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| | #61 |
| High End Moderator Join Date: May 2002 Location: Music City USA
Posts: 3,582
Thread Starter | long post coming up... Well, the first workshop is over, way too soon, in my opinion. I have to say it was a lot of fun and very educational for me as well. A big THANK YOU to Casey and Mark for being such cool guys. We did all the stuff that you always wanted to do, but don't really have time for in a ‘real’ production. I’m sure the musicians where quite bored at times (as evident by the empty bottle of Jack Daniels), doing the same part over and over until WE where happy with the microphone or the preamp, and during the workshop we probably didn’t have the ideal creative environment for getting the best performances out of them. But that was not our objective, this was OUR project, this time WE got to say: “I can do this better”. I was reminded, that sometimes it is not easy to explain in words what you have been practicing for so long that it became second nature, but it sure refreshes the memory. Following are very personal opinions on the stereo bus compressor shoot-out (is it bus or buss?). Please keep in mind that the main objective was to find a stereo bus compressor with the least amount of color (for lack of another word) and the least amount of 'visible' compression artifacts. I just want the compressor to raise the dynamically low parts of the song a little without changing the mix. Casey and Mark, please chime in whenever your opinion differs from mine or if you have any additional comments. First off, let me say that it was mindboggeling to have a chance to compare all those great machines and an extra special thanks to Fletcher, Dave Martin and everybody else who contributed gear to the shootout. It also was a pretty full plate, to learn 14 compressors within a few hours and very difficult to quickly find the optimum settings for the task at hand. We recorded our (somewhat) final mix back to two tracks of the R-1 and fed that back to the compressors via separate busses of the R-1, so in essence we simulated a mastering session, where the mix could not be changed while compressing. Then we made our adjustments and recorded the results back to the R-1 in sync with the original mix, adjusted for level. There was no compression on the stereo bus on the original mix. We used the Massive Passive (boost at 2 ‘o clock, shelf up from 4.6 K) via the insert of the HEDD. The HEDD had the tape knob on 6 and the Pentode at 4, Triode was set at 0. The mix itself was very dense in the chorus but lighter in the verses, based on the arrangement and the recorded instruments. Compression was only used on the vocal track while tracking (17 – 20 dB on the Distressor) and on the drum submix (via the Spider, squeezed with the Chandler EMI TG-1 on limit) Participants in the September workshop, you might want to stop reading here (yeah right), in order not get biased. I will have most of those compressors around for the September workshop for you to come to your own conclusions. All the compressors where great in different ways for different applications and as a real Gearslut I would kick neither one of those out of my studio. Here we go, in no particular order: JOE MEEK – SC2 V1.07: Too colored for the task at hand, odd controls, we were not sure if this one was working to specs. MANLEY – VARI-MU Created great harmonics, we didn’t really hear the compression (which is good) but it had somewhat of a loose bottom end around 100 – 200 Hz. I am not sure exactly which model Vari-Mu this was (T-Bar mod or not), maybe Dave Martin could shed some light on this, as it was one of his compressors (thanx for dropping them off Dave). My mastering engineer uses the Vari-Mu with great results, but I would not pick this one for the permanent WireWorld equipment list, because it does not make much sense to go through the same compression circuit twice. MANLEY - ELOP Absolutely great to squeeze drum submixes, similar sound to the Chandler TG-1. For the stereo bus it was a little too colored. This makes a great tracking comp. MILLENIA – TCL2 This one has a very thick color and is a little too slow for the stereo bus, for my taste. CRANE SONG – STC-8 This is my personal favorite and it WILL make the permanent WireWorld equipment list, just have to decide on which version. The STC-8 did exactly what we were looking for; it made the mix sound bigger without changing the relationship of the instruments to each other. It brought up the dynamically lower parts of the song without squeezing the louder parts audibly. It also had the added bonus of a built in peak limiter, which allowed us to raise the overall level of the mix some more, even though we didn’t use that function on the comparison track. The presets allowed for settings from (slightly) colored to absolutely transparent and I can’t wait to dive deeper into the different settings. The STC-8 glues the mix together in a very positive way. Thank you Mr. Hill. INNER TUBE – STEREO SQUEEZE BOX This is a very ‘warm’ and round sounding compressor. It is very involved in terms of interaction of the different controls, but allows for a big variety in settings. It was THE hardest one to figure out. DRAWMER – ME 1969 Very colorful and very fat sounding box. AL SMART – C2 This is the compressor to get (out of the bunch tested) if you are looking for the ‘modern squeezed’ sound. Very HiFi sounding, but not subtle by any means. It’s also very easy to set up and we liked that it had one knob controlling both of the outputs when switched to stereo link. The crush button creates a very interesting sound. Gotta dive into that some more as well. This one is moving straight to the top of my equipment wish list. PENDULUM – ES-8 The pendulum was a very pleasant surprise, both in the drum submix test and the stereo bus compressor shoot-out. It has a big bottom and an unexpectedly clear top end for a tube compressor, very easy, detailed controls with a wide range for input and output. CRANE SONG – TRAKKER (stereo linked pair) The two linked Trakkers had a very open sound with a nice top end. They had a little more color and were not quite as big as the STC-8 on the stereo bus. If somebody already has the STC-8 this would make a great addition for tracking (hence the name, I guess), but I wouldn’t hesitate at all to use them on the stereo bus either. MANLEY – SLAM Great box. The SLAM is another unit that requires a lot of time and experimentation to get familiar with all the possible combinations of settings and I’m not sure that we exhausted all of them for this test. It was definitely the cleanest tube of the bunch. During the recording part the A/D kicked major butt. API – 2500 Nice color on all settings, it definitely adds its own character to the mix. Given the somewhat hot level of the original mix, we had a hard time to get it NOT to compress. I guess a variable input control would be an improvement to the 2500; it seemed to be very sensitive. DAKIN – 91579 (stereo linked pair) Very colorful, NEVEish sound. I would definitely consider those for tracking. They worked fine on the stereo bus but were not what we were looking for in terms of transparency. CHANDLER TG-1 This is the most colorful beast of the bunch. It is the absolute monster on drum submixes and makes a great tracking compressor for a lot of instruments and voices. Needless to say it was not what we were looking for on the stereo bus. This one should be on everybody’s wish list. EMPIRICAL LABS – EL8 DISTRESSOR (with stereo link option) I have been able to make the Distressors work on almost anything when tracking, but I was not sure about using it on the stereo bus. Well, now I am, big surprise. It sounds bright and open and is very versatile due to the extensive, easy to handle controls. If I had to start a studio from scratch this would be my first set of compressors. ...and last but definitely not least: FMR – RNC This little box had surprised us in a very positive way during the drum submix test, by squeezing the heck out of the drums and adding a lot of midrange color to the pie. On the stereo bus the added midrange wasn’t really what we were looking for, but if set to a lower compression ratio it was not bad at all and faired very well with the ‘BIG DOODS’. Considering the price it should be in every studio’s rack. There you have it. As mentioned above, our tests were not very scientific and had a very special goal in mind. It helped me making a decision for the WireWorld stereo bus compressor. I guess I’ll have to click the GIMMIE button next to the CraneSong STC-8 on the Mercenary website soon. More on this after the September workshop.
__________________ Michael Wagener http://www.michaelwagener.com ![]() Next Production Workshop scheduled for February 4th through 10th, 2012 Please read reviews about the production workshops here ![]() |
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| | #62 | |
| Moderator emeritus Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Nashville, TN
Posts: 3,152
| Re: long post coming up... Quote:
And the Vari-Mu has the T Bar mod. I guess that one of these days, I'll see those compressors again... | |
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| | #63 | |
| High End Moderator Join Date: May 2002 Location: Music City USA
Posts: 3,582
Thread Starter | Re: Re: long post coming up... Quote:
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| | #64 | |
| Moderator emeritus Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Nashville, TN
Posts: 3,152
| Re: Re: Re: long post coming up... Quote:
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| | #65 |
| Lives for gear Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 1,384
| In a related story, Dave Martin, of nashville , TN was seen walking east carring a very large stick today... onlookers mentioned him muttering something along the lines of "... compressors.. must get compressors.. don't worry children, daddy is gonna bring you home..." Film at 11.
__________________ Steve Smith - Unorignal, yet commonplace. |
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| | #66 |
| High End Moderator Join Date: May 2002 Location: Music City USA
Posts: 3,582
Thread Starter | They're safe back with daddy now... ![]() |
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| | #67 | |
| Moderator emeritus Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Nashville, TN
Posts: 3,152
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| | #68 |
| Lives for gear Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: San Diego,Ca
Posts: 806
| mix buss workshop would you consider making a set of audio cd's of all the different mix buss compressor combination? I am sure there are many gearsluts who would love to hear the results and be glad to pay you what you thought was fair for the mix buss collection cd's. Just a thought!!! |
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| | #69 | |
| High End Moderator Join Date: May 2002 Location: Music City USA
Posts: 3,582
Thread Starter | Re: mix buss workshop Quote:
Let me know if that would work for everybody and I get on it. | |
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| | #70 |
| Gear addict Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Nashville
Posts: 407
| Here's interested party number one. |
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| | #71 |
| Lives for gear Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Netherlands
Posts: 1,703
| Yep, count me in. I would prefer them on cd-rom though. If DVD is the only option, I would like to get me one anyway... I guess that makes 3?
__________________ -progress takes away what forever took to find- Dave Matthews |
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| | #72 |
| High End Moderator Join Date: May 2002 Location: Music City USA
Posts: 3,582
Thread Starter | only DVD, sorry. Please, everybody interested email me at mwagener@comcast.net and include your shipping address. Thank you. |
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| | #73 |
| Lives for gear Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: San Diego,Ca
Posts: 806
| Mix Buss CD OOOOOOOO Yea!!!! count me in!!!!I guess that makes 4 |
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| | #74 | |
| High End Moderator Join Date: May 2002 Location: Music City USA
Posts: 3,582
Thread Starter | Re: Mix Buss CD Quote:
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| | #75 | |
| Gear nut Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Southern left coast
Posts: 145
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| | #76 | |
| High End Moderator Join Date: May 2002 Location: Music City USA
Posts: 3,582
Thread Starter | Quote:
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| | #77 | |
| High End Moderator Join Date: May 2002 Location: Music City USA
Posts: 3,582
Thread Starter | Quote:
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| | #78 |
| Lives for gear Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: upstate, sc
Posts: 1,739
| The music is IMHO extremely good (Thank God! cuz we listened to that song at least a million times!)... The band, the song, the vox, lyrics, etc. all are great. Great production, great sounds. Michael considers the mix a "quick ruff." I aspire to having 'finished' mixes that sound as good! I would classify the song as being of the Pop/Rock genre. Very catchy, 100% radio-ready. I give it And FYI, probably not as 'Heavy' as you might normally associate with Michael, given his discography...
__________________ Sincerely, Casey SC Digital Services ![]() Bob Olhsson wrote on 17th September 2002, 12:56 PM: "Music is being used to sort consumers rather than to entertain people." |
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| | #79 |
| High End Moderator Join Date: May 2002 Location: Music City USA
Posts: 3,582
Thread Starter | workshop #3 I'm trying to schedule the dates for the 3rd workshop. How does September 27th through October 5th, or October 18th through October 26th sound? If that doesn't work, let me know what's good for you guys. Thanx mwagener@comcast.net |
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| | #80 |
| Gear nut Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Naperville, Illinois USA
Posts: 146
| I'd be good for the 'starting Sept. 27th' option. My day gig would prevent me from missing out on the 'middle of the month' thing. Count me in if it's the former! |
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| | #81 | |
| High End Moderator Join Date: May 2002 Location: Music City USA
Posts: 3,582
Thread Starter | Quote:
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| | #82 |
| Gear interested Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Nashville, TN
Posts: 1
| Hi, this is Danny the singer in the "Wireworld House Band" Love Over Gravity. First, let me try to convey what a true joy it is to be working with someone like Michael. We've worked with different people in the past, and to have someone who makes you feel totally confortable and at home while you're trying to "perfect" your creative works makes all the difference in the world. It's so much easier to take direction and try new things in that kind of environment. Not to mention the eons of talent and experience he brings to the table. We're thinking of calling our first major release "Album Quality" because that is exactly how it's sounding. Second, it's been very cool to meet all of you guys that have made the workshops thus far. We're not an ego driven band and we love to hear and try different ideas that you guys have suggested during these first 2 workshops. You guys are destined for some great things because of your attitudes toward recording. I guess Michael just has a knack for surrounding himself with great people (I wasn't meaning the band Michael, e e).So anyway, we're looking forward to the next workshop. It's been a great experience on the artist's side as well. ![]()
__________________ "The secret to immortality is to first live a life worth remembering." |
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| | #83 |
| Gear maniac Join Date: Sep 2003
Posts: 162
| Tracking Danny and the band has been a lot of fun this week. The workshop is simply awesome, Michael couldn't be a cooler guy to work with and damn does he know how to get great sounds. I've learned so much, invaluable knowledge that you can only learn from someone who has years of experience and is willing to share it! The workshop is a rare opportunity to work with a real Pro in a great studio. Danny helped us 'shoot out' a few mics so we could choose what we should use to put down his vocal for the song. It was very cool to compare a couple of Groove Tubes mics, the Soundelux E47 and 251, an original U87, an SMB-7, an M-149 and the Lawson MP-47. ![]() Of course it just ain't Rock & Roll without that special something that backup singers can add to the mix. Even Fritz is smilin' in this one. ![]() |
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| | #84 |
| Lives for gear Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Netherlands
Posts: 1,703
| Ok, I want to vocal coach at the next workshop. Greetings, Dirk |
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| | #85 | |
| High End Moderator Join Date: May 2002 Location: Music City USA
Posts: 3,582
Thread Starter | Quote:
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| | #86 |
| Lives for gear Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Bloomington Il
Posts: 5,032
| I can't wait to stop by during workshop number 3. I wish I could attend. I promise (mostly myself) to attend someday.
__________________ Tony Oxide Lounge Recording See the Oxide Lounge! Follow me on TWITTER! WWJMD? Come see me on the Tape Op boards! It's only inches on the reel to reel |
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| | #87 | |
| High End Moderator Join Date: May 2002 Location: Music City USA
Posts: 3,582
Thread Starter | Quote:
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| | #88 |
| Gear maniac Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Southeast USA
Posts: 252
| WOW! Don't walk,RUN to the mail box with your deposit. I just finished WS2 and there is no way I can describe how great it was. but I will try... GREAT GUY GREAT BAND GREAT GEAR HOT BABES (yea, you've seen the pics) With that said the session was an eye opening experience. As with the first WS we auditioned a multitude mics and pre amp combos for all instruments and vox. I believe our record was auditioning 24 mics on a guitar cabinet. Love Over Gravity, is a great band with great songs. They were wonderful to work with. They were very patient with our tweaking, and when the time came they nailed their parts. All around just a bunch of cool guys. I could not end this post without publicly thanking Michael for all his time, patience and just putting on a workshop like this To my WS mates Jim and Kirk, It was a pleasure. And of course I had to mention Ryu assistant extraordinaire and Dumpling master. By far the best $1500 I ever spent Richard |
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| | #89 |
| Gear Head Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Saitama, Japan
Posts: 43
| i'm flattered. thanks for the nice words. by the way, i'm sorry i couldn't join you guys for brunch. i overslept and barely made it to work on time. i hear michael ate all my food... |
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| | #90 | |
| High End Moderator Join Date: May 2002 Location: Music City USA
Posts: 3,582
Thread Starter | Quote:
I'm still working on getting some more pictures together if you guys are interested. | |
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