Recording - April 2015 - 64

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Allan Thomas Court
Equipment: BOSS BR-1600CD tabletop multitrack recorder,
Audio-Technica AT4040 microphone, AKG K240 headphones, Ibanez AEG10NE nylon-string acoustic guitar.

Music: "Your Love is Everywhere" is a male vocal folk song.
Tom one-man-banded it in his home studio.
Recording: Tom's submission is a lovely folk ballad in the
style of early Simon and Garfunkel. Recorded on a BOSS
1600CD standalone multitracker, we found Tom's ample performing skills (check those Artie G. high harmonies, kids!)
obscured by some cloudy EQ as well as a few balance issues.
Starting with multiple picked acoustic guitars, Tom wisely
used panning to give each a separate voice. The guitars are
generally well recorded via his Audio-Technica 4040 microphone, and presented without artifact. Unfortunately, the same
combination was far less successful on the dual lead vocals.
While the acoustic guitars were fairly articulate in the mix, the
vocals had a muffled, cloudy sound through our monitors that
would seem to be at odds with the sounds that we have generally heard from this stalwart condenser microphone. Oddly,
in addition, we also detected a "sizzle" artifact poking out on
certain words through the haze.
We also found the lack of a sound source in the true center
of the mix to be disconcerting after a short while. While we
applaud Tom in general for his use of panning, having an
empty space at 12 noon failed the mix to a certain degree.
Suggestions: As most of you are well aware, the "marriage"
between a particular microphone and an individual voice can
be a difficult one. What works for one person can often be a
terrible fit for another. The differences between male and
female, along with genre and personal quirks/mic techniques,
can make the process baffling. No wonder commercial studios
refer to their mic storage areas as lockers! They may as well
call them pantries, such are the number and types of microphones to be found inside.
64

RECORDING April 2015

In Tom's case, he may have found that the inherent high end
of his condenser mic, while perfect for the guitars, was overwhelming in combination with his voice, causing him to slather
a goodly amount of low-to-low-midrange EQ to the channel during tracking or mixdown. We would suggest that if he has
access to other microphones, specifically high-quality dynamics
(the Electro-Voice RE20 or Shure SM7b are two of many fine
examples), he should try them on for size. A quality dynamic mic
can be just the ticket for some voices.
Considering the panning situation, we suggest that Tom experiment with placing at least one sound source dead center for the
duration of the mix. Lastly, since no monitor speakers were listed, only headphones, we are left wondering whether the issues
with the EQ, "sizzle", and panning are somehow related to
inaccurately hearing what he's doing. It certainly wouldn't be
the first time for that cause and effect!
Summary: Time for a little research!
Contact: Allan Thomas Court, atcourt@ucalgary.ca

funboyuno
Equipment: PC with Roland V-Studio 700 and Octa-Capture
interfaces running Cakewalk SONAR X3. Focal CMS50 monitors, two Rane HC6 headphone amps, AKG K270 headphones.
Mics by Lawson, Shure, and Electro-Voice. Fender Strat, Line 6
Variax guitar, Line 6 Pod X3 Live.

Music: "CRAZY!" is a one-man-band male vocal rock song.
Recording: Cool stuff here, kind of a Eagles/Joe Walsh party
vibe tune with plenty of sound sources and effects on board. We
dig the bright edgy electric guitars that funboyuno has dialed
up, and the panning provides the track with a lot of space and
energy (special kudos for the rippin' solo!) We also liked the
"shadows and light" provided by the delayed lead vocal juxtaposed against the dry harmony voices, although the delay time
seems to lose sync with the track at times.
Moving onto the rhythm section, things get a little less successful. While the drum programming is wisely kept simple, funboyuno's dry tom fills come across way too loud through our
monitors-loud enough to disrupt the flow of the entire track, in
our opinion. We also thought that the cymbal crashes got a tad
bit bombastic in spots. Finally, there seems to be some general
distortion within the track, cause unidentified, though it could be
that the mix got too hot or that there was some gain stage mismanagement along the way.
Suggestions: Not a lot of things to do in order to right the ship
here. Starting with the delay on the vocals, using a timed tap
delay should straighten out the sync issues. While dry toms were
certainly part and parcel of the 1970s sound, some bit of ambience couldn't hurt. Tucking them back into the mix and taking
the cymbals with them will re balance the drums nicely.
Lastly, we suggest that funboyuno re-examine the gain stages
that he employed during his recording process. We all know
that despite vehement protests from many of us in the recording
community, volume still remains king in today's world. That said,
distortion is never good, period, and each stage of the process,
from the initial tracking to the final mix, adds volume. When that
volume results in distortion, some detective work is in order!
Summary: A solid effort.
Contact: funboyuno, funboyuno@gmail.com

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Recording - April 2015

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