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As digital gear becomes more prevalent I see the same question asked over and over again, “Should I record using the analogue outs or use the USB (or S/PDIF) outputs?” The popular answer is, “keep it digital or you’ll lose sound quality!” Is there any merit to this claim that sound quality is lost if you do not “keep it digital” all the way? Does it matter in a home recording studio which you choose? Let’s find out. Give me the test »

Miking drums is a subject that seems to be surrounded by a lot of voodoo in the home recording studio. I know it was certainly something I had a lot of agony over for years. Truth be told, there are really no hard and fast rules when it comes to putting microphones on drums. The purpose of this article is to give some loose guidelines to help you develop your own drum miking techniques. I have also provided some sound clips so you can hear my discussed techniques in action. Show me how to get great drum sounds

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The Line 6 TonePort series are great audio interfaces. The TonePort UX8 is the flagship of the series. It has eight great mic preamps with phantom power, inputs for instruments, and the ability to put Line 6’s awesome amp modeling on your tracks. For a limited time Line 6 are offering you free model packs to expand the capability of your TonePort UX8. Show me how to get free model packs »

In the spirit of my analogue vs. digital article, it is time for another Mythbusters style debunking session. Today we are going to explore the common misconception that higher sample rates equate to better sounding audio. There is no shortage of rhetoric by self-proclaimed internet experts that by simple matter of dropping a faster processor into a digital unit that you’ll get better sound. This, they claim, is due to having the horsepower to run at higher sample rates. These experts believe that higher sample rates will give better sound with no tweaking of the underlying algorithms. Is it true (and does it matter to the home recording studio owner)? I would like to know

A few days ago, Musician’s Friend featured the Line 6 Gearbox Plugin Silver bundle as their Stupid Deal Of The Day at $100. Normally the plugin can’t be had for less than $300. It would seem this was only a hint at things to come as now the Silver and Gold bundles are available at bargain basement prices. Show me the deals»

In Home Recording Basics 1 we covered configuring your computer for recording. Home Recording Basics 2 showed you how to create and save a new project. In this installment of Home Recording Basics we are going to talk about recording your first tracks. After going through this tutorial you should be well on your way to a home studio addiction that can last you a lifetime. (more…)

Your home studio is a place for you to exercise your creativity. Often this must be squeezed between going to work, taking out the garbage, getting the kids to bed on time, and sleeping once in a while. You don’t want to spend a lot of time wiring gear together no matter how little or how much time you have to spend in your home recording studio. Throw a computer based DAW into the mix and things get tougher. Fortunately you can make your life a lot easier and create a ready-to-record environment by adding a small mixer to your setup. How small? I’m going to outline three strategies for connecting your home studio through a mixer. Show me how to hook up my mixer»

I have always thought it was important to choose your first vocal mic carefully. After you build your home studio mic collection you may find a number of mics in your cabinet which could all work wonders on a vocal recording. Once you have the luxury of multiple mics at your disposal it can be quite a bit of fun selecting the mic that most complements your vocalist’s voice. This article will show you an effective way to quickly make a mic selection. Show me more about vocal mics

Today I worked on recording the guitar solo for The Ballad of Stumpy Ron. Of course my Line 6 POD X3 Live is all over that! I wanted the solo to sound a bit like Tony Iommi with a little C.C. DeVille sprinkled on top and be very energetic in timbre. Strange mix, I know, but that’s what was going through my mind. I set up the X3 with a dual tone blend having a fair emphasis Show me the preset already! »

Time for the next chapter in the tracking of The Ballad of Stumpy Ron. Tonight I worked on tracking the bass. My goal was to get a very solid bass tone that would add the needed beef to the mix without cutting through too much or obscuring the guitars. To keep the bass from getting lost, I wanted to achieve a particular level of attack so I used a pick on this song even though I am typically a finger player. I recorded the bass using the USB outs of the X3 Live. I didn’t bother to try capturing a DI signal from the bass on this one because I am going for a more old school sound and want to On To The Patches »