Recording Resources
Getting good recordings at home can be hard, but with the right resources to guide you, you can overcome the roadblocks that are stopping from achieving the song you want and releasing your music.
MAIN RESOURCES
Modern Recording Techniques
Book
This is on its 9th edition so you know it has been around for a while. This covers the tools and day-to-day practices of music recording and production. You will learn the ins and outs of room acoustics and designing a studio. Gain techniques for mic placement and running a session. Get a solid grounding in both theory and industry practice. If you are wanting to get a more in-depth understanding of many of the topics covered in the Youtube recommendations. This would be a good place to start.
The Recording Revolution
Youtube
Among one of the first people to bring audio education online, Gramham Cochrane is the man behind one of the largest Youtube channels devoted to home recording. If you are just starting your journey into recording, he has over 10 years of material to dive in on. He has covered many of the topics anyone getting into recording will ask.
Musician on a Mission
YouTube / Blog
This is another channel similar to “The Recording Revolution.” The content is targeted to people starting their journey into recording and audio. If you are a DIY musician and looking into self-recording, the content here is another good option.
Produce Like A Pro
YouTube
This is another great Youtube channel is a great resource for producers and musicians alike. It was created by producer and engineer, Warren Huart. He has a genuine want to support musicians make excellent music. He creates a lot of exceptional content on his Youtube channel and has a bunch of free resources on his website.
URM Academy
Website / Community
The Unstoppable Recording Machine is one of the best communities and resource for all engineers and producers, especially rock and metal genres. They have a ton of great tutorials that cover most of the topics you could ever have a question about. The Nail the Mix program has helped me a lot see the decisions top engineers make to create professional mixes.
Tape Op
Free Magazine
I subscribed to his magazine many years ago and got a lot of value out the of great interviews with artists and the recording process. There is an interview with Sufjan Stevens that I would recommend everyone to read which covers how he created his beautiful debut albums with horrible gear and even worse recording technique. Check out Sufjan Steven’s TapeOp Interview.
Audio Issues
Podcast
This is a great resource for musicians that are looking to start recording themselves at home. He gives practical advice and tutorials for any..audio issues you may have. I recommend the following article.
Article: The ultimate guide to getting great home recordings
Tracking
Hardcore Tracking
Course
You will get to take a look behind the scenes look on how engineers get the sound right at the source. This course will take you through the entire recording process from start to finish with every step explained along the way. From instrument setup to techniques on how to get the best performance from the artist you are working with. As a home studio musician, there is a lot you can learn about recording yourself. However, this course is quite a bit of an investment, I recommend it to producers or engineers that are wanting to record other artists.
URM: Recording Rock and Metal
Course
Everything you need to record a complete song from scratch, including over $200 in free plugins from Joey Sturgis Tones and Drumforge!
Here are some of the topics the course covers:
- Setting up your software
- Recording guitars, bass, and vocals
- Programming Drums
Plus, you get a multiple plugins well worth over $100,
All this for $39, which is a steal.
Editing
How To Edit Drums With Beat Detective
Video
If you are new to editing audio and drums in particular, Warren goes into detail how to edit with ProTools beat detective, but the principles will be the same for other methods and DAWS as well.
How to edit drums in Pro Tools: Advanced
Video
John Douglas goes in-depth with editing some heavy drums in one of URM’s fast tracks. He covers using beat detective and elastic audio with ProTools. Learning the keyboard shortcuts he mentions alone makes the video worth it.
How I Edit Guitars - GEAR GODS
Video
Trey shows you his techniques for editing guitar DI tracks.
Studio Acoustics
John Brandt
Youtube / Website
He is a very knowledgable acoustician that has worked with some big names and did many installations for studios in Nashville. He provides a wealth of knowledge on his Youtube Channel and has free DIY acoustic plan build plans on the resource page of his website.
Acoustics Insider
Website
The field of acoustics is filled with a lot of bullshit and just plain false information. Jess Lohan takes a practical approach to helping you get your room sounding its best. He isn’t going to sell you the latest foam or activated charcoal.
DIY Acoustic Panel
Youtube
This is the design of the acoustic panel that I made. I followed this design because it is much lighter and allows sound to enter from the sides. I highly recommend it and I am happy with the results I have gotten from the 6 I have built.
Home Recording Studio: Build It Like the Pros
Book
Interested in building a studio room from the ground up or totally renovating an existing room? This book goes over in detail how to build a studio with a get it done approach without being overly technical. There is a thread on Gearslutz where people asked questions directly here: Questions for the Author Thread
Master Handbook of Acoustics
Book
This is for people that really want to take a deep drive into how sound works physically and psychoacoustically. I recommend if you are want to get nerdy on the topic of acoustics
Recording Communities
AudioEngineering
This community has a good mix of hobbyists, semi-professional, and professional engineers with active discussions. The advice can be hit-and-miss, but you should be able to easily see what comments are useful.
Sound on Sound Forum
Forum
This is a traditional forum that is still very active and has a lot of veteran members.
The Indie Musician Resources
There are 5 spheres of knowledge and skills that go into making and releasing a song successfully. What do you want to develop?
