My Project Studio List:

• Console - 1980's Soundcraft S-1600
  
• Analog reel to reel - Tascam ATR-60 1 inch 16 tk
  
• Digital - Apple G4, Dual 1.25 GHz, 1.28 Gig Ram, 10,000 rpm SCSI data drives
  
• Software - OS X, Digital Performer 4, Waves, T-Racks, Bias Peak, NI Battery, Toontracks DFH2 and DFH Superior
  
• Analog to Digital Converter - MOTU HD-192, 2408, PCI-424
  
• Reference Monitors - Mackie HR-824
  
• Outboard Processing - dbx 166, ART pro VLA, Yamaha SPX-90
  
• Microphones - Soundeluxe U-97, Royer Labs R-121, Senheiser MD-421, SM-57's
  
• Guitar Amps - Bogner Ecstacy 100W Tube, Nau Engineering custom 60W tube
  
• Guitar Cabinets - Bogner Single 12" Greenback, Bogner 4X12 Vintage 30's
  
• Guitars - Custom Tom Anderson Droptop w/ Floyd rose, Custom Ibanez w/ wizard neck thru body, Floyd rose, Ibanez bolt on "scalloped" Neck
  
• Cables - High quality Mogami & Tara Labs
  
• Misc. - Custom gizmos and gadgets, cabinets, Microphones, stomp boxes, software for Special effects
  

Preface:

I started using recording equipment around 1986 with a small 4 track Fostex cassette recorder. Over the past 20 or so years, I have been extremely fortunate to have worked along side of other professional engineers from home to fully blown studios. What I have learned is to know the capability of what equipment you have. Secondly, set your expectation levels accordingly, i.e.if low end or poor quality instruments and or equipment is used, don't set your sight on "pie in the sky'. You'll get what you get and move on. Recording audio is a process. You start out small, and when money permits, you upgrade. Always seek professional advice when available. A little knowledge and technique goes an extremely long way.

Recording Guitars:

My philosophy for recording is simplistic and pure. I start with the best possible guitar / amp combination that are available. The Tom Anderson into the Nau Engineering amp can yield tones from Eric Johnson to Eric Clapton. The Ibanez custom into the Bogner can yield any Satriani to Steve Via tones. Depending on the style / sound needed, I either use a Bogner single 12 loaded with a Celestion Greenback, or the Bogner 4X12 loaded with Celestion Vintage 30's. I capture the guitar / amp combinations with a Royer R-121 ribbon microphone. Sometimes I'll also use either an MD-421 or SM-57 up close and blend with the R-121 signal. I find the stock preamps off of the Soundcraft console are extremely forgiving and sound great, lots of headroom. I prefer to record everything as flat as possible with little compression. I'd rather spend the time finding the right mic placement / amp settings to obtain the tone, color and texture. If I have to, I'll use the Art Pro VLA or dbx 166x compressor if things get ugly transient wise. If I choose to go analog / tape, I use high formulation BASF 900 and slam it. I don't use the on board DBX noise reduction as I re-biased and calibrated the deck for optimum performance using the high formulation tape - i.e. it can take high sound levels yielding a very low noise floor. I usually do this for most loud guitars, bass, voice and drum tracks. The natural tape saturation adds incredible character to the audio passages. If I choose to go digital or transfer from tape, I use the MOTU HD-192 converter. I am pleased as this converter is very transparent and can handle high gain signals with ease. I use Digital Performer (OS X version) on a dual processor Mac with lots of RAM memory. I record everything at 24 Bit, 44.1 Khz.

Mixing Guitars:

My approach again is simple. I first listen to the track alone, then with a full mix and ballpark how to "shape" the guitar to fit the song. Some key areas of interest is around 250 to 300 Hz, this is what I call the "mud" region of guitar. I tend to start cutting db's here first before I emphasize the top end. If I want a guitar to "cut" or sit up in the mix, I start around 1.8 to 2.5 KHz. Even if you boost 0.5 db in this region, it can have noticeable effects. Also, around 8 to 10 KHz, boosting this can help give more detail and clarity. Sometimes I'll fool around somewhere in the 600 - 800 Hz area if I need to get the mids emphasized etc. Lastly, the low shelf I move around to determine how much "bass" I want the guitar part to contribute. All of these quoted frequency ranges are where I start, but it may not apply to all guitar tracks. One word: experiment. Once I've got the guitar solo'd and "tuned" in, I then put it in perspective in the mix and finish up the eq based on what I'm trying to emphasize or what the song needs. If the guitar part has a large dynamic range or abrupt transients, I'll use either Waves or Digital Performer dynamics plug-ins to improve overall signal level. For lead guitar effects, I like to use a slap back delay or echo in combination with reverb. And sometimes I use none. I don't use a lot of chorus as if I need to create a stereo image, I double track and pan left / right. If I'm tracking to tape, I'll make sure I change the speed setting between the two separate tracks / takes so that I get a natural chorus effect. If I'm pressed for tracks, I'll use a chorus plug-in upon mixing. Just use your ear and use what sounds good.

Drums, Bass and Vox:

Tracking and mixing Drums, Bass and Voice is pretty straight forward for me. I try to find the right room and microphones for drums, i.e high ceilings, somewhat reflective as long as there is good diffusion. Just make sure the drummer has a great set of drums and new heads. Bad drums or old worn heads can record and sound poorly. I have cut a lot of bass and vocal parts in my studio, and have no secrets except again to match the right microphone with the vocalist. Just because you have a 1" gold sputtered diaphragm mic doesn't mean you should use it unless the vocalist sounds great on it. I've tracked one singer using a dynamic SM-58 mic that sounded great. For bass guitar, I love to split the signal from the bass, run one to the soundboard and one to the bass amp. I take both signals and send to tape. I like to hit the tape pretty hard to get that natural tape saturation / bass distortion. Another side note is monitor / reference speakers. If you don't have speakers that will reproduce down around 30-45 Hz up to 20 KHz, your mixes can suffer. Also make sure they are as flat as possible across the entire frequency spectrum.

Mastering:

If you can afford it, take your final mixes to a professional and have it mastered. If you can't afford a mastering shop or you'd like to take a stab at it, go out and get T-Racks or equivalent and give it a try. I have done a lot of mastering for small garage bands that the results have been way better then if they didn't master at all. Overall, a good song recorded well with good performances, mixed and mastered will go a long, long way.

Finale:

I consider my studio to be work in progress as well as my personal electronic research laboratory. I use it for writing and recording music for myself as well as for other artists who hire me for guitar tracks. I enjoy working with other bands and getting them the best sounds possible with the equipment I have.