Tune Your Drums

Tune your drum kit!  There’s nothing worse than working on a mix delivered to me and having to start off by going through each track, one by one, and soloing to find the nasty humming tom.  I hate having to use software like Sound Replacer on almost every drum just to get a halfway decent drum sound when it could have been fixed right from the start.

Pro Tools 10...Already?

It has not even been an entire year since the release of Pro Tools 9, which presented some incredible new features and upgrades.  And Avid has announced the release of an all-new version of Pro Tools.  Pro Tools 10 includes some even more amazing software changes, as well as some new hardware counterparts like the HDX cards.  For regular Pro Tools users, the upgrade is not too far from reach financially, but for HD users such as myself, to simply upgrade the software will cost nothing less than one thousand dollars!!

Latest Addition to the Rack

After a period of research for a new channel strip, I’ve decided to implement the Universal Audio LA-610 MkII into my growing rack of outboard hardware.  Boasting the t4 opto-compressor, the same as the infamous Universal Audio/Teletronix LA-2A, was enough for me to go for this unit from the get go. But, pair that with a warm, smooth sounding tube preamp and slap on a price tag of around $1500.00, how could anyone say no to it.

AES Convention 2011

Being an audiophile is something I am proud of and wish more audio professionals would understand and become. I’m the type of person who takes that extra step to perfect the sonic capabilities of a song project.  Because of this, I try my best to stay current with the latest audio engineering technologies with hopes to rid the airwaves of less than impressive audio recordings.  Fortunately, there is an annual gathering of like-minded individuals held by the Audio Engineering Society, also known as the AES.

The Doors and...Skrillex?!

Browsing through my daily dose of news from the Rolling Stone’s RSS, I ‘ve come across a phenomenal project of artist collaborations.  The Grammys have teamed up with Amir Bar Lev to produce a project that pairs a modern day successful electronic music producer/artist with some of the greatest musicians of various genres.  These collaborations are all part of a documentary film to be released in early 2012 titled RE:GENERATION.

Carbon Neutral Recording Studio!!!

            I have always had a passion for recording music, and just recently have I been able to create and build my very own recording studio.  Even more recent than that is my new interest in preserving the earth that we take for granted.  After many readings of Richard Branson and his efforts to reduce the carbon footprint of his businesses, I’ve decided to see what can be done with my own.  Now, I don’t run an airline, so the impact isn’t quite as substantial, but that doesn’t mean I have to be complacent.  While starting my research, I did however come across Manifold Recording, a completely carbon neutral high-end professional recording studio. WOW! This place is gorgeous and technologically a dream for me.

Dynamic Vocals

In today's music, a song doesn't become popular unless we can all sing along with it, well, at least that's what the big record companies think.  My point is this: the lead vocal is a deal breaker for a good song, so I'd like to talk a little about how to make it sit right in the mix.  My inspiration for this topic was an amazing article I read in Electronic Musician that talked about using dynamics processors properly.  I definitely recommend reading and implementing some of the discussed techniques, but first I'd like to mention which dynamics processors I currently use and how.  

Welcome to The Sound of Starkey

First of all, thank you for taking the time to explore my blog.  I just want to write a quick explanation of the purpose of this blog.  Being in the audio engineering industry, I find myself getting engaged in numerous conversations about gear.  Everyone always wants to know what I'm using, or gossip about what the top dogs are using and/or endorsing.  I can't lie; I have been guilty of this as well.  But, I have realized that equipment, may it be software, speakers, mixers, amplifiers or dynamics processors, are all just tools.  It's how you apply these tools that counts.