What Inspires Me: J.J. Blair (Johnny Cash, The Who, Rod Stewart)
J.J. Blair's Career J.J. Blair is an accomplished musical engineer, producer, and musician who has worked with a long list of fantastic artists, including Johnny Cash, June Carter Cash, Rod Stewart, The Who, and many more. Most notably, he produced…
The Pros of Earning a Sound Engineering Degree

There are a lot of perspectives and opinions on whether going to college for audio engineering is worth it. One of the biggest arguments against working on a sound engineering degree is that it’s really no substitute for real-world experience…

Do You Need an Audio Engineering Degree?

Let’s dive straight in. Do you need an audio engineering degree to become an engineer? No. Traditionally, great engineers have learned by doing—starting as an intern in a studio and being mentored by peers to develop their skills. The professional…

Quiet time – saving your ears for the mix

by Jerry Hammack, author of The Beatles Recording Reference Manuals (www.beatlesrecordingreferencemanuals.com / www.jerryhammack.com) One of the keys to successful mix engineering is keeping your ears fresh for what’s important – in short, the music. There are all kinds of ways…

Touring the world with Rock Stars (Talking with Wayne Miller at Selma Studios)

I recently had a chance to sit down with the incredibly talented Wayne Miller at his home studio (Selma Studios) in Hollywood, California and talk about the music industry, touring, and songwriting! Wayne is an accomplished songwriter, producer, musical director…

Vocal Tuning in the ’70s! (Talking with Richard Dodd)

While we were in Nashville, we had a chance to talk with the incredibly talented Richard Dodd! The interview took place at Blackbird Studios in Studio D, where we were having our Produce Like A Pro Academy Master Class. Believe…

Raised in recording studios (Talking with Ryan Hewitt)

While we were in Nashville for NAMM and the Produce Like A Pro Masterclass, I had a chance to stop by the House Of Blues Studios to talk with the incredibly talented Ryan Hewitt. Ryan Hewitt is a Grammy award-winning…

Mastering with the excellent program, Lurssen Mastering Console (LMC)

Written by Michael W. Dean Michael W. Dean wrote the book $30 Music School (Only 5 dollars. 2nd Edition, 2018. Cheaper than a drink in a bar, Kindle Edition (Get it here on Amazon) It’s the 2018 update to the classic…

Mark Endert Interview (The Fray, Fiona Apple, Train)

I recently had the tremendous pleasure of speaking with Mark  Endert, a mixing engineer whose credits include The Fray, Train, Fiona Apple, Maroon 5, and Madonna, among many others. Mark and I have both a personal and professional relationship going…

Rock Mix Bus Processing with Bob Marlette and Ulrich Wild
Mixing through plugins on your master bus is a widely debated topic. There are many approaches and methods but the best part is that there is no one way to go about it. Today I have a video for you…
Mixing Hip Hop Vocals with Ariel Chobaz & Bob Horn
Ariel Chobaz and Bob Horn are both incredibly accomplished mixers.  Both have worked with some of the biggest names in Hip Hop! Ariel was nominated for a Grammy for Rihanna's album "Loud", and Bob is a Grammy winner who's mixed songs for…
What is an Audio Engineer?
What is an audio engineer? If you're are making music, or recording audio you are an audio engineer. Of course, this is a broadest answer possible. To be more specific I have come up with a list of 5 duties…
How to Mix Vocals with Cameron Webb, Erik Reichers and Phil Allen
The vocal track is most important element in modern pop, rock and country music. The lyrics contain the point and theme of the song. The singer's voice is what connects the listener to the music. It's important to mix the…