By Tom Mulhern
Only last week I was rummaging through my old recording stuff–microphones, head demagnetizer, and so on, all artifacts of the pre-computer recording days. And I thought about how much I liked working with these things and how much money I had spent on them. I also recalled that most of the problems I ever had while analog recording came from me, and not from a lack of hard drive space, a system freeze, or any other manner of silicon-based random melt-down. It occurred to me that (1) recording was in many ways easier, or at least more intuitive, and (2) I probably wasn’t the only one with a bunch of analog recording gear.
Don’t get me wrong: Digital recording in your computer is a great way to record, not only because of the overall audio quality, but because of the flexibility that virtual multitracking offers. Nevertheless, I’m here to say to you die-hard analog fans, "Make that tape, and then worry about getting it online." This may sound crazy to anyone who’s been happily toiling away in front of their computer, but think of this: Putting the music on the web is mostly a matter of following some simple steps. Creating and capturing it is the hardest work. So, if you’re more comfortable recording with a traditional setup instead of pushing pixels with a mouse, do it. Once you have a master tape done, you can use shareware, freeware, or cheapware to get the music into your computer and convert it to mp3, WAV, or AIFF format, so don’t sweat this part.
Here comes the caveat! Knowing how to get that music from your analog gear to the web entails a little more than just connecting two shielded cables between your recorder’s outputs and your computer’s audio inputs. It takes awareness and ability to coax the cleanest, most robust signal (without distortion) that you can from your gear. Here are some major considerations:
Signal-to-Noise Ratio (S/N). One of the major selling points of computer-based recording is its incredible signal-to-noise ratio (usually 95dB or greater). An excellent way to increase overall signal-to-noise ratio is to make sure you buy a good-quality sound card for your computer. Since the S/N of your recorder is pretty much a given, this can be the most cost-effective method of reducing the amount of noise entering your final recording that you present to the Web.
Effects and EQ. Do all of your EQ before your mixdown, and don’t expect to re-EQ your audio once it’s in the computer. You may have to fine-tune the EQ a little to overcome excessive bass that comes particularly when you mix from tape to tape, but other than that, your mix should be your final word.
Limiting. Tape can handle a little bit of overloading, and some people even believe that it adds warmth and thickness to the sound. Digital overloading, on the other hand, sounds terrible, imparting a "let’s try this again" type of badness. If you’ve ever pulled a cord out of a stereo that’s turned on, or encountered a scratchy volume control, you’ve got a good idea of how this sounds. Rather than back your signal level way down, just to avoid the possibility of overloading, you can use a limiter between your recorder and computer to make sure the signal stays within the "no overload" zone. How? A limiter has circuitry that allows all signals to pass through, but when their level gets too high, it clamps down, lowering the level by a preset amount. Some limiters have a buffered, or soft, limiting effect, which doesn’t drop the signal level so noticeably as the threshold is reached, and instead gently eases into its job of reducing the level. Another good feature to look for is linking, where one channel’s action affects the other, too. Why is this useful? If one channel’s level hits the threshold and the limiter only clamps down on that signal, then the mix can seem momentarily lopsided as one channel drops down while the other remains at full volume.
Naturally, you’ll need to experiment with your own recording gear and computer to find the happy medium that assures your best sound quality. And remember, if you ever decide to unload all of your analog gear, you’ll have a solid conceptual foundation and understand what it takes to squeeze the best sound from your equipment.