Posts by Michael_dk

  • Making-of Michael Wagener Signature Rig Pack

    Quote from lasvideo

    So when Michael_dk says he has made a DI that mean he recorded a clean guitar track? And he is providing that to Don so we can hear what the profiles/rigs sound like with his clean guitar playing thru them?


    Yes. Done through the Kemper. If you use any of the 2 channel outputs (SPDIF in my case), you can record both the DI track and the "amped" track. So I recorded both, and just uploaded the one. That way I can also hear what I sound like amped, while getting the unamped signal recorded.

  • G:A:S and Anti G.A.S

    I don't think there is such a thing as anti-GAS. I think it is DTTFNGLAUTNTCA.


    Desperately Trying To Fund New Gear Lusted After Until The Next Thing Comes Along.


    I blame the internet, and especially forums.

  • Tutorials?



    A quick search on the internet gives me the impression that those headphones are generally regarded as good, but has low output volume. Maybe your laptop speakers have low volume as well. And so forth.


    Don't judge volume of the mix by such things. You can judge other things, but that's for another time.


    If the master shows output peaks of a good level, the material is loud enough. Adjust volume with your monitors/headphones. The latter may be an issue if the headphone out of the interface does not give you the volume you need.
    You can also look at the mix control (DAW 1&2 meters) when playing back over laptop speakers. If these are at a decent level, the "overall" volume is fine.


    When you say turning up monitors won't make up for low overall volume, you're thinking about it backwards. Low output speakers will affect your volume, but they will do so also for a professional CD.


    A professional CD has been mixed and mastered and will have a louder "overall" volume - i,e, average level as opposed to just peaks. Read up on the term "compression" for an explanation. But again, that comes AFTER recording.

  • Making-of Michael Wagener Signature Rig Pack

    OK, so none of the great guitar players can be bothered to record and upload a DI track so we can hear this great profile pack.


    FINE. I've made one, which can be found here: Michael_DK DI track for Michael Wagner signature Pack.


    Mostly because my crappy playing and too-old strings are a fitting punishment to all the lazy basterds in this thread who want to get without giving - in contrast to me, who after... what, only 14 days and 10 pages of posts in this thread? immediately recorded a and uploaded track. Let this be a lesson to us... I mean, to YOU all!


    Of course, Don may elect to NOT use my track. In order to avoid plummeting sales of the Kemper and a fade into obscurity, you know. If he for some reason feels that vengeance is not worth that sacrifice, maybe someone else should do a DI as well.....





    ;)

  • Tutorials?

    Hitting yellow shouldn't give clipping, but I still prefer to keep it lower.


    When you say you use your headphones to monitor - is that while playing, you mean? Or when listening back also?


    Try turning on your speakers to check the output level. I think You'll be surprised.


    Which headphones do you use?


    I'm assuming you have them plugged into your focusrite interface.


    There are many other problems than volume when listening through (small) computer speakers. Things that should be addressed when mixing the tracks on proper monitors (and reference speakers). Well, there are many issues when other people listen PERIOD (that should be addressed during mixing). But that's for another time. I wouldn't be too concerned about all that now. But I think you need to learn the very basics of recording and mixing from the ground up, that will help you more than anything.



    Also: Can you post a screenshot (of a proper size) of your mix control window?

  • Tutorials?

    Yeah, I use Logic too, and I think ALL the virtual instruments are WAY too hot.


    But I don't think you've been listening when I tell you to TURN UP YOUR MONITORS. If what comes out of the speakers isn't loud enough, then turn the SPEAKERS up; NOT the faders!!!


    For the logic drummer, turn DOWN the track fader. Keep the master fader at zero. If the master goes into the yellow or especially red, turn down the track faders of all the individual tracks.


    And again - if not loud enough, turn UP YOUR SPEAKERS.

  • Tutorials?



    Re. speaker load: no, you're kind of thinking about it backwards :)


    A Pan control basically just gradually turns down the signal to the left speaker when you pan it to the right. That's all a Pan control does. Which means as you pan more to the right, there's less volume coming from the left speaker. Thus, there is less volume heard in the room.


    What a pan law does is COMPENSATING for this. the pan law comes into effect when you pan, and says "OK, Phil has now turned the pan control on the track all the way to the right, so the guitar is only heard from one speaker, meaning the volume of the guitar that Phil experiences is now half as much. I'd better bump up the signal going to that speaker, so it doesn't sound like the guitar is suddenly much lower in volume". (this of course happens gradually over the pan sweep, not just in the far positions).


    Does that make sense?



    With regard to loud and proud to the average listener: Yes, you are right, depending on number of instruments, compression and alot of other things. But basically, when you are done mixing, you bump up the master fader before you bounce. This is a huge simplification, but the general idea is that you turn up the volume of the master, not the individual tracks. This is in reality done with compression (during the mixing phase and POSSIBLY mastering) and limiting (only during mastering).


    Does that make sense?

  • PRS P22 With The Kemper, Anyone?

    I'm gonna barge in on your conversation even though I don't have a P22 (hope you don't mind :-))


    I have a Brent Mason sig and a CE-24. Was close to getting a studio (possibly swamp ash version), but got the BM sig instead.


    Interested in which profiles you dig too :)

  • Tutorials?

    The -12 thing is mostly important when tracking, and here the panning has no effect (that happens after the recording has taken place).


    You are recording a mono track; how much of that track goes to each speaker is something that happens in the DAW, so you don't RECORD centered or RECORD panned - you pan it afterwards.


    The reason the meter has a higher reading when panned is due to something called "pan law". Different daws have different versions of it, but basically it is to compensate for something; namely how the sound pressure from the speakers relate to the level set on the track fader.
    IF you have a track panned center, you have sound coming equally from both speakers.
    If you disconnected the right speaker, you basically have the same SOUND as before, but now there is only ONE speaker blowing it out. Thus, the sound is not as LOUD.
    Pan laws basically turn down the sound as the panning moves from the far side to the center to compensate for this. It seems like your pan law is set to -6 dB in the center. Other "pan laws" have other magnitudes of this effect (typically +3 or +4.5)




    There are three reasons to keep the recorded signal at -12, or possibly -18 or -24 if you're going to have a lot of tracks.


    1) Avoid clipping: WHILE RECORDING, as this cannot be fixed later. shooting for -12 on the peaks should make sure that even if you strum harder during the recording, there's still headroom.


    2) Mixing: Some plugins are NOT exactly designed to handle material that peaks at 0 (yes, you CAN clip a plugin depending on how it is made - it's just not as obvious when it happens, but it alters the sound, especially if several plugins and tracks do this)). When I mix a song, i play the whole thing through with all faders at zero, and see where each one peaks (with the master fader muted, so no sound), I then put a gain plugin AS THE ABSOLUTE FIRST PLUGIN IN THE CHAIN, and use that to turn down the level to -12 or -18, depending on number of tracks. But this is a concern for mixing, and it doesn't seem like you're at that point yet.


    3) Summing. All tracks are "summed" on the master fader, so if you have 20 tracks that peak at -3 dB, then the master will probably clip (depending on the material), So this is another reason for keeping levels low - and lower if you are going to have many tracks.





    I *THINK* the pan law is applied AFTER the plugins. So -12 is probably fine.


    Otherwise, the thing to do is to shoot for -18 db on the peaks when setting levels, before recording, that way you should reach -12 db when panned far left and right (which you often do with guitars in a mix). That's what I would do, beacuse I'm anal about not getting too high levels. Remember to set the level while looking at the corresponding input strip of the focusrite Mix Control - NOT in the DAW.


    -18 IS NOT TOO LOW (if you record in 24 bit depth). You compensate by turning up your monitors :)


    A little story: In the olden days, they often calibrated their meters so that their "zero" were at the levels where the saturation of the analogue gear kicked in, so anything below 0 was a clear and clean signal, and above that was where the saturation kicked in as you turned up the fader or gain.
    That 0 would often be around what is shown as -24 on our meters in the daw today. That's why -24 dB is NOT too low a level to record :)


    (again: provided we use 24 bit depth resolution)

  • The Profiler is not a real tube amp *facepalm*

    NOBODY really cares. Well, almost nobody. It is entirely inconsequential. People will buy the music regardless of the equipment used, if they like the music and the sound is good to the average music consumer.


    I can't remember who said it, but there's this quote along the lines of "nobody goes home humming the console". :)

  • Tutorials?

    Can I get you to take a bigger screenshot?


    I see you're on a mac. You can define the screenshot area by pressing Shift+command+4; that lets you select the area, and the screenshot is placed on your desktop.


    Exactly which output from the kemper, and which input on the saffire?

  • Tutorials?

    You haven't connected the POWER AMP out to your interface, have you?


    What exactly is connected to your interface?


    And also, can you make a screen dump of your saffire mix control settings?

  • Tutorials?

    The frist to examples: One is centered, the other one is panned all the way to the right. Not a good basis for comparison.


    Also, it seems there is a lot of reverb on the first one. And is a different part. I'd also say that's more (less?) than slightly less gain.


    Is it the same guitar and pickup and same volume/tone setting on the guitar?