Pro Studio Session?

[MultiScaleMale]

I can't find the article now, but a few years ago there was an interview / article for a Nashville top dog that basically said that when you go into the studio you were expected to bring along a rack with a tube compressor and some kind of tube mic preamp. Of course, the more vintagey the better. Is that still the case? Have plugins reached the point that they're easier to use, you can save all the settings, automate changes, etc and everyone really just does that kind of thing in the DAW versus with a mini rack or gear? I guess that's even if you go into the studio and don't just pick up / drop off on DropBox. Has the pro studio gig changed? Is it dependent on the artist / area?

 

[Bonafide]

I can't find the article now, but a few years ago there was an interview / article for a Nashville top dog that basically said that when you go into the studio you were expected to bring along a rack with a tube compressor and some kind of tube mic preamp. Of course, the more vintagey the better. Is that still the case? Have plugins reached the point that they're easier to use, you can save all the settings, automate changes, etc and everyone really just does that kind of thing in the DAW versus with a mini rack or gear? I guess that's even if you go into the studio and don't just pick up / drop off on DropBox. Has the pro studio gig changed? Is it dependent on the artist / area?

How old was was the article? Plugins are used primarily in mixing and post, but engineers and musicians do like their gear and hardware isn't going anywhere. Fundamentals are still fundamentals. @vbroden Are you still doing sessions? @foolforthecity is your brother's studio in swing?

I have several friends who are sidemen, tour support and session players in Nashville, primarily guitar. It’s a hustle if you can stomach the lifestyle. Even in spite of Covid, they have done well. Huge diverse pedal boards are very much a thing and brought to sessions. Combined with amp choices, loadbox support, modeling, IR etc. But no lack of gear.

And outside of covid restrictions, studios who support labels and session players are still very much operating. Nashville, labels have relationships with producers and writers, who in turn have relationships with studios and players. LA seems much more involved in the remote or independent recording. But even that is a bit of a misnomer. That said, even the most prolific session players offer remote tracks from their home studios or remote recording for a price. It's a must and part of the hustle. Budgets are more discretionary and multi-sourced than they once were.

 

[silky smoove]

I run a pro studio. A small pro studio, but pro none the less. Plugins have absolutely gotten to the point that they're worth substitutes for outboard gear, but that doesn't matter much when you're tracking. If you showed up at my studio with a giant rack full of gear to run your bass through I'd happily use it, unless of course it didn't sound appropriate for the session, in which case we'd switch to any of my pieces of gear that delivered the desired result. Maybe a combination of yours and mine. Whatever gets it done it what we'd use. Some studio owners will only use their gear. Other studio owners don't have much invested in nice gear for tracking and may require the players to bring their own gear in to supplement the studio's.

The answer is "it depends." As to the statement that "...you were expected to bring along a rack with a tube compressor and some kind of tube mic preamp. Of course, the more vintagey the better..." I would say that is nonsense, especially when you get that specific. The engineer might not want you to track through a compressor, or the player might not want to use one during tracking, or they might prefer something like an 1176 or a Distressor both of which do not contain a tube, or they might want to track through a 1073 which has no tubes, or they might bring in an ART Tube MP which does have a tube but in my experience brings nothing sonically to the table... So again, it all depends.

 

[MultiScaleMale]

I run a pro studio. A small pro studio, but pro none the less. Plugins have absolutely gotten to the point that they're worth substitutes for outboard gear, but that doesn't matter much when you're tracking. If you showed up at my studio with a giant rack full of gear to run your bass through I'd happily use it, unless of course it didn't sound appropriate for the session, in which case we'd switch to any of my pieces of gear that delivered the desired result. Maybe a combination of yours and mine. Whatever gets it done it what we'd use. Some studio owners will only use their gear. Other studio owners don't have much invested in nice gear for tracking and may require the players to bring their own gear in to supplement the studio's.

The answer is "it depends." As to the statement that "...you were expected to bring along a rack with a tube compressor and some kind of tube mic preamp. Of course, the more vintagey the better..." I would say that is nonsense, especially when you get that specific. The engineer might not want you to track through a compressor, or the player might not want to use one during tracking, or they might prefer something like an 1176 or a Distressor both of which do not contain a tube, or they might want to track through a 1073 which has no tubes, or they might bring in an ART Tube MP which does have a tube but in my experience brings nothing sonically to the table... So again, it all depends.

My "compromise" is a Noble DI and FEA DE-CL compressor. And if I hit a situation where that's not good enough, I freaking made it. Heh.

 

[Bonafide]

The answer is "it depends." As to the statement that "...you were expected to bring along a rack with a tube compressor and some kind of tube mic preamp. Of course, the more vintagey the better..." I would say that is nonsense, especially when you get that specific.

For studios as a whole that is 100% true. Everything depends - And if there is no producer or artist self producing, engineers tend to offer experienced support.

Rich was asking about a 'top dog' Nashville session player and an article, which depending on the year is not nonsense at all.

If...indeed we are talking label used studios - No shortage of gear or choices, but they do have a specific recording culture to manage the current timbre and production values of modern country and pop (same culture, different gear in the '70s '80s '90s etc). Vintage gear is well loved and well used in Nashville in studios. The same players and their own gear are often used to support consistent results and often homogenized outcomes, even homogenized greatness. Obviously relationships, working history etc help both player and producer but producers are only going to switch it up if they are not getting the result they want. Every session player I know of is very well equipped to manage commonly requested gear or tones, it's a requirement.

Michael Rhodes, who is easily the most prolific modern session/touring bassist used to joke when the producer asked ‘why are we here’ – he would turn to the producer and say ‘were here to make you money’, turn to the artist and say ‘ were here to make you famous’ and turn to the other session players and say’ were here to keep working’. Which is another way of saying, I have my house in order.

 

[JRA]

....you were expected to bring along a rack with a tube compressor and some kind of tube mic preamp. Of course, the more vintagey the better. Is that still the case?

i've never taken (or been asked to bring) anything but my chops and an ax. cables/DIs/other are provided. but i'm sure the 'nature' of the studio, location/region, and 'customs' vary from one studio/session to another.

 

[silky smoove]

Rich was asking about a 'top dog' Nashville session player and an article, which depending on the year is not nonsense at all.

Quite right, and my limited experience with the Nashville machine is that if anything is outside of the status quo it is not tolerated. I would suspect these days that a bassist arriving on a 'top dog' Nashville session, particularly for the catalog, showcase, songwriter, or other forms of A&R-driven types of sessions that are so prevalent there, would be advised to bring nothing but a 4-string P-Bass, maybe a 5-string P-Bass if it's a modern country gig, and an iPad full of all the charts for the session with notes scribbled in red. They get bonus points if they bring a tuner pedal, extra cable and power supply but never take them out of their backpack.

 

[DWBass]

I bring a DI. That's it. And I've been doing studio sessions since the 80's. Just me, my bass and a DI.

 

[Bonafide]

Quite right, and my limited experience with the Nashville machine is that if anything is outside of the status quo it is not tolerated. I would suspect these days that a bassist arriving on a 'top dog' Nashville session, particularly for the catalog, showcase, songwriter, or other forms of A&R-driven types of sessions that are so prevalent there, would be advised to bring nothing but a 4-string P-Bass, maybe a 5-string P-Bass if it's a modern country gig, and an iPad full of all the charts for the session with notes scribbled in red. They get bonus points if they bring a tuner pedal, extra cable and power supply but never take them out of their backpack.

LOL,well I can't tell if this pure sarcasm or partially sarcastic, but it's all cool, I understand the sentiment. As for the rest, I honestly can't say. But I can say the status quo in Nashville may be narrow stylistically, but in terms of music production it has very high standards. A great deal of the world's best musicians, producers and engineers, gear heads and tone freaks, recording legends old and new reside there. They respect the process and truly bring out the best in each other. It's a tone conscious, gear oriented town - regardless of the small % of offerings coming out of there that make it on popular radio.

 

[silky smoove]

LOL,well I can't tell if this pure sarcasm or partially sarcastic, but it's all cool, I understand the sentiment. As for the rest, I honestly can't say. But I can say the status quo in Nashville may be narrow stylistically, but in terms of music production it has very high standards.

It’s not sarcastic at all. The Nashville machine is just that; a machine. The bulk of sessions there are driven by A&R departments trying to sell songs or artists. I have friends that work there and the bulk of their work involves getting charts for the next day’s session, showing up at the studio, bringing only the most predictable gear, and only the things that are absolutely needed, doing the job proficiently and leaving the studio having completed all songs as quickly as possible. There is certainly a more artistic side of Nashville but the portion that produces things to the high standards you’re describing is also the side that’s earned its “machine” monicker for good reason. Those highly polished productions leave little to the imagination, and to the OP’s post about a ‘top dog’ Nashville session, as a bassist I’d show up with a P-Bass and little else. That’s what that demographic wants from a bassist. They don’t want my Dingwall or this cool envelope filter that might be fun, or some esoteric uber-vintage’y sounding preamp with a bunch of tubes. They want a P-Bass plugged into a DI with a split that may go to a patch bay if they want to use one of their amps, or not.

I thoroughly enjoyed Harry Mire’s breakdown of a typical Nashville session musician day. His stuff is always great:

 

[Bonafide]

It’s not sarcastic at all. The Nashville machine is just that; a machine. The bulk of sessions there are driven by A&R departments trying to sell songs or artists. I have friends that work there and the bulk of their work involves getting charts for the next day’s session, showing up at the studio, bringing only the most predictable gear, and only the things that are absolutely needed, doing the job proficiently and leaving the studio having completed all songs as quickly as possible. There is certainly a more artistic side of Nashville but the portion that produces things to the high standards you’re describing is also the side that’s earned its “machine” monicker for good reason. Those highly polished productions leave little to the imagination, and to the OP’s post about a ‘top dog’ Nashville session, as a bassist I’d show up with a P-Bass and little else. That’s what that demographic wants from a bassist. They don’t want my Dingwall or this cool envelope filter that might be fun, or some esoteric uber-vintage’y sounding preamp with a bunch of tubes. They want a P-Bass plugged into a DI with a split that may go to a patch bay if they want to use one of their amps, or not.

I thoroughly enjoyed Harry Mire’s breakdown of a typical Nashville session musician day. His stuff is always great:

Yep, that is my point, it's because of the machine, the standards are exceptional. And the machine is much bigger than just the singular polished sound you mention. It's populated with musicians. The process is nothing new nor is it as narrow as that.

It's true, we agree the P is used most often, it's a P Bass, very easy to sit in a mix. Always been a very popular choice. But so are J-basses, P-J, Hollowbodies, vintage basses and any other number of basses. It's Nashville. It's a mecca for instruments and they get used, and it's not a secret. Believing a P is all you need regardless of the session would be a paradoxical oxymoron as you would never have reached the on call status. It's not your call, even if it's a very predictable choice. If you had nothing else to offer, it's a short gig. Like I said, I genuinely thought it was sarcasm. Carry on...

 

[silky smoove]

Believing a P is all you need regardless of the session would be a paradoxical oxymoron as you would never have reached the on call status.

Perhaps not all you would need. The 4 and 5 string P-Basses i mentioned would easily cover 98% of those gigs though, and the engineers would all love you for bringing nothing but. I say this as someone that doesn’t own a P and doesn’t even particularly like them compared to other choices. The OP asked a question, and my answer was that on a ‘top dog’ Nashville session you should show up with a P-Bass and maybe bring a 5-string version if it’s a modern country gig. I stand by that as good advice and I can guarantee all the top session bassists in Nashville would agree. It’s not meant to be all encompassing of every universal experience that there ever could be, but that wasn’t the question.

 

[brianrost]

Whether it's really expected...as in you'll get fired when you show up with nothing but your bass(es)...is different than whether it's really common. I would expect an A-list session player to have personal preferences about compressors and pres that work well for them...especially if they have some rare or custom built gear.

I can't speak for studios, but I've worked as stage manager or soundman on a number of shows featuring A-list musicians from Nashville dating back to the 1990s. In particular the acoustic players (banjo, mandolin, fiddle, etc.) started showing up with small racks so they could send their preferred sound to the board. That includes the bands that carried their own soundman.

 

[Rib 13]

you were expected to bring along a rack with a tube compressor and some kind of tube mic preamp. Of course, the more vintagey the better.

No. You aren't expected to bring a tube compressor along and also No the more vintage-y the better ( seriously, who comes up with these folktales? ).....everything a player is expected to do depends on the tastes of who is paying me as well as the criteria requirements of each song.....also,No, a P-bass isn't optimal for everything - it's one color of a bass pallette. It's like telling a guitar player a Stratocaster is the best choice for everything....bring more than one bass with different pickup configurations and have different string types available. Change strings and stretch on each bass before each session but have your old ones avaliable. Personally, I had never used a P Bass in the studio over 30 years and would just solo the pickup in that P spot in Series mode on my G&L ASAT when I needed a P tone ( work smarter, not harder)

 

[Rib 13]

Perhaps not all you would need. The 4 and 5 string P-Basses i mentioned would easily cover 98% of those gigs though, and the engineers would all love you for bringing nothing but. I say this as someone that doesn’t own a P and doesn’t even particularly like them compared to other choices. The OP asked a question, and my answer was that on a ‘top dog’ Nashville session you should show up with a P-Bass and maybe bring a 5-string version if it’s a modern country gig. I stand by that as good advice and I can guarantee all the top session bassists in Nashville would agree. It’s not meant to be all encompassing of every universal experience that there ever could be, but that wasn’t the question.

Nashville cats like Dave Pomeroy and David Hungate show up with about ten to twelve different basses ( if not more) of different types and pickups, from solid to hollowbody, including multicourse basses for tic tacs....you should see the mini box trucks A-session drummers use just to carry their snares

 

[Bonafide]

The OP asked a question, and my answer was that on a ‘top dog’ Nashville session you should show up with a P-Bass and maybe bring a 5-string version if it’s a modern country gig. I stand by that as good advice and I can guarantee all the top session bassists in Nashville would agree.

Guarantee? Nah brother, they would not agree. A P-bass (and a backpack with a tuner and extra cable) The statement is somewhere between silly and disrespectful. But I have since realized we likley have very different ideas of who A list session players are. All good.

No. You aren't expected to bring a tube compressor along and also No the more vintage-y the better ( seriously, who comes up with these folktales? ).....)

If the article was a decade ago or so, it may have been Michael Rhoades who said it (Or he influenced the statement). His session rack that he used on 100s of label sessions was the Tube Tech Compressor, Ampeg preamp/head and Avalon DI. At the time anyway. And his P-bass, T-Bass and Sadwosky J bass and Gibson Hollowbody were always in the boat. I have seen it with his Duesenberg hollowbody also. I know he plays a variety of basses now.

 

[skyline_01]

It’s not sarcastic at all. The Nashville machine is just that; a machine. The bulk of sessions there are driven by A&R departments trying to sell songs or artists. I have friends that work there and the bulk of their work involves getting charts for the next day’s session, showing up at the studio, bringing only the most predictable gear, and only the things that are absolutely needed, doing the job proficiently and leaving the studio having completed all songs as quickly as possible. There is certainly a more artistic side of Nashville but the portion that produces things to the high standards you’re describing is also the side that’s earned its “machine” monicker for good reason. Those highly polished productions leave little to the imagination, and to the OP’s post about a ‘top dog’ Nashville session, as a bassist I’d show up with a P-Bass and little else. That’s what that demographic wants from a bassist. They don’t want my Dingwall or this cool envelope filter that might be fun, or some esoteric uber-vintage’y sounding preamp with a bunch of tubes. They want a P-Bass plugged into a DI with a split that may go to a patch bay if they want to use one of their amps, or not.

I thoroughly enjoyed Harry Mire’s breakdown of a typical Nashville session musician day. His stuff is always great:

I found this video entertaining and funny - thanks for the share!

The owner/head honcho of that studio (Rukkus Room) is currently mixing and mastering tracks for a progressive rock project my college friend is putting together. I have to say that it's a bit intimidating knowing that Jamie is listening to my bass tracks, especially given his thoroughly impressive resume. I'm just a goob from Ohio with a crappy day job LOL. I can't wait to hear how it turns out though!

 

[40Hz]

Sounds like a little humblebrag to me. Still, I’ve never been to Nashville so I couldn’t say what the story is or might have been for that guy. However, the very few times I’ve been in a seriously pro (as in label or TV network affiliated) studio the only things they wanted me to bring was myself and my bass. Probably because they had racks and racks of high end gear they knew inside out, already had set up, and planned on using.

I think they might have even preferred it if I played one of their basses instead of mine.

Project and small studios are another story. They’re often happy for you to bring whatever you’ve got since they’re often strapped for cash and don’t have a large gear collection. But that said, today’s plug-ins pick up most of the slack since they’ve finally gotten as good as the real deal in many cases. So most studios, if they’re wise, invest their money in microphones and high end mic preamps since a good indicator of just how “pro” a studio is can often be determined by just how good their microphone collection is. Pro studios have really (as in really really) nice mics to work with.

Bottom line: what that studio cat said might have been true at one point in time for some places. But it’s total bunk in today’s recording world.

 

[JeezyMcNuggles]

My "compromise" is a Noble DI and FEA DE-CL compressor. And if I hit a situation where that's not good enough, I freaking made it. Heh.

Ha ha ha. Word.

Studio - clean di, mic track through the studio bass amp and mic chosen for your track.

The engineer will do whatever he does to give your group the best possible outcome.

 

[skyline_01]

My studio experiences have been pretty simple in regard to gear, but keep in mind I've never recorded in Nashville and most of my sessions (since the college days anyway) have been EP's for my bands.

I've usually shown up with just a versatile fretted, sometimes along with a fretless (if I knew the material called for it) and then a preamp pedal just in case. There was one time years ago that I brought along a SWR head with the intent to use the preamp section, but the engineer deemed it too noisy and we ended up just using a Sansamp (a favorite of many engineers, of course).

Any enhancements to the bass signal were achieved with studio-owned rackmount gear, usually just a high-end tube compressor of some sort.