REC O RD IN G JU LY 1999

The roads of Boston are famous for thei r random wa n-

d e r i n g . Few streets i ntersect at ri ght angl es. I n d i v i d u a l
s t reets change names, become one way, or dead end wi th-
out wa r n i n g . The nati ve s , not j ust the rent-a-car equi pped
t o u r i s t s , admi t that i ts easy to get l ost. A runni ng j oke
s ays that somew h e re i n thi s ci ty youl l re a ch an i nters e c-
ti on whi l e dri vi ng down a one way street and i nnocentl y
encounter al l three si gns of doom at once: no l eft turn,
no ri ght turn, and do not enter.
M aybe there i s a fl ashi ng red l i ght to warn you are
a p p ro a chi ng thi s dreaded i nters e c t i o n . And there i s pro b-
ab l y al so a si gn admoni shi ng you to yi el d to pedestri ans,
as i f your abi l i ty to make progress we re n t al re a dy l i mi t-
ed enough. N a t u ra l l y there are no si gns tel l i ng you what
s t reet you are on or what street you have re a ch e d .
The cars , most of them taxi s, j ust l i ne up. Your bl ood
p re s s u re ri ses. Your appoi ntments ex p i re . You scream to
yo u rs e l f, Why am I dri vi ng i n thi s town any way ?
Wi thout some fundamental understandi ng of how a
studi o i s connected, youl l eve n t u a l l y fi nd yo u rsel f at the
audi o equi val ent of thi s i ntersecti on: feedback l oops
s c ream through the moni tors , no fader seems capabl e of
turni ng down the vo c a l , drums rattl e away i n the head-
phones but are n t getti ng to tape... I coul d go on. B e l i eve
m e . I coul d go on.
At the center of thi s mess i s the mi xi ng consol e (a.k.a.
m i x e r, b o a rd , or desk). I n the hands of a qual i fi ed engi -
n e e r, i t manages the fl ow of al l audi o si gnal s, g e t t i n g
them to thei r appropri ate desti nati on safel y and smooth-
l y. The untrai ned user can expect to get l ost, e n c o u n t e r
fender benders , and eve n t u a l l y be para l y zed by gr i d l o ck .
The r ol e of t he mi xer
The ul ti mate functi on of the consol e i s to contro l ,
m a n i p u l a t e , and route al l the vari ous audi o si gnal s ra c-
i ng i n and out of the di fferent pi eces of equi pment i n the
studi o or synth ra cki t provi des the appropri ate si gnal
path for the re c o rdi ng task at hand.
Consi der mi xdow n . The si gnal fl ow goal of mi xi ng i s to
combi ne seve ral tra cks of musi c that have been oh-so-
c a re f u l l y re c o rded on a mu l t i t ra ck i nto two tra cks of
musi c that our fri ends, the radi o stati ons, and the re c o rd
buyi ng publ i c can enj oy. Th ey al l have stere o s , so we
c o nvert the mu l t i t ra ck re c o rdi ng i nto stereo: 24 tra ck s
i n , t wo tra cks out. The mi xer i s the devi ce that does thi s.
N a t u ra l l y, t h e re s a l ot more to mi xi ng than j ust com-
bi ni ng the 24 tra cks i nto a ni ce soundi ng 2-tra ck mi x. Fo r
ex a m p l e , we mi ght al so add reve r b . And equal i zati on.
And compre s s i o n . And a l i ttl e turbo-auto-panni ng-fl ange-
wah-di storti on (patent pendi ng. I t s j ust a l i ttl e patch
I m wo rki ng on i n the ol di gi tal mul ti -effects box ) .
I t i s the mi xi ng consol es j ob to provi de the si gnal fl ow
s t r u c t u re that enabl es al l these devi ces to be hooked up
c o r re c t l y. I t ensures that al l the appropri ate si gnal s get
to thei r desti nati ons wi thout runni ng i nto any t h i n g . A
p r i m a ry functi on of the consol e i s reveal ed: the mi xer
must be abl e to hook up any audi o output to any audi o
i n p u t . See Fi g u re 1 for an exampl e of the many possi bl e
hookups you mi ght expect your mi xer to prov i d e .
I n connecti ng any of these outputs to any of these i nputs,
the consol e i s asked to make a nearly i nfi ni te number of
opti ons possi bl e. We menti oned mixdown as an ex a m p l e
ab ove , but we do more than mi x. Our signal routing dev i c e
has to be abl e to confi gure the gear for re c o rdi ng a bunch
of si gnal s to the mu l t i t ra ck re c o rder si mu l t a n e o u s ly, l i ke
when we re c o rd a bi g band. I t should al so be abl e to make
the necessary si gnal fl ow adj ustments re q u i red to permit
an ove rdub on the mu l t i t ra ck .A dd i t i o n a l l y, we mi ght need
to re c o rd or broadcast l ive i n stere o.
Fo r t u n a t e ly, al l sessi ons fal l i nto one of the fo l l ow i n g
c a t e g o r i e s .
1. Basi cs
A mu l t i t ra ck re c o rdi ng proj ect begi ns wi th the basi cs
s e s s i o n . When doi ng the basi cs sessi on, nothi ng i s on
tape ye t , l ots of musi ci ans are i n the room pl ay i n g , a n d
the engi neer i s ch a rged wi th the task of getti ng the fi rs t
t ra cks onto tape.
You know how i t goes. The band al l pl ays tog e t h e r, a n d
you re c o rd them onto separate tra ck s . Of course the
L ad ies and g entlem en: B y n ow m o st o f yo u kn ow A lex C ases w riting very w ell (fo r in sta n c e ,
he w ro te th at fam o us Th e S n arem asterin g th e art of no isearticle in th e J an uaryissu e).
W h at yo u m ay n o t kno w is th at A lex is a busy eng in eer in th e B oston area, th at h e teach es
m usic pro d uction an d en gin eerin g at B erklee C olleg e of M usic, and th at h es just th e righ t
perso n to be startin g o ur n ew beginn ers series.
B efo re turn ing th e m ig h ty pen over to A lex for th is exten d ed -m ix o pen in g co lum n , let m e just
reassu re fello w fan s o f M ike R iversO o ps W ro ng B u tton th at th e series w ill co n tin u e in its
m o re ad van ced state. Its sim ply tim e to start o ver fro m S q uare 1 so reco rd in g n ovices can
be bro ugh t u p to speed .
A n d n o w w ith o u t fu rth er ad o I g ive yo u A lex.N B
P a r t 1 : C o n s o l e s a n d C o n n e c t i o n s
P a r t 1 : C o n s o l e s a n d C o n n e c t i o n s
REC O RD IN G JU LY 1999
si nger wi l l want to redo her part as an ove rdub l ater.
Di tto for the gui tari st. You sti l l re c o rd eve ry t h i n g , a s
someti mes the keeper take i s the one that happens dur-
i ng basi cs. No pre s s u re , j ust si ng/pl ay al ong so the band
can keep tra ck of whi ch ve rse they are on, and we l l
re c o rd a more careful tra ck i n a few we e k s .
S u ch freedom often l eads to cre a t i vi ty and ch a n c e - t a k-
i n g , key components of a great take . So you may one day
be gl ad you re c o rded the si nger that day. Di tto for the
g u i t a r i s t .
Wi th the i ntent to do so many tra cks as ove rdubs l ater
a ny way, the audi o mi ssi on of the basi cs sessi on i s
reduced to getti ng the ki l l er drum and bass perfo r m a n c e
onto the mu l t i t ra ck . And someti mes even the bass part
gets deferred i nto an ove rd u b .
So for basi cs we re c o rd the enti re band pl ayi ng al l at
once to get the drummers part on tape. C h e ck out the
set-up sheet for a ve ry si mpl e basi cs sessi on. I t s j ust a
t r i o d r u m s , b a s s , g u i t a r, and vocal sand yet we ve got
at l east 15 mi crophones goi ng to at l east ten tra ck s .
I say at l east because i t i s easy to throw more mi cs on
these same i nstruments (e.g. c reate a more i ntere s t i n g
gui tar tone through the combi nati on of seve ral di ffere n t
ki nds of mi cs i n di fferent l ocati ons around the gui tar
a m p ) . And i f you have enough tra ck s , i t i s tempti ng to use
even more tra cks (e.g. re c o rd the bass DI di rect to the
mi xer as a separate tra ck from the mi ked bass cab i n e t ) .
The consol e i s i n the center of al l thi s, as shown i n
Fi g u re 3. I t routes al l those mi c si gnal s to the mu l t i t ra ck
so you can re c o rd them. I t routes them to the moni tors so
you can hear them. I t routes those same si gnal s to the
headphones so the band members can hear each other,
the pro d u c e r, and the engi neer. And i t sends and re c e i ve s
audi o to and from any number of si gnal pro c e s s o rs (more
i s better): compre s s o rs , e q u a l i ze rs , reve r b s , e t c .
2. Over dubbi ng
For the ove rdubs there are often fewer musi ci ans pl ay-
i n g , f ewer mi crophones i n acti on, and possi bl y fewer band
m e m b e rs aro u n d . I t i s often a mu ch cal mer ex p e r i e n c e .
Duri ng basi cs there i s the unspoken but stro n g ly
i mpl i ed pre s s u re that no one can mess up or the whol e
t a ke wi l l have to be stopped. The crowd i n the studi o i s
ove r w h e l m i n g . The crowd i n the control room i s wa t ch-
i n g . The l i ghts, m e t e rs , mi cs and cabl es al l over the pl ace
compl ete that i n the l ab , under a mi cro s c o p e f e e l i n g .
Pe r formance anxi ety fi l l s the studi o of a basi cs sessi on.
O ve rd u b s , on the other hand, a re as uncompl i cated as
a si nger, a mi cro p h o n e , a pro d u c e r, and an engi neer. D i m
the l i ghts. R e l a x . Do a few practi ce runs. A ny mu s i c a l
m i s t a kes toni ght are j ust between us. No one el se wi l l
hear them. Wel l erase them. I f you dont l i ke i t, j ust stop
and wel l try agai n.
M e a n t i m e , the consol e routes the mi cs to the mu l t i -
t ra ck tape. The consol e creates the rough mi x of the mi cs
and the tra cks al re a dy on tape and sends them to the
m o n i t o rs . S i mu l t a n e o u s l y, i t creates a separate mi x fo r
the headphones. And we never mi ss an opportuni ty to
p a t ch i n a compressor and some effects. Fi g u re 4 l ays out
the consol e i n ove rdub mode.
3. Mi xdown
For mi xdow n , the engi neer and producer use thei r
musi cal and techni cal abi l i ti es to the max, coaxi ng the
most sati sfyi ng l oudspeaker performance out of eve ry-
thi ng the band re c o rd e d . Th e re i s no l i mi t to what mi ght
be attempted. Th e re i s no l i mi t to the amount of gear
that mi ght be needed.
I n case yo u ve never seen what goes on i n a bi g budget
pop mi x, l et me reveal an i mportant fact: nearl y eve ry
t ra ck (and there are at l east 24, p ro b ab l y many more )
gets equal i zed and compressed and pro b ab l y gets a dose
of reverb and/or some addi ti onal effects as we l l . A few
h u n d red patch cabl es are used. Perhaps seve ral tens,
p ro b ab l y hundreds of thousands of dol l ars worth of out-
b o a rd si gnal processi ng i s used.
Automati on i s re q u i re d . And an enormous consol e i s
d e s i re d . Duri ng earl i er re c o rdi ng and ove rd u bbi ng ses-
si ons you mi ght have thought, Thi s i s soundi ng l i ke a
h i t . I t s not unti l mi xdown when youl l re a l l y feel i t. I t s
not unti l the gear- i n t e n s e , t ra ck by tra ck assembl y of the
tune that youl l thi nk, Thi s sounds l i ke a re c o rd !
As Fi g u re 5 i l l ustra t e s , the si gnal fl ow associ ated wi th
m i x d own i s actual ly qui te stra i g h t fo r wa rd . Gone i s the
need to handl e mi crophone si gnal s. Gone i s the need to
c reate a headphone mi x. Nothi ng needs to be sent to the
mu l t i t ra ck . The mi ssi on i s to route mu l t i t ra ck musi c pl us
effects to the moni tors . The onl y addi ti on i s the master 2-
t ra ck mach i n e . The poi nt, after al l , i s to create a DAT,
c a s s e t t e , or CD master of the mi x.
4. Li ve t o 2
For many gi gs we bypass the mu l t i t ra ck enti re l y,
re c o rdi ng a l i ve performance of any number of mu s i c i a n s
s t rai ght to the 2-tra ck master machi ne or sendi ng i t l i ve
to a stereo broadcast or the house moni tors .
A Li ve to 2 sessi on i s the rather i nti mi dati ng combi na-
ti on of al l el ements of a Basi cs and a Mi xdown sessi on.
Pe r formance anxi ety fi l l s the perfo r m e rs , the pro d u c e r,
and the engi neer.
REC O RD IN G JU LY 1999
But for the consol e i tsel f, the gi g i s
a c t u a l l y qui te stra i g h t fo r wa rd: mi cro-
phones i n, s t e reo mi x out. Of cours e
we want to patch i n any number of
si gnal pro c e s s o rs . Then the re s u l t i n g
s t e reo feed goes to the studi o moni -
t o rs , the house moni tors , the head-
p h o n e s , the 2-tra ck master re c o rd e r,
and/or the tra n s m i t t e r.
Boar d of conf usi on
These four types of sessi ons defi ne
the ful l range of si gnal fl ow re q u i re-
ments of the most capabl e mi xer. Ye t
despi te havi ng di sti l l ed the possi bi l i -
ti es i nto these key categori es, t h e
consol e demands to be appro a ch e d
wi th some org a n i z a t i o n . B ro a d l y, we
can expect to be frustrated by two
i n h e rent features of the devi ce: com-
p l exi ty of fl ow (where i s the si gnal
supposed to be goi ng?) and quanti ty
of control s (l ook at al l these pots!).
C o m p l exi ty i s bui l t i nto the consol e
because i t can provi de the si gnal
f l ow structure for any ki nd of re c o rd-
i ng sessi on one mi ght encounter. Th e
push of any button on the consol e
mi ght ra d i c a l l y change the si gnal
f l ow confi gurati on of the dev i c e .
I n thi s studi o ful l of equi pment,
that l i ttl e button changes whats
h o o ked up to what. A fader that used
to control the snare mi cro p h o n e
goi ng to tra ck 16 mi ght i nstantl y be
sw i t ched i nto control l i ng the bari -
tone sax l evel i n the mi x. I t gets
messy fa s t .
The sheer quanti ty of control s on
the wo rk surface of the mi xer i s an
i n ev i t abl e headache because the con-
sol e i s capabl e of routi ng so many
d i f f e rent ki nds of outputs to so many
d i f f e rent ki nds of i nputs. 24 tra cks i s
the norm for mu l t i t ra ck pro j e c t s .
Most of us exceed thi s. Number of
m i c rophones and si gnal pro c e s s o rs ?
We l l , l e t s j ust say that more i s better.
The resul t i s consol es that fi l l the
roomor a pai r of 17" computer
m o n i t o rswi th knobs, fa d e rs , a n d
sw i t ch e s . The control room starts to
l ook l i ke the cockpi t of the space
s h u t t l e , wi th a mi nd-numbi ng col l ec-
ti on of contro l s , l i g h t s , and meters .
These two fa c t o rs , c o m p l exi ty and
q u a n t i t y, c o n s p i re to make the con-
sol e a confusi ng and i nti mi dati ng
d evi ce to use. I t neednt be.
Fl exi bi l i t y: f r i end or f oe?
I n the end, a mi xer i s not doi ng
a nythi ng especi al ly tri cky. The mi xer
j ust creates the si gnal fl ow necessary
to get the outputs associ ated wi th
t o d ay s sessi on to the appro p r i a t e
i n p u t s .
The consol e becomes confusi ng
and i nti mi dati ng when the si gnal
routi ng fl exi bi l i ty of the consol e
t a kes over and the engi neer l oses
c o n t rol over what the consol e i s
d o i n g . I t s frustrati ng to do an ove r-
dub when the consol e i s i n a Li ve to
2 confi gura t i o n . The thi ng wo n t per-
mi t you to moni tor whats on the
mu l t i t ra ck tape.
Or i f the consol e i s expecti ng a
m i x d ow n , but the sessi on wants to
re c o rd basi c tra ck s , you ex p e r i e n c e
that hel pl ess feel i ng of not bei ng
abl e to hear a si ngl e mi cro p h o n e
t h a t s been set up. The band ke e p s
p l ay i n g , but the control ro o m
remai ns si l ent.
I t doesnt take too many of these
experi ences befo re consol e-phobi a
sets i n. A l oss of confi dence matur-
i ng i nto an outri ght fear of usi ng cer-
tai n consol es i s a natural re a c t i o n .
Th rough total knowl edge of si gnal
f l ow, thi s can be ove rc o m e .
The key to understandi ng the si g-
nal fl ow of all consol es i s to bre a k
the mu l t i t ra ck re c o rdi ng pro c e s s
whether mi xi ng, ove rd u bb i n g , or any-
thi ng el sei nto two di sti nct si gnal
f l ow stages.
Fi rst i s the Channel path. A l s o
cal l ed the Record path, i t i s the
part of the consol e used to get a
m i c rophone si gnal (or synth output)
to the mu l t i t ra ck tape machi ne and,
you know, record it.I t usual l y has a
m i c rophone preamp at i ts i nput,
and some nu m b e red tape busses at
i ts output. I n between you fi nd a
fader and maybe some equal i zati on,
c o m p re s s i o n , effects sends, c u e
s e n d s , and other handy feature s
Al ong the way, the Moni tor Path has
a fader and possi bl y another col l ec-
ti on of si gnal processi ng ci rc u i t ry l i ke
e q u a l i z a t i o n , c o m p re s s i o n , and more .
Keepi ng these two si gnal fl ow
paths separate i n your mi nd wi l l
e n abl e you to make sense of the
p l e t h o ra of control s si tti ng i n fro n t
of you on the consol e. Try to hang on
to these two di sti nct si gnal paths
c o n c e p t u a l l y, as thi s wi l l hel p yo u
u n d e rstand how the si gnal fl ow
s t r u c t u re changes when goi ng fro m
basi cs to mi xdow n . Try to break up
the consol e real estate i nto ch a n n e l
secti ons and moni tor secti ons so that
you know whi ch fader i s a ch a n n e l
fader and whi ch i s a moni tor fa d e r.
Spl i t consol es
Consol e manu fa c t u re rs offer us
t wo channel /moni tor l ayo u t s . O n e
way to arrange the Channel paths
and Moni tor paths i s to separa t e
them phy s i c a l l y from each other. P u t
al l the Channel paths on, s ay, the l eft
si de of the mi xer and the Moni tor
associ ated wi th getti ng a gre a t
sound to tape.
The second di sti nct audi o path i s
the Moni tor path. I t i s the part of the
consol e you use to actual l y hear t h e
sounds you are re c o rd i n g . I t typi cal ly
begi ns wi th the mu l t i t ra ck tape
returns and ends at the mi x bus.
REC O RD IN G JU LY 1999
paths on the ri ght as i n Fi g u re 8A.
Thi s i s a spl i t confi gura t i o n .
Wo rki ng on thi s type of consol e i s
fa i rl y stra i g h t fo r wa rd . See the snare
ove rl oad on the mu l t i t ra ck? Thi s i s a
re c o rdi ng pro b l e m . Head to the l eft
si de of the board and grab the
Channel fader governi ng the snare
m i c . L evel s to tape l ook good, b u t
the gui tar i s drowni ng out the vo c a l ?
Thi s i s a moni tori ng pro b l e m . R e a ch
over to the ri ght si de of the consol e
and fi x i t wi th the Moni tor fa d e rs .
Si tti ng i n front of 48 fa d e rs i s l ess
confusi ng i f you know the 24 on the
l eft are control l i ng mi crophone l ev-
el s to tape (channel fa d e rs) and the
24 on the ri ght are control l i ng mi x
l evel s to the l oudspeake rs (moni tor
fa d e rs ) . So i ts not too confusi ng that
t h e re are two fa d e rs l ab e l e d , L e a d
vo c a l . The one on the l eft i s the mi c
yo u re re c o rdi ng; the one on the
r i ght i s the tra ck yo u re l i steni ng to.
In-l i ne consol es
A cl ever but often confusi ng
enhancement to the consol e i s the
i n-l i ne confi gura t i o n . H e re the ch a n-
nel and moni tor paths are no l onger
s e p a rated i nto separate modul es on
s e p a rate si des of the mi xer. I n fa c t ,
t h ey are combined i nto a si ngl e mod-
ul e set; see Fi g u re 8B.
Experi ence tel l s us that our fo c u s ,
and there fo re our si gnal pro c e s s i n g ,
tends to be ori ented towa rd ei ther
the channel path or the moni tor
p a t h , but not both. Duri ng tra ck i n g
the engi neer i s dedi cati ng ears ,
b ra i n s , h e a r t , and equi pment to the
re c o rd path, t ryi ng to get the best
sounds on tape as possi bl e.
S u re the moni tori ng part of the
consol e i s bei ng used. The mu s i c
bei ng re c o rded coul dnt be heard
o t h e r w i s e . But the moni tor secti on i s
j ust creati ng a rough mi x, gi vi ng the
e n g i n e e r, p roducer and musi ci ans an
honest aural i mage of what i s bei ng
re c o rd e d .
The real wo rk i s happeni ng on the
channel si de of thi ngs, and the moni -
tor path shoul d onl y report the
resul ts of that wo rk accura t e l y.
A ddi ng el ab o rate si gnal pro c e s s i n g
on the moni tor path only adds confu-
si on at best, and mi sl eadi ng l i es at
wo rs t . For exampl e addi ng a s m i l ey
fa c e equal i zati on curve b o o s t i n g
the l ows and the hi ghs so that a
graphi c eq woul d seem to smi l eon
the moni tor path of the vocal coul d
hi de the fact that a box y, t h i n ,a n d
muffl ed si gnal i s whats actual l y
bei ng re c o rded onto the mu l t i t ra ck .
I t turns out that for tra ck i n g , ove r-
d u bb i n g , m i x i n g , and l i ve to 2 ses-
s i o n s , we onl y re a l ly need si gnal pro-
cessi ng once, i n the channel or the
moni tor path. We ve j ust seen the
channel path focus of tra ck i n g .
Mi xi ng and Li ve to 2 sessi ons are
al most enti re l y focused on the fi nal
s t e reo mi x that we hear, so the engi -
neer and the equi pment become
m o re moni tor path ori ented.
H e rei n l i es an oppor tuni ty to
i m p rove the consol e. I f the normal
c o u rse of a sessi on ra re l y re q u i re s
si gnal processi ng on both the moni -
tor path and the channel path, t h e n
w hy not cut out hal f the si gnal
p ro c e s s o rs? I f hal f the equal i ze rs ,
f i l t e rs , c o m p re s s o rs , aux sends, e t c .
a re re m ove d , the manu fa c t u rer can
offer the consol e at a l ower pr i ce,
REC O RD IN G JU LY 1999
or spend the freed re s o u rces on a
hi gher qual i ty ve rsi on of the si gnal
p ro c e s s o rs that re m a i n , or l i ttl e bi t
of both.
And as an added bonus the consol e
gets a l i ttl e smal l er and a l ot of
those knobs and sw i t ches di sappear,
reduci ng costs and confusi on further
s t i l l . Thi s moti vates the creati on of
the i n-l i ne consol e.
On an i n-l i ne consol e, the ch a n n e l
path and the moni tor path are com-
bi ned i nto a si ngl e modul e so they
can share some equi pment. S w i t ch e s
l i e next to most pi eces of the con-
s o l e , l etti ng the engi neer deci de,
pi ece by pi ece, whether a
g i ven feature i s needed i n the
channel path or the moni tor
p a t h . The equal i ze r, for ex a m-
p l e , can be sw i t ched i nto the
re c o rd path duri ng an ove rd u b
and then i nto the moni tor
path duri ng mi xdow n . D i t t o
for any other si gnal pro c e s s-
i n g .
Of cours e , some equi pment
i s re q u i red for both the ch a n-
nel path and the moni tor
p a t h l i ke fa d e rs . So there i s
a l ways a channel fader and a
s e p a rate moni tor fader (l ess
ex p e n s i ve mi xer s often use
moni tor pots). The i n-l i ne
consol e i s a cl ever col l ecti on
of onl y the equi pment need-
e d , when i ts needed, w h e re
i t s needed.
Channel sur f i ng
An unavo i d abl e resul t of stre a m-
l i ni ng the consol e i nto an i n-l i ne con-
f i g u rati on i s the fo l l owi ng ki nd of
c o n f u s i o n . A si ngl e modul e, w h i ch
n ow consi sts of two di sti nct si gnal
p a t h s , mi ght have two ve ry di ffere n t
audi o sounds wi thi n i t.
Consi der a si mpl e vocal ove rd u b . A
g i ven modul e mi ght easi l y have a
vocal mi crophone on i ts ch a n n e l
fader but some other si gnal , l i ke a
p rev i o u s l y re c o rded gui tar tra ck , o n
i ts moni tor fa d e r. The l i ve vocal tra ck
i s actual l y bei ng moni tored on some
other modul e and there i s no ch a n-
nel for the gui tar, as i t wa s
ove rd u bbed ye s t e rd ay.
L evel s to tape l ook good,
but the gui tar i s drowni ng out
the vocal ? Thi s i s a moni tori ng
p ro b l e m . The sol uti on i s to
turn down the moni tor fa d e r
for the gui tar. But where i s i t?
U n l i ke the spl i t desi gn, a n
i n-l i ne consol e presents us
wi th the abi l i ty to both re c o rd
and moni tor si gnal s on eve ry
modul e across the enti re con-
s o l e . E a ch modul e has a moni -
tor path. Th e re fo re each mod-
ul e mi ght have a prev i o u s l y
re c o rded tra ck under the con-
t rol of one of i ts fa d e rs . E a ch
modul e al so has a ch a n n e l
p a t h . Th e re fo re , e a ch modul e
mi ght have a l i ve mi cro p h o n e
si gnal runni ng through i t.
To use an i n-l i ne consol e,
you must be abl e to answe r
the fo l l owi ng questi on i n a spl i t sec-
ond: Wh i ch of the perhaps 100
fa d e rs i n front of me control s the
gui tar tra ck ? K n ow where the gui -
t a r s moni tor path i s at al l ti mes, a n d
d o n t be bothered i f the ch a n n e l
fader shari ng that modul e has noth-
i ng to do wi th the gui tar tra ck . Th e
moni tor stri p may say, G u i t a r.
But you know that the ch a n n e l
contai ns the vocal bei ng re c o rd e d . I t
i s essenti al to know how to turn
d own the gui tars moni tor fader wi th-
out fear of acci dental ly pul l i ng dow n
the l evel of the vocal goi ng to the
mu l t i t ra ck tape.
REC O RD IN G JU LY 1999
One must mai ntai n tra ck sheets,
set-up sheets, and other sessi on doc-
u m e n t a t i o n . These pi eces of paper
can be as i mportant as the tape/hard
di sk that stores the mu s i c . H oweve r,
rather than j ust re l yi ng on these
n o t e s , i t hel ps to mai ntai n a mental
i nve n t o ry of where eve ry mi cro-
p h o n e , t ra ck , and effects uni t i s
p a t ched i nto the mi xer.
M u ch to the frustrati on of the
assi stant engi neer who needs to
wa t ch and document whats goi ng
on and the producer who woul d l i ke
to fi gure out whats goi ng on, m a ny
e n g i n e e rs dont even bother l ab e l -
i ng the stri p or any equi pment fo r
an ove rdub sessi on or even a mi x
s e s s i o n . The enti r e sessi on set-up
and tra ck sheet i s i n thei r
h e a d s .
I f you have enough men-
tal RAM for thi s, t ry to do
i t . I t hel ps you get i nto the
p ro j e c t . You are fo rced to
be as focused on the song
as the musi ci ans are .
Th ey ve got l i nes and
changes and sol os and
l yri cs to keep tra ck of.
The engi neer can be
expected to keep up wi th
the mi crophones and
reverbs and tra cks on tape.
Thi s comes wi th pra c t i c e .
And when you know the
l ayout of the consol e thi s
i n t i m a t e l y, the ove rl a p p i n g
of mi crophones and tra ck s
that appears on an i n-l i ne
consol e i s not so confusi ng.
S u re the spl i t consol e offers some
g e ographi c separati on of mi c si g-
nal s from tape si gnal s, w h i ch make s
i t a l i ttl e easi er to remember whats
w h e re . But through practi ce you are
goi ng to keep up wi th al l the
detai l s i n a sessi on any way. The i n-
l i ne consol e becomes a perfectl y
c o m fo r t abl e pl ace to wo rk .
Get t i ng your ducks i n a r ow
I f yo u ve di al ed i n the perfect
equal i zati on and compressi on for the
s n a re drum duri ng a basi cs sessi on,
but fai l to noti ce that you are pro-
cessi ng i ts moni tor path i nstead of
i ts channel path, you are i n for a sur-
p r i s e . When you pl ay back the tra ck
n ext week for ove rd u b s , youl l fi nd
that that powerful snare
was a moni tori ng cre a t i o n
o n l y and di dnt go to tape.
I t eva p o rated on the l ast
p l ay b a ck l ast we e k .
H o p e f u l ly you re m e m b e r
and/or document the set-
ti ngs of al l si gnal pro c e s s-
i ng equi pment any way, b u t
m o re hel pful woul d be to
h ave had the si gnal pro-
cessi ng chai n i n front of
the mu l t i t ra ck tape
m a ch i n e , not after. No wo r-
r i e s .
Th rough ex p e r i e n c e ,
youl l l earn the best pl ace
for si gnal processi ng fo r
a ny gi ven sessi on.
E q u a l i z a t i o n , c o m p re s s i o n ,
reve r b , the headphones
e a ch has a l ogi cal choi ce for i ts
s o u rce: the channel path or moni tor
p a t h . And i t vari es by type of ses-
s i o n . Once yo u ve l i ved through a
vari ety of sessi ons i t becomes
i n s t i n c t ive .
Your mi ssi on i s to know how to
pi ece together channel paths, m o n i -
tor paths, and any desi red si gnal pro-
cessi ng for any type of sessi on. Th e n
the si gnal fl ow fl exi bi l i ty of any
m i x e r, spl i t or i n-l i ne, i s no l onger
i n t i m i d a t i n g .
By stayi ng ori ented to the ch a n n e l
porti on of the si gnal and the moni tor
porti on of the si gnal , you can use
ei ther consol e to accompl i sh the
wo rk of any sessi on. You can fo c u s
i nstead on musi c maki ng.
REC O RD IN G JU LY 1999
What s t hat swi t ch do?
I wi l l admi t that there i s such a
thi ng as too mu ch . You may be an
excel l ent engi neer capabl e of re c o rd-
i ng sweet tra ck s , but when Pe t e r
G abri el i nvi tes you to hi s studi o and
you si t i n front of hi s 72 channel G-
Seri es SSL, you wi l l have tro u b l e
doi ng what you know how to do
( re c o rdi ng the sweet tra cks) whi l e
deal i ng wi th what you dont know
h ow to do (use thi s enormous mi xer
w i t h , g u l p, m o re than 8,000 knobs
and sw i t ch e s ) .
Good news: that vast control sur-
face i s pri mari l y j ust one smal l er
c o n t rol group (the modul e) re p e a t e d
ove r, and ove r, and over agai n. K n ow
h ow to use a si ngl e modul e and yo u
k n ow how to use the whol e col l ecti on
of 72 modul es.
I m p ress your cl i ents. I m p ress yo u r
f r i e n d s . H e ck , i m p ress yo u rs e l f.
Master the many subtl e aspects of
j uggl i ng moni tor and channel paths
t h rough di fferent types of sessi ons,
and l earn to si t cal mly i n front of
consol es that have grown we l l
b eyond 100 modul es, and youl l have
d evel oped 90% of the abi l i ty to use
a ny consol e any w h e re .
Alex Case always has a con v i n c i n g ly
innocent look on his face when he sees
a traffic cop or a console. You can write
to Alex with questions or suggestions
on wh at youd like to see in Nuts &
Bolts at case@re c o r d i n g m a g . c o m .
basics (or tracking): The earl y
stages of a re c o rdi ng pro j e c t
re c o rdi ng the i ndi vi dual tra cks on
the mu l t i t ra ck re c o rd e r. Thi s i s done
b e fo re addi ng ove rd u b s , mi xi ng to
s t e re o, or masteri ng for fi nal dupl i ca-
t i o n /d i s t r i b u t i o n .
bus (sometimes spelled buss): A
si gnal path that can accept and mi x
si gnal s from vari ous sourc e s .
channel, channel path (or input
path or record path): The si gnal
comi ng from your source (mi c,
i nstrument, or returni ng from an
al ready-recorded track on your mul-
ti tracker) i nto one of the mi xers
channel s, passi ng through that chan-
nel s el ectroni cs, then usual l y get-
ti ng spl i t to go to several desti na-
ti ons (moni tor secti on for l i steni ng,
mul ti tracker to be recorded, effect
sends for del ay/reverb etc, master
secti on for stereo mi x).
compression: Dynami c tre a t m e n t
of a si gnal so that the di ffere n c e
b e t ween the l oudest and softest
moments i s re d u c e d .
D e l ay: E l e c t ro n i c a l ly created re p e-
ti ti ons of a sound (ech o e s ) . S h o r t e r
d e l ays are perc e ived as fl a n g i n g ,ch o-
rusing or doubling. Wel l study these
effects another ti me.
DI: D i rect I nj ect or Di rect I nput
bypassi ng an i nstrument amp by tak-
i ng the si gnal (usual ly from gui tars
and bass gui tars) strai ght to a ch a n-
nel i nput of the board . U s u a l ly thi s i s
done vi a a smal l devi ce cal l ed a
d i rect box , w h i ch matches l evel s so
the i nstruments weak si gnal i s
m a t ched to the board s i nput.
equalization or eq: Tonal tre a t-
ment of a si gnal by attenu a t i n g
( reduci ng) or boosti ng sel ected
ranges of the total spectrum (bass
and trebl e control s are the si mpl est
ex a m p l e s ) . Th e re are many types of
e q , w h i ch wel l l earn about l ater.
filter: An el ectroni c devi ce that
reduces certai n ranges of the total
s p e c t r u m . For ex a m p l e , a l o w - p a s s
filter a t t e nuates (reduces) hi gh fre-
q u e n c i e s , passes (l eaves al one) l ow
f re q u e n c i e s . Equal i zati on i s genera l -
l y done wi th arrays of fi l ters .
l ive to 2: Bypassi ng a mu l t i t ra ck
re c o rd e r, mi xi ng any number of
i nput sources al l at once i nto stere o.
microphone preamp: An el ectro n i c
d evi ce that i ncreases the typi cal l y
ve ry weak si gnal s produced by
m i c rophones so that these si gnal s
can j oi n others at l i n e l evel i n a
m i x e r.
mix bus: See bu s .
m i x d own: U s u a l l y stage three i n a
re c o rdi ng proj ect after basi cs and
ove rd u b s , thi s i s when al l prev i o u s l y
re c o rded tra cks on the mu l t i t ra cke r
a re routed through (returned to) the
b o a rd , thei r l evel s and panni ng and
effects adj usted, resul ti ng i n a fi nal
s t e reo mi x.
m i xer (or console, b o a r d , d e s k ) :
An apparatus wi th many el ectro n i c
G l o s s a r y
We l l i n c l u d e a l i s t o f t e r ms i n t r o d u c e d
i n e a c h i n s t a l l me n t o f t h e c o l u mn , a n d
c o l l e c t t h e m o n o u r We b s i t e a s a n
o n g o i n g r e f e r e n c e . H e r e s a s t a r t i n g
l i s t o f t e r ms me n t i o n e d i n t h i s a r t i c l e .
REC O RD IN G JU LY 1999
c i rc u i t s , al l desi gned to accept
audi o si gnal s, spl i t (dupl i cate)
t h e m , re - route them, combi ne them,
adj ust thei r l eve l s , tonal ch a ra c t e r-
i s t i c s , and pl acement i n the fi nal
s t e reo mi x.
module: A group of el ectroni c ci r-
cui ts that combi ne to ach i eve a spe-
ci fi c task, as i n a mi xers ch a n n e l
m o d u l e
monitor path: A mi xer si gnal path
that accepts and mi xes si gnal s to be
m o n i t o red (l i stened to).
outboard signal processing:
Treatment (reve r b , d e l ay s , o t h e rs) of
si gnal s outsi de of the board (re a ch e d
vi a effects or auxi l i ary send busses
and send outputs, returned to the
b o a rd vi a return i nputs and re t u r n
b u s s e s )
overdub: A ddi ng one tra ck or sev-
e ral tra cks to prev i o u s l y re c o rd e d
t ra cks (e.g. a si nger adds vocal s after
the i nstrumental tra cks have been
re c o rd e d ) .
p a t ch cable: A cord connecti ng two
poi nts to carry a si gnal from A to B.
pot: Shor t for p o t e n t i o m e n t e r , a
d evi ce that i ncreases or decre a s e s
the si gnal strength (a ki nd of vo l u m e
c o n t rol ) or tweaks eq setti ngs, e t c .
B a s i c a l ly a techi e term for a knob.
return (tape or aux or effects): A
type of i nput i nto the board bri ngi ng
b a ck si gnal s other than the ori gi nal
s o u rces (mi cs or i nstruments), e i t h e r
p rev i o u s l y re c o rded mu l t i t ra ck s , o r
si gnal s returni ng from outboard
p ro c e s s o rs . See s e n d .
r everb: An el ectro n i c a l l y cre a t e d
i l l usi on of room acousti cs.
send (aux or cue): C i rcui ts (busses)
that l ead to an output connector
f rom where si gnal s can be sent to
o u t b o a rd pro c e s s o rs or to moni tori ng
(l i steni ng) setups. See re t u r n .
stereo bus: The fi nal two ci rc u i t s
i n a board that accept and mi x si g-
nal s to become the Left and Ri ght
channel s of a stereo mi x.
t ape bus: A ci rcui t that accepts
and mi xes si gnal s to or from tape
re c o rd e rs .
t wo mix: See s t e reo bu s .
ExcerptedfromtheJuly editionof RECORDINGmagazine.
1999 MusicMaker Publications, Inc. Reprintedwithpermission.
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