Recording Tips: The (Very) Basics

We all start somewhere in our quest to set-up our perfect recording environment and we really never stop trying to improve upon it. After getting my degree in audio engineering/sound recording technology and leaving the excellent recording facility that I had been so fortunate to have access to, I found myself yearning for a space of my own. Like most college graduates, I was high on enthusiasm but low on cash. I was given a Tascam 4 track cassette recorder for Christmas by my mother and spent what little cash I had on a cheap dynamic mic. I had a host of songs ready to record, something to record them on and a lot of time on my hands. I went to work recording, but was not so pleased with the results. I kept tweaking my system, borrowing equipment and working on my space until I found what worked for me. I spent the next few years building up equipment, doing freelance projects and honing my skills and in 2004 I was given the opportunity to build and run a small studio for a local company. While running that studio, I continued to build my own until 2006 when it was ready for the world. For those of you just getting started on you quest of putting together your studio, I want to share some of my thoughts and hopefully help you avoid some of my errors.

A good friend of mine and very talented engineer gave me the best advice I received about two years into my project. By this point, I had a little bit more money and was shopping for gear; he told me to focus on the three most important elements first. They were, the microphone, the preamp and the room. He said if you got those three things right, you would be making good recordings. He was absolutely right, the first two were the easiest for me. I had heard my voice through many mics and had a good idea of what it sounded best through, while I couldn't get the mic I wanted at the time (AKG C-414), I was able to find a good deal on an Audio Technica 4040. I found a good price on a decent pre amp and was already extremely pleased with my results. The room proved to be the hardest of the three for me. It seemed that no matter what I did I would still end up with things in my recordings I didn't want; too much room noise, frequency issues and the occasional dog bark. I lucked into some Sonex acoustic foam from a recording studio that was renovating (can't beat "right place, right time") and went to work covering the room floor to ceiling with the foam. This worked well for evening out the reflections and I was able to work my schedule around the dog so my recordings were well on their way. I need to mention that what I didn't buy at the time was a recording interface or anything to process or effect sound. Taking care of these critical components, for me, did much more than any of those could have.

My second realization came to me when I purchased a load of equipment from someone else's failed studio venture. That realization was that you have to know the scope of your recordings and how your equipment works together. If you have a Neumann U87, you are recording it through a cheap preamp and have bad converters, you don't get all of the benefit from the U87. Furthermore, you don't need to spend a lot of money on studio gear that you don't have room to use or won't use for your primary reasons for putting together your studio. After buying this lot of gear and seeing a good portion of it sitting unused, I realized (as I'm sure the person I purchased it from did as well), that I didn't need it and while it was a good deal, I wasted a lot of cash.

Finally, once I got a clear scope of what I was primarily recording and covered my previously mentioned critical components. I started to see that my more narrow focus was yielding much higher quality recordings. This allowed me to spend less time clearing trash from my recordings and trying to make them sound like they were recorded on decent gear and more time on perfecting a well recorded sound. From there, I continued a focused path and honed my craft accordingly, all the while the other stuff that I had been trying to force prior to that began to happen on it's own.

I'll leave you with, what I believe is a great place to begin assuming you have something to record sound to:

Know what you are going to be recording - Start small, it's good to dream, but be realistic. If you are a voice actor wanting to record your voice, you don't need to buy a set-up to record a full band.

Network - Find people that are making good recordings and see what they are doing that you can adopt. You will pick up a lot of tips and tricks and people love to talk about their craft.

Get a good mic - Try several out and see where you voice naturally sounds the best. You don't have to break the bank at first, but find something that can last you a little while and learn to use it well. Also, invest in a good pop filter, this will save you a lot of time editing.

Get a decent preamp - Talk to others in your field and sales people to find out what others like you are purchasing.

Develop a recording space - This should be no smaller than a 5x7 area that is treated to reduce reflections. Any smaller than that will produce frequency issues that are a pain to work with. There are some pretty cool free services available now that were not there for me. For instance, Aurelex will provide you will a free room analysis and treatment recommendations. You can do this through Sweetwater sound.

Finally, don't underestimate yourself, I have heard some downright incredible recordings come out of a bedroom. It's not the ingredients, it's the cook. Spend the time and money on the right tasks and equipment and get good using what you have. If you do this, your studio will grow before you eyes.