Writer-musician Dave Hunter has published a new book, The Home Recording Handbook, ($29.99), through publisher Backbeat Press and distributed through Hal Leonard Books.
With a microphone, some headphones and monitors, says Hunter, “anyone can have a home studio capable of making professional recordings worthy of airplay and release.” Hunter’s book aims to help the reader “harness all that vast potential” for putting the prosumer recording gear to good use.
Hunter details how to make “pro-sounding recordings without pro budgets” or off-site studios, stepping readers through tracking, mixing, and mastering processes, and showing how to do it with minimal gear. He includes tips for drums, bass, guitar, keyboard, vocals and more.
See the Hal Leonard site for details.
Technology is like a Jetsons’ dream now. But it seems worth remembering that ever since the government made it legal to own an acoustic guitar anybody could be Bob Dylan or Joni Mitchell and yet nobody has managed it.
Thank goodness.
When did the government make owning an acoustic guitar legal?
“With a microphone, some headphones and monitors…”.
I think a recording device might be useful, too. Mind you, if this book is as good as Karl Coryat’s “Guerilla Home Recording”, it’ll be worth every penny. IF, that is. Otherwise, it’ll probably be just as good as any number of similar books.
I’ve just read the two sample pages on “how to position your monitors”, and nearly lost the will to live. However, when anyone criticises my recordings in future, I’ll just tell them that their monitors are not in quite the right place.
Anyone who thinks that making great recordings is about the precise positioning of monitors should listen to Wreckless Eric’s “The Len Bright Combo” recordings. Lo-fi ain’t in it, but it’s the quality of the songwriting that counts, not where your monitors are perched. Sorry.
hmm I dunno, man… competent engineering can add something really special to a great song. Stevie Wonder comes to mind. It’s like… “Songs in The Key of Life” would still be good if it was recorded on a Tascam Portastudio, but thank God it isn’t.