01. CHOOSING THE MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.
It is always appropriate to start with the right foot. Some acoustic guitars are particularly suitable for picking, but unsuitable for strumming.
02. OPTIMISING THE INSTRUMENTS (MAINTENANCE, TUNING AND ACCESSORY CHOICE).
Choosing a soft rather than a hard pick has a great impact on the sound of the transients of a guitar string: there (still) is no mixing technique that can successfully reproduce results like these.
03. CHOOSING THE PERFORMERS (IF REQUIRED).
A good musician playing a poor instrument always gets better results than a poor musician playing a quality instrument. A good jazz player might not be as good at playing rock. John Bonham’s sound is made possible, first and foremost, by John Bonham himself!
04. SETTING UP HEADPHONE MONITORING AND ENSURING THE COMFORT OF THE PERFORMERS.
Pressing the “REC” button always inhibits musicians. If the headphone volume is too loud, one tends to play too loud, and vice versa. Being able to hear oneself well and to feel well is key when it comes to giving the best.
05. CHOOSING THE ACOUSTIC ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH TO RECORD, OPTIMIZING THE ACOUSTICS (LOOKING FOR THE SWEET SPOT IN A ROOM, USING GOBOS AND SO ON).
The room can be considered one of the tools in the arsenal of a sound engineer, as it can greatly influence the recorded sound.
06. CHOOSING THE MICROPHONES.
The right microphone is the one that really allows your instrument to shine. The most appropriate is the one that allows you to obtain the artistic result you desire.
07. MICROPHONE PLACEMENT.
One centimetre is all it takes to mark the difference between an amateurish sound and a professional one.
08. CHOOSING PREAMPLIFIERS AND CONVERTERS.
They give colour to the sound and may improve the sound of microphones.
09. EQUALISATION AND COMPRESSION.
This is not always necessary, but putting everything off to the mixing phase means taking more time and procrastinating important artistic choices.