What would the one piece of gear you would recommend to a new Engineer??

[Stress Man]

What would be the 1 piece of Gear you would recommend to someone just getting into engineering sessions alone??

[Harley-OIART]

A Cable Internet Connection, so they can go to amazon.com and buy the essential audio books.

http://gearslutz.com/board/search.php?searchid=3507100

Not being a smart ass... seriously I reccomend that everyone reads up on the standard books.

There are a ton of threads, just try searching for them. Look for "Books" in Thread Titles Only.

Other than that, your ears are the most important peice of gear. I don't care if that sounds cheesy, close your eyes when mixing or recording, and you'll know what I'm talking about.

Good luck man.

[Henchman]

Originally Posted by Stress Man

What would be the 1 piece of Gear you would recommend to someone just getting into engineering sessions alone??

No gear can make up for lack of experience.

And I'm not being a smartass.
there is no magic box.

[djui5]

Great monitors. Sessions blow if you can't hear what your doing. It's happened to me too many f'n times. You can tote them around.

[triez]

A good pair of nearfield monitors that you know really well.

[DeathMonkey]

Xanax. And something to hit. thumbsup

[SergioS]

As for the piece of gear- The coffee machine,of course, and good skills in making one.

[mds]

Monitors are everything for me...I can make almost any gear get the job done as long as I can hear whats going on....

[mds]

Originally Posted by SergioS

As for the piece of gear- The coffee machine,of course, and good skills in making one.

Do you mean making a cup of coffee, or making a coffee machine? I can make a cup of coffee from a napkin as long as I have some hot water, grounds, and a cup! :-D

[SergioS]

Originally Posted by mds

Do you mean making a cup of coffee, or making a coffee machine? I can make a cup of coffee from a napkin as long as I have some hot water, grounds, and a cup! :-D

Man, you've got me thinking... I meant the cup of coffee, but maybe we could open new thread about creating balanced tube coffee machine and its potential use in filtering.

[rufus13]

Originally Posted by Stress Man

What would be the 1 piece of Gear you would recommend to someone just getting into engineering sessions alone??

That would be a few good sets of headphones and high-quality headphone amplifier. I'm thinking Stax electrostatic, Sennheiser top-line, etc. You can't depend on rooms you don't own/control or loudspeakers you tote around. With good headphones, you OWN the acoustical space around your ears. Be careful with level.

The next pieces would be microphones. Bargains abound, but try to get the best you can afford after trying a wide variety.

Do you see the pattern? Transducers.
If you were a DJ, I'd say headphones, phono headshell/cartridges, and a voice-over mic.

The rest of the pattern is small/light and valuable. You rent the big iron (big mixers, tape decks, big monitors/amps) and the real estate (studio space) as you need it.

Best of luck, and pay in cash.

kk.

[Jules]

A killer stereo mic pre (or 4 ch mic pre)

Kick & Snare - then every overdub after that...

or if you have 4 of em, kick, Snare & Overheads - then every overdub after that...

Presuming the 'new' engineer will be doing low budget sessions in low budget rooms?

Which type to get? That's up to you...



but own set of self powered monitors.. is a close second..

[treymonfauntre]

[KingDaddyO]

Originally Posted by Harley-OIART

A Cable Internet Connection, so they can go to amazon.com and buy the essential audio books.

http://gearslutz.com/board/search.php?searchid=3507100

Not being a smart ass... seriously I reccomend that everyone reads up on the standard books.

There are a ton of threads, just try searching for them. Look for "Books" in Thread Titles Only.

Other than that, your ears are the most important peice of gear. I don't care if that sounds cheesy, close your eyes when mixing or recording, and you'll know what I'm talking about.

Good luck man.

I would add, although there are many other great books, you get these two first:
Mastering Audio - Bob Katz
Mixing With Your Mind - Michael Stavrou

[Harley-OIART]

Hey Treymonfauntre,

Does that come with a Vari-AC + Bias Adjustment?

Scott


As for the thread : +1 for the Mic-Pres & Transducers. Many good engineers / producers try and build a small rack with the essentials in it. Many I see often have :

-Preamps
-Headphone Distro
-Tuner (Sometimes)
-Compressor
-Often they're Audio Interface
-A locked 2 or 3 space drawer with essential stuff in it. Mics, Tools, Cables, Moongel, Whatever.

[ronzie]

A balanced function generator (after coffe mach. of course).

Ron Allaire, Skyline

[Jules]

(for rock music) A strobe tuner for guitars would be handy too... and knowledge how to intonate Gtrs

[firby]

Ear Plugs. Save your ears.

Your welcome.

[RainbowStorm]

Originally Posted by Stress Man

What would be the 1 piece of Gear you would recommend to someone just getting into engineering sessions alone??

Gear or not, but I give you the free tool www.google.com

[NathanEldred]

A knowledgable assistant. A good one will be a life saver in pressure situations.

[ntimkovich]

good clients?

[Kenny Gioia]

good producer.

[vixapphire]

Originally Posted by firby

Ear Plugs. Save your ears.

Your welcome.

+1

[The Byre]

A degree in electrical engineering.

[SergioS]

Originally Posted by treymonfauntre

Now, that is a piece of work. High end- must have.

[cosmos]

books, monitors - the best you can afford, room acoustics done good.
thats a start ... once you go, you can never come back ... im warning you ...

start working

[cosmos]

Originally Posted by SergioS

Now, that is a piece of work. High end- must have.

this is high end my freind ... real coffee .

[SergioS]

Originally Posted by cosmos

this is high end my freind ... real coffee .

I like the stone age too. So romantic.

[madhermit]

I would have to say a good room. Spend the money on acoustics and treatment so your mixes translate. Killer monitors won't make up for a room with major node issues.

After that. Buy one of everything! Two if you can!!

[Sqye]

...

after your first few sessions, you may need this......( either for your butthead clients, or for yourself )

..