Help Me With My Site + 1 Question

[fuzzyhair]

Please tell me what I should say/ shouldn't say on my site.
http://www.myspace.com/tylerruskproductions

Are the pictures of my equipment drawing away people? Do they think size=quality.

I am going to put up recordings soon, so that's taken care of.

For the question.

What's the safest way to hang a condenser?

[Moseph]

Please tell me what I should say/ shouldn't say on my site.
http://www.myspace.com/tylerruskproductions

You're saying way too much. Most people care about 4 things (not necessarily in this order): experience, cost, gear, and how your tracks actually sound.

Musicians, on the whole, don't give a crap about how you do your job. If they ask, tell them how it all works. Otherwise, let them assume you know what you're doing (and you should).

If you intend to charge money, never refer to yourself as "amateur." "Amateur" = "I don't know what I'm doing", and oftentimes, people equate "amateur" with "free." If you don't feel comfortable calling yourself a professional, call yourself "part-time," "after hours" or maybe "hobbyist."

Don't waffle about your price. Either state what it is definitively, or say nothing and work it out with the talent when they arrive. Doing anything else makes the interested artists want to talk you down to working for free.

Are the pictures of my equipment drawing away people? Do they think size=quality.

Yes and also yes. Nobody wants to see your studio if it consists of an untreated room and all the gear costs less than they spent on their guitar amp. I'm not saying you need to buy new gear. I am saying you need to keep that loadout close to the vest, and turn it to your advantage: something like "we run a stripped down operation to keep costs low and pass the savings on to you"

I suggest doing the extreme closeup pic instead of the whole studio arrangement: maybe a few knobs in your mixer, or a grille shot of the mic.

I am going to put up recordings soon, so that's taken care of.

Good. Your page is maybe the only MySpace page in existence that doesn't have an audio file player. Considering you're using that as a jump point to sell yourself as an audio engineer, that's really bad. If I saw that site without any previous knowledge, my reaction would be "he's got no gear I can't buy myself, and he's got no recordings he's proud of."

What's the safest way to hang a condenser?

From a large-scale boom on a large-scale stand. Something like this is what I'm talking about:

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Ultimate-Support-MC125-Professional-Studio-Boom?sku=450582

Your second best option would be to get a regular mic stand with a long boom, set it up the same way and sandbag it (it's easier when you use round-base rather than tripod style: get the largest round base you can find).

For the record, I do like the layout of your site for the most part. It's easy to read, easy to navigate, and there's no stupid graphics in the background that obscure the text. The color scheme is also very easy on the eyes. The only thing I'd change would be the portrait of your face on the side: show your eyes. You're don't want people to compare you to Ozzy Osborn, you want them to compare you to Andy Wallace.

[kidthatplaysguitar91]

Seeing your equipment made me feel better about mine. I have my 2200 dollar iMac. A 200 dollar M-Audio pro audio interface. A condenser mic, 2 dynamic mics, 2 mic stands. A 200 dollar mixer.

Really I think I could have a great setup If I had some better mics/more mics.

[fuzzyhair]

You're saying way too much. Most people care about 4 things (not necessarily in this order): experience, cost, gear, and how your tracks actually sound.

Musicians, on the whole, don't give a crap about how you do your job. If they ask, tell them how it all works. Otherwise, let them assume you know what you're doing (and you should).

If you intend to charge money, never refer to yourself as "amateur." "Amateur" = "I don't know what I'm doing", and oftentimes, people equate "amateur" with "free." If you don't feel comfortable calling yourself a professional, call yourself "part-time," "after hours" or maybe "hobbyist."

Don't waffle about your price. Either state what it is definitively, or say nothing and work it out with the talent when they arrive. Doing anything else makes the interested artists want to talk you down to working for free.



Yes and also yes. Nobody wants to see your studio if it consists of an untreated room and all the gear costs less than they spent on their guitar amp. I'm not saying you need to buy new gear. I am saying you need to keep that loadout close to the vest, and turn it to your advantage: something like "we run a stripped down operation to keep costs low and pass the savings on to you"

I suggest doing the extreme closeup pic instead of the whole studio arrangement: maybe a few knobs in your mixer, or a grille shot of the mic.



Good. Your page is maybe the only MySpace page in existence that doesn't have an audio file player. Considering you're using that as a jump point to sell yourself as an audio engineer, that's really bad. If I saw that site without any previous knowledge, my reaction would be "he's got no gear I can't buy myself, and he's got no recordings he's proud of."



From a large-scale boom on a large-scale stand. Something like this is what I'm talking about:

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Ultimate-Support-MC125-Professional-Studio-Boom?sku=450582

Your second best option would be to get a regular mic stand with a long boom, set it up the same way and sandbag it (it's easier when you use round-base rather than tripod style: get the largest round base you can find).

For the record, I do like the layout of your site for the most part. It's easy to read, easy to navigate, and there's no stupid graphics in the background that obscure the text. The color scheme is also very easy on the eyes. The only thing I'd change would be the portrait of your face on the side: show your eyes. You're don't want people to compare you to Ozzy Osborn, you want them to compare you to Andy Wallace.

You are awesome. Thanks.

So should I leave up the Hardware and Software section?

[Moseph]

You are awesome. Thanks.

So should I leave up the Hardware and Software section?

I wouldn't. Anyone who doesn't know will not care. Anyone who cares will ask. The only thing you're doing right now is letting people see how you work, and driving away potential customers who think they know more than they do (ie, if they knew what they think they know, they'd record the album themselves).

[Bordello]

you use audacity

when can i get my band in to record

[fuzzyhair]

you use audacity

when can i get my band in to record

lol good point.

[fuzzyhair]

profile updated

critcritcrit!

I think I am going to put pictures of me recording each instrument to add some more stuff to the page.

[Motleyguy]

Your second best option would be to get a regular mic stand with a long boom, set it up the same way and sandbag it (it's easier when you use round-base rather than tripod style: get the largest round base you can find).


I'd say go with the tri pod, the round base stands can sometimes cause vibrations to go up the stand and cause distortion in your signal. As far as price goes though, they're way cheaper.

[Moseph]

I'd say go with the tri pod, the round base stands can sometimes cause vibrations to go up the stand and cause distortion in your signal.

Also true of the tripod. It's really more about making sure you have 3 stable points of contact (ie, equal length tripod legs or felt/rubber contacts on the circular base), and a stable floor. If you don't have both, then you might have problems. The reason the circular base is better for hanging a condensor up high is extra mass.

The extra mass will help to keep the stand from falling over or shifting should it get bumped into by accident. The sandbags will provide even more mass, and the circular bass will let them sit more readily, shifting the whole center of gravity very close to the floor. This helps to prevent spills, and also creates more inertial resistance in transferring floor vibrations.

Any further vibration issues should either be minor, in which case a shockmount should take care of it, or extremely major, in which case you'll have more problems with the resulting thud/crash/clang.

[Motleyguy]

True, but I don't like hanging condensors as it is. As long as you make sure you put the boom directly over top of a leg, the tripod is just as stable. You could also use a large size atlas stand, which definitely seems like the most stable option for hanging a condensor. I think hanging condensors is kind of redundant though. It's an extra risk to microphone falling, and really the only gain is the classic aesthetic. Putting the condensor upright is ust as effective. Makes no difference really, but in this industry, it's all about what the engineer/producer says anyways, so it makes no real difference.

[Moseph]

True, but I don't like hanging condensors as it is. As long as you make sure you put the boom directly over top of a leg, the tripod is just as stable.

Only on one axis of motion. You hit it, say, backwards, and it's way less stable. Again, both types are perfectly fine for solid floors where they aren't hampered. It's when they get bumped or knocked that the difference is more critical.

I think hanging condensors is kind of redundant though. It's an extra risk to microphone falling...

Not necessarily. Perhaps in poorly threaded stands, which you shouldn't be using anyway. While a regular cheapy threaded mic clip might also suddenly have to be working with gravity, there is no real difference in risks associated with shock mounts (actually, depending on you use the mount, there may even be less risk).

...and really the only gain is the classic aesthetic...

...and the ability to avoid nodes and antinodes in a third dimension. And the fact that it's out of the way, making it much less likely to be jostled. And the fact that you can exploit high ceilings to get relatively quick full-room pickup. And singers needing to sing up a little bit for better airflow. And that it's a great way to get a talkback mic for musicians working solely with DI's. But I mean, that's only like...six things that I didn't have to think about, so maybe you're right.

[Motleyguy]

Only on one axis of motion. You hit it, say, backwards, and it's way less stable. Again, both types are perfectly fine for solid floors where they aren't hampered. It's when they get bumped or knocked that the difference is more critical.



Not necessarily. Perhaps in poorly threaded stands, which you shouldn't be using anyway. While a regular cheapy threaded mic clip might also suddenly have to be working with gravity, there is no real difference in risks associated with shock mounts (actually, depending on you use the mount, there may even be less risk).



...and the ability to avoid nodes and antinodes in a third dimension. And the fact that it's out of the way, making it much less likely to be jostled. And the fact that you can exploit high ceilings to get relatively quick full-room pickup. And singers needing to sing up a little bit for better airflow. And that it's a great way to get a talkback mic for musicians working solely with DI's. But I mean, that's only like...six things that I didn't have to think about, so maybe you're right.

Yeah, except at least 3 of your reasons could be applied to a condenser upright in the stand too. Talkback... invalid. It's out of the way anyways, someone will either jostle it with their shoulder, or hit it with their head. So really that makes no difference. Not to mention you can set it up so the musician is singing upwards with it upright as well, I've done it many times. In the case of the full room pick up, wouldn't you classify that as a special case, where you need the mic to be hung, but in most cases, it's a bit safer, and makes generally no difference.

[Moseph]

Yeah, except at least 3 of your reasons could be applied to a condenser upright in the stand too. Talkback... invalid. It's out of the way anyways, someone will either jostle it with their shoulder, or hit it with their head. So really that makes no difference. Not to mention you can set it up so the musician is singing upwards with it upright as well, I've done it many times. In the case of the full room pick up, wouldn't you classify that as a special case, where you need the mic to be hung, but in most cases, it's a bit safer, and makes generally no difference.

I didn't say it was the only way to do that stuff, I said it was advantageous. There's no reason to dismiss any technique as useless, provided it that technique is consistently repeatable and doesn't cause equipment damage or bodily harm.

[Motleyguy]

I didn't say it was the only way to do that stuff, I said it was advantageous. There's no reason to dismiss any technique as useless, provided it that technique is consistently repeatable and doesn't cause equipment damage or bodily harm.

Good call. Argument over... Now excuse me whilst I go and kick mics around the room and break electrical ground to kill some ground loops.