View All Students
AJ Delmonico
"ITS MORPHIN TIME!"
Ever wondered how the Power Rangers talked to each other from inside their cool helmets? Of course you didn't, you simply assumed that they had little microphones with which they could relay messages back and forth. Microphones are something that the world takes for granted (so are Power Ranges for that matter. Who else would stop the giant lizard stomping through Angel Grove?). But shame on them, because turns out the world of microphones is immensly diverse and just waiting to be explored (if i had to compare the incredible wealth of various microphones and their applications to an actual world i would most definately choose Pandora where the giant blue Avatar people live. Get the picture?)! So for chapter 5 I jumped in the test tube and used the mind link that James Cameron blatantly copied off of the Matrix to walk around in my new Avatar body and explore the world of Pandora (read "microphones").
Apparent right from the start is that I am in way over my head. The options of different microphones available to a young engineer are seemingly endless and to make things even more difficult, only by experimenting and tinkering with the actual recordings produced from said microphones can a young engineer hear the difference. Hours and hours and hours must be spent combing through recording samples in order to determine all the little nuances that each mic provides. This means that as a newly christened engineer (engineer in training) it is difficult for my untrained ears to determine differences between certain microphones, which of course is why I am an apprentice and always have a mentor with me, The Almighty Hollis Greathouse who can point these things out. It was lucky that we had him for our accompanying studio session, because many of these mic's got put to use in the recording of a full 6 man band.
*this portion of the blog has been removed due to trade secrets being revealed for different mic'ing techniques. For full disclosure, please contact the author directly and an exact procedural report can be given for the mic'ing of the following instruments: keyboard, bass guitar, electric guitar, electric guitar amp, drums (including kick, toms and cymbols) accoustic guitar, piano, and vocals.*
... was unprecendted and the songs that we ended up with in the control room were impressive even to the band members, who were so giddy with joy at hearing themselves pour from the speakers that they could only dance with joy. It truly was a unique experience and one that I will look back on reverently as the first time I recorded a full band ensemble with success.
I will dance with joy to that too.
