Over the last 6 years I have not only recorded, produced and mixed possibly thousands of individual songs (which is what happens when you do it full time), but I have also had the pleasure/pain of mixing other peoples material, or advising 'established' recording engineers on recording/mixing things properly.
I have heard tracks recorded in a basement or garage on an 8 track tape recorder, Garageband, Audacity or Reaper - using one of two cheap mics, and they sound absolutely fantastic. And in contrast, I have heard recordings done at 'top' studios via nice Ameks, Calrecs and God forbid even an SSL Duality (£280,000 please) that sound like absolute s***!
I have a selection of work-experience students who believe that if they know the basics of recording, then all they need to do is go out and buy some ridiculously expensive mics and they will be rivaling the recordings and mixes of Kevin Shirley, Chris Lord-Alge and Jack Joseph Puig. Well, the answer to that is: OH NO YOU WON'T!
Recording and mixing starts with having a good set of ears. At my level I'm no Andy Wallace, but I have a lot of experience with recording and mixing, I have done my homework, and have enough of a good portfolio and requests from other engineers to warrant airing my views on the subject. So here they are:
YOU NEED A GOOD SET OF EARS! Reset the mix on your DAW so everything is at 0, and everything is in the middle. Can you balance the faders and pan them on a basic rock track so that each instrument sits roughly where it should be? If you balanced it so it's all guitars and no drums then you're screwed from the start, listen to Nimrod by Green Day at a low volume and see how loud the drums are! Same goes with the bass guitar!
If you can see/hear in your head the final product before or whilst you're tracking then you're off to a good start. If you can hear WHERE to go, then you can learn HOW to get there.
A good recording engineer knows how to make the best of what he's got. If you can't get a useable guitar/tom/snare sound out of an SM57 then it's not the mic that's the problem. An MD421, Heil PR30, 414, e604 is a lovely mic to have, but it won't save you if you don't know what you're doing.
A friend of mine gets fantastic recordings out of a MOTU 896HD, some mid-range mics/monitors and whatever rooms he can find to track in.
I guess the bottom line is: Don't be under the illusion that studios with expensive gear will make your recordings and mixes better!
This brings me to the next point:
Whenever a work experience pupil contacts me, I ask them to take a listen to my recordings - and if they like the sound of them I will teach them. Unfortunately, a lot of people see pictures of a nice studio and assume it would be a great place to learn/record/whatever, but again it all depends on the person working there.
Bands: If you book a studio, make sure that you have heard SEVERAL examples of work that has been recorded or mixed by your chosen producer/engineer. There are plenty of people who work in studios because they have the right qualifications, rather than being admitted to these posts backed up by a ton of great mixes and practical experience.
I would always say that learning the basics, and learning them WELL is the most important factor, who cares if you can name every mic that's ever been made?!
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