Hello artists and producers,
Today's article focuses on 5 important points every artist and producer must know before hitting the record button. These points will ensure the best recording result before the mixing stage.
I have also prepared a document titled (click link): THE HOME STUDIO EQUIPMENT GUIDE, PART 1: RECORDING. This document lists microphones, audio interfaces, headphones, DAW's and other equipment in relation with different budgets.
It is freely available and will help you immensely when choosing specific recording equipment for your home studio.
Lets get started on today's article.
1) PREPARE YOUR SESSION PROPERLY
The first point involves a bit of technicality. Forgetting to label your audio tracks in your recording session is one thing, but forgetting to choose the proper bit depth and sample rate may lead to major problems during the mixing stage.
The general standard is to set your BIT DEPTH to 24 bits and your SAMPLE RATE to 48kHz. These are the settings that will result in a good recorded product while still ensuring a healthy file size. If you have the means (hard disk space, interface) to experiment with larger sample rates then go ahead, but if not, 24bit, 48kHz will do perfectly fine.
2) RECORDING DISTANCE
The distance between the artist's mouth and the microphone itself is something that needs to be taken into consideration as well. If the artist is too close to the microphone, the recording will have too much low frequency information (bass build-up, look up proximity effect) that may lead to a boomy mix.
A good way to determine proper distance is to use your all important pop filter as a guide. There are no hard and fast rules you have to obey but I would personally stick with a minimum distance of about 5 to 10 centimetres away from the pop filter depending on the vocal intensity.
3) GAIN LEVEL
The third consideration involves the INPUT GAIN knob on your audio interface. You should find a comfortable level to set your input gain that ensures a clear and accurate signal. This is highly dependent on the type of interface you have and the vocal delivery from the artist.
The waveform above is a good visual aid in terms of choosing a good input level. Aim for a medium sized waveform during recording as best you can. If the waveform is too small (low in level), it may introduce white noise issues during mixing. If the waveform is too big (recorded too loud), it may introduce unwanted digital distortion.
4) AVOID CLIPPING
The fourth point is a huge one and is arguably the most important note to make during recording. Always ensure you do not CLIP (go into the red zone) the audio signal. This point relates closely to INPUT GAIN discussed above. Clipping destroys the audio signal and will result in irremovable digital distortion.
The image above highlights safe practise. The peaks of your waveform (very tip) should never hit the red zone (0dB). The green area above may be seen as an acceptable peak zone. This means that the very tips of your waveform are allowed to flow in and out of this area. I would recommend aiming for a maximum peak level of no more than -3 dB.
5) MONITORING
Some artists enjoy the idea of listening to themselves through headphones as they record. Audio engineers will typically assign a monitor mix (sometimes with effects like reverb) to the artist during recording.
If you are a fan of monitoring yourself while recording, then it would be highly beneficial to experiment with different plugins on monitor mixes such as autotune and reverb. A great tip is to apply compression to your monitor feed. This typically allows artist's to push their vocal abilities further without even realising.
RESOURCES:
Please feel free to contact me via email if you have any questions regarding studio recording, mixing & mastering.
Also feel free to check out my downloadable home studio equipment guide if you are interested in learning more about the specific gear needed for recording. (click link): THE HOME STUDIO EQUIPMENT GUIDE, PART 1: RECORDING.
Thanks for reading and happy recording.
Best,
Dex.
CONTACT:
Mixing, mastering, free song reviews and questions:
Email:
audio@engineeredbydex.com
SITE:
engineeredbydex.com
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