Premier Rock Forum

TOPIC: How do I get that "home recording" sound in my awesome studio?


Hi,

I'm noticing that more and more new records I enjoy are being recorded at home or in someone's shitty basement studio.

Whether this is a temporary fad or not, as an engineer and a professional studio owner, I want in on it. Can anyone recommend techniques for making my awesome studio sound lo-fi and amateur?

Maybe then people will pay my premium.

Help appreciated,
Roob

Erm.

1: Sell all your gear and replace it with gear that costs 10 to 100 times less.

2: Use some of the money left over from 1 to buy a nice big bed, a wardrobe, a nice thick carpet and some drapes (etc). Place these strategically in your live room (note: for that "Live in the living room" sound replace bedroom furniture with lounge furniture).

3: LOWER YOUR CEILING. I recommend a 14 foot maximum. 7 to 8 feet is the ideal.

4: Also, you might want to look at having the live room rebuilt so that all walls, the ceiling and the floor are parallel (if they aren't already).

5: Forget everything you ever learned about audio engineering.

And you thought no one would take you seriously

Who is your next client, Metallica?

And I forgot the most important thing. Remove the partition between your Control Room and your Live Room (you may replace it with a plasterboard wall should you so wish ).

You could also try duct-taping over all your VU meters. And put cotton in your ears.

In addition to the other excellent replies, let me suggest this: if the previous techniques still don't do the trick contact me for the deal of a life time. Because I am a man of most infinite generosity, let me propose a deal... a GEAR SWAP.

I have a Tascam 4 track, 2 Oktava MK319s, a handful of 57s, an old PZM, and some other miscellanous mics lying around that I'll trade you for your setup. No compressor, processors, mixdown deck, or any other frilly crap to pollute that signal. Just mics, bad pres, and cassette tape, baby, and that's all you need.

I know, I know, you're thinking "No way man, he CAN'T be for real!" but let me assure you-- I have the sound for which you seek. I eagerly await your reply of my most generous offer.

long live rock,
-schilla

MORE HOME RECORDINGS SECRETS REVEALED:


1. HARD PAN EVERYTHING, regardless of the type of instrument, vocal etc. It's awesome, man! You can like make the bass come out of the left side only!

2. USE 99 CENT TAPES from the local 99 cent store. The ones where the english is negotiable on the cover.

3. RECORD YOUR DOG OR OTHER ANIMAL BARKING/MEOWING in the yard. This will give it that "on the porch with the ole 4-track" feel.

4. RECORD A VOCAL AT THE "FASTER" OR "SLOWER" TAPE SPEED. Say funny things like "I am iron man!" or "kick it!" That speed button is there for a reason.

5. USE YOUR OLDER SIBLING'S CASSETTES...so when your song is over, it automatcally switches to Foghat's "Slow Ride."

good luck!

maybe you are trolling and have created a joke forum on purpose

but maybe not

i'll assume not, b/c it is a reasonable thing to want to do

at the risk of stating the obvious...

home recordings often have an impression of intimacy that studio recordings sometimes do not have

some of this is due to the informal setting and therefore more relaxed participants

but some of it is due to lack of outboard effects and other polishing devices

it's simple enough to leave the reverbs, delays, compressors etc. more or less out of things

one of the other hallmarks of most home recordings is the lack of room sound

it's always tempting to push up the ambient mics if you have had room to record them (room meaning both physical space and the leftover tracks)

like a lot of outboard manipulation, ambience smoothes out clunkiness in the playing, makes everything sound 'impressive' etc.

but the extra information also pushes the listener back from the music and smears detail in the essential parts of the recording (the basic tracks that you'd need to have the music in the first place)

lately, i'm much more into complete avoidance of room sound as a default position. dry dry dry, with ambience added to specific tracks only in the final mix stage, if it seems necessary to enhance the entire band mix or cover someone's ass

the results are cleaner, more direct, harder hitting to my ears and more like what i like about quick and dirty home recording, with all the benefits of full-range frequency response, etc.

To be perfectly serious,(and what I believe all of the previous entries meant by their sarcasm) I would suggest you just continue to record things as best you can, with the equipment you have. Any variations of that nature that come along are certain fads. It's the same argument for pop music. One artist uses "IMPACT HITS" in their dance/pop song and now 45 other artists do it. OR hair music in the 80s. It was completely cool to load up your low tuned snare with reverb.
It's the same with the "home recording" sound. why not just record a band the way they actually sound? This is not a fad and will never be replaced. Maybe disregarded for another style (like it is now) but never replaced.

Chris

I think Mr. Midgett is pretty much right on the money as to why people choose this route. here are some other considerations:
there is a definite 'charm' to many basement recordings...perhaps akin to children's drawings. They capture more raw emotion and state of being than polished 'adult' products, even if the technical skills are sorely lacking.
And Also, let us not forget that 80% of the people who run recording studios have A) A complete lack of taste, B)Only marginally better skills or 'ears' C) Poor interpersonal skills, which make recording a total drag and D) the damn fool idea that their services are worth a small fortune, when that same small fortune could turn anyone's basement into a reasonably well equiped home studio.

A good engineer is worth their weight in gold, but a mediocre one can be a liability.
-chris