Some new demo tracks - featuring the Egnater M4

With Jennifer in NYC for the weekend, it was pretty much a self-proclaimed "lock myself in the basement and record some stuff" weekend. The last big personal recording project I worked on was when we did the Necessary Distraction demo tracks ( http://www.necessarydistraction.com/ ) about a year ago. Since then, I've swapped out my fair share of studio gear, but I've also completely swapped out my amp rig (was a Rocktron Vendetta at the time) for an Egnater M4 rack with a variety of modules. And I've swapped out a handful of guitars, too. Gotta put all this new stuff to use somehow...

So anyway, I ended up recording two tunes... both still need a few tweaks, but you'll get the basic idea. The first is called "Turn & Run"... Jennifer and I wrote it about a year ago when we were putting together a rather short-lived blues band. Turns out, that song is exactly all the blues I had in me (obviously not much, 'cause you can tell I gave up on the blues by the time the solo came around).

http://studio.depalma-duersch.com/turnandrun.mp3

Here's the breakdown:
- L rhythm: G&L ASAT through the Deluxe side of the T/D module, Lexicon plate reverb added through Sonar
- R rhythm: G&L Legacy through the B side of the VX module, Lexicon plate reverb added through Sonar
- solo (1:38) + fills: PRS McCarty Soapbar through the B side of the SL module, Sonitus delay added through Sonar
- vocals: Jennifer
- bass: G&L Tribute L2500, direct
- drums: Drums on Demand, of course
- signal chain: guitars --> front of M4 --> VHT2/50/2 (class A) --> Randall 4x12 w/ V30's --> double mic'd with Cascade Fat Head ribbon + Blue "The Ball" dynamic mics --> Presonus Digimax FS

-----

The second track is a Necessary Distraction tune called "Rock of Gibraltar". Here is an excerpt--the full-length track will be posted once Jennifer records the vocal tracks.

http://studio.depalma-duersch.com/gibraltar.mp3

Again, the breakdown:
- L rhythm (distortion): PRS McCarty through B side of the SL module, Lexicon chamber reverb added through Sonar
- L rhythm (clean): PRS McCarty through the Twin side of the T/D module, Carl Martin compression + Glass Nexus reverb out front
- R rhythm: PRS McCarty through the A side of the E-RECT module
- solo (1:51): Voodoo Guitar Works custom archtop through the A side of the EG3 module, Sonitus delay added through Sonar
(Bass, drums, guitar signal chain are same as the first track.)

While I was hoping to get 4-5 songs done this weekend, I guess I'll settle for two. Hopefully this week I'll get a little more basement time to record a couple more Necessary Distraction tracks.

While I'm at it, here's a pic of the mic setup... for the tracks above I only used "The Ball" and Fat Head mics... didn't do anything with the AT2020 (yet).


--B

The Burning Sensations - the lost recordings!

A couple months ago while cleaning off the studio PC's hard drive I found some old Burning Sensations demo tracks that we probably recorded while preparing for a gig. The tracks are hardly perfect from a performance standpoint (they were recorded shortly after recruiting a new singer and bassist) and recording standpoint (everything was recorded live in a basement with minimal soundproofing). But with a little time invested in mixing & editing, they do provide a respectable "history" of the majority of our original tunes (and, more importantly, guitar solos!) that we had in early 2005.

Though all the tracks are cool in their own way, my personal favs (and some of the better performances, perhaps) are All Comes Down, Dots not Feathers, Goin' On, Majority, Stare, and Tonight.

• All Comes Down
• Dots not Feathers (I have no idea what the actual name of this song was)
• Gettin' it Done
• Goin' On
• Let it Ride
• Live for Today
• Majority
• Run
• Stare
• Tonight
• Under

Aside from the 3 tracks recorded at Group Effort, we never did any formal recording projects... when I moved into my current house, we switched practice locations to the bassist's workshop and never had easy access to the recording gear from then on. So at least there's some record of these tunes, imperfect as they may be.


--B

It's the most wonderful time of the year (updated)

Yeah, that's right, it's time for NAMM, the semi-annual music industry trade show in Anaheim where all the big music manufacturers debut their hot new gear for 2008. Of course, I'm stuck in the midwest, but I've been keeping up on the cool new stuff through forums and manufacturer/retailer websites.

Here are my top 10 picks...

TC Electronic Nova System
http://www.tcelectronic.com/NovaSystem
Looks like a cross between the G-System and the Nova pedals... analog overdrive + DSP compression, EQ, modulation, pitch shift, delay, and reverb all in a floor-based unit. Will be interesting to see what the quality of effects is and what the street price in USD is. Very tempting since it would allow me to downsize/simplify the pedalboard considerably!



Boss GT-10
http://www.bossus.com/gear/productdetails.php?ProductId=941&ParentId=46
While on the topic of cool floor-based effects, Boss just released the next generation GT processor to replace the GT-8. Definitely looks cooler than the GT-8, but still not clear what changes have been made inside, or if it sucks any less tone than the GT-8 when using 4-cable method. At half the price of the TC, I'll probably end up checking one out at some point in time.



Line 6 ToneCore DSP Developer Kit
http://namm.harmony-central.com/WNAMM08/Content/Line6/PR/ToneCore-Developer-Kit.html
Ok, let me get this straight... a hardware/software solution that allows folks to design custom effects algorithms and download them to a stompbox? Extra points for appealing to both my musical interests and computer geek interests.


PRS McCarty Korina, Mira
http://www.prsguitars.com/namm08/index.html
Technically both of these models were introduced in 2007, but will really start hitting the stores in 2008. Both sport simpler finishes, simpler electronics than most PRS models (and should therefore have lower prices), but should offer the same high-end tone, feel, and attention to detail as the more expensive models.


Egnater Rebel, E2
Very little info available on these so far... the Rebel is a very compact amp head, the E2 is an 1U expander that allows 2 modules (4 channels) to be added to an M4, MOD50, quite possibly any amp with an effects loop. Hoping for some new modules, too, but haven't heard anything yet, which brings me to...


Randall Kirk Hammett Signature Amps
http://www.randallamplifiers.com/products/amplifiers/mts/hammett/index.asp
An extension to the MTS line that includes new heads and combos, it also includes several modules to emulate Kirk's tone (sans wah pedal) over the years. Am hoping that the KH1 (clean module) has that super-clean JC120 vibe to it. And check out this sweet RM100 with the Mesa-esque flamed maple finish...



Blackheart Engineering Killer Ant head
http://www.blackhearteng.com/bh1h.html
Theoretically designed by the same folks who brought us the Epiphone Valve Jr and marketed/distributed by Crate, the latest features an all-tube circuit that cranks out less than 1 watt. If the Valve Jr and Blackheart Little Giant are any indication, it will probably be a tweaker's delight. And anything that's all-tube with a list price of $139 is hard to argue with under any circumstances.



Digitech Control 2
http://www.digitech.com/products/Control2/
While technically not that exciting on its own, the Control 2 is the dedicated foot controller for the GSP-1101 that Digitech released last year. Having grown up (so to speak) on the GSP-21 and GSP-2101 series, I've been eyeing the GSP-1101 for a while, saying "if it only had a foot controller..." Now it does.



Gibson Custom Shop Alex Lifeson ES-355
While it's official Gibson liquidation week around here (I shipped out the Firebird and LP Standard on Wednesday, then sold the Explorer and SG on ebay today), this one's worthy of attention since Alex Lifeson is one of my biggest influences as a guitar player.



Audix CabGrabber
http://namm.harmony-central.com/WNAMM08/Content/Audix/PR/CabGrabber.html
And finally, in the "why didn't somebody else think of this first" department... an adjustable mic clip that attaches to a guitar cabinet, to reduce the clutter of mic stands when recording (or more importantly, to keep someone from tripping over a mic stand while recording). Should work great with mics with shockmounts (e.g., condensers), but will be interesting to see how it works with dynamic mics... if too much vibration from the cab gets transferred directly to the mic via the CabGrabber.

--B

No more Gibsons?!?

If you've been paying attention (and even if you haven't), I've been slowly downsizing the guitar collection over the past couple of weeks, starting with the most recent acquisitions. (For you accountants out there, apparently guitar buying & selling is a LIFO thang--probably because the newer guitars are the ones I have the least sentimental attachment to.) It started with unloading the G&L ASAT Special, Gibson Firebird, and Les Paul Standard through online forums; proceeded with clearing out the Explorer Pro, SG Standard, and G&L Legacy on ebay; and wrapped up with selling the Les Paul Classic Antique locally today. So now, almost as quickly as I accumulated all those Gibsons, they're all gone...

The Gibson purchases were near the end of the "great guitar diversification of 2007" in which I sold half of my PRS collection and picked up a dozen other guitars to branch out a bit, mostly for recording purposes. It started with the G&L's (ASATs & Legacys), moved to hollowbodies (Heritage & Gretsch), even snuck in a Carvin 12-string electric before I started checking out the Gibsons. The allure of the Gibsons was two-fold... first, they've got classic tones that would bring a more tonal diversity to the studio; second, with the Guitar of the Week program, Gibson was cranking out some really eye-catching instruments.

So what happened? Overall, I reached a few realizations: 1) The G&L's, Heritage, & Gretsch bring enough diversity to the table compared to the remaining PRSi to be worth holding on to. 2) The Gibsons do not bring enough diversity to the table compared to the PRSi to be worth holding on to. 3) Gibsons always look better to me than they feel or sound. It's personal preference, I know, but (for the money) most PRSi have better tone, playability, and attention to detail than most Gibsons. Once I reached those realizations, I knew it was time to start unloading the Gibsons...

So what next? Well, I'm obviously going to hold on to the G&L's, Heritage, Gretsch, & Carvin that were part of the "great guitar diversification of 2007". But with the money from the Gibsons, I'm planning on picking up 2-3 different PRSi. Not sure exactly what at this point... could be a Singlecut Trem, Mira, McCarty Korina, or 513 Mahogany. Who knows? Kinda depends on what sort of deals I can score on ebay over the next couple of weeks. Stay tuned...

--B

Ground Floor demo tracks

Took on a Sunday afternoon project to record several demo tracks for Ground Floor, a new local cover band. I spent a bit of time the first week of January to get things ready (getting out all the mics/cables/stands, setting up the templates in Sonar, etc.), it was nice to get down to business that Sunday... folks started showing up around 11:00 to set up gear, started recording the backing tracks (guitar/bass/drums) around 1:00, moved on to recording vocal tracks by 3:00, and started packing things up by 4:30. I spent a little time doing some editing and mixing Sunday and Monday evenings, and although there are still a few things I need to clean up (mostly tweaking bass & vocal levels), overall the tracks are 90% complete. Not bad for a half-day's effort.

If you want to check the demo tracks out, you can listen to them here:
http://www.myspace.com/groundfloorband

(Note: The songs Mustang Sally, Hard to Handle, Jumping Jack Flash were recorded this session; Hey Joe, Knockin' on Heaven's Door were recorded here with a different lineup back in July, but were recently re-mixed a bit.)

--B

Budget stereo speakers a-plenty!

I've been using the M-Audio BX8 monitors and SBX subwoofer in the studio for a couple years now and been pretty happy with the results (they sound great, and while they're not the "flattest" sounding monitors on earth, I'm learning to compensate when mixing & mastering). But there's still a lot to be said for listening to recordings on a "normal" stereo as the mix is nearing completion (heck, I listen to most semi-final mixes on a boombox and car stereo, too). So after inventorying all the "leftover" stereo parts during the recent home theater roundup, I found a spare (working) Sony receiver, then started the quest for some cheap-o stereo speakers. I ended up ordering the SDAT 5-piece speaker system from Overstock.com. For under $150, it includes a set of LEB-404 3-way tower speakers, LEB-405 2-way bookshelf speakers, and a 3-way center channel speaker (that I don't really need). But it will be nice to be able to alternate between the tower speakers and bookshelf speakers when reviewing mixes.

This, of course, led to a Home Depot trip, so I could install a new shelf above my studio desk for the old Sony stereo (receiver, tuner, tape deck, CD player) + the SDAT bookshelf speakers. Check it out...



I've got the SoundBlaster patched in to the stereo, which is rather helpful... all of the "in progress" mixing in Sonar is output through the OctoPre/M-Audio monitors, and the "final" versions (WAV's, MP3's) can be output through the SoundBlaster/SDAT speakers.

So the big question right now... how do they sound? Well, after blasting some King's X through them for 5-6 hours to break 'em in... not too bad for under $150. The 3-way tower speakers have decent bass & high reproduction; they're bit strong in the upper mids, so they're more "aggressive" than "rich" or "mellow". The 2-way bookshelf speakers (as expected) don't have much in the way of low-end reproduction, so they sound a bit harsh when compared to the tower speakers. Certainly not audiophile-quality, but for the money, hard to argue with, and will get the job done quite well in the studio.

--B

Gearing up for recording project...

This (upcoming) weekend I've got plans to record a few demo tracks for the local cover band Ground Floor. So I've been spending a bit of time getting the gear and software set up. Thought it would be a good opportunity to talk a bit about the "typical" setup for recording here, since Ground Floor has a pretty typical rock line-up... drummer, bassist, and 2 guitarists who alternate singing lead & backup.

I usually start with the drums, since they take the most time to get set up & dialed-in. For mics I use a Shure PG52 for kick, Shure PG56's for toms, an Audix i5 for snare, and a Sennheiser MD421 for hi-hat. Overheads are a pair of Studio Projects C4's with omni capsules. All of the drum mics are fed into a Presonus Digimax FS preamp/converter; each channel's insert is fed through an ART MDM-8L compressor/limiter for overshoot protection.

For guitars, I use either a Shure SM57 or Sennheiser e609, typically mic'd on axis about mid-way between the rim & cone of the speaker. (For more complex projects, I may run multiple mics on the same cab or run a line from a cab simulator, but will probably not do this on Sunday.) For bass, I'll run direct from the bassist's preamp. Both guitars & bass feed into a Presonus Digimax LT preamp/converter, again with the ART MDM-8L in each channel's insert.

Finally, for scratch vocals I use a Shure SM58; for final vocals it's a Studio Projects T3 tube condenser; both run through the Digimax LT and MDM-8L.

So after getting out all the above mics (plus associated stands and cables), I created a template in Sonar 6 Producer. The first 8 tracks are for drums, followed by bass, guitar, and vocal tracks. The tracks are mixed down into a four buses (drums, bass, guitar, vocals) which are then mixed down to a master bus. I set up a few basic effects, including a low-frequency roll-off for the guitars, iZotope compression/EQ for drum/bass/vocal buses, and Sonitus multi-band compression on the master bus. Of course, all the levels & effects will get tweaked a lot on Sunday, but it's nice to have them loaded and ready to activate.

Now everything is ready to go for Sunday... I can get down to business with checking levels as soon as the drums and amps are ready to play. Looking forward to it!

--B