Ask an Electronics Technician Online

With the widespread availability of affordable computers and powerful software for music mixing, the average musician is now able to set up a reasonably decent home studio on a relatively small budget. However, even though the software is extremely powerful and versatile, what seem to be missing are tips on how to create a great mix.

So, without any more fanfare, let us get right down to the 10 mixing tips you can try IMMEDIATELY to improve the quality of your mixes:

1. While mixing, keep a close eye (and ear) on all those plug-ins. Each one of them will distort if the output signal exceeds the acceptable threshold level. Because the output meters are out of sight when the plug-ins are closed, it is fairly easy to be unaware of the distortion, all of which can absolutely ruin your mixes.
2. Make use of the high-pass filter found on many equalizers to cut off the low frequencies on tracks that do not need the presence of low frequencies (e.g. frequencies below 100Hz) in order to sound right in the mix. These include vocals, hi-hats, keyboards, etc. Of course, all this depends on the song itself. For example, if you are mixing a song that is just piano or guitar and voice you might run a high-pass filter much lower down, around 40Hz or so, in order to maintain some of the bottom end in the mix. However, even the bass and kick drum can be improved by rolling off frequencies below 20Hz. Most project studio mixes sound terrible because there are too many sounds competing for space in the lower frequencies. On the opposite end of the spectrum, you can use a low-pass filter on instruments like bass and kick drum that do not need the presence of high frequencies.
3. Try using compression to even out volume variations and control the attack of a sound. Using a FAST attack will accentuate the body of a sound, while using a SLOW attack will increase the definition. Bass, kick drums and vocals tend to benefit most from compression, although you should listen to all your tracks with and without compression to see what works best. Keep an eye on the other settings on the compressor (Input, Release, Threshold, Ratio, Output Gain) since these can dramatically affect the results you are trying to achieve. It’s also important to remember that compression can raise the level of background noise in your mix as well as accentuate sibilance (esssssss’s) in the vocals. It may help to place a de-esser after the compressor to take care of excessive sibilance.
4. Listen for tracks that can be cleaned up by scooping out (reducing) the frequencies between 150 – 300 Hz. This is generally where the ‘mud’ tends to be in most tracks. Be careful when you do this however, since this can also be where the meat or warmth resides on some tracks. Listen for the track(s) that can benefit most from this action, and do not scoop out too much of the track or else your mixes will start to sound thin.
5. Always listen to your mixes IN CONTEXT! It doesn’t matter how great that kick drum sounds by itself if it sounds terrible once you turn everything else up. Its okay to solo a track briefly to get a sense of what is happening to the sound as you apply processing, but only do that for a few bars and then listen to it with everything else in context.
6. A parametric equalizer is an extremely powerful signal processing tool used to sculpt sound. It is generally better to cut (reduce) than it is to boost (add) frequencies, although you should always do what is right for a particular track. Begin by making the track sound terrible (by boosting a specific frequency dramatically and sweeping slowly across the spectrum at a fairly narrow bandwidth as you listen), and than cutting the frequency that sounds bad in order to reduce the presence of the ‘bad’ sound. Do that several times using each band, listening for when a cut or a boost is necessary, until you either run out of ‘bands’ or don’t need to make any more cut/boost corrections. Don’t feel the need to use every band available, though. When using EQ and other signal processors, less processing tends to be more beneficial to the overall sound of the mix (i.e. less is more).
7. Don’t mix entirely in headphones, or at extremely loud volumes through your monitors. Spend most of your time mixing at moderate and even low volumes, occasionally cranking it up to see how things move at those high energy levels. Try listening to your mixes through several different headphones (which can pick up clicks and pops not heard in the monitors) and at different volume levels through the monitors, as well as on different monitors if possible. The mix will surely sound different on the different systems, but the objective is to get things to sound good on all systems, not great on some and terrible on others. Occasionally walk away from the monitors and listen to your mix from another room. This gives you another perspective on level imbalances not apparent inside your normal mixing environment.
8. Concentrate on the busiest parts of your mixes first. This may be the hook (chorus), or bridge section, and this is where your mixes tend to get away from you the most. As you listen, make a determination as to whether or not EVERY SINGLE TRACK and EVERY SINGLE LAYER absolutely NEEDS to be in the mix ALL THE TIME. Mute / un-mute and add / remove tracks one at a time to evaluate their contribution to the impact of the song. It may be necessary to strip away some of those layers in order for your mix to sound more punchy and energetic.
9. Make good use of automation. If that is too complicated (based on your understanding of your music mixing software) you can try breaking up your tracks into song sections (e.g. VOCAL intro, VOCAL verse 1, VOCAL B-section, VOCAL hook, VOCAL verse 2, VOCAL bridge, etc). The reason for this is that the signal processing and volume / pan settings that work for a track in one section of the song (e.g. VOCAL verse 1) may not necessarily be right for another section (e.g. VOCAL hook). In this instance, you may need to set your EQ, chorus, compression, reverb, pan, and volume settings differently for the different song sections. The same may apply to other instruments as well.
10. Tune your instruments often during your recording session, or at least CHECK the tuning often. Even though this is a no-brainer for bass and guitars, don’t forget that even drums (kick, toms, and snare) need to be tuned in order to sound their best. No matter how well you process the tracks for your mix, out-of-tune instruments will distract the listener and contribute to the impression that the mix sucks! It is sometimes possible to tune your instruments after the fact, but that time could be better spent on other crucial areas of your mix.

And there you have it! Try out some of these mixing tips and you will find yourself on the way to better mixes in no time.

copyright 2007 Jeremy Rwakaara

Mastering your audio recording is a very important step that you should consider before you manufacture or release it to the public. Many people overlook this step simply because they are not familiar with what mastering is. Mastering is simply the process of preparing and transferring all of your audio sources to one final source by which all the replicated copies will be produced. Today, the delivery format of popularity is the digital format, however, some still prefer to use analog, such as analog tape. Though in the internet driven world we all live in today, even those analog tapes will more than likely get converted to a digital format of some sort for consumers listening on CD’s, Ipods, media players, etc. Hopefully through this article, you will have a better understanding of what mastering is and through this knowledge you will choose the right mastering engineer for your project.

To begin, before you enter or approach any mastering engineer, you should have a few things ready to go. This list will help the mastering engineer and it will also just make your session go smoother. Make sure you check with your mastering engineer to see what types of formats are accepted (digital or analog). If you are delivering digital data on a hard drive, DVD, CD, etc., check to see what file formats are accepted. The most widely known are file formats are.wav and.aiff. You also want to make sure you have the right sample and bit rates. Here is a few of the standard rates: 44.1 KHz, 48 KHz, 96 KHz, 16 bit, and 24 bit. You should note that the MP3 format is generally frowned upon due to the fact that they are compressed data and they are limited in bandwith. MP3 convertors generally get rid of frequencies in the lower and higher spectrum to allow quicker streaming of audio over a network. It is best to not master MP3′s but rather master the.wav or.aiff files to preserve its sonic integrity.

You need to familiarize yourself with ISRC (International Standard Recording Code. ISRC’s are issued through the RIAA and will not cost you a penny. They are simply codes that are embedded in the audio during the mastering process for digital tracking purposes. These codes will ensure that you get paid through online distribution. In fact, most of the bigger medial players and digital distributors will not even accept your digital recordings unless you have these codes. You want to make sure that you apply for these codes well in advanced before your mastering session as they can take a few days to receive. The last bit of information that you will want to have for the mastering engineer is a track listing with all the text information you want to show up on players that read CD text. Generally, CD Text consists of album name, artist name, track name, and track artist name.

Once you present your mixes to your mastering engineer, he will listen first and then develop an overall understanding of what he can do to enhance them. He will likely run the audio through several devices in his chain such as equalizers, compressors, limiters, and spacial enhancers. Each device will produce a different effect so they are used to accomplish specific goals. Through compression and limiting, engineers are able to maximize the loudness of your mixes while preserving their natural dynamic range. After equalization, you should hear your mixes clearer than you have ever heard them before and you will also hear consistency between all tracks.

Another very useful tool used in mastering is the track spacing. This is how one track ends and the following track begins. Track spacing will dramatically effect the overall listening experience for your audience. When the mastering engineer has completed his work, you should have a consistent presentation with tonal balance and flow ready to present to the public or the manufacturing facility.

Timbre (or Sound Quality)

The goal of this article is to help develop knowledge of basic acoustic principles. This in turn will help you to understand, and eventually master, the basic techniques of sound engineering and recording. Each section has a theme that is first defined in technical terms and then commented on in practical terms in respect to audio equipment.

Definition of timbre
Timbre (pronounced /tam-ber’/) is a sound’s identity. This identity depends on the physical characteristics of the sound’s medium (the matter or substance that supports the sound). Let’s take an A at 440 Hertz produced at 60 decibels: we can immediately tell if the sound was emitted from a violin, saxophone, or piano. Yet, even though the instrument is different, it’s the same note and the same amplitude. The difference is in the sound production: string, air column, etc.. Plus, the sound isn’t generated by the same “tool”: a bow for violin strings, a reed and an air column for the sax, and felt covered hammers that strike the piano strings. It’s the different physical characteristics of the medium and the « tool » that determine the characteristic sound waves in each case. Later we will also see how a sound chamber adds another dimension to this definition.

Waveform

The most basic waveform is a sine wave (sinusoid). It could be considered the atom of sound. Pure sinusoidal sounds are rare ( tuning forks, drinking glasses being rubbed) and were considered to have strange powers over human behavior at one time. Most sounds that surround us are of a more complex nature.
This means that inside a sound, that we perceive as being unique, there is a superposition of many sine waves that have, in a way, fused together to become one sound. It’s the nature of this superposition itself that determines the resulting waveform and that is responsible for its timbre. This is called a spectrum.

Spectral Representation

There are many ways of graphically representing sound. For instructional purposes we have chosen to use a spectrogram for its clarity and simplicity.

Horizontally: time in seconds. vertically: frequency in Hertz. A sine wave (sinusoid) at 100 Hertz is represented by a horizontal line at a height corresponding to 100. A harmonic sound at 100 Hertz is represented by superimposed lines corresponding to sine waves of 100, 200, 300: n x 100 Hertz. The length of the lines represent the length of the sound.

Noise

Let’s imagine a case where all sine wave frequencies that are perceptible to the human ear (from 20 Hertz to 20 kHertz) and having the same amplitude, are “mixed” into one sound signal. We get what is called “white noise”, or in other words “hiss”. If the white noise is very short we would perceive it to be a kind of short percussive sound. Consonants belong to this category, in the same way that a sound medium that receives the attack of the “tool” which “kick-starts” it, produces as noise. This noise corresponds to the time it takes for the sound wave to stabilize and take its final form. The “rubbing” of a bow on a string is similar to a hissing sound, while a hammer hitting a piano string is similar to a percussive sound. These notions will be dealt with in greater depth when we get to envelopes and transients. In the case where a series of noise frequencies is contained between certain limits we will refer to them as noise bands.

If a zone is particularly swollen in energy, then we can speak about colored noise around that zone. Pink noise is white noise with a power density that decreases by 3 dB per octave.

Harmonic Sound

Having already highlighted the superimposed or complex aspect of sound, we are now going to focus on a specific category of frequencies in a sound spectrum: harmonics. A harmonic sound is a sound which contains sine waves that obey the mathematical law called the Fourier series. This law translates as follows: A complex periodic signal is made up of a certain number of component frequencies that are integers of the fundamental frequency.

An example of a harmonic sound: a sound at 100 Hertz in which the component waves are 100; 200; 300 ; 400 ; 500 ; 600 Hertz. The perceived pitch is the lowest frequency: 100 Hertz. The following component waves (2 x 100, 3 x 100, 4 x 100, etc.) are calculated on integers and are called harmonics. The lowest frequency, on which they are based, is called the fundamental. The number , or “rank”, of a harmonic is the integer by which the fundamental is multiplied. For example the 3rd harmonic would be the one at 300 Hz.

The pitch of a harmonic sound is easily perceptible to the ear, and these sounds usually have an “in tune” quality about them. That’s why melodic musical instruments are designed with the goal of producing harmonic spectrums.
Noises, like those we referred to earlier, are aperiodic signals. They are characteristic of percussion instruments for example.

The distribution of energy in the spectrum

Regions of relatively great intensity in a sound spectrum are called formants. In the case of a band of consecutive frequencies it is referred to as a formant zone between x and y Hertz. This distribution of energy plays an important role in the perception of timbre, as do the number of components in the spectrum, their distribution, and its regularity or non regularity.

EQing on a console

It’s the EQ section of a console that will allow us to tweak or correct timbre. Depending on the model, the EQ section is more or less sophisticated and offers different possibilities of adjustment. We won’t be dealing with simple high/low EQ knobs or switches that you can find on hi-fi amplifiers or entry level mixers which are only meant to adapt a sound to a specific listening area. We’re more concerned with the EQ controls that are found on small modern digital models or part of most major recording software. We must keep in mind that EQ is mainly used for one reason…to correct, and not in the hope of improving the recorded signal: you can never turn a mediocre recorded sound (due to bad placement of the mic or even the quality of the mic itself) into a great sound by just using EQ. Equalizers split the audible frequency range( 20 Hertz to 20 kHertz…) into many sub-ranges. Thus one generally talks about highs, medium highs, low mids, and lows. The first thing to do, then, before tweaking any knobs, is to determine in which frequency range the problem lies, then after that, the nature of the problem. Is it due to too much coloring that wasn’t detected during the recording process, a parasite due to the environment, or a masked effect due to the presence of other instruments…

What does it look like?

Equalizers are…harmonic and partial filters. Their specificity lies in the fact that they not only can get rid of component frequencies, but that they can also amplify chosen frequency zones. Of course, if there isn’t anything in the signal in that range, only hiss will be added! Good EQ sections generally have 4 bands. Each offers at least 2 controls: frequency adjustment and gain. These are called semi-parametric. There’s often a third setting called the bandwidth or “Q” which has the purpose of enlarging or tightening the frequency range (bandwidth) of the filter. When this 3rd control is present, the Equalizer is then called a parametric equalizer. Frequency adjustment will be tweakable between the upper and lower limits of the sub-range of the filter (with software these limits no longer exist!).

How to Modify Timbre

You must always keep in mind that all EQing on an instrument will be destructive with respect to the recorded sound, just as the latter is also, in many cases, an imperfect copy, of the original. So one must be careful! Before touching anything, think about what you want to accomplish with EQing: I want a “warmer” sound, I want to cut the bass, I want my instrument to stand out in the mix, I want to get rid of that annoying resonance that came from the studio…

To make a living, voice over talents used to have to physically go to gigs recorded in commercial production facilities. Now, gigs can come to them-in home studios and through the Internet. But for many voice over talents, newbie and old pro alike, outfitting a home studio is technically baffling. So, how do you make that spare bedroom or corner of your studio apartment (no pun intended) into a functional voice over facility, with decent acoustics and the appropriate equipment? Let’s take a look at the basics involved in setting up a home voiceover studio.

Selecting your studio space

A studio of any size or recording purpose starts with the space in which it will be located. Isolation from outside sounds is important. If you live in a studio or one-bedroom apartment, then try to locate your “studio” in a corner as far from the door to the hallway and away from windows. Also, a closet can work well as a recording booth. Set up your recording equipment just outside the closet and your microphone inside the closet.

If you live in a two-plus bedroom unit or a single-family home and can dedicate an entire room to your studio, then you’ll have more options available for controlling the acoustics of the space. You’ll want to make sure the room doesn’t sound too “echoey” or “hollow.” Treating these problems can be as simple as putting some overstuffed furniture in the room, along with a rug and some drapes over the windows. Have a lot of old clothes sitting in an attic or basement? You can use them to create a recording “booth” around your mic. Fill three or four rolling clothes racks with clothes and then position them on the sides and back of your mic position.

Of course, you can use professional acoustic materials to control sound reflections. You’ll find an excellent primer on acoustical treatment-in plain English-at Auralex. Check out these acoustical treatment production companies, too: HSF Acoustics; Silent Source; Vocalbooth; Whisper Room.

Selecting your equipment

Once you have your studio space selected, you’ll need to properly equip it in order to deliver pro quality voiceovers to clients. With the latest in digital recording technology and reasonably priced pro microphones, you could spend as little as $1000 for a very basic, yet serviceable, home voiceover studio. That’s assuming you have a decent computer sound card and speakers. The list is quite short: $200-$250 for a microphone. $40 for a mic pop filter to prevent “popping” your Ps, Bs, and Ts. $45 for a mic stand. $200-$250 for a USB or Firewire digital recording interface. $65 for shareware recording software. $45 for headphones. $40 for cables. $100 for sundries. Bare bones, but it will work.

Plug your microphone cable into the digital recording interface, which is a little box that amplifies and processes the signal from the mic. Plug the interface into your computer’s sound card. Plug your headphones into the interface. Load the recording/editing software. A couple of adjustments to volume in and out and you’re ready to record. Voice the copy. Clean it up with an edit or two. Then convert it the voiceover sound file to an.mp3 file, attach it to an email, and send it off to the client via the Internet. To learn more about the equipment listed above, search the web or visit online pro audio dealers. A few good ones are: Full Compass; Sweetwater; B&H Pro Audio; Boynton Pro Audio; BSW.

This simple studio set up is serviceable, but it has its limits. If a client wants to direct you via the phone, then you’ll have to either hold the phone to your ear while you record, or get a hands-free headset. You could also buy a gizmo call a phone hybrid that allows you to speak through your mic down the phone line to your client as you listen to the client’s direction through your headphones.

Learning more

As with any investment, you’ll need to research the equipment you’ll need for your studio, and how to install and use it. See if you can locate a voice talent in your area that may let you visit his or her studio. Visit Mix Magzine or EQ Magazine and check their archives for articles on home studios. Local production houses may be willing to make suggestions, but, remember, by setting up your own studio, you’re indicating to clients that they can cut out the production house by working directly with you. That may not sit well with some production house owners, because the home voiceover explosion has had a detrimental impact on many commercial recording facilities.

That’s a basic home voiceover studio in a nutshell. If you can operate a home stereo and have experience in front of a computer screen, then you can put together and operate a home voiceover studio. With a little practice recording and editing, and some promotion of your home studio, you can quickly recover the cost of your studio and add to begin to add to your bottom line. Happy voicing!

©Peter Drew

Let’s get to the point. Nothing on the market is going to simply make hip hop beats for you. You must do the work yourself. No matter how much knowledge and experience you gain, no matter how many beats, samples or loops you download, no matter what software or hardware you use, you must have the talent to be able to use all of these tools and resources to produce material that slams on the radio and in the clubs.

Now with that said, there are some great products out there that are fascinating, intuitive and most of all creatively inspiring to use. Determining what products on the market are right for your way of producing music is dependent on your approach to audio production.

Making beats successfully while on a budget is not difficult. It comes down to making the right choices on any potential audio production software and/or hardware you intend to use. Now if you are new to making beats then it is highly suggested to get up and running with tools and applications that will help you to start making your instrumentals right out of the box, or download, what ever the case may be. The point is to be able to start getting creative and inspired with your chosen audio application as soon as possible after receiving it, downloading it or signing up to gain access to it online.

Products that get you up and running fast with making beats is only one part of what is generally recommended. It is advantageous to use products from companies that offer a strong support backing of unlimited tutorials that are easy to understand and apply. Their tutorials should be both audio as well as visually based so that you can comfortably follow along with the techniques they are showing you. Their tips and guides should be applicable and appropriate to the style of beats producing you want to know more about. Their production tutorials should also be structured in a way that logically leads you from one level of understanding to the next. In other words, you should feel that you are growing in audio production knowledge and awareness naturally, and that the first lesson supports to the second and so on.

Another aspect on how to make hip hop beats that you should consider is the sound quality of any samples or loops included in any package. This is crucial. Hip hop along with any other genre of music to be released in the mainstream market is about creative uniqueness, sound quality and production value. If the sounds you use are less then quality, your mixes will suffer the same. Choosing an application that supplies incredibly sounding beats, samples and loops to use within the application would set you up with the ability to start producing great sounding material right from the beginning. Another option would be to choose a program that lets you work with your own or third party samples and loops. Either way, having amazing quality sounds is vital to creative inspiration, which leads to dedicated prolific writing and producing.

Now if you want to make hip hop beats starting right now but you have little to no equipment and/or experience, then I would suggest checking out an online beat making subscription or membership application. This way you are not shelling out any large sums of cash up front, and you are generally given up to 60 days to try it out with a money back guarantee.

If you already have some gear and a basic knowledge of producing beats, or you prefer to develop a beats production studio of your own but need help getting started, then it is recommended choosing a product that supports that with great set -up and audio production tutorials.