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Balanced To Unbalanced Wiring
The true Story - Compliments of Heil Sound - Thanks Bob!
CONNECTING 3 pin BALANCED to 2 pin UNBALANCED INPUTS
In the commercial audio world, professional audio devices such as compressors, limiters, equalizers, line amplifiers, mixers and such use balanced audio inputs. Commercial microphones have balanced outputs. Balanced inputs use a passive wide response transformer or active circuitry, usually referred to as differential inputs to create a balanced signal input.
Balanced connections employ two conductors, each of which carries the same signal but with the polarity of one reversed with respect of the other and located inside an isolated shield with is usually connected to an earth or chassis ground. The term "push-pull" is sometimes used for describing the output of power amplifiers, not line level circuits. The beautiful feature of a balanced audio line is that when the signal cable is subjected to an interfering signal , that interfering signal is equal on those two conductors but since they are out of phase, that nose is canceled and all that it left is the wanted audio signal that is opposite that polarity and therefore does NOT cancel.
Unbalanced connections can work just fine in small sound systems, or in fixed systems where ground loop problems can be eliminated once, and then forgotten. It is best to avoid in audio systems that drive radio transmitters as their audio input cables are subjected to the RF output of the transmitter. In a balanced input, that interfering RF signal would be canceled just by the nature of how a balanced audio input works.
The shield of a balanced signal connects to ground... usually just ONE end to avoid any ground loops. Any interfering signals that land on this shield is immediately dumped to ground but what DOES land on the out of phase, balanced input lines inside of that shield is canceled.
TYPE OF CABLE
The shield for a balanced audio signal when subjected to high RF environment is best to be a 100% silver braid, not the foil type with a "drain". The wizards at Heil Sound has solved this audio cable problem with their new "Heilwire". Two # 18 gauge stranded conductors are inside the silver 100% braid and outside of that shield are two 18 ga. control wires for push to talk or other control functions. Perfect wire for audio signals.
BALANCED TO UNBLANCED CONNECTIONS
All amateur radio transmitters unfortunately use an unbalanced microphone input. Sad but true. In connecting a balanced microphone, equalizer or audio device that uses balanced signals care has to be taken in how the balanced signal is UNBALNCED in order to feed that unbalanced input.
The nature of the active output of the mixer or EQ determines the type of cabling that may be used when that balanced output is connected to an unbalanced input. The two conductors inside the 100% shield of the "Heilwire" should be employed, allowing the cable to remain more or less balanced right up to the input of the unbalanced device. This actually helps cancel noise because the shield drains noise to the earth ground and is not relied upon to carry the signal. The shield's finite resistance means that grounding the shield and the low side of the cable at the input to the unbalanced device is not the functional equivalent of doing so at the output of the balanced device potential but with the polarity of one reversed with respect to the other.
The connections to allow a balanced output to connect into an unbalanced input or an unbalanced microphone into a balanced input is simply done by connecting the shield, ground tab, pin 1 and pin 3 together. This connects the shield to the chassis ground lug, the normal pin 1 ground and the signal return of pin 3 all together while the positive signal input is pin 2.
Things we need to know before coming to the Studio
Here is some very good information about recording Audio and Demos
Probably one of the most critical elements in the life of any artist is the demo. Careers can be won or lost by the demo. Very few managers, agents or A&R people will venture out to see any artist live unless they've first heard a demo that caught their attention. And it can be more difficult to get live shows without a demo of at least a couple of songs that a promoter or club owner can hear first.
Whether you want to record a demo or an album depends on a lot of factors, the primary ones being:
The overriding factor is money. If you have very limited financial resources, then you are most likely limited to making a lower-quality, demo-style recording. But this doesn't mean that you can't release it on your own label or a small independent. However, without spending a minimum of several thousand dollars, your tracks are probably not going to be professional enough to qualify as a serious album -- they're probably not going to get past the local show on your local radio station, and it is very unlikely that a serious label will want to release or re-release them.
You should always try to make the best quality recordings your resources will allow. No matter what the purpose of the recording is, a better sounding demo represents your music better, giving both fans/consumers and the music industry a better idea of what you are about.
If you are approaching labels with demos, the closer those demos are to masters (i.e. album-quality recordings), the more likely you are to get a sympathetic hearing. In fact, if your demos are recorded well enough, a major label might pick up those demos and release them rather than re-record them. And since the label won't have to spend additional money on re-recording, you are in a better position to negotiate a financially favorable deal. Creed sold millions of albums (and made a lot of money) this way. Their label Wind-Up picked up their independent demo/album, which was recorded very cheaply, re-mixed it, and the rest is history. Phil Collins' album "Face Value," which launched his solo career and elevated Genesis to even greater heights, was also built around his original eight-track home demos.
So I would say that no matter how big or small your resources or intentions are, always strive to make the best possible demo you can -- think of your demo as an early career album and abandon the apologetic mentality, "it's just a demo."
When Am I Ready To Make A Demo?
Determining at which point you are ready to make a demo depends on what your intended purpose for the demo is:
If you want a CD or tape to sell to your fans, first make sure there is some demand -- do you have enough fans who want a record? If not, your money might be better spent on playing live shows and marketing to build your fanbase than in making a record that no one wants. If you think there is a demand, make the demo as soon as you and/or the band are together enough musically. The more CDs you sell, the farther your popularity will spread.
If your intended purpose is to get airplay or get a record deal, don't make a demo until you are 100 percent confident that you have at least one "significant" song. (And, of course, you have a sizable enough budget for a quality recording.)
What I mean by a "significant" song is one that a large group of people responds to in a very positive way. Obviously, in the early pre-demo days of your career, your ability to gauge the response a song will get is going to be limited to your own instinct and the reaction of a relatively small group of friends and family. Nonetheless, the more people you can play your songs for before you demo them, the more likely you are to get an objective reaction.
It is very important to try to read the reaction that a song gets when you play it for people. Friends and family are likely to be polite about your art. Try playing three or four songs and asking which one people like best. That way, they are not criticizing your work; they are helping you choose the best of it. Only demo the songs that get a very positive reaction. Even the biggest stars don't generate a hit every time they sit down to write a song.
How Must Does it Cost?
The cost of a recording depends on a lot of factors:
Acoustic Singer/Songwriter
If you are an acoustic solo artist a la, say, Jewel, you can make a demo very cheaply. Assuming you are an accomplished singer and player, and you could play 10 songs in 40 minutes, you could record your whole set in about an hour. That would set you back an hour's studio time ($25 to $200) plus tape costs ($20 for digital, $1,500 for analog 2-inch). An accomplished solo singer/songwriter could walk out of a studio with an excellent demo for as little as $45 or, without going crazy on the production but using a high-end studio, as much as $1,700.
Full Band
You have expensive tastes. Sadly, there really isn't an extremely inexpensive way to make a very high-quality recording with a full band. Sure, you could record the band in your living room onto a boombox and capture the idea of the songs. Mostly, those kinds of demos should be strictly for internal use (for rehearsing and critiquing new songs within the band) and occasionally for a producer to listen to as a kind of "rough draft" for a later recording. Producers are used to hearing things in a rough state. Most of the rest of the music business has gotten spoiled, and they want to hear something that approximates a finished record.
How Much Can I Do Myself?
If you are an acoustic singer/songwriter with little money, you could get a passable demo done in your front room. You could record straight to cassette, DAT or CD. You would need some fundamental technical skills and at least basic recording equipment such as:
If you had a multi-track machine of some description, life would be easier, but of course that's an extra expense.
The Role Of The Producer
A good producer will bring things out of you that you didn't know were there. At the optimum level, a producer can give you direction and focus; he/she can improve your songs and then pull great performances out of you. At the very least, a producer should be an outside ear and opinion that challenges you to rise above your normal level.
What Kind Of Producer Do I Need?
At the demo level, the right producer is extremely hard to find. If you do use someone to produce your demos, you need to listen to his/her previous work and talk with him or her about your specific project. You have to figure out whether his/her experience is consistent with what you need him/her to do for you. It might be a mistake to get someone who's only done folk artists to record a hard rock band. More than anything, you need to go into the demo process with a very clear idea of how you want your record to sound at the end. If you are hazy about it, then your producer most likely will be, too.
It's kind of like hiring a painter to paint a mural on your bedroom ceiling, and you say to him, "I want clouds," and then you go away for three days. When you get back you find that he has painted a rendition of a gathering thunderstorm above your bed when what you had in mind was puffy white clouds on a beautiful blue sky. The more specific you can be, the less likely you are to be disappointed. You might think, "But I'll be there the whole time. I won't be going away while the producer makes my record." That's true, but when an album or demo is being made and everything is in the very early, deconstructed state, it can be difficult to tell how it is all going to sound at the end.
How Do I Find The Right Producer?
However possible. Network. Ask your friends, industry contacts, and other bands for good references. Call the local studios and ask for recommendations. The owners and the engineers will know anyone who's been in the studio recently who's any good. Check out the credits on records you like and track down the contact information for the associated producers. It's always worth contacting any famous producers you can get to. Occasionally, top producers will pick up unsigned projects in between their major-label work. Just be very careful about signing agreements. Have any paperwork checked over by a reputable music business lawyer. Major producers may try to sign artists to production deals. Under some circumstances, production deals can be fine, and then again they can sometimes be oppressive to the artist.
How Do I Pay The Producer?
At the demo level, everything is negotiable. You could pay a producer a flat fee, an hourly rate, a percentage of sales, a percentage of a future record deal. The one thing it isn't good to promise anyone is that they can produce your major-label debut. Why? Because if you are lucky enough to get a major-label deal, the label will want to be involved in choosing a producer. In which case you may have to default on your agreement with the demo producer or get yourself into a very nasty position with both the producer and the label.
Can I Produce It Myself?
You can. If you can't find someone you trust, then self-production is the best option. A bad producer or the wrong producer is worse than none at all.
The Role of The Engineer
The engineer is basically the technical guy/gal in the studio -- not necessarily the one who fixes the equipment (that's the maintenance person), but the one who plugs stuff in, gets it recorded onto tape or hard drive, and applies all the equalization, compression and effects. Very often, producers will work with the same engineer or one or two engineers for many years. The communication between them approaches ESP at that point. Sometimes, the producer is also the engineer, although in many cases, even when the producer came from an engineering background, once they start producing they tend to like to have someone else to twiddle the knobs and plug things in.
A lot of young bands like to produce their own albums with a good engineer. This is not a bad plan if all you need is someone to record what you do really well. I do believe, however, that there is no substitute for an experienced producer in the early phases of a band's career. It's a very rare artist who has world-class natural production skills in his early years.
How Do I Find A Good Engineer?
If you are hiring a producer, he/she will almost certainly take care of finding the engineer. If you are flying solo, any reputable studio usually has decent house engineers who come at an all-in-one price with the studio. Just check that their experience is compatible with your band. Don't be afraid to ask to hear some things they have recorded. If you don't like what you hear, look further. Finally, as with locating any member of your team, network. Ask all your industry contacts, friends, fans, and family for good engineer references.
How Do I Pay The Engineer?
"House engineers" usually come with the studio and are paid out of the hourly studio price that you pay. Sometimes, studios will have premium-priced engineers who charge extra above the hourly studio rate. You will have to decide from listening to his/her work whether you think it's worth paying extra. Freelance engineers come at all price levels, ranging from free (because they are trying to build their resume) to several hundred dollars an hour. As a general rule, once you get above about $150 per day, they usually have some big-name artists in their credit lists.
Analog vs. Digital Recording
Before you go into the studio, you will obviously need to decide what kind of studio you want to go into. One of the first decisions you will need to make is whether you want to record analog or digital, or some combination of the two. What is the difference between analog and digital? Without getting into the technicalities of how everything works, the basic functional differences are:
Analog Recordings
Analog recordings are always linear, meaning that they are recorded (these days) on tape, and if you want to move parts around, you either have to copy them or physically cut the tape. The problem with this is that every time you copy an analog recording, it degrades audibly. If you cut the tape, there is a risk of physical damage to the tape and there is no "undo" function other than putting the piece back where it came from, but the cuts will still remain. There is a noise floor with analog tape, meaning that you will hear tape hiss in very quiet passages unless you use some form of noise reduction. Lots of people do still love the sound of analog tape, though. Probably a major reason for that is it distorts things in a very interesting way. If you record something at too high a level on analog tape it will distort the sound, but it does it gradually and in a way that can sound quite attractive.
Digital Recordings
Digital recordings are sometimes linear (recorded to tape like, say, ADAT) and sometimes random access (recorded to some form of hard drive like, say, Pro Tools). They don't suffer from tape hiss, although if you record a signal too quietly to digital it will be degraded in quality. You can theoretically copy a digital signal an unlimited number of times with no degradation in quality. It is this factor that makes digital a very powerful recording tool. It is extremely easy to move tiny fragments or large chunks of music around using a random-access digital recording system such as Pro Tools and its software. Once music is converted to a digital signal, there are many ways that it can be manipulated easily via computer.
So, Should I Go Analog or Digital?
To me it comes down to two factors:
Mostly, the argument runs that analog is warm and rich, The Beatles and Led Zeppelin used it, and digital is cold, unmusical and clinical. It's important to remember that The Beatles and Led Zeppelin were at the cutting edge of technology when they were making records; they used the best gear around at the time. If they had used a technology that was as old then as 2-inch tape is today, they would have been recording on monophonic, wire recorders. I like analog and I like digital. They are definitely different, but I would wager that a great number of people who pontificate about the differences would be hard pressed to consistently differentiate an analog recording from a digital one in a blindfold test. Many top artists and producers use digital by choice. A lot of what you hear on the charts is recorded digitally, and a significant amount is recorded on consumer digital devices. The beautiful thing about digital is that it sounds good and it's cheaper. Well, maybe the high-end stuff isn't worlds cheaper, but the difference between high-end digital and consumer digital is less audible to the average person than the difference between high-end analog and consumer analog. You'd be surprised how many chart albums have been recorded on ADAT.
It is always going to be more expensive to record on 2-inch tape than on, say, ADAT. Two-inch tape costs around $180 for 15 minutes of recording time. ADAT tape is only a few dollars for longer recording time. Two-inch is limited to 24 tracks unless you go to a 48-track studio and lock two machines, which is even more expensive. With more than one ADAT you can create "slaves" (copies) and have virtually unlimited tracks to work on. Of course, more and more studios are turning to hard-disk digital recorders such as Pro Tools, which really opens up a whole other set of reasons for using digital: namely, the manipulative power of random-access recording. Via computer, you can move verses around, fix bad fills, edit songs, change your mind and put it back again without hunting around on the floor for the right bit of tape -- as easy and seamlessly as the copy, cut, and paste functions on your typical word processor.
I know for sure that if money were an issue, I would sooner have more time in an ADAT (digital) studio to make my demo than less time in an analog 2-inch studio. No matter how good the coffee was.
Outside of rock music, the debate is becoming a dead issue. Classical music has been digitally recorded for years, as has a lot of jazz. Most hip hop studios use digital, and dance music is usually straight out of the computer to DAT, never touching any form of tape until mix-down.
The truth is that if you are convinced that digital sucks, then nothing I can say will change your mind, so go with analog. For everyone else, check out digital, particularly if you are on a tight budget or are going to want to do a lot of editing and manipulation.
Before The Studio: Pre-Production
Irrespective of whether you are a solo artist or full band, the key to making a great demo and keeping the cost under control is preparation, or "pre-production."
Choosing The Songs
If you choose the right songs, even if the demo is not going to win a Grammy for best recording it will still be more likely to catch the right people's ears. Remember to consider outside feedback on which are the best songs to pick for the demo. If you are making a demo strictly for business purposes (getting gigs, soliciting deals), keep it to three songs max. Most industry folks are busy and may not even listen to three, much less any more than that. And put your best song first. If you are recording an album-style record to sell to fans, you may want to add more tracks and be more artistic when determining the tracklisting, but if you want this recording to double as a business demo, still put your best songs first.
Arrangement/Orchestration
"Arrangement" and "orchestration" may sound like highfalutin terminology, but even if you don't have any formal training in music, every time you make a decision about which bit goes where and how long you keep playing that bit, you are arranging the song. Being in the studio often leads to new ideas for re-arrangement and different orchestration, but to save you time and money, you should have already figured out how you expect to arrange/orchestrate your songs before going into the studio.
The arrangement of the structure of a song determines whether you have an intro followed by, say, "verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, chorus out," or something different. Within that structure you would have to determine how long each section is going to be. It's worth noting that the same section can be different lengths each time it occurs.
Orchestration is more about which parts are going to be played by which instruments. If, for instance, you have the lead guitar playing a melody in the intro of the song, deciding whether you will have the bass play the same line an octave lower or just play the root notes of the chords would be orchestration.
The arrangement and orchestration of a song has a huge impact on the way people respond to it. Structural re-arrangement is one of the most powerful tools in the producers' tool-bag. To be more specific: You can have a song loaded with catchy melodies and great lyrics that has zero impact on the listener because the structure is all wrong. If you're wondering how you're going to figure out what is a good structural arrangement, my best advice is to analyze your favorite songs by other artists and put your song together the way they would have. Eventually, you will develop your own style, but in the meantime you will be learning from the experts. The same principle holds true for orchestration. If you are stuck for an idea, figure out what the hit machine that occupies your MP3 player does and modify some of those ideas to fit your song.
Rehearsal
The tunes that you are going to perform live in the studio need to be rehearsed until they're second nature. You don't want to spend your hard-earned cash on studio time so that you can rehearse a guitar part you could have practiced in your bedroom. If you are a band, once you've got the arrangement and orchestration figured out, you really need to practice the whole song over and over until there are no mistakes. The whole thing needs to sound tight. In case you don't know what tight means: It means that everybody is playing together, and where, say, the guitar, bass and drums are supposed to be landing on the same beat, they actually do. You should only hear one impact on that beat, not a messy, "flammy"-sounding beat.
In The Studio
Here are a few tips:
· Don't Be Late!
One good habit that can save you a lot of money in the studio is showing up on time, even early. Most studios charge an hourly rate and run the clock from the time you booked the place -- not from the time you actually show up. So you can save money by being early. They almost always allow some setup time before the clock starts ticking, and you should take full advantage of that. If you can get your equipment in the night before without extra charge, you should. Not only will you be sure that it is there on time when you arrive for the session the next day, you won't be exhausting yourself humping gear right before your need to turn in a Grammy-winning performance. Otherwise, make sure you show up far enough in advance to get the equipment set up before you start paying for the studio time.
I once worked with an artist who not only couldn't show up on time, but also couldn't seem to feed himself or satisfy his need to read the sports pages from cover to cover before he showed up at the studio. Not only was this incredibly disrespectful of my time and the engineer's, but it was a gigantic waste of money.
Worse than that, in my opinion, was the fact that every day we were losing about two of our freshest, most productive hours waiting for this guy to show up, eat his bagel, drink his coffee and read the sports pages. I tried moving the start time back two hours, and he still showed up 30 minutes late and then had to walk down to the deli to get his coffee, bagel and paper. I tried just letting him get there earlier than the engineer and me, but after the first couple of days he figured it out and just showed up half an hour later than we did and still made us sit through his breakfast ritual.
I actually tried talking to him and explaining that it was costing him $400 per day (it was a $200-per-hour studio), and over the three months we would be recording that would amount to well over $20,000 wasted -- but to no avail. The bottom line is: Take a shower, eat, read the paper, pay your electric bill and whatever else before you get to the studio so you won't be paying for studio time that you aren't using.
· Stay In Tune
I am constantly amazed that in the 21st century, I still get demos that are out of tune. Let me say this: THERE IS NO REASON FOR ANYBODY TO BE OUT OF TUNE ANYMORE. EVER. We have these marvelous, inexpensive devices called tuners. Apply them liberally during the recording session and presto, no more out of tune-ness.
Most studio musicians I've worked with check their tuning before every take. Now these guys have ears like Dumbo, so if they think it's worth using a tuner and retuning before every take, then I think that most everyone else should take a leaf out of their collective book.
· Stay In Time
Timing is a little trickier. Obviously, if you are using computer-generated drums or tracks then timing is not a big problem. If you are a band or solo artist and everything is going to be played by carbon-based creatures, then you have to put a little forethought into the timing issue. Some people are born with a God-given ability to play music in time. These people should become drummers.
For every timing problem, there is one extremely simple solution: a metronome. Electronic metronomes or click-tracks are very inexpensive. You can even buy cheap drum machines that are more interesting to play along with than a straight click.
The microcosmic solution to a timing problem would be called for if you are about to start the demo session in three days and you have a documented timing problem. You will either have to live with out-of-time demos or play all of your tracks with a click. There is one big advantage to using a click on the session, and that is that you can prefigure the optimum tempo for the song in rehearsal before going into the studio. Oftentimes, in the studio, when the adrenaline levels are running high, tempos get pushed up or down on the spur of the moment. Later, this can turn out to be a big mistake. If you set your tempos in a more relaxed environment such as rehearsal, document them, and make sure that the metronome in the studio is set at the same tempo, you are less likely to make a mistake when recording.
The downside with the microcosmic solution occurs when you find out that you, your drummer or someone else in the band can't get used to playing with a click. If you're not used to playing along with a click, the fear of it can actually make matters worse. At this point you have only two choices -- abandon the session until a later date and practice like crazy with a click in the meantime, or give up on the click and have an out-of-time demo. I worked with a band once whose tempos were all over the place, and when they wound up playing the song with a click it never felt right to them because they were so used to the verses being slower than the choruses. A small change from one section to another can sometimes be effective. If you listen to records made in the sixties, tempos do move around a bit, but most contemporary pop records are at one tempo all the way through.
The macrocosmic solution entails practicing with some sort of electronic click device from the minute you start learning an instrument. If you should find that you have a God-given ability to play in time under all circumstances, then donate your metronome to someone less fortunate. If you play with a click track from day one, by the time you get to the studio you will not have any problems.
How Long Should It Take?
It all depends on how much money you have, how well you play, how prepared you are, and what kind of music you play. Generally, a band that can play really well can lay many tracks in one day. Bands that don't play so well will go much slower, maybe spending several days per track.
If you can play all at once and the studio can accommodate that kind of session, you can certainly get the whole thing done a lot more quickly than if you lay the drums first and overdub everything else later. Most rock records are made by building up from a drum track. Very often the band will play together in the studio, but once the drum track is recorded they will go back and replace everything else. Oftentimes, this is to get the sound better than would have been possible in a live setting. Overdubbing also helps to focus on the performance aspect of each part. But the better the musicians, the more viable it is to record all at once. Recording all at once has the double benefit of saving studio time and increasing the vibe of the track, assuming everybody can play really well together.
Hip hop, R&B, urban and dance records are almost always generated by drum machines, computers and samplers, so they are built up part by part in the computer or drum machine. Country music is recorded much like rock, except that the big stars almost always use studio musicians rather than their road band. The rhythm track is usually laid with everyone playing, and then vocals and extra parts are overdubbed as needed.
If you record everything by overdubbing, the time spent increases exponentially. It's very easy to spend four or five months putting down 10 or 12 tracks if you overdub everything one instrument at a time. Bear in mind that The Beatles' first albums were recorded in a day. On the other hand, some bands in the '70s took a year to make an album, and people have been known to spend five years or more on an album (e.g. Steely Dan). If those artists started out with a producer, they probably finished without one. I don't know too many producers who will stick around for five years on one album.
As a rule of thumb, I would think that with good preparation, a rock, hip hop, urban or R&B artist should be able to record an excellent demo at the rate of one track a day. Solo artists should be much quicker than that.
Mixing, Mastering, Duplication
Mixing is the process of combining and balancing all the separately recorded audio tracks, while adding effects, determining relative volumes, and setting spatial positioning. At its most basic, mixing is about making sure you can hear all the parts that you recorded clearly and with some punch.
How Do I Get The Best Mix Possible?
Hire a great mix engineer and the best mix studio you can afford. Mixing at the high end is one part of the recording process that requires skill, knowledge and lots of technology. For a demo on a limited budget, the best way to handle mixing is not to get too fancy. Most demos I get have way too many effects on them. If it sounds muffled, squashed or like you recorded it in the subway, then you should probably back off on some of the outboard gear. Generally speaking, the more stuff you put it through the worse your track will sound unless you really know what you're doing. Last but definitely not least, if someone is singing, rapping, talking or moaning in your tracks, make sure that other people can make out what they are moaning about. Remember, you know the lyrics, so they may sound audible to you even if they're not. Ask someone who doesn't know the music if they can hear the lyrics.
What If I Can't Hire The Best?
Three words: compare, compare, compare. So you can't afford Tom Lord Alge but you want that sound. Take your favorite mixes of his (or whoever's) into the studio and compare your mixes to them. Match the listening levels so you are comparing favorably and try to emulate the sound you like so much. Admittedly, this is difficult. You usually come out of this process with a newfound respect for whomever you are comparing to. Nonetheless, if you get a third of the way toward the mix you like, you'll probably be in a better place than if you didn't study the masters. There's a ton of written information available about how to mix, how so-and-so mixes, favorite tricks of the great mixers, etc. Devour this stuff if you want to get better. Also remember that just because they use, for instance, 1962 Fairchild limiters that came out of Abbey Road Studios doesn't mean you have to give up. Your 1997 Alesis limiters can be used to roughly emulate the same effect. Maybe the quality isn't going to be quite the same, but the overall effect can be.
What's Mastering
Mastering is the process of taking your mixed two-track stereo recording (though there may soon be more than two tracks to a master) and converting it to a format compatible with the duplication process. During that process, you get to take an overall listen to your mixed-down masters, and using equalization, compression and various other arcane techniques, you can optimize the sound of your album.
How Important Is Mastering?
Apart from the fact that you have to get your tracks compiled in the right order with the correct gaps between them and in a format that can be used for duplication, mastering can cover a multitude of sins. Not that I recommend that you rely on it to cover up your inadequacies, but a good mastering engineer can make you sound a lot better than you really are. I definitely recommend spending some money to get the best pair of ears you can afford to master your demos. Again, look at the credits of the albums you like and find out who mastered them. It's always worth attempting to contact these folks. See Mastering Audio Page
Duplication
If you intend to sell your album, someone will have to pick up the duplication costs. At the time of writing, 1,000 CDs (most cost-effective minimum order) on a first order costs around $1,500 including the CD, jewel case, and printing. There are many variations of packaging and printing that will raise or lower this price, but for around $1,500 you can put together a nice-looking package -- a standard CD jewel case with a booklet, and graphics printed on the CD itself. If you are doing a very small run for friends and/or for sending out to record labels, I would recommend investing in a CD burner and duplicating them yourself. Blank CD-Rs (recordable CDs) are currently around 30 cents each, and the jewel cases are about the same. You can buy plastic clamshell cases for less and paper sleeves for even less. Both the clamshell and the paper slipcover are cheaper to mail, which may also be a consideration. The downside is that they aren't particularly compatible with standard CD racks, so are more susceptible to getting lost in the A&R person's piles.
Check Oasis CD Duplication for tons of Information about this business
10 Tips on getting your Music Heard!
1. make sure they can hear it!
you wouldn't believe how many tapes I get that are just too quiet to hear - turn up the levels when recording and play the tape back to yourself to make sure (a) you can hear it, (b) it recorded in the first place and, (c) the tape didn't chew up.
2. include lyric sheets.
if it's interesting enough for you to sing about, then it's interesting enough for me to want to know what you are singing about. include (typed) lyric sheets.
3. three songs, three hits.
a prominent music publisher once told me that what he wants to hear on a tape is just three songs, and every one of them a hit.
4. phone numbers on everything!
make sure that your contact details (or at least a phone number) is on every single item in your package. especially the tape itself. cases get lost, trodden on, used for horrible purposes, but if the tape has the number on it, I will always be able to call you.
5. why send it at all?
enclose a covering letter. say why you are making music, why you chose me to send your tape to, why you would like a deal with my company. don't just blanket mail - it is not worth your effort.
6. target the type and genre of music.
ensure that you are sending rock music to a rock label (publisher, manager, promoter) and dance music to a dance label (publisher, manager, etc.). And which genre? don't send hard house to a garage manager! Yes, I know you are unique and sound like no one else who has gone before but narrow it down a bit, work smart not hard.
7. how will they know that you look like a star?
the music should speak for itself. Yeah, right. I am only going to spend $150k plus my company's money on making you a star if you have the potential to be a star - and look like a star. you don't necessarily need to be beautiful but you do need a strong image.
8. follow up. follow up. FOLLOW UP!
you must follow up to make sure the tape arrived. If you don't you will be waiting for a reply forever, when in fact it never made it through the major label internal postal system or the postman's dog nicked it. If it got there ok, ask when it might be listened to. then follow up again. If it hasn't been listened to, ask again when it might be. ask if it's ok to call again in two, four, six weeks. follow up again to get some feedback. they won't call you unless they want to meet you so if you want feedback, call and ask.
9. get a name.
follow up is much much easier if you sent it to a real person in the first place. how are you going to get past the receptionist or the automated answer system if you don't know who to ask for? get the secretary's name too. if you can be polite but persistent and get to know the secretary you have more chance of your tape making it to the top of the listening pile. also, they hate it when you ring back again and again and ask for them by name. they will push the A&R person to listen just to get you off their phone.
10. don't take it personally.
if they say no, they are not rejecting you, just your music - AT THIS TIME. detach yourself from your music. more than 20 people turned the beatles down. they may be out of budget this financial year, they may be leaving the company soon, they may already have a joni mitchell/tom waits kinda artist. leave the door open and say.....NEXT! keep in touch, people move company and may need to sign you at their next company. remember, you are a star, they just don't know it yet.
The phase modulation effects of sample clock jitter in any A-to-D converter become a permanent part of your recording. For that reason, great effort has been invested eliminating sample clock jitter in the Benchmark A-to-D converters. A unique and proprietary Phase Lock Loop keeps the converters virtually free from sample clock jitter, under all operating conditions. Clock jitter at the converter’s sample and hold is typically 9 Pico-seconds RMS (9 trillionths of a second) measured over a bandwidth of 20 Hz to 12.288 MHz. Remember, sample clock jitter in either an A-to-D or D-to-A converter can have a devastating effect on the audio.
Figure 1. - FFT Analysis of a Tightly Locked A-to-D Converter
How Does Sample-Clock Jitter Relate to Interface Jitter Measured at the AES/EBU or SMPTE Output Connectors?
Sample clock jitter cannot be measured at an AES/EBU or SMPTE output connector. The reason is simple: AES interface standards require bandwidth and rise-time limiting in order to reduce electromagnetic interference. As a result, the AES interface will add code-dependent jitter, which may be 100 to 1000 times greater than the jitter at the converter’s sample and hold. This is potentially inconsequential. This interface jitter accumulates after the audio is in the digital domain, and therefore, does not degrade the audio signal, provided it is removed prior to D-to-A conversion. But, unlike interface jitter, sample clock jitter cannot be removed. Therefore it is critical to measure the sample clock jitter by itself.
How Can We Measure 9 Pico-Seconds of Jitter or Less?
Sample clock jitter can be isolated and measured to a resolution better than 2 pSec using a 16,000 point FFT analysis of the 24-bit digital audio output of an A-to-D converter. If, for instance, a -1 dBFS 10 kHz high purity test tone is connected to the analog input of an A-to-D converter, sample clock jitter of 16 pSec will produce spurious tones (side bands from the jitter’s phase modulation effect) which have a total energy of -123 dBFS. If the jitter energy is concentrated at a single frequency, as is often the case, two side bands will be produced, one on either side of the 10 kHz test tone. Each side band will have an amplitude of -129 dBFS. Although -129 dBFS is an extremely low level, it is still within the resolving ability of most 24-bit A-to-D converters. This is important because our ears act much like a super resolving FFT analyzer.
FIGURE 2. 100-kHz STOP-BAND ATTENUATION VS. JITTER AT THE CONVERTER CHIP
Why Does Sample-Clock Jitter Need to be so Low?
It can be easily demonstrated that most people have the ability to detect and identify tones which are buried 25 dB or more below white noise (A-Weighted). Therefore, it is important to keep jitter induced side bands nearly 25 dB below the A-Weighted THD+N of the converter, otherwise the jitter may become audible.
Jitter can only be considered totally inaudible if the worst case jitter induced sidebands are at least 23 dB below the A-weighted system noise. Above this level jitter may be audible or it may be masked by the program audio. At Benchmark our goal is to achieve totally inaudible levels of jitter.
The FFT analysis shown in Figure 1. demonstrates the ability of the BENCHMARK AD2402-96 to resolve tones as low as -140 dBFS. Note that in this test, the AD2402-96’s highest jitter induced side bands occur at 4 kHz and 16 kHz. These each measure at an extremely low -140 dBFS and indicate that jitter at 6 kHz (a common problem frequency) is below 5 Pico-seconds. The AD2402-96 has an idle channel THD+N of better than -117 dBFS (A-Weighted) and jitter induced side bands are held 23 dB below this level. It is this level of performance, which makes the AD2402-96 and the AD2404-96 (identical circuits) so unique.
Jitter Degrades Digital Anti-Alias Filters
The performance of oversampled A/D converters is highly dependent upon very precise digital filters. These digital filters provide a brick wall that stops unwanted high frequency signals. In the case of 44.1 kHz conversion, this brick wall filter is constructed such that it stops all frequencies above 22.05 kHz (one half of the sample rate). Frequencies above 22.05 kHz cannot be represented in a 44.1 kHz digital system. If these frequencies are not removed, aliasing will occur. When aliasing occurs, high frequency information is translated or folded back into the audio band.
Oversampled converters use digital filters to prevent aliasing, non-oversampled converters rely solely upon analog filters in front of the A/D sample and hold circuit. Analog filters require closely matched resistors and capacitors, parts with low temperature coefficients, and lots of space on a circuit board. A digital filter can easily outperform the best analog filter. Digital filter performance is generally limited only by the number of arithmetic operations that we are willing to perform for each sample of audio that passes through the filter. State of the art A/D converter ICs have digital filters that can achieve remarkable levels of performance. For example, at a 44.1 kHz sample rate, the digital anti-alias filter in the SONIC AD2K+ achieves 117 dB of attenuation at all frequencies between 24.44022 kHz and 2.798145 MHz while the response at 20.30364 kHz is -0.01 dB! However, this performance can only be achieved in the absence of jitter.
When a digital filter is designed, jitter is assumed to be zero. A digital filter consists of a series of delay elements, multipliers, and summing nodes. The delay elements are assumed to be identical in length. Jitter can and does change the length of time between successive samples of audio. As a result, the digital delay elements no longer represent equally spaced points in time. Jitter modulates the time interval between samples, and this can radically alter the response of the filter. For example, if converter clock in the SONIC AD2K+ or the AD2404-96 were derived directly from the AES/EBU receiver (as it is in many converter products) the stopband attenuation at 100 kHz would be degraded from 117 dB to only 28 dB. The 100 kHz signal that should have been removed is now splattered all over the audio band (see graphs above and below).
A second graph below shows the effect of jitter on the stop band attenuation with a 26-kHz input signal.
FIGURE 3. 26-kHz STOP-BAND ATTENUATION VS. JITTER AT THE CONVERTER CHIP
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Bob Reynolds
Son Set Beach Productions
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