The snare drum is one of the most important elements in any drummer’s kit. It provides the backbeat that drives the rhythm of the song and can be used to punctuate important moments in the music. Because of that, it’s important to get the snare sound just right.
When it comes to mixing snare drums, clipping can be your best friend.
Clipping is the process of applying digital distortion to audio in order to increase its level beyond what the original recording was capped at. This might seem like a bad thing, but when done right, clipping can actually make snare drums sound fuller and more present in a mix.
The Reason Clipping Works:
One of the biggest challenges when mixing snare drums is getting them to cut through the mix without sounding harsh or over-compressed. Clipping can help with this by adding harmonic distortion to the signal. Harmonic distortion essentially means that new frequencies are being generated that weren’t present in the original signal. These new frequencies can help fill out the sound of the snare and make it sit better in the mix without sounding thin or tinny.
Of course, you don’t want to overdo it with clipping—too much distortion will just sound nasty. A good rule of thumb is to start with just a little bit of clipping and then gradually increase the amount until you start to hear some harmonic distortion being added to the sound. At that point, back off slightly until you’re happy with the results.
Another benefit of clipping is that it can help add some subtle sustain to snare drums. This can be especially useful if you’re working with samples that were recorded dry and don’t have a lot of natural resonance. A touch of clipping can go a long way towards making samples sound more realistic and organic.
Soft Clipping Plugins Vs Hard Clipping:
When it comes to clipping, there are two main types of distortion that you can use: soft clipping and hard clipping. Soft clipping is the more subtle of the two and involves adding just a touch of distortion in order to increase the level of the signal. Hard clipping, on the other hand, involves much more aggressive distortion and can result in a lot of added noise.
Which type of clipping you use is largely a matter of personal preference. Some engineers prefer a cleaner, more transparent sound and will only use soft clipping, while others like a more aggressive sound and will rely on hard clipping to add more distortion. Ultimately, it’s up to you to decide what sounds best for your mix.
Clipping vs Limiting
It’s important to note that clipping and limiting are not the same thing. Limiting is a form of dynamic compression that is used to prevent audio signals from exceeding a certain level. Clipping, on the other hand, is a form of distortion that occurs when an audio signal is pushed beyond its maximum level.
While both clipping and limiting can be used to increase the level of snare drums in a mix, they will produce very different results. Clipping will add harmonic distortion to the signal, while limiting will simply compress the dynamics. Which one you use is entirely up to you and will depend on the sound you’re going for.
The Top 3 Clipping Plugins To Use:
Though there are a lot of different clipping plugins out there, some of my favorite to use are:
1. JST Clip
2. T-Racks Clipper
3. Boz Labs Big Clipper
Each of these plugins makes the process of clipping drums extremely easy. Plus, you can easily adjust the amount of clipping so that you can dial in the right sound for your tastes.
Conclusion:
Clipping may not be something you think about often when mixing, but it’s definitely a tool worth considering next time you’re trying to get your snare drums to sit right in the mix. It can add some much-needed fullness and resonance, provided you use it judiciously!
Have you ever tried using clipping on your snare drums? Let us know how it went in the comments below.
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One of the first decisions you’ll need to make when choosing monitors is whether you want active or passive monitors. Active monitors have built-in amplifiers, while passive monitors rely on an external amplifier. Active monitors are typically more expensive, but they offer a number of advantages, such as decreased distortion and increased efficiency. Passive monitors may require a bit more setup, but they’re often more versatile and can be used with a wider range of amplifiers.
Size Matters
When it comes to monitors, size definitely matters. If you have a small room, then you will want to choose smaller monitors so that they don’t overwhelm the space. Conversely, if you have a large room, then you can choose bigger monitors without worrying about them sounding too loud for the room.
In addition, the larger the monitor, the greater the bass response will be. If you’re working in a smaller space, or if you want a more compact setup, smaller monitors may be a better option for you. Just keep in mind that smaller monitors may not provide the same level of low-end frequency response as their larger counterparts.
One of the easiest ways to make your tracks sound (arguably) more “professional” is to apply reverb to them.
Instantly, reverb makes your tracks sound bigger, fuller, and more polished.
But there’s a downside: It can also make your tracks sound extremely muddy and distracting. There is a very fine line with how to use it effectively inside of a mix.
One of the biggest mistakes I see people making with it is choosing the wrong type of reverb.
There are plenty of reverb types out there and it’s important that you understand the differences between all of them so that you find the best fit for your particular song and instruments.
In this article, we’re going to talk about six different types of reverb, how you can use them in your own mixes, and how to differentiate what they each sound like.
The six types of reverb that we’re going to be talking about are:
Room
Hall
Chamber
Plate
Spring
Nonlinear reverb.
Let’s talk about the characteristics of each of these…
ROOM REVERB:
Room reverb is really simple. It can be defined as a space with walls. That’s really all it is.
The types of room reverb that you can choose from are virtually endless. There are countless options that simulate all sorts of different spaces, shapes, and sizes, ranging from bedrooms, hallways, garages, warehouses, churches, you name it…. Basically, any room that has walls can qualify as room reverb.
It’s very common to see engineers using room reverbs that simulate famous recording studio rooms. This is because those spaces are typically well-tuned and sound really nice and full. They also allow you to make recordings that were made in a small basement or bedroom studio sound like they were created in a much larger facility.
But sometimes pristine quality isn’t always the sound you need. In that case, if you’re looking to add some extra character to your tracks, you might want to pick a room reverb that simulates something smaller and/or unique. For example, rooms such as bedrooms, bathrooms, tiled rooms, and concrete rooms can add a lot of personality to your tracks.
Because every room is so different, all room reverbs are going to sound different. It’s the unique imperfections and reflections of a room that give it its own creative character.
The size of the room can drastically impact the sound you hear.
When using a room reverb that simulates a larger-sized room, you’re going to hear more of the reverb tail and decay. Because of this, you’ll also likely hear a bit more of the character of the room.
On the flip side, if you’re using a small room reverbs with shorter decay times, it can add intimacy to your performances by making your audience feel like they are listening in a small, tight room.
This is why room reverb is so handy… You can virtually place your performers and audience in a very specific location simply by choosing a reverb.
As for which instruments to use room reverb on, it is very commonly used on instruments such as drums, guitar, and vocals.
It’s perfect for when you want to create a big, ambient sound for your drums. Personally, that’s my favorite use for it.
HALL REVERB
With room reverb, we talked about how it could pretty much be any room that has walls: big or small. But hall reverbs are focused specifically on much larger spaces. They replicate the sound of very fine-tuned concert halls.
Because of that, they have a very lush quality in their sound. They are very thick and dense and don’t contain reflections or ringy tones. Instead, the sound is very smooth.
In addition, because concert halls are very spacious, the sound has to travel quite far to get from the stage back of the room. This causes a very long decay time in the reverb’s sound. So when loading hall reverbs inside of your DAW, it is very common to see presets that have long decay times of 2 seconds or more.
Halls are great for thickening up a sound. When you want your vocals or strings to soar, they are a great go-to reverb choice. They can really thicken up a sound and give it lots of depth.
Just be careful with these. If your reverbs have long decay times but the tempo of your song is fast, your mix can become very muddy quickly because the tail of the reverb will start to build up and overlap with your instruments. Ideally, you want to choose reverb times that fit within the tempo of your song so that the tail ends before your next notes.
CHAMBER REVERB
Chamber reverbs are very similar to room reverbs, but with more character to them.
Back in the day, many studios didn’t have a lot of reverb processors and/or the budget to afford them. So instead, they got scrappy. They would place a speaker inside of a reflective room and they would feed signal from their board into that speaker. They would then record that signal using a microphone placed in the room and feed that back to the console.
They were literally recording the natural ambiance of that room and using that as their reverb.
Depending on the type of room, the way the walls were angled, or the material that the walls were made of, you’d get a very different sound.
Typically, chamber reverbs have a very lush, ambient tone. And they’re really great for adding some extra texture to your tracks.
The reason why they have a lot of character to them has to do with the speakers and rooms used to create them. Many of the world’s most famous reverb chambers had very reflective surfaces, odd dimensions, and uneven walls that contributed to their unique sound.
As for which instruments to use chamber reverb on, typically, you’ll hear it used on instruments such as vocals, strings, guitars, and drums. But by no means are these your only option.
With the extra character that chamber reverbs add to your tracks, they are very versatile and can help you create a really cool ambiance with your music.
PLATE REVERB
Plate reverb is unlike all of the other ones that we’ve talked about so far. Instead of focusing on recreating an ambient space, plate reverb is a form of artificial ambiance.
Plate reverbs are created by suspending a sheet of metal inside of a frame. On one end of the sheet, you’d have a transducer/speaker that would send a signal through the sheet, and then on the other end, there is a contact microphone that captures the signal.
Depending on the length of the sheet and the type of metal used, you can actually create quite a variety of sounds out of it.
Typically plate reverbs have a dense, warm sound to them.
You’ll commonly hear them use on drums and vocals because this dense sound can add quite a bit of extra sustain and fullness to the instruments.
Now, obviously, we’re in the digital realm, so we’re not actually hooking up these large sheets in our studios, but all of our plugins do a great job of mimicking these physical reverb units that are created to get us this artificial tone.
SPRING REVERB
Up next, let’s talk about spring reverb. Spring reverb is another form of artificial ambiance, and it’s very similar to a plate reverb, but instead of using a plate, it uses springs.
It works in a similar fashion where you would have a transducer on one end sending a signal through the metal spring, and then on the other side, you have a contact microphone capturing the sound.
What’s great about spring reverbs is that they can be made really small and portable. Because of this, you’ll commonly find spring reverbs inside of guitar amplifiers since they can easily be fit inside of the structure, without adding a ton of extra weight.
In terms of sound quality, spring reverbs tend to be very bright, reflective, and they have a lot of character to them. The best way that I can describe them is that they have a very “boingy” sound. It’s pretty much what you would expect out of a spring.
In terms of common uses for spring reverb, you’ll very often hear them on guitars and on vocals. When you think of surf rock, it’s the sound of spring reverb that gives it its unique character.
NON-LINEAR REVERB
Last but not least, let’s talk about nonlinear reverbs.
When listening to the rest of the reverb types we’ve covered, you will hear a gradual, natural decline in the volume of the reverb tail; but with nonlinear reverbs, they have a very unnatural ambience to them. Their reverb tail doesn’t decay like most natural sounds.
The most common type of non-linear reverb that you’ll hear is known as a gated reverb. It is simply a normal reverb that is followed by a gate. Once the signal passes below a certain threshold, the gate kicks in and basically silences the rest of the tail. So it has this very short, rapid decay, but with a very intense dense sound at the beginning of it.
This is a great option for adding sustain to your instruments, especially with drums.
When it comes to drums, typically, the close mic sound is often pretty short. But when you add a little bit of nonlinear reverb to it, you can really stretch out the sound of the drum and add some cool sustain to it.
If you ever want to remember what a non-linear reverb sounds like, think about songs like “In The Air Tonight” by Phil Collins or pretty much any song from the ’80s with electronic drums. The non-linear reverb was a defining sound of the 80’s drum tone.
When used loudly in a mix, it can sound very intense and robotic; but when tucked in slightly, it does a great job of beefing up your tracks. Just don’t get too carried away with it.
CONCLUSION
So there you have it… the six main types of reverb.
I hope that by now, you have a better sense of what the different types of reverbs sound like and where you might want to use them.
Remember, reverb can make your tracks sound polished and pro, but if you chose the wrong reverb type, it can instantly make your tracks feel muddy or detached from one another.
By treating the different reverb types as unique tools on their own, you can add a lot of character to your songs and create a sense of atmosphere and space with your tracks.
____________
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You’ve likely heard it said many times before but…
If you want to achieve modern, pro-sounding mixes, you need to use drum samples.
The reason has nothing to do with whether you have a weak drummer, poor sounding room, or bad microphone positioning (although samples CAN help fix all three of those things).
Even the biggest and best engineers in the world still use samples. And it’s certainly not because they aren’t doing a good job during the tracking stage.
So why use them?
Samples allow you to add consistency, power, impact, and weight to your tracks.
They allow you to achieve a pro sound faster and without the need for spending hours trying to manipulate your source tones and fighting common issues such as bleed.
Some musicians have an irrational fear that using samples will result in lifeless, sterile, robotic tracks that sound unnatural; however, when added to a mix properly, this is the furthest thing from the truth.
In fact, if you listen to the top 100 songs on the radio now, I’ll guarantee you that 99% of them have samples blended into the mix and you’d likely never know.
So how do you use samples correctly and make them sound natural? Inside this video, I’ll show you how.
In this video, I’ll show you how to easily add samples to your mixes in a variety of ways (using free and paid options).
I’ll also show you how you can preserve the natural dynamics of your drummer’s performance so you don’t end up with tracks that don’t sound fake and robotic.
Every now and then a new trend or technology comes into the audio industry and disrupts the game, making the production process easier.
Whenever this happens, some embrace it, while others tend to shy away or ignore it, thinking that it is “cheating”.
But if you choose to ignore these techniques when they become mainstream, you run the risk that your mixes won’t compete against the new modern standard.
A great example of this is the use of drum samples.
Some engineers claim that samples are unnecessary and that you should “just use the proper micing technique”; but even with properly recorded drums, there are times when samples can dramatically enhance your final mix.
There are many reasons why the top mixing engineers in the world add samples to every mix. And it’s not because they are dealing with poorly recorded material…
Inside this video, I’ll reveal the many different ways you can use samples to make your drum tracks sound much better (even if you already have excellent recordings).
In today’s productions, drum samples are used more than ever.
Like it or not, they’re here to stay. If you want your mixes to sound as good as your favorite records, you need to implement the same techniques the pros use.
P.S. Looking for drum samples to use in your mixes? Click here
Building a home recording studio can be an amazing experience. There’s nothing like having the ability to record your song ideas whenever you’re feeling creative. On the surface it might seem like a daunting task; however, the truth is that getting started with home recording doesn’t need to be so difficult or costly. When looking for home recording studio equipment there are 7 essentials that you need to get up and running. Inside of this article, I’ll outline exactly what you need and how to start without breaking the bank.
1. Computer
This may seem obvious to many, but long gone are the days of recording your songs to analog tape. Sure, analog studios do still exist; but these days, the majority of home recording studios are using computers.
Digital recording allows for a lot of flexibility in terms of inputs, outputs, and processing. Plus, it’s a heck of a lot cheaper!
That being said, the question becomes: “does it matter if you have a mac or pc?”
If you’re just getting started, it doesn’t matter. There are plenty of software options available for both.
2. Interface
An audio interface is a device that allows you to get the sound of your microphones and instruments into your computer and into the software – where you’re going to record it.
So how do you go about picking the right interface for you?
There are five main criteria that I recommend you consider before buying an interface:
How many instruments do you need to record at the same time? This will determine how many inputs you need on the interface.
How many outputs do you need? For the majority of home-studio owners, two outputs is usually enough (to connect your left and right speakers). If you plan on using any sort of outboard gear for mixing (which isn’t very necessary with the quality of today’s audio plugins), you may want additional outputs.
What are the inputs on your computer? Most audio interfaces come as either Thunderbolt, USB, or Firewire. Choose whichever will work with your system.
How powerful is your computer? As you start to use more plugins within your mix sessions, you’re going to start to use up more of your computer’s resources. Some audio interfaces allow you to offset some of the plugin processing by processing it within the interface. If you have an older/slower system, you can purchase an interface that will help free up some of your computer’s resources.
Do you need a special interface to run the plugins that you want to use? The majority of audio plugins don’t require a special device in order to use them. Instead, they rely on your computer’s power to handle the processing. That being said, there are some premium plugins that DO require specific interfaces in order to use them. A great example of this would be with Universal Audio plugins. In order to use these, they require you to have specific interfaces or satellite cards which handle the processing power outside of your computer. For the majority of new studio owners, these premium plugins will not be necessary to get started; however, it is something to consider for the future.
Most sub-$1000 interfaces are pretty similar in quality. It’s only as you spend more money that you will get a higher quality interface with premium features. That being said, for the majority of home studio musicians, the different will be negligible.
Often the improvements you’ll find in a higher quality (and more expensive) interface have to do with preamps, digital-to-audio conversion, and connectivity to outboard gear.
Some relatively inexpensive interfaces that I’d recommend are the Focusrite Scarlett, Presonus Audiobox, or the Universal Audio Apollo Twin.
Focusrite Scarlett
Presonus AudioBox
Universal Audio Apollo Twin
3. Software/DAW
So you have your computer and audio interface, but now what do you record into? This is where software comes in. When it comes to recording software, we refer to these programs as Digital Audio Workstations (DAW for short). These programs allow you to record audio into them, edit the audio, mix the files together, compose music, and so much more.
There are many different DAWs you can choose from. Some of the most popular include:
Pro Tools
Cubase
Sonar
Logic
Presonus Studio One
Ableton
Garageband
Reaper
Which DAW is the best to use?
Well, that’s a personal preference thing…On the surface they all allow you do perform the same basic functions. Where they differ is in things like visual layout, advanced editing functions, maximum track counts, stock plugin options, and a few other areas.
For the average home-studio musician who is just trying to quickly record ideas into their computer, programs like Garageband and Studio One are very intuitive and will definitely cover all of the basic necessities.
For more advanced mixing engineers, DAWs such as Pro Tools, Logic, and Cubase will offer more flexibility and editing features.
At the end of the day, there is no “best” DAW. It all comes down to your personal preference and the amount of advanced features you require for your workflow.
My advice is to choose one program and stick with it. The more you dive into learning the features of the software, the faster you will become with it. Many programs offer keyboard shortcuts (which allow you to perform certain tasks using a single key press on your keyboard). Once you learn and memorize these key commands, you will start to see massive improvements in the speed of your workflow within your DAW.
4. Speakers/Headphones
In order to hear the music you’re creating, you need to use speakers or headphones. Since you’re creating music for others to enjoy, it is important that you monitor your songs using studio-quality speakers or headphones. The reason for this is because studio-grade equipment has been designed for critical listening. As a result, it typically plays back audio with a flat frequency response.
On the other hand, consumer-grade speakers are usually built to sound more pleasing to the ear. Because of this, they usually have a hyped low or high frequency response. This may sound great for listening to music; however, when you are trying to make critical mixing decisions (with the intention of your audience listening to the song on a variety of different speakers), this “hyped” sound can be misleading and cause you to make mix moves that might not actually need to be done. For example, if you were listening to a song on headphones with lots of low end, you might think that you have too much low end in your mix – causing you to remove it from your song. Although this may now sound better on your headphones, it may make your song sound really thin on other headphones that don’t normally have the extra bass boost.
Which studio monitors are the best to buy?
It really depends on your budget. Some things to keep in mind as you buy speakers is that you’ll want to find speakers that have the widest frequency spectrum. Generally, speakers that have a smaller woofer in them (6″ or smaller) will typically have less low frequency response. Whereas, bigger speakers (eg. 8″ and bigger) will allow you to hear more of the lower frequencies.
My advice to you is to visit your local music store and bring some music that you’re very familiar with. Listen to those songs on a variety of speakers and pay attention to how each of the different models sound. Pick your favorite that fits your budget and that sounds the most natural.
Personally, I’m a big fan of the KRK Rokit 8 and Yamaha HS8 speakers.
5. Microphones
Whether you’re recording vocals, drums, guitar amps, or the majority of live instruments, you will need at least one microphone.
There are tons of microphone options available, ranging in price from $100 to $6000+. Is a $6000 mic always going to sound better? Nope. In fact, there are many classic, workhorse mics that can be found for under $300 (eg. Shure SM57, SM7B, Rode NT5).
There are many factors that can determine what sounds best:
Some microphones have a little more brightness to them
Some are a little warmer sounding.
Some are better at picking up transient material (eg. drums)
Ultimately, you want to find something that compliments the instrument you’re recording and the desired sound you’re after. For example, if you have a singer who has a very nasally voice or if they tend to pronounce “s” sounds pretty hard, you’d want to find a mic that doesn’t accentuate those unpleasant sounds.
When buying a microphone, it’s important to note that there are many different styles of microphones. Typically, the most common ones are dynamic microphones and condenser mics. The difference between different mic styles has to do with how sound passes through them (but that’s a whole other big article).
In general,
Condenser mics tend to be more sensitive and reveal a lot of the detail in a voice.
They also require phantom power (so you need to make sure you have an interface that can provide that)
Because of how sensitive they are, they aren’t always the best mic for recording lots of different instruments (especially loud ones like drums or guitars)
Some great inexpensive mics to choose from: Rode NT1, Aston Origin, Apex 460
Dynamic mics tend to be a little darker sounding and not as detailed.
They do not require phantom power
Tend to be more affordable
Can often be used to record multiple instruments
Recommended Dynamic mic: Shure SM7B
If your goal is to primarily record vocals, I’d recommend starting off with a condenser mic.
If your plan is to record live instruments, dynamic mics are typically the best way to go.
Looking for one mic that can do both really well? The Shure SM7B is a great choice!
Shure SM57
Shure SM7B
6. Pop Filter
When recording vocals, there’s nothing worse than having a great take ruined by a loud burst of wind making its way into the mic. On words that start with “b”, “p” or “t”, it is very common for a fast burst of air from the singer’s breath to overload the microphone (these are called plosives). When this happens, it can become very distracting to listen to. The easiest way to prevent this is to use a pop filter.
Pop filters are typically made of mesh or metal. They are designed to attenuate the energy of the air hitting the microphone. A secondary purpose they serve is preventing spit from hitting the mic.
They are typically very affordable and can save you from hours of retakes.
7. Acoustic Treatment
Part of capturing a clean, dry recording requires that you are in a room that isn’t full of reflective surfaces. The more reflective a room is, the greater the chances are of echoes and reverberations making their way into the recording. It is far better to record a signal as dry as possible since you can always add reverb during the mixing stage to make a sound seem livelier. That being said, if the reflections are captured in the original recording, it can be near impossible to remove them.
In addition, when you are mixing, it is always best to work in an environment that isn’t very reflective, since those reflections can get in your way of hearing things accurately.
This is where acoustic treatment comes into play.
Acoustic treatment can come in a variety of forms. Some treatment is designed to absorb sound and some is meant to disperse it. The truth is that you don’t need a fancy looking home recording studio with an abundance of acoustic treatment. For most people starting, the most important areas to take care of are where there are reflections. This can be achieved with minimal treatment.
There are plenty of affordable options available for adding acoustic treatment to your home recording studio. Companies like Auralex or Primacoustic make pre-made kits of panels that can easily be mounted on your walls to reduce reflections.
When recording vocals, in addition to having acoustic treatment on the walls of your room, it can be very beneficial to have a reflection filter (also frequently known as a portable vocal booth) located behind the microphone. These filters improve isolation and prevent excessive reflections from getting into the microphone. Some great examples of these are the Aston Halo and the Primacoustic VoxGuard.
Aston Halo
Primacoustic VoxGuard
Conclusion
So there you have it. Those are the 7 essential pieces of home recording studio equipment that you need to get started. It’s always best to start small and only add pieces as need be. Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that owning more gear or more expensive equipment will get you a better quality sound. It won’t. Quality will come from the development of your audio skills.
Once you have the essentials, put your focus on understanding how to make the most of the equipment you already have. Work on capturing cleaner recordings, mic techniques, and learning how to put all of the recorded tracks together and mix them to perfection.
Looking for more tips on how to get your mixes to sound big and polished?
Check out The Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: A free guide on how to use EQ and compression across a variety of instruments so that you can create great mixes quickly.
If you’ve spent any time looking at pictures of pro studios, watching online mix tutorials, going through your plugin list, or following any plugin manufacturers, chances are very high that you’ll be familiar with the famous 1176 compressor (or some variation of it).
What’s the deal with these things? Why are there SOOOO many different plugins modeled after this compressor? Are they really that special? Do they sound better than other compressors? And what the heck do people mean when they talk about “all-buttons-in mode”?
If you’ve ever asked yourself any of these questions, I’m going to get you the answers you need.
Inside of this new video, I’m going to help you make sense of this famous compressor.
I’ll show exactly why so many engineers use this as their go-to piece of equipment.
The truth is that not all compressors are created equal. The 1176 has some special mojo. You’ll learn all about it inside of this video.
As exciting as the move was, one thing that absolutely terrified me was how my new mix room was going to sound.
For years, I had been working out of a small bedroom to do the majority of my mixing and mastering work. Since I listened to/worked on so much music in there, I knew exactly how my mixes were supposed to sound in order to make them translate properly.
With moving all my gear into a new space, I had no idea whether it was going to be a smooth transition.
When I moved into my new condo, the first thing I did was set up my speakers in my new mix room and just listened to music.
(My girlfriend deserves a Girlfriend-Of-The-Year Award because she did the majority of the unpacking while I just listened to music for hours).
My new mix room SUCKED!!!
It sounded nothing like my old one. It was very boxy sounding and with the concrete ceilings, it was SUPER reflective. I felt like I was constantly hearing 30ms delay on everything. It was driving me crazy.
I knew that I needed to take control of the room and get some acoustic panels on the walls ASAP to fix this nightmare.
As I started to look into commercial acoustic products, I quickly realized it was going to cost me a small fortune to treat my room.
Luckily, I had some experience building my own panels in the past; so I decided to take matters into my own hands.
While I was at it, I decided to document the whole process so that you too can learn how easy it is to make your own acoustic panels.
Check out this video to learn how:
Building your own panels is very easy and can save you a ton of money. Rather than spending thousands of dollars to to get my room to sound good, it only cost me about $300 Canadian to build 10 panels.
After hanging them up on my walls, the results were phenomenal. I was able to get rid of the reflections that were driving me mad, and my room sounded so much more even and controlled.
Already, I’ve been making some of my favorite mixes I’ve ever done.
If your mix room is giving you problems, I HIGHLY recommend you look into building your own acoustic panels.
Mike
Looking for more tips on how to get better recordings and mixes from your home studio?
Check out The Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: A free guide on how to use EQ and compression across a variety of instruments so that you can create great mixes quickly.
