Recording

In the first part of this new series, David Mellor gives his personal slant on creating a studio that will stay with you as your recording skills and budget improve.

Taking a compact DAT machine out and about can gain you some unique recordings, but can also present you with some unique problems.

If you're burning CDs at home, you'll obtain the best quality if your audio data is at its highest possible average signal level. Most people yawn at this and reach for the normalisation button on their audio editor, but, as Craig Anderton explains, unless you're careful, you could be doing your material a disservice...

Paul D. Lehrman took six players, four samplers and a computer, and created a live-performance piece based on the music and words of Frank Zappa. It left the audience delighted — and utterly confused.

Fully automated mixing could make your life a whole lot easier, but if you can't get your hands on a suitcase full of banknotes, Craig Anderton has some ideas for achieving similar results at a minimum cost.

Do you fully appreciate your mixer's capabilities when it comes to using effects and signal processors? Craig Anderton reminds you of a few tricks your desk might have up its sleeve.

Ask a dozen engineers how to make great vocal recordings and you'll get a dozen different answers — but there are some ground rules, as Hugh Robjohns explains.

If you have a cheap Dolby Surround decoder in your home — say as part of a 'home cinema' entertainment system — and a stereo mixer as part of your recording setup, you have everything you need to start mixing in Surround sound. Hugh Robjohns explains how to enter another dimension...

Experienced engineers know that recording the spoken voice properly is actually more difficult than recording a singer. Hugh Robjohns explains why this is so, and passes on some hints and tips for developing a good technique.