Most of my clients don’t realize the amount of preparation and work that goes into making a master quality recording. They think that you come into the studio and walk out a few hours later with a hit record ready for the radio and the major labels. While this is not impossible in most cases it is far from the truth. The recordings you hear on the radio generally have dozens of hours spent on each one. From rehearsal to mastering there are several steps taken before you hear it on the radio. To give you a rough idea of the process, it goes something like this.

• Rehearsal - Be as prepared as possible before going into the studio.
• Pre-production - This isn’t always practiced but it can save many hours of expensive studio time.
• Production/ Recording - During the recording process everything needs to be at it’s very best.
• Editing - Because nobody is perfect
• Mixdown - Often done at a separate studio by an engineer who specializes in just mixing down the multiple tracks to a single stereo track or in some cases surround sound.
• Mastering - The final step and absolutely crucial to making a top quality recording. This step should only be performed by an experienced mastering engineer with the highest quality equipment. Generally at a mastering studio.

First and foremost is the pre-production steps taken by the band/artist, producer, recording studio and engineer. The saying “Amateurs practice till they get it right, Professionals practice till they can’t get it wrong” is absolutely true. While you can cover up mistakes and even poor equipment during a live show, in the studio it has to be as close to perfect as possible. If no one is certain of what they are going to do in the studio a lot of time will get used up trying to figure out what they should have already known. It’s always best to plan your strategy before going in to the studio. It would also be wise to let the engineer know your strategy before hand so that he or she can help your session go smooth and more efficiently.

First we need to set the record straight. While Protools is the number one recording software used by professionals, sound quality is not the reason why. Probably the two biggest reasons are the fact that since so many studios use Protools for audio recording, exchanging files is much more simplified. This simply means that if I record my drums at one studio, and my bass player lives in another state I can send him the drum file and another Protools studio will be able to open the file and quickly add the bass track. Unfortunately all studios don’t have the same effects software though, so if you used a certain reverb on the drum track and the other studio doesn’t have the same reverb, another reverb would have to be substituted and the settings will not match up.

The other and probably the main reason Protools is the number one recording software used by professionals is power. Protools is a hardware based program. This means that it requires additional hardware to make the software work. This hardware acts as a small computer processor that takes the strain of processing away from the computer itself making it more effortless to record 100 tracks at one time or use heavy multiple effects.

Most recordings don’t require more than 1 to 12 tracks to be recorded at a time so this extra power is not usually necessary. However a large studio has to have the equipment to record an orchestra if necessary and Protools is the most logical choice for such a recording. However, Ocean Way recording studio in Hollywood Ca. recently used the 64 bit version of Sonar on a 64 bit computer to record 150 tracks at one time for a sound track used on the Grammy awards.

Today most of the top engineers and producers are doing a huge amount of their recording from their own home studios and while many of them use Protools, a very large number of them use other programs such as Sonar (the first 64 bit program), Cubase, Nuendo, Logic, Digital Performer and many others. One reason is the fact that compared to these other programs, Protools’ midi capabilities fall very short. The other reason is that the cost is significantly less and the need for the extra track count is not there. The sound quality of these other programs is every bit as good as Protools and some actually sound better (the 64 bit audio engine in Sonar sounds awesome). All of them have plenty of success stories.

Recording Hardware Versus Recording Software

Today's modern recording studios offer such a variety of quality hardware and software that making a decision about where to record based on equipment needs can be mind boggling at best. You'll hear some say "I have a Neve or SSL console" which is to imply that their studio is  a real studio and other studios are just wanabe's. Nothing could be further from the truth. While Neve's and SSL's etc... are absolutely fantastic pieces of gear, they are not the only way to get the sound that comes from their use. In fact software companies now make plugins that emulate these consoles so well that even the pro's who use the real thing can't tell them apart. In my opinion the bottom line is that it's better to decide which sound you want after the fact based on the song and personal choice. Why be stuck with just one when you can have a choice. Variety is the spice of life.

When it comes to digital versus tape you're on your own. There are plenty of strong arguments for both. One downfall with tape is simply the cost but for some the sound it produces is worth it..

You already know that some brands and models of instruments, amps etc… sound better than others. Well the quality of the track you record depends totally on what you put into the signal chain. A cheap guitar with dead strings and played through a belt hung practice amp can be made to sound better in the studio so imagine the difference a quality guitar with new strings played through a vintage tube amp would make.

Although you don’t have to be a world class musician to make a hit recording there are some things that separate amateurs from professionals and will show up in the studio. Things like loud pronounced string squeaks and fret bangs from the guitar or bass player when changing notes or chords, a keyboard player fat fingering wrong notes, a drummer whose timing drastically changes through the song or is inconsistent where they hit the drum head. The key here is to rehearse until ALL bugs are worked out. This also save time and money at the studio.

More to come....