![Best Guitar Impulse Responses [Free and Paid]](https://producelikeapro.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Best-Guitar-Impulse-Responses-Free-and-Paid-640x450.jpg)
Collecting impulse responses isn’t necessarily new tech. But it is becoming increasingly popular for capturing the sound of a unique speaker cabinet, microphone, and room for guitar. Beyond your amp settings, there’s a whole lot more that affects your recorded…
Audio Engineering
How 10cc’s “I’m Not in Love” Reimagined The Popular Love Song
Written by Caitlin Vaughn Carlos In the mid-seventies 10cc was one of England’s hottest bands. They put out five consecutive Top Ten albums between 1975 and 1978 - Sheet Music (1975), The Original Soundtrack (1975), How Dare You (1976), Deceptive…
Digital Music Distribution – Getting Music Out in 2020
Before making albums in people’s bedroom was the norm, record deals were the only way to get your music out there. A label provided the budget for recording, marketing, printing, and distributing copies of an album to consumers. Today, digital…
Waves CLA EPIC Review & Demo
We have got a treat for you! Our friends over at Waves have given us a first look at their brand new plugin, the CLA Epic! I’m particularly interested in hearing this plugin because it’s not just an emulation of…
EQ/Compression Plugins Modeled After Analog Gear
Not all, but many of the plugins we reach for while mixing in-the-box are modeled after analog gear. Engineers made some of the best sounding records of all time well before any of us started recording in our bedrooms; and…
Free 2 Hour Mastering Course – Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving! We are so thankful for this entire community and to celebrate Thanksgiving, and to show you just how much we appreciate you, we have a free gift for you today! We are giving you a free 2-hour course…
Amazing Vocal Chain for Pop ITB (Including custom presets) – Marc Daniel Nelson
In this episode of MakeMineMusic, Marc Daniel Nelson shows you his in-the-box vocal chain for mixing female pop vocals. When mixing vocals, Marc does not go after super, super compressed vocals, but he does appreciate a vocal that sits really…
How Soon is Forever?: The Rocky Start and Lasting Legacy of The Smiths’ Iconic Track
Written by Caitlin Vaughn Carlos The Smiths formed in Manchester in 1982. Five years later, they had broken up. Despite such a short tenure together, The Smiths certainly left their mark. In 2007, critic Simon Goddard declared the band, “the…
10 Truths of Recording & Mixing
Today we are talking about 1o truths of the music industry! I have seen a few of these points on other channels as separate 15 or 20 minute videos, and I have covered a couple of them myself, but I…
Who is Plini? “The Future of Exceptional Guitar Playing”
Plini Roessler-Holgate is an Australian, Sydney-based guitar player, who’s been releasing instrumental progressive rock/metal under his own name since 2013. He’s a key figure of the current instrumental prog scene, alongside other pivotal artists like Intervals, Polyphia, Jakub Zytecki, David…
Getting Credit on a Major Label Release
For producers, engineers, and musicians, getting proper credit forms the foundation of a career. Credit, or lack thereof, can quite literally be the difference between being busy or waiting around for a gig. Particularly as engineers, getting credit on a…
Flanger vs. Phaser: What’s the Difference?
Two of the most common modulation effects are flanger vs. phaser. We’ve heard both all over various recordings, and they do have a similar sound. This lends itself to some confusion, but if you know the subtle differences between each,…
How to use the Drum Replacer plugin
How to Use F. Reid Shippen’s Drum Replacement Plugin of Choice In our blog post “Get F. Reid Shippen’s Drum Samples,” Reid mentioned a drum trigger software that “may or may not be coming out that he can’t confirm nor…
What Happens When Music Isn’t Fun Anymore?
Chances are you’ve experienced moments in your life when music wasn’t much fun, or maybe you’re experiencing it now. It doesn’t matter whether you’re an engineer, producer, songwriter, or all of those. It’s totally natural, from time to time, to…
Why I Love Leapwing Audio Plugins!
If you have been watching my videos for a while, you probably know that I love Leapwing Audio's plugins. I love the products, and the company, and I use their plugins all the time when we are mixing in the…
Van Halen: How a Los Angeles Bar Band Turned into Legends
Written by Caitlin Vaughn Carlos On February 10, 1978, one minute and forty-two seconds of mind-blowing guitar playing changed the sonic landscape of rock and roll guitar forever by introducing the world to Eddie Van Halen. That would have been…
Our Secret Weapon for Repairing Audio!
The iZotope RX8 is a fantastic plugin, which we tried out when it was released a couple of months ago. Today, we have our good friends Kristian Kohle and Glenn Fricker with us, and they have been using the RX8…
The Best Old School Reverb Trick?
Today, we are going to be taking one stereo reverb and using it across every instrument in our track! We are going to be using a track that was recorded at Sunset Sound, and is completely live. Everything on this…
What is a Synthesizer? A Comprehensive Guide
Synthesizers have never been more popular than they are now. They currently play a dominant role in the production of the world’s most in-demand music. Synthesizers are the sound of pop, hip-hop, EDM, and more. But you certainly wouldn’t be…
How do you avoid using too many tracks?
Today's featured FAQ Friday question is: How do you avoid using too many tracks in a song? Led Zeppelin and Yes all recorded on 8 tracks. Yes, those bands did record on 8 tracks early on, eventually getting up to…
My favorite reverb settings: Marc Daniel Nelson (Free Presets Included)
Marc Daniel Nelson, a Grammy-nominated music producer, is joining us again to bring you another tutorial. Today, he will be talking about reverbs. Over the course of his career, Marc has worked with many amazing artists, including Jason Mraz, Colbie…
The Singular Sound of the Police and “Message in a Bottle”
Written by Caitlin Vaughn Carlos The end of the seventies marked a changing of the guard for music in many ways. Post-disco and post-punk, New Wave offered promises of the future with a seemingly infinite vision of possibilities for what…
Susanna Hoffs and the Joy of Making Music
Written by Caitlin Vaughn Carlos In 1982, when The Bangles were still known as The Bangs and playing at Al’s Bar in Los Angeles, Music Connection concluded: “There is no question that all the elements are here to make the…
What kind of contract should you offer an artist?
Today’s featured FAQ Friday Question is: “Hi I’m an artist and I’ve been offered a production contract. I don’t have the money for a lawyer, can you tell me what the difference is between a production contract and a producers…
Siouxsie and the Banshees – Hong Kong Garden: Songs That Changed Music
By: Caitlin Vaughn Carlos In July of 1978, New Music Express’s Nick Kent found the punk attitude alive and well with a Siouxsie and the Banshees performance at the Roundhouse. Kent pressed: “If Punks are currently being brushed off by…
How I got my start in the music industry- Marc Daniel Nelson
Marc Daniel Nelson is a Grammy-nominated music producer, audio mixing engineer, 4-time PMA nominee, and 1-time PMA winner. Marc has had a successful career producing, mixing, and managing multiple artists for almost 20 years. As a protege of the music…
Best USB Interface under $200? – Audient Evo 8
Our good friends over at Audient have a brand new product! It is called the Evo 8! It is a 4 input/4output USB interface that costs about $200 and it has the auto-gain function! This is the first one in…
My experiences with Eddie Van Halen were always unbelievable- RIP Maestro
This week has been a rough week for the music industry. There are only a handful of people that we can call true pioneers of the music industry. There have been legendary guitar heroes throughout the years, but the one…
Best Studio Monitors for the Home Setup 2020
If you’re shopping for a pair of studio monitors to fit your home studio, you’ve come to the right place. Flat, neutral monitoring is one of the keys to getting the best mix you can — and it all starts…
Top 10 Metal Amps with Kristian Kohle!
We have our good friend Kristian Kohle here with us today, and he is going to talk about his Top 10 Metal Amps! Kristian is a very successful German metal producer, and I would consider him to be an expert…
Top Vocal Recording Tips from a PRO Vocalist!
Our good friend Chris Liepe is back with us, and today we are going to be sharing our Top 5 Vocal Recording Tips! This will be a conversation with too different perspectives: mine as a producer and engineer, and Chris's…
iZotope Neoverb: The Smartest Reverb Plugin?
We have a brand new plugin today share with you today: the iZotope Neoverb! iZotope has some very clever plugins, so I am very excited to see what they have done with their latest release! Before we go any further…
VU Meter: Just How Useful Are They?
Most of us have a rough idea of what a VU meter does. But unless we spend a lot of time around analogue outboard gear, we probably aren’t super familiar with them. And let’s face it, many of us are…
DIY Bass Traps: You NEED These in Your Studio
So much of our success in recording and mixing is dependent on where we’re physically doing it. Ideally, this means purpose-built, acoustically unambiguous rooms designed for professional recording and mixing — big commercial studios with a legacy of fantastic sound!…
ADSR: Build Better Synth Sounds Today
ADSR stands for attack, decay, sustain, and release. It’s also known as a sound’s “envelope,” which includes all 4 of these tone-shaping elements. ADSR is an important concept in music production and sound design, especially if you plan on building…
How to Make Acoustic Panels for Your Studio
Unless your home studio was specifically designed for recording and mixing music, it’s probably not an ideal tracking and monitoring environment. Professional studios are carefully planned out to eliminate acoustic issues in many ways that residences are not. But if…
Sonic Epitaphs: Behind the Music of Joy Division’s “Love Will Tear Us Apart”
By Caitlin Vaughn Carlos If you visit Macclesfield Cemetery just outside of the English town in the county of Cheshire, you will find a small, plain gravestone with the inscription “love will tear us apart” - a bittersweet epitaph to…
5 Compression Mistakes We All Make!
Today, I am sharing 5 Compression Mistakes We All Make! From using the wrong attack or release time, to not truly knowing why we are compressing something, these are things we are all guilty of! All of these tips are…
Logic Pro X Tutorial: Get Mixing in a Powerful DAW
Apple’s Logic Pro X is an industry-standard DAW known for its massive built-in virtual instrument and loop library, as well as its intuitive piano roll and MIDI editing capabilities. Logic’s interface overall is attractive and intuitive, and it’s priced at…
Our Top 10 Rock Singers of ALL TIME!
We are here today with our good friend, Chris Liepe! Chris has his own successful YouTube channel on vocal coaching, ear training, recording tips, and more. He is very talented, and we are so excited to have him here with…
“Show Me, Show Me, Show Me How You Do That:” Finding the Edge of Indie and Pop in the Cure’s “Just Like Heaven”
Written by Caitlin Carlos By the time The Cure had found their first significant American hit in 1987, the band had been playing together for over a decade, seemingly used to the ebb and flow of mainstream attention that had…
Fundamental Stereo Miking Techniques
Stereo miking techniques use two microphones at the same time to record one sound source. Each microphone is then panned to the left and to the right to mimic the way our ears perceive sound in the “real world.” This…
Rock and Roll on the Dance Floor: Behind the Music of “Let’s Dance”
Written by Caitlin Carlos From his early beginnings as Davy Jones, to his alien persona of Ziggy Stardust, David Bowie had spent much of the sixties and seventies, inventing and reinventing himself. The decade’s end culminated with the critically acclaimed…
Top Audio Technology Trends of the Past Year
Audio technology trends are slowly but surely changing the way we produce and consume music, film, and other media. From the studio and beyond, these are some of the top trends we’ve observed in the last year. Monitor Calibration Computer-aided…
Best Classic Modulations in ONE PLUGIN? | Waves Kaleidoscopes
Waves has another exciting new plugin that we get to try out today! The Waves Kaleidoscopes plugin is exciting because it could be exactly what I have been asking for the last few years, which is a plugin that has…
Top 6 Plugins for Mixing Metal
Jordan Valeriote is a Canadian producer/mixer/engineer and the founder of Hardcore Music Studio. He has worked with bands like Silverstein, Neck Deep, Forevermore, Intervals, Counterparts, Nick Johnston, Auras, and many more. Today, he is here to share with us his…
Automate Your Analog Equipment! | Tegeler Crème RC
Today, we are trying out the new Crème RC from Tegeler! We have used the Crème before, and just like almost everyone else who tested it out, found that it was one of the most affordable SSL compressor and Pultec…
7 Pieces of Equipment I Use Every Day!
I often get asked what gear I use most frequently, so today I am going to share with you 7 pieces of equipment that I use in recording and mixing every single day. These 7 pieces are a combination of…
How to go from Intern to Grammy Winner
Today’s featured question is: “I’m going to be beginning an internship at a studio near me this fall, what skills, technical or not, do you believe are most important for an intern to have?” This is a fantastic question! I…
Your First Recording Adventure: Mac or PC, Desktop or Laptop
Your First Recording Adventure: Mac or PC, Desktop or Laptop More people than ever before are looking for ways to occupy their extra time indoors. Let’s face it – there are only so many puzzles you can do or reruns…