amp noise in Jet's "Are you going to be my girl"?

millard · #1 12-28-2004, 03:27 PM

In the quite parts between vocal only and the music kicking back in (e.g., :30-:36), I can hear a noticeable amount of noise -- sort of an amp hum/static thing.

Anyone know if that was "new band, low-budget recording" situation or was it done more as a vintage affectation?

Millard

P. Aaron · #2 12-29-2004, 07:44 AM

I noticed a "lack" of fidelity in this recording. By that I mean, and this is tricky to define: It seems to lack "headroom"? You can feel the limits to what they where able to record. Many of today's recordings, if they're major label productions, seem to have the shirtails tucked in, the socks pulled up, and the hair combed...so to speak. In spite of the image the label is trying to market

. There is some "one-take" basement rawness to the recording here. We should be thankful that a major label/producer didn't get ahold of these guys prior to the recording being cut. The "rock" would have been lost or smoothed over, cleaned up, etc.

A couple of the songs on the disc are great rock tunes!

Finger Blister · #3 12-29-2004, 08:52 AM

Noise was most probably put there to produce a "raw" sound
and give it "vintage affectation."

There are all kinds of gizmos to take the "edge"
off of digital's overly pristine sound.

The local recording studio here charges more for
analog recording to tape then digital domain.
It sounds "dirtier" and the tone is more appealing for rock.

The Golden Boy · #4 12-30-2004, 02:17 PM

You really think they "put" noise in there rather than not gating it out? Most studios that were around before ADAT or ProTools still have their tape machines- and plenty of new studios have them as well, same with old compressors and such. Smart Studios (they do all the Everclear stuff, Garbage, tons of 'big name' stuff) has a 2" machine coming from a 35 year old board and into a ProTools setup... I agree that the sound is supposed to be kind of Stones-y or Black Crowes-y, I just think it was determined to be that way and some of the gating and fancy-pants 2000 stuff was left off of it. It's awfully easy to get hum just standing there with a Telecaster plugged into a Marshall.