Outside Scoop: Improve Room Acoustics Without Acoustic Treatment, 3 Tips to Mix 808s, and More

Learn how to improve room acoustics without acoustic treatment.

It was a great week for educational music production content. There were plenty of articles and videos published covering room acoustics, mixing, studio gear, and more. Slimming down this week’s Outside Scoop proved to be very challenging.

Some of the most notable topics to make the list include how to improve room acoustics without acoustic treatment, the way hologram technology is transforming the music industry, and 3 tips to mix 808s.

How to Improve Room Acoustics Without Acoustic Treatment

The acoustics of your room can make or break your ability to make informed mixing and mastering decisions. If your mixes rarely translate well to other playback systems, the listening environment you’re working in may be the root of the issue. This guide by Black Ghost Audio explains how you can improve the acoustics of your room by rearranging your studio equipment, making it significantly easier and more affordable to apply acoustic treatment down the road.

How Hologram Technology is Changing the Future of the Music Industry

Remember the Tupac hologram that appeared at Coachella in 2012? Jim Ottewill believes that pretty soon “there will soon be no limit on what – and who – we can pay to see, living or dead.” This article contains input from a variety of professionals working in the hologram and virtual reality industry. Gennaro Castaldo, of the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), says “Imagine a world where as you stream your favorite song or album, the artist or group performs it to entertain you in the form of a hologram. So streaming continues as a core format, but our experience keeps getting enriched as tech increasingly makes it possible.” Read the full article to learn more.

Making Programmed Parts Sound Human

Produce Like A Pro hosts a rapid-fire FAQ on Fridays that features questions from subscribers. In this FAQ, an entire swath of technical questions are answered regarding recording on a budget, humanizing programmed parts, when to use normalization, and more.

Top 4 Vocal Plugins of 2019

Matty of mixandmastermysong.com demonstrates how he uses the Waves CLA Mix Hub, Kush Audio Clariphonic DSP MKII, FabFilter Pro-Q3, and SlateDigital Gate on vocals. The Waves Mix Hub seems to be getting a lot of attention lately due to its great sound and easy-to-use interface, but I was a bit surprised to see the Clariphonic DSP MKII being used. The Clariphonic is marketed as a parallel mastering EQ, but Matty uses it creatively to add color to the hip-hop vocal he’s working on.

7 Pieces of Studio Gear You Shouldn’t Waste Your Money On

LANDR has published an insightful article by Michael Hahn that takes a look at consumer tape machines, branded acoustic foam, high-end cables, and other products that aren’t worth investing in. For many items on this list, Hahn offers up an equally, or more effective alternative at a fraction of the cost. If you’ve got the urge to spend money on studio gear, read this guide before blowing your hard earned cash on snake oil.

The Top 11 Music Production Schools (That Give You Results)

Some of the more notable schools on this list, by Adden Russell of EDMProd, include Icon Collective, SAE Institute, Berklee College of Music, and Point Blank. While it’s doubtful that Russell attended every school on this list, you do tend to hear the names of many of these schools tossed around amongst professionals in the music industry. I’m a graduate of Icon Collective, so I can fully vouch for the quality of at least one of the schools on this list.

Active Vs. Passive Speaker Crossovers

Paul from PS Audio talks about speaker design and places particular emphasis on the thought process that goes into choosing between active or passive speaker crossovers. This is somewhat of a more technical video, but if you’re as nerdy as I am, you’re really going to enjoy it.

How to Connect Analog Gear to Your Computer and How to Use it in Mixing

MixbusTV has released a video covering hybrid mixing in a home studio set up. At a minimum, you’re going to need a 4 output, 2 input audio interface to connect a single stereo analog unit to your computer. Daisy chaining external hardware, and making use of patch bays are the two primary methods of connecting external equipment to your computer that get covered in this video.

3 Tips to Mix 808s

808s are a go-to sound for hip-hop producers, but they can sometimes be challenging to mix. This video with Irko (Jay-Z, Kanye, Pitbull) demonstrates how re-pitching 808s, layering kicks with your 808s, and adding distortion can help you achieve great 808s every mix. If you’re looking for pre-processed 808 samples, Black Ghost Audio just released a free 808 sample pack called 808 Destruction that’s worth checking out as well.

Charles Hoffman is a Mixing and Mastering Engineer at Black Ghost Audio. After graduating from the University of Manitoba with an English degree, Charles completed his education at Icon Collective in Los Angeles, CA.

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