Home Studio Tips

Google is in the process of launching a music lyrics search function and the music industry is not happy about it. The Music Publishers' Association have complained that posting lyrics on websites are violating copyrights. And furthermore, they are saying that tablature damages a songwriters ability to make a living. They are claiming posting lyrics and tablature is stealing. Come on.  Read More »

Mr. Fastfinger is an awesome website. You have to check this out. Mr. Fastfinger is an animated site that has a guy playing killer solo's. You can control the solos with your keyboard. Mr. Fastfinger will allow you to print out the tablature for each solo.  Read More »

The Onion had this great little article poking fun at the mighty Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The funny thing is it's probably not that far from the truth.  Read More »

Every year at Christmas, I look forward to getting some new music equipment. I give my wife a detailed list with part numbers, websites and prices so she knows exactly what to get me. I also price stuff from $1 to $200, just to be realistic.

Some ideas to get the musician in your life would be:  Read More »

One of my readers gave me a nice little tip about this new String Master Robotic Guitar Tuner. You can read all about it over at Hot Guitarist.

Basically, it's a regular guitar tuner that operates on a 9 volt battery, and has an input for your guitar cable. The difference is it has a little tuning peg adapter, you pluck the string and the Robotic Guitar Tuner actually tunes the string for you.  Acoustic guitars without built in pick-ups require acoustic
guitar adapter (sold separately).

From Hot Guitarist:

"All you do is hold the String Master robotic guitar tuner on each tuning peg and pluck the string. String Master listens to the sound and its powerful gear motor actually turns the peg for you until that string is tuned to perfect pitch.

The String Master robotic guitar tuner uses advanced microprocessor technology to sample the sound several times, eliminating harmonics and overtones that plague other guitar tuners and lead to inaccurate tuning. This makes StringMaster far superior to other guitar tuners."

The Robotic Guitar Tuner lists for $99 but they are selling it at Hot Guitarist for $49. Not a bad deal. The String Master Robotic Guitar Tuner would be a great tool for any NEW guitarist having trouble learning to tune their guitar.

People do some amazing things with Microsoft Office. People do some amazing things with computers. This guy built a drum machine using Microsoft Excel. Excel!

The other great thing about this drum machine is it is controlled by your keyboard or a video game joystick. He says SNES is the most compatible. Good times!  Read More »

These are the building blocks of your home studio. The following should be your main focus when you begin.

Your Room
The main thing to focus on when building your home studio is your room. Do you have a nice quiet place that that doesn't echo or emphasize certain frequencies? You don't want to record everything in a bathroom or concrete basement. You want a dead room. You can always add reverb later, but if your room is too live, you will end up with unwanted frequencies that you can't remove. Put up some carpeting or blankets if you have to.  Read More »

Here are a few tips for recording vocals:  Read More »

I was thinking about writing an article on acoustics and studio monitors, while doing some research I came across this article. Rather than recreate the wheel, I thought I'd share it with you. This was written by Brandon over at Recording Review. Really great stuff.

Can I mix a record using my home stereo speakers?

The Ultra Pro Situation  Read More »

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When building your home studio you are going to need a computer for recording, otherwise known as a Digital Audio Workstation or DAW. I'm not a Mac guy, so I use a PC. PC's are quite a bit less expensive than Mac's and will do just as good of a job.  Read More »

Recently, I was asked what should be on a list for a good home studio. Every home studio is different. It also depends on what type of music you will be recording.

But the essentials would be:  Read More »

I don't know about you, but I spent the better part of my teens playing along with Metallica and Slayer records. I'd turn my amp up, turn the stereo up so it sounded like I was a part of the band. Man, that was some good times. I still do it occassionally, but not as often.  Read More »

In the rock world there are certain rules that need to be followed. I've compiled a list of Rock and Roll rules here:  Read More »