Recording Techniques

atlboriqua · #1 11-13-2007, 08:40 PM

Next month I am gonna be in the studio for the first time laying down a few tracks. From those who have recorded professionally, what is some great advice i need to know when going in there. I know some some stuff like make sure you aren't bending the strings when you play them unless you are doing it on purpose, and make sure your runs are clean and each note is clear.....but besides that...what are some do's and don'ts for recording in the studio??

John Wentzien · #2 11-13-2007, 08:54 PM

Warm up before the take.. Relax! Have fun!
Check your tuning frequently...

elpelotero · #3 11-13-2007, 10:18 PM

practice befor hand with a metronome...It is everything! Make the clicks sing and groove! Make sure you experiment with a lot of sounds before going in. Call the engineer in advance to set up a relationship and ask him what kind of gear he has for you to plug into. This will give you a good idea of what to bring, if anything. Tell him how you'd like the bass to sound in advance so it can sit in his head for several days.

When you walk in, he may already be excited to work with you to get your sound just because of the prepping you've done beforehand. Most of all, don't let the bass get squashed in the mix by everything else! It's almost always the #1 instrument to get lost.

Lastly, try to record both direct AND with a mic'd cabinet, then mix both sounds into one.

hunta · #4 11-14-2007, 02:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by elpelotero

Call the engineer in advance to set up a relationship and ask him what kind of gear he has for you to plug into. This will give you a good idea of what to bring, if anything. Tell him how you'd like the bass to sound in advance so it can sit in his head for several days.

It's good to know what's in the studio beforehand. Personally I go prepared, I don't care what they have. Bare minimum, bring your main bass, an extra set of strings (you already put new ones on your bass to let them break in before you record right?), your bass head, a tuner, extra 9 volts, and extra cables. Rehearsing your parts beforehand goes without saying. If you have a crackly output jack, scratchy pots, or any other issues with your bass, get it fixed/setup at a shop beforehand. Don't make the studio guys head explode trying to work around your hardware problems (it's not fun).

When you go in, be polite, be humble, shake hands, smile. Don't act like a rockstar, do what the engineers tell you, be patient, be prepared to do a lot of takes to get it right. If they play it back and you think you can do better, do another take. Don't be a primadonna about your bass sound (unless you know enough to tell the engineers what to do). Enjoy yourself!

newfuture · #5 11-14-2007, 02:32 PM

get your intonation set as perfectly as possible before going into the studio.

+1 to all the other advice, especially clean jacks & pots and fresh batteries if you're playing active. You don't want to pay studio rates to troubleshoot stuff within your power.

+100 to new strings with enough time to break in. I usually like 3 days or so. your mileage WILL vary if you're playing country, punk or funk.

lowphatbass · #6 11-14-2007, 09:06 PM

I would NOT call the engineer ahead of time to find out what equipment HE or SHE has, only to find out what he or she wants you to bring. I also would not be worried about or voice opinions on what kind of recording techniques are being used. Let the engineers do their job and worry about your own. +1 on making sure your bass is intonated and in good order. One thing that may effect you is hearing yourself directly through the board in your headphones or through the studio monitors. You will hear every little string noise and buzz which can be quite alarming if you're not prepared for it. One thing that may help is practicing with your amp's eq set flat with the highs or presence boosted a bit. Try to get the best tone possible with just your bass and make it sound as clean as possible. Most importantly try to relax and have fun!

pbass2 · #7 11-14-2007, 09:44 PM

Well, without knowing if this is a session where you're a band member, or a hired gun to play bass for someone else, I'll assume the latter:

Bring at least two, preferably three or more different sounding basses, even if you have to rent or borrow. If you're main bass is a modern active hi-fi beast, then have passive P or J or the like on hand too. Ideally one should be a "quirky" bass, like a short scale with flats, or whatever. Something different. At least one should have flatwounds. Make sure they are all set-up properly. Have high-quality cables, bring your own DI and use whichever(yours or theirs) is the better unit. If you're bringing an amp, it should work great and be in good shape. If they have a better amp, use theirs. Be set so that you can bypass tuner/effects/etc. completely for your DI signal. Make notes/charts/cheat sheets as much as you can. Do you know how to make a numbers chart? This can save your arse if they decide to change the key of a song on the fly.

If you're a hired gun doing a session, you have to come in ready to roll with whatever is thrown at you. The engineer in a pro setting like that just wants to know he can bring up your fader and have a great, solid tone on tap that fits the music and doesn't NEED a lot of tweaking(though tweaking may ensue for the sake of the mix).

Sometimes the headphone mix can suck, or just not sound that great. Don't let it throw you. Just focus on the drums and get into the groove and the vibe, even if you can't hear every nuance of your playing.

And ditto---have fun, and enjoy the process more than anything.

thebassist1234 · #8 11-14-2007, 10:01 PM

Make sure all your equipment that you will be using is in good working order, be EXTREMELY polite (don't act like a rockstar, as was brought up before), eat and get plenty of rest so that you can focus well, recording is a lot easier without other things on your mind.

Most importantly though, give it your all. Don't sit back and try as hard as you can to match the metronome and be absolutely perfect. Listen (with your ears?

) to the music and feel it, get into it and groove well, and you will play everything right. The best way to capture live performance feel and sound, you have to play the same way you do on stage in the studio.