Recording Final

3 Stages of Multitrack Recording

1. Tracking

2. Mixing

3. Mastering

What mastering is and where it occurs

happens after mixing where someone optimizes a finished product for consistent playback across all systems

Comping

the process of combining the best parts from multiple takes into a single, composite track

Threshold of Hearing

0 dB

Threshold of Feeling

118 dB

Threshold of Pain

140 dB

What frequencies are percieved as harsh?

odd harmonics

Inverse Square Law

sound intensity diminishes with distance, each time you double the distance, its sound pressure becomes 6 dB less

Range of Human Hearing

20 Hz-20 kHz

First Step in Human Hearing

sound waves enter the ear canal and make the ear drum vibrate

Second Step in Human Hearing

ear drum moving makes a tiny chain of bones in the middle ear

Tiny Chain of bones

malleus, incus and stapes

Third Step in Human Hearing

last bone knocks on the membrane window of cochlea and makes fluid in cochlea move

Fourth Step in Human Hearing

fluid movement triggers response in Auditory Nerve

RT60

amount of time it takes for a sound to decay 60 dB once source is turned off

Why non-parallel walls are used

because parallel walls reflect sound back and forth (flutterecho) and even leads to the destructive interface of the sound waves

Primary Acoustic Factors

1. Acoustic Isolation

2. Symmetry

3. Frequency Balance

4. Absorption

5. Reflection

6. Reverb

Purpose of Gobos

to control sound by isolating instruments/vocals, managing reflections, reducing bleed, and shaping room acoustics

Speaker Placement Guidelines

should be placed 1 to 2 feet away from the nearest wall/corner to avoid bass build up

equilateral triangle for listening position

rectangular room→long dimension

3 Types of Microphones

1. Dynamic

2. Ribbon

3. Condenser

3 Types of Transducer

1. Moving Coil Dynamic

2. Ribbon Dynamic

3. Capacitor

Phantom Power

48 V

3:1 Rule

for every distance between a mic and its source, a nearby mic(s) should be separated by at least 3x the distance

In Phase

sound is doubled

Out of Phase

cancelled

Partially Aligned

half cancelled

Balanced Cables

1. 3 wires

2. A signal wire (tip)

3. Another signal wire that is identical, except for the fact that it’s polarity is inverted

4. Grounding Wire (sleeve)

These are better at eliminating noise. This is due to the face that the wires have opposite polarity. It gets inverted at the preamp, cancelling outside noise

Unbalanced Cables

1. 2 wires

2. A signal wire (tip)

3. A ground wire

Patchbay Details

outputs are on top and inputs are on the bottom

Full Normal

a patch cable inserted into the input (bottom) breaks the normaled connection

best for scenarios where you need to completely isolate a signal from its normal destination when patching it elsewhere

Half Normal

a patch cable inserted into the output jack (top) does not break normalled connection, allowing signal to be sent to both the normal destination and patched desitation (Y cable)

generally preferred due to its flexibity. it’s useful for occasional signal spitting and introduces minimal risk

Preamp

boosts weak audio signals from mics to line level, making them usable for recording

Channel Strip Order

1. Channel Input

2. Dynamics

3. EQ and Filter

4. Cue and FX Outputs

5. Channel Output Pan

Channel Faders

individual audio sources

Subgroups

multiple channels

Digital File Formats

1. .Wav

2. Broadcast Wave (can add text strings)

3. AIFF

Latency Causes

1. Buffer Size

2. Audio Drivers

3. Computer Power

4. Connection Type

Reducing Latency

1. Lower the input buffer size

2. Use zero latency monitoring

3. Avoid plug ins

Buffer Size

to balance CPU load and latencyt in digital audio processing, acting as temporary storage for audio data

Nyquist Theorem

in order to accurately reproduce a signal, it should be periodically sampled at a rate at least twice the highest frequency recorded

Bit Depth

the number of bits used to represent the amplitude of each digital audio sample, determining the resolution and dynamic range

Amplitude

Bobby Owsinski’s Mix Elements

1. Balance

2. Frequency Range

3. Pan

4. Dimension

5. Dynamics

6. Interest

Improving Recordings via Mic Placement

1. Move mic closer to sound source

2. Move mic further from interfering sound and reflective surfaces

Peak

highest level of each individual sound wave and used to to determine whether a signal will start clipping

1.414 x rms voltage

RMS

measures the average amplitude of all of the sample

.707 x peak voltage

closest to human hearing

Ground Noise

unwanted electrical interference (hum or buzz) caused by multiple paths to the electrical ground in interconnected equipment

EQ in Context

applying it to audio elements within the full mix, not in isolation to ensure instruments sit well together

Tape Heads

made from rings of ferromagnetic material with a gap where the tape contacts it so the magnetic field can fringe out to magnetize the emulsion on the tape

Tape Saturation

when the incoming audio signal exceeds the point where the tape’s magnetic particles can accurately track the converted voltage swings, then this results in gradual clipping of the positive and negative peaks of the wave that’s being imprinted on the tape

has a unique warmth and edge

Compression

reduces an audio signal’s dynamic range by automatically turning down loud peaks and bringing up quiet sounds

Fastest connection types

Thunderbolt 3

USB-C vs Thunderbolt

Thunderbolt has a higher bandwidth and is more compatible with more transmission protocolsm meaning it can connect with more types of devices

Thunderbolt is also more expensive

AoIP

allows you to transmit multiple uncompressed digital audio signals over ethernet (Cat 5/6) cables with minimal latency

Wavelength Equation

λ=V/f

V=1130 ft/sec at 68 F

Speed increases 1.1 ft/sec for each F increase

Problems with Voice Recording

1. Excessive Dynamic Range

2. Sibilance and Plosives

3. Proximity Effect

Direct Sound

the sound that travels in a straight line from a source to a listener without bouncing off any surfaces

Early Reflections

sound waves that bounce off nearby surfaces and reach listener’s ears just ms after direct sound

Reverb

creates distance, depth, and spaciousness in recordings

Active Listening

listening as the primary activity

Close Mic Issues

1. Proximity Effect

2. Plosives

3. Sibilance

4. Distortion

XY Mic

Omni

Bidirectional

Cardioid

Hypercardioid

Moving Coil Dynamic

Ribbon Dynamic

Capacitor

Frequency

Sample Rate

Time-based errors in a digital audio system are commonly referred to as:

Jitter

Which of the following audio formats is known for its lossless compression?

FLAC

Which one of the following is NOT a digital audio transmission specification?

mLAN

Tails Out

Refers to the tape being fast forwarded to the end

Gain

A level adjustment designed to optimize each signal coming into the console

Insert Loop

A patch point for connecting outboard gear, such as a compressor or effects unit

HPF

A circuit which sharply decreases low frequencies, reducing mic handling noise, stage rumble, and plosives (p-pops)

Aux Mix

A separate mix of each channel which has its own output, which can be used to feed stage monitors, a recording mix, sends to a reverb unit, or other uses.

Pre/Post

An indication of where the Aux mix splits off from the main signal. If it

is labeled as as “Pre” or “PreFade” mix, then its level is completely

independent of the channel’s fader. If it is labeled as a “Post” or

“PostFade” mix, then the aux’s level will also be affected by the channel

fader as it is adjusted

Pad

If you turn the gain all the way to the left and the signal is still too hot,

then you should engage the pad, which will reduce the incoming signal

by a preset amount (usually 20 dB or so)

Direct Out

An individual channel output after the gain stage, but before EQ or

fader involvement

PFL

Pre Fade Listen. Works as a “solo” button for the engineer’s headphones

Clipping

~Since the clipping was caused by the gain boost in the compressor plug-in, the

signal needs to be attenuated either in the plug-in or before it, which

would require a region-based level adjustment