All Questions
13
votes
2answers
315 views
What is Mastering?
Can anyone explain mastering? What is it for and why should anyone care? Should I have all of my recordings mastered?
18
votes
3answers
363 views
What is/are the first effect(s) I should put on raw vocal recordings?
The main problem my finished tracks have is a poor quality vocal sound. I generally try to apply a dynamic range compression filter first and then add some reverb/chorus as appropriate but I can never ...
11
votes
5answers
4k views
Why is Pro Tools the industry standard in high end audio production?
Are there some specific features which make Pro Tools so popular in high end audio? Most comparisons I've found with other DAW's are several years old and are pretty subjective. I'm interested in ...
10
votes
4answers
2k views
Two microphone setup to record voice and acoustic guitar
what are some good microphone setups for recording a single singer/guitar player with two microphones? Position, types, levels, etc. Thanks!
6
votes
4answers
3k views
Monitoring multiple USB microphones
I am in the planning stages of producing a podcast consisting 2 or more people in the same room. I have a large diaphragm USB condenser mic, and another non-USB mic. At this point, I need to decide ...
13
votes
4answers
595 views
What is compression and why is it used?
Related to vocal recording, I see some answers that talk about compression.
What exactly does compression do, and why and how is it used?
12
votes
1answer
260 views
Suggestions for micing violins
I have a session coming up where I will be recording a couple violins. I've done a few violin sessions in the past and never been happy with the violin sound I've ended up with - it's always been too ...
7
votes
4answers
244 views
Is it a good idea to use headphones for audio production?
Is it generally a good idea to use headphones in the production/mixing of audio?
And what can I do if my speakers are terrible (e.g. laptop speakers), and I'm on a shoestring budget?
7
votes
3answers
3k views
General rules for panning?
I'm working on a family project right now. Most of the songs have the following tracks:
4 kids (on separate tracks of course)
strings/pads
acoustic guitar (on about half the songs)
electric bass ...
5
votes
2answers
342 views
Podcast recording tips
What would be the best affordable setup for recording a 3-4 person podcast all in one room?
I think my main problems are with the hardware...
I've tried a few things: using a condenser (Samson C01U ...
5
votes
2answers
1k views
Rendering vs. recording in ableton live?
In Ableton Live, it seems like I get better (clearer, louder, better dynamics) results when I route and record my master track to an audio track instead of using the "render-to-disk" function.
Has ...
11
votes
8answers
3k views
FireWire or USB
Which is better for audio recording? FireWire or USB audio interfaces?
I've used USB quite a bit and struggled with a few latency issues (which have since been resolved) but the speeds of FireWire ...
6
votes
3answers
2k views
Eliminating recording latency — what hardware and settings are needed?
I am very new to this field, so please bear with me.
When recording MIDI, there are several kinds of annoying delays. I would like to know what can I do to reduce/eliminate this by changing ...
6
votes
6answers
3k views
I want the perfect gun sound, can I make it myself ? Any tip/theory ?
I'm a (still learning) game programmer, and I wanted to know if there is some knowledge base for making good gun sounds.
So far I collected .WAV for Metal Gear Solid, Resident Evil 2 & 3, but I ...
18
votes
7answers
8k views
Are there any audible differences between 192 and 320 kbit/s .mp3 files?
This is a question that's currently being discussed on skeptics.stackexchange. It was thought reasonable to get some input from the audio experts. So with the author's permission I'm posting it here.
...
12
votes
3answers
531 views
How do I get a mix with two heavy bass elements to not sound muddy?
I often struggle with mixes where I've got two very bassy sounds, usually a very 'big' kick sample and either a hip-hop-style sub bass or a rhythm sample involving low-pitched drums.
What's the best ...
11
votes
3answers
164 views
What hardware units should I have in my arsenal?
I'm an amateur audio engineer who most of the time needs to record choirs or musical theatre productions, but who occasionally does home studio recording of songs.
I don't have a huge amount of money ...
10
votes
6answers
568 views
Are there any mathematical advantages for higher sampling rates?
Given that most people can't hear so many frequencies above 20kHz anyways, I've never understood the exact arguments for using sampling rates above 48kHz. At 48kHz, I understand that it is easier to ...
7
votes
5answers
1k views
Best audio interface in the low end?
I'm looking to buy an USB audio interface for home recording. It has to be fairly common, since I intend to buy second-hand in Bulgaria (where I live), or maybe import from eBay UK. One instrument ...
4
votes
6answers
579 views
Normalising volume across thousands of files
For a project I'm working on, I need to produce approx 5000 voice-only recordings of approx 15 seconds each (typically each file is a couple of short sentences spoken aloud). I've approached this as ...
3
votes
2answers
340 views
Easy solution for controlling 5 or more speakers from a single computer
I work in a sensory research lab and we wanted to set up 5 or more speakers and control them with one computer, probably running Matlab. Is there a ready hardware solution for controlling 5 or more ...
2
votes
1answer
182 views
Redirect audio output from a streaming app to a DJ app
IS it possible? I want to play with the output of streaming radios.
Specifically i'm talking about something like Spin (streaming app) and Traktor or djay (DJ app).
And yeah I'm on a Mac.
1
vote
2answers
2k views
How do I recover truncated AVI/DV video?
Short version: I believe I have truncated but otherwise valid AVI/DV files that won't play in any player I've tried (Adobe Premiere, MPC HC, VLC). I assume the stream data is intact but truncated, and ...
1
vote
3answers
513 views
Microphone/Extras for video-tutorials/screencasts
For making video-tutorials/screencasts, what is a good, yet affordable microphone and what additional extras do I need?
The tutorials will revolve around programming, so things to consider might be ...
0
votes
4answers
199 views
Is Open-Source -film production possible with open-source tools?
Samuli -- of the Iron-Sky -film -- mentions (3.40 here) their used software:
adobe.com, Adobe Creative Suite 5
autodesk.com, Maya
newtek.com, Lightwave 3D 10
renderpal.com, RenderPal
...
10
votes
2answers
206 views
0db mono vs. 0db stereo
Let's assume I have a mono track in my DAW software. The track contains an audio file which was normalized to 0 db. If I play the track the volume gauge on the stereo out channel will go up only to ...
9
votes
2answers
569 views
What's the difference between an Engineer and a Producer?
People seem to be making a point of the distinction of the role of Engineer and Producer. What's the difference?
9
votes
4answers
288 views
All-round vocal mic
What should I be looking for when purchasing a good all-rounder vocal mic?
We've dealt in Shure SM58's for years. Are there other alternatives? What qualities should I be looking for when shopping ...
7
votes
2answers
537 views
What codec will my Youtube uploads be output in and what codec should I use to upload?
Related to What codecs/formats are appropriate for full motion video recording for youtube? I'm wondering exactly how I can expect Youtube to handle my videos. I know they have a rather zealous ...
7
votes
2answers
1k views
What is the difference between Autotune and a Vocoder?
A friend of mine mentioned that he had read somewhere that Autotune is actually not a vocoder. Is this true? If so, what is the difference?
Thanks,
Adrian
7
votes
3answers
1k views
Linux digital recording - Audacity or Ardour?
We're evaluating options for a live recording setup in a church. Because the budget is tight, we're looking at running Linux with two Delta 1010's.
So far I've Audacity and Ardour. So far I'm leaning ...
6
votes
2answers
403 views
Can I record a sound frequency I can't hear and play it back so I can hear it?
Can I record a sound frequency I can't hear and play it back so I can hear it?
If yes, How?
6
votes
3answers
833 views
Software for Live Multi-Tracking Recording & Mixing
So I'm looking for a piece of software for recording multi-track live audio (PC or Mac is fine, I have system for both). That meets several key requirements:
Can record at least 4 tracks
Works with ...
6
votes
2answers
366 views
What are the most used types of microphones and what are they best used for?
I've seen many different types of microphones, and I feel like I should know some of most important ones before getting any farther. What are the most commonly mic types and how does one decide which ...
5
votes
3answers
248 views
What's the difference between dynamic and condensor microphones?
When someone talks about a dynamic or condenser microphone, what do they mean?
How do these classes microphones differ, and are they used for different things?
Are there any more subdivisions of ...
5
votes
1answer
923 views
Zoom H2 recording levels are too low
I recently bought a Zoom H2 and I'm trying to record my acoustic guitar at home. I followed the manual to set it up so the level never goes over 0db (in case you're familiar with the H2, I put the ...
5
votes
2answers
1k views
Why do my vocal recordings sound thin and muffled?
Hi there
i'm a newbie in recording so i have a beginners question:
I recently bought an Audio Interface (the M-Audio FastTrack Pro) and recorded some stuff, which was really fun, and seems to have ...
5
votes
1answer
153 views
Keeping multitrack files online
I'm in the middle or recording an album, and my bandmate is in the next county. I'm currently using box.net to share mixes with him, but I have no easy way of sharing the multitrack files.
I've got ...
4
votes
1answer
91 views
What to fix first, audio or video?
I have made a short timelapse of some nature phenomena. I would like to add ambient-like background music to it with Ableton Live. Both the timelapse and the music are (going to be) made by me, the ...
4
votes
1answer
708 views
Is there a wifi MIDI controller keyboard?
I own a M-Audio Axiom which I plug into my MacBook Pro to use MainStage (part of Logic Studio). Recently I bought an iPad and downloaded some "controller apps". What most surprised my is that those ...
4
votes
6answers
484 views
Looking for a Sound Editor for Mac OSX
I am looking for an audio editor (it does not matter if it is free or not). I am starting to learn music and how create and edit in Mac. I want a simple but still powerful enough application to edit ...
4
votes
1answer
207 views
What is this incredibly annoying noise?
Hey all,
I've been getting this noise out of my set top box, desktop and laptop audio outs into my mixer. I've also tried using usb soundcards out ($5 from ebay) and they don't eliminate the problem. ...
3
votes
2answers
67 views
My Canon Powershot SX40 stops recording regularly and predictably.
I have a Canon Powershot SX40 HS and am having problems with recording.
I start to record and it only lets me for a short period of time. Then it stops recording by itself.
It seems to stop every ...
3
votes
2answers
407 views
why is higher sample rate changing the sound for the worse? I think its changing the pitch
I'm working on a current song which I posted an example of a while back when asking about why low frequency sawtooth oscillators change the sound. Since then I changed the base of the synth from NI ...
3
votes
1answer
163 views
Voice recording for radio, what effects are used?
I'm recording my voice for my radio show. I used to record at the radio studio but we have a problem and so i'm stuck at home with Sound Forge.
I record the voice with a Cobalt C04 Mic that sounds ok ...
3
votes
1answer
207 views
How to make sense of video file formats?
In digital video, there are all these different kinds of files: m4v, mov, mkv, mts, mp4, mpeg, and a host of others, and I can't seem to find a clear answer as to what each is good for.
(By contrast, ...
3
votes
2answers
64 views
Pro Tools tutorials
Can somebody point me to some good pro tools tutorial from beginners to pro level.
Your suggestion/feedback are welcome.
2
votes
1answer
85 views
Automatically synchronizing audio/video with FOSS tools?
At our hackerspace, we have a full HD video camera (Toshiba Camileo X200) with a crappy microphone input. Therefore, we use a Thomann SC450 USB microphone to capture audio on a computer. Buying new ...
2
votes
3answers
218 views
portable player to replace minidisc
I've been using minidisc players for the last decade. Since that technology is as good as dead, and so will by my last player soon, I'm in the market for the latest and greatest portable music player ...
1
vote
2answers
130 views
How does one call the y axis of a waveform?
In many audio applications one can find a waveform representation, but the y-axis normally is never labelled.
Now, if you would plot your own waveform and wanted to label it, what would be a correct ...
