More Tips For Recording Vocals

B. Thomas Cooper - Editor

Sound and Recording - blogment -
National News wire - The Infinite Echo

When it comes to recording vocals, misconceptions abound. So many wonderful singers, so little dependable information. We are all instantly capable of recognizing a strong vocal performance, but what goes into capturing that performance usually isn't so obvious.

It all starts with a good singer and a good song. From there, choose a reliable microphone. Many engineers prefer using large diaphragm condenser microphones, but I have no preference. After thirty years of intensive studio experience I have learned to rely on the vocalist, not the microphone. While working as a staff producer at the world famous Power Station Studios, I had at my disposal, nearly every mic imaginable. One quickly learns that not every vocal should be captured with an expensive ribbon mic. Think hard about what it is you're trying to accomplish. Feel free to experiment.



Remember, good microphone technique and proper singing habits will profoundly effect your vocal performance. A mic can only capture what you produce. Once the performance has been captured, it can be enhanced through various means, including reverb, compression, etc. but all the reverb in the world will not drown out a bad performance.

Singers tend to be a finicky lot, a fact I can personally attest to. Still, no two vocalists are alike. Do whatever it takes to make the singer comfortable and confident. A good headphone mix is crucial. If you can't hear what your doing, you stand little chance of doing it well. I can honestly say the Power Station had the best headphone systems I have ever experienced. It is little wonder to me why the studio produced so many hit records.

From here, things get somewhat slippery. A producer like Terry Date will not approach a vocal for the Deftones in the same manner Jim Steinman might approach a Meat Loaf recording. Even at the highest levels of the industry, approach can be radically different.



Unless all indications suggest to the contrary, go with the flow. In other words, don't rock the boat. Learn all you can about recording, and keep an open mind. A vocal track can make or break an otherwise average recording. It is our goal to recognize the difference.

B. Thomas Cooper - Editor

Sound and Recording - Sound Foundation - National Newswire - The Infinite Echo - Impeachment Now! - Skate the Razor -
Skate the Razor Blog - blogment

Product Review SONY MDR-V600 Dynamic Stereo Headphones

B. Thomas Cooper - Editor

Sound and Recording - blogment -
National News wire - The Infinite Echo

Product Review

SONY MDR-V600 Dynamic Stereo Headphones

This is a fine offering by Sony, a sturdy set of headphones, with firm, comfortable ear pieces and a warm, desirable frequency response. In simple words… a good investment for anyone looking for a reliable set of headphones.



I purchased my first pair of few years ago, and have really appreciated their durability and sound quality. After unconscionable abuse, the material on the ear pieces was beginning to wear thin, so I went in search of a new set, not really expecting to settle on another pair of Sony V600’s. However, once I’d listened to about two dozen different sets, I found myself eager to lay down the very reasonable ninety-nine dollar retail price. I suppose I could have saved myself some time and money by ordering the MDR-V600’s online, but hey, it was well worth getting out there and hearing for myself what was available. The result is that I now own two pair of MDR-V600‘s. I rate the product very highly.

Driver (40mm Aura-Normic Designed Driver)
Impedance (45ohms)
Frequency Response (5Hz to 30,000Hz)
Rated Power (500mW) *1/2 watt*
Max Power (1,000mW) *1 watt* (not recommended)
Cord Length (9.8 feet)

B. Thomas Cooper - Editor

Sound and Recording - Sound Foundation - National Newswire - The Infinite Echo - Impeachment Now! - Skate the Razor -
Skate the Razor Blog - blogment

Harry and the Monologue

B. Thomas Cooper - Editor

Sound and Recording - blogment -
National News wire - The Infinite Echo

It’s only Tuesday, and already, it’s been quite a week. I have been working away on a monologue I am set to deliver this Saturday at Flower Street Station in Phoenix.

As you might guess, listening to a monologue and delivering a monologue are quite different, and composing this first monologue has not proven a simple task. For several days now, I have shouldered the burden of great anxiety over the content, you know, just trying to find the right words to share on such a momentous occasion.

In fact, it has begun to adversely effect my sleep to the point where I am experiencing nightmares. Usually I don’t recall my dreams, but one in particular continues to haunt me.

In this dream, I’m sitting in the front row of what begins as a typical show here at Flower Street station, but then suddenly morphs into a large, exquisite auditorium, complete with orchestra pit, and an entire orchestra, with a pair of cellists sitting just below me, perhaps no further than three or four feet away. In this dream, I am so close to the musicians, I can see the eyes as they follow along with the dots on the sheets of music before them, strange, as I should have been staring at the backs of their heads. May I remind you, it was, of course, only a dream.

On stage is a large, pearl white grand piano. Playing that piano is none other than singer, songwriter, Marc Cohn, known primarily for his one big hit, Walking in Memphis released back in 1991. In fact, Mr. Cohn is performing a rather moving rendition of Walking in Memphis, and is just about to admit to being a Christian of convenience, when out of the blue, in swings Terrible Ted Nugent, high above the crowd, one hand grasping a rope, the other a cross-bow. Terrible Ted is quite old in my dream. He appears to be in his late seventies, perhaps older. Like many his age he has little body fat… he is all skin and muscle, and he is wearing nothing more than a deer skin G-string and a camouflage-colored military style beret that makes him appear as though he is wearing camel genitalia on his forehead. It is not a pretty sight, mind you, and it’s about to get downright ugly.

Just as the song is reaching it’s dramatic crescendo, Ted aims with precision, discharging his trusty cross-bow. Ted, as you know, is a master marksman and bow hunter. He scores a direct hit, striking Mr. Cohn in the center of his heart, which explodes on impact, sending a stream of blood gushing onto the pearl white grand piano, and covering the nearly naked Nugent. As Ted reaches up to wipe the blood from his eyes, he looses grip of the rope and falls into the orchestra pit below, impaled on a cello. There he lies, obviously mortally wounded, poked through the middle like a shish kabob.

I react as any man would. I lean over the orchestral pit, and I ask the mortally impaled Ted if he is alright. Of course, he isn’t alright, and I believe he would have said as much if he hadn’t been so delirious. Ted is in shock now, and his time on this Earth slipping away. Again, I speak to the dying man, asking if he has any last words before moving on to that great used car lot in the sky. He looks at me with a kind of a look only a nearly dead Ted Nugent can conjure up, and with his final breath, mutters the words,,, Harry Bedurchy.

Harry Bedurchy, and then he just slumps back on the cello and dies. Harry Bedurchy, I repeat, as the house lights come on and the crowd begins to shuffle out. Harry Bedurchy, indeed, and with that I awakened from my dream. Even now, I have no idea what may have prompted this nightmarish scenario. I can only wonder.

Well, I suppose it’s time to wrap up this, my first of monologues. I hope you’ve enjoyed it, and I hope the next time you hear the song Walking in Memphis, you think of an aged Ted Nugent sporting camel genitalia. I know I will. Good night everyone. Oh and by all means, Harry Bedurchy.

Brad

B. Thomas Cooper - Editor

Sound and Recording - Sound Foundation - National Newswire - The Infinite Echo - Impeachment Now! - Skate the Razor -
Skate the Razor Blog - blogment