RedSGShredder

Here is information on how I record my own music. I will add articles as I learn new things.

I am not an audio engineer, and I have never had any kind of recording training. I have learned these techniques through trial and error and by asking others. So as a result I am always open to learning about new techniques and hearing opinions of my music.

Some things to keep in mind about my recording techniques:

• I recording instrumental music
• I recording direct, without using any microphones
• I use software drums
• I use relatively inexpensive equipment

You can read all about the equipment I use for recording on my gear pages.

I think it’s a good idea to listen to a lot of music to get an understanding of what you like. So here are some of my favorite albums and sounds. They all tend to feature very loud, clear sounding guitars, a nice kick drum click, and a loud snare. I also like a loud bass guitar but not every album features that.

• Metallica – …And Justice For All
• Meshuggah – Contradictions Collapse
• The Crown – Deathrace King
• Exodus – Tempo Of The Damned
• In Flames – Whoracle
• Ensiferum – Dragonheads
• Fear Factory – Demanufacture
  

General tips:

• Try to get everything as good as possible from the beginning, but plan to redo a lot of work many times anyway. For example, if you record your drums first, and then record an entire song, and then decide at the last minute that the drums need to be changed for whatever reason, you will have to go back and redo a lot of work. However, this is not necessarily a bad thing, because it may be that the drums sounded fine while you were creating the track, but when you mixed it with guitar and bass, it didn’t sound as good.
• Your recorded performance must be as clean as possible. If you make a mistake, layering more guitars on top will not hide your mistakes. In fact, it will make them even more audible and noticeable!
• Be patient and don’t rush anything. Whenever you decide to make a significant decision, feel free to experiment, but keep your old work. Listen to your new and old versions over the course of a few days and then make your decision. This is because your ears get fatigued just like any of your other senses. Good decisions take time, but bad decisions can happen as soon as you want (or don’t want) them to.
• Instruments rely on each other to make the over sound. Keep in mind that when you hear a fully mixed song, the guitars, bass, drums, and other instruments all combine to make a full sound. If you heard the instruments in isolation, it would sound very different.
• Listen to your mix in a variety of ways. Listen to it through your headphones, car speakers, mp3 player, or whatever else you can think of. This will help you hear things you wouldn’t normally hear.
• Do your homework. There are a lot of recording techniques out there to get a good sound, so be sure to read up on them. Be sure to listen to a lot of other home recordings as well.