener Question about recording distorted vocals11:10 - Listener question about vocal mics & 3 Dimensional sound.15:45 - Welcome to Andrew Joslyn20:00 - Curating & scoring a series of concerts with the Seattle Symphony24:00 - the one man symphony in a box and coming up in classical.28:00 - getting into improvising and playing rock music.32:00 - breaking into the Seattle scene and deciding to get a Music Business Degree from Berklee.35:00 - meeting and beginning to work with Macklemore.37:30 - about asking for songwriter credits when providing arrangements.42:00 - Andrew's solo album.50:30 - Andrew's studio and creating the one man orchestra.01:04:40 - working with the Seattle Symphony and larger orchestras.01:17:30 - Andrew's favorite arrangers & composers & the holy grails of string recording studios.01:22:30 - Remote Orchestral recording with Musiversal 1:26:50 - recording and reamping a string quartet in a gutted tugboat!

People mentioned - Macklemore, Martin Feveyear, Mark Lanegan, Jack Endino, Bronwynne Brent, Ivan & Alyosha, No Star, Danny Baker, Seattle Symphony, Barb Hunter, Michael Bolton, Duff McKagen, Shelby Earl, Eric Anderson, London Bridge Recording, David Axelrod, Jeff Saltzman, Eli Weinberger, Eric Eagle, Whitney Monge, Nelson Riddle Vince Mendoza, Melody Gardot, Dave Cambell, Rob Mathis, Paul Buckmeister, Leslie Odum Jr., Skywalker Ranch, Jesse Butterworth, Musiversal, Ben Hazlewood, Network,

Gear mentioned - AKG C422, Electrovoice 665, Spectra Sonics, Empirical Labs Distressor, Drawmer 1961 EQ, ProCo Rat Distortion Pedal, Ampeg B-12 amp, SoundToys Decapitator, SansAmp Plugin, Shure SM57, Shure Vocal Master PA, Radial Reamp Boxes, Apple Computer, Hackintosh, Celemony Melodyne, Apple Logic, Avid Protools, Vicoustic Acoustic Treatment, UAD Apollo Quad, Coles 4038, Grace M501, Neumann TLM103, Advanced Audio Mics, QL Spaces, LA Scoring Studio, UAD Ocean Way Plugin, iZotope RX, Decca Tree,

Submit your questions for Johnny by sending us a voice memo or email to [email protected].

The Truth About Recording & Mixing is a bi-weekly podcast produced by the Fretboard Journal magazine, loosely based on our Truth About Vintage Amps Q&A podcast.

www.johnnysangster.com www.cracklepopstudio.com www.fretboardjournal.com

Welcome to the fifth episode of the Truth About Recording & Mixing, hosted by Crackle & Pop!'s Johnny Sangster. This week we talk with engineer Jack Endino on the wonders and pitfalls of analog tape, capturing acoustic bass and many other topics. Johnny also gives a demonstration of mid-side recording.

Some of the topics discussed on this episode:

1:45 Listener question - getting "bigger" drum room sounds from a basement studio.5:45 listener question on using electronic drum kits in a studio workflow.9:05 - Johnny gives a little history and demo of Mid-Side recording.18:20 Jack Endino! What's happening in the end times?21:20 - Snack master dehydrator & the joys of tape machines. 23:40 early Seattle hip hop remasters25:50 Listener question about 70s albums and tape hiss.30:45 Satin Noise Tape Simulation plug in32:30 15IPS vs 30IPS and the joys of analog tape.43:30 Listener question about recording acoustic bass46:50 Other mics for bass and dynamic mics on vocals50:30 Distorted vocals52:10 Recording DI of electric guitars55:45 Mixing in the box?59:10 Listener question about using a TAC console for summing.1:03:30 Foraging mushrooms1:10:40 Listener question about using a room mic for electric guitar recording.1:20:00 Jack Douglas Recording Steve Tyler with a shotgun mic1:22:00 Ribbon mics1:24:00 Where to spend your money - mic or mic pre?1:26:35 The band Failure - Fantastic Planet - and home recording1:28:20 Current home recordings and improving the sound at the source1:35:40 Drum replacement software1:37:00 Jack's musical projects

Submit your questions for Johnny by sending us a voice memo or email to [email protected].

The Truth About Recording & Mixing is a bi-weekly podcast produced by the Fretboard Journal magazine, loosely based on our Truth About Vintage Amps Q&A podcast.

www.johnnysangster.com www.cracklepopstudio.com www.fretboardjournal.com

Welcome to the third episode of the Truth About Recording & Mixing, hosted by Crackle & Pop!'s Johnny Sangster. This week, we explore the career of Ed Brooks who has worked in most all facets of professional audio and now runs Resonant Mastering.

Some of the topics discussed on this episode: 1:40 Listener Comment on Omni Sound Project - resource for women engineers.2:45 Johnny demo on figure of 8 microphones13:00 Interview with Ed Brooks - starting with his path into audio.14:45 Working for Tapco & doing live sound18:45 Moving into tech work with Matt Sutton22:00 Kaye Smith / Lawson Sound & what studios where happening in town.24:20 recording & mixing REM 1992 Automatic For The People29:50 moving to freelance engineering and eventually to mastering.33:30 Mastering Botch - We are the Romans34:55 - What is mastering?41:10 - Listener question Why mix in a control room?52:25 - Listener question - what's the difference between dynamics compression and bitrate / codec compression.60:00 - what's more important sample rate or bit depth?62:40 - Let's talk about acoustics! What is a room mode?67:00 - Things to do when designing a space77:20 - Ed's pedal steel guitar solo record.

Submit your questions for Johnny by sending us a voice memo or email to [email protected].

This episode is sponsored by Izotope. Use the discount code FRET10 to save 10% off any of their products (link).

The Truth About Recording & Mixing is a bi-weekly podcast produced by the Fretboard Journal magazine, loosely based on our Truth About Vintage Amps Q&A podcast.

www.johnnysangster.com www.cracklepopstudio.com www.fretboardjournal.com

Welcome to the third episode of the Truth About Recording & Mixing, hosted by Crackle & Pop!'s Johnny Sangster. This week, we're diving deep into the recording drums, capturing audio on a tight budget and more with Seattle's Eric Eagle.

Some of the topics discussed on this episode: 1:23 Listener feedback, phase versus polarity, kick drum mic'ing 9:30 Ensuring your system maintains proper polarity; Galaxy Audio Cricket - Polarity and Continuity tester10:56 Mixing in mono, redux 13:57: Special guest: Eric Eagle 14:49 Recording audio books 16:44 Skoor Sound, recording drums in a small room23:08 Universal Audio Ocean Way plug-in24:38 Pre-delaying room mics 25:25 Eric's favorite drum mics: Microtec Geffel UM70, Coles 4038, etc. 28:45 Compressors and pre-amps on a budget: FMR Audio RNC/RNP, DIY kits (Hairball Audio 1176, Hairball Audio Lola, Chameleon Labs 7603)36:53 Chicken or the egg: Invest in a good mic or a good mic pre-amp?39:48 EQ'ing out an acoustic instrument's normal sound for a better recording44:35 Drum tuning 1:10:53 Snareweight dampeners1:12:12 Paper towels, tea towels, pillow cases and other drum dampeners 1:16:17 Kick drum theories, Ahead Square Kick Drum beater 1:19:47 Ahead Square Kick Drum Beater 1:21:02 Kick drum heads

Submit your questions for Johnny by sending us a voice memo or email to [email protected].

This episode is sponsored by Izotope. Use the discount code FRET10 to save 10% off any of their products (link).

The Truth About Recording & Mixing is a bi-weekly podcast produced by the Fretboard Journal magazine, loosely based on our Truth About Vintage Amps Q&A podcast.

www.johnnysangster.com www.cracklepopstudio.com www.fretboardjournal.com

Welcome to episode 2 of the Truth About Recording And Mixing hosted by Crackle & Pop!'s Johnny Sangster. This week's episode features mastering engineer Rachel Field for a discussion about mastering, vinyl in the current day, levels for streaming audio and the need for more women in audio.

1:00 - examples of phase discrepancies from a recent drum recording at Crackle & Pop!

6:25 - Listener topics - Zoom's "original audio" feature

8:00 - Listener topic - beginner recordist & condenser mics

11:15 - Welcome Rachel Field / observations when listening to vinyl

15:20 - a little history on the loudness wars and what's happening today with streaming.

21:40 - brickwall limiting and how that affects vinyl cutting

24:35 - Rachel's mastering chain, box by box.

31:35 - which first, level or tone?

35:15 - using analog tape in the mastering chain

37:40 - recent projects in the mastering studio

39:50 - advice for the home recordists / mixers

45:20 - listener question about using spectrum analyzers

49:00 - listener question on navigating the mastering process and more on standards from streaming services. More info on what the various streaming platforms are doing to process files.

1:03:00 - why aren't there more women engineers & producers? Resources for women in audio.

1:08:30 - more about Rachel's path from student to engineer.

Submit your questions for Johnny by sending us a voice memo or email to [email protected].

The Truth About Recording & Mixing is a bi-weekly podcast produced by the Fretboard Journal magazine, loosely based on our Truth About Vintage Amps Q&A podcast.

www.johnnysangster.com www.cracklepopstudio.com www.fretboardjournal.com

Welcome to the first-ever episode of The Truth About Recording & Mixing, hosted by Crackle & Pop!'s Johnny Sangster.

To start things off, enjoy this inspired discussion of recording rock & roll with the esteemed Kurt Bloch of the Fastbacks, Young Fresh Fellows, Minus 5 and Full Toilet! Kurt doesn't want to talk about his home studio, "Strictly Vintage," but we do nonetheless.

Topics: 2:20 Recent projects. 5:30 Don't talk about Strictly Vintage. 10:20 Home drum recording setup. 22:20 Kurt's early tape recorders and home recording. 30:00 Cheaters & Fastbacks first studio recordings. 45:00 Sound City modded amp. 48:25 Recording vocals in the living room. 53:42 Home recording drums, etc. 64:35 Revox tape machines 70:00 Tape tales: editing, spot erasing, window edits 77:00 Phase and drum mic'ing, polarity & phase with mics & effects. 83:00 Using multiple mics phase tricks for effect

Submit your questions for Johnny by sending us a voice memo or email to [email protected].

The Truth About Recording & Mixing is a bi-weekly podcast produced by the Fretboard Journal magazine, loosely based on our Truth About Vintage Amps Q&A podcast.

www.johnnysangster.com www.cracklepopstudio.com www.fretboardjournal.com

Crackle & Pop!'s Johnny Sangster introduces the forthcoming (January 2021!) Truth About Recording & Mixing Podcast.