THE BIG LUDWIG MARCHING SNARE CONVERSION FOR RECORDING

BIG SNARE DRUM = BIG SOUND

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

John Bonham, 1975, with Led Zeppelin, notice he is using a 6.5" snare drum in this photo

I've always been a big fan of the drummer John Bonham, the style of his playing and his tone were both very influential on me. He was notorious for many unique and interesting drumming characteristics but the size of the taller snare drums he used made the biggest impression on me.

I put together my first studio drum set in the mid 1970's, it was a conglobulation of Ludwig, Rogers, Premier and a bunch of cheap pieces people gave me (because I had zero money). Over the next 37 years my studio drum set evolved a lot but it was always a patchwork of used pieces, tuned and assembled the best I could. I eventually invested in the Yamaha snare drum we still use today, it cost more than all the other drums I owned, a lot more! Everything changed when I got TuneBot for drum tuning, suddenly I could really tune drums to sound their best and this caused me to want a great sounding set for recording.

In 2012 we began building the new drum kit for the Proworkshop Recording studio. I was studying all the drum brands trying to determine what we should invest in. In particular I was thinking about the height of the snare drum John Bonham used when I went on the chase for the tallest snare drum I could find. That chase ultimately led me to this Ludwig 12" tall x 14" diameter snare drum built for marching bands.

PROWORKSHOP BASIC TRAINING, RECORDING STUDIO WIRE SIZE AND WIRE GAUGES

UNDERSTANDING WIRE SIZE AND
WIRE GAUGE FOR AUDIO CABLES

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

In the USA the wire inside audio cables is measured against a standard called "American Wire Gauge". A wire gauge is a handheld tool capable of measuring the diameter of a conductor.

The American Wire gauge (AWG) is the standard used in the USA for measuring the diameter of a solid-core electrical conductor.

PROWORKSHOP, BASIC TRAINING, CONNECTORS FOR PROFESSIONAL AUDIO AND RECORDING

CONNECTORS IN THE STUDIO

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

When your recording rig starts to expand you need cables and they need the right connectors on them to give you correct performance. Here we will take a look at the popular connectors used in modern recording and production studios. For detailed information about what signals are flowing through the connectors and cables see this link to Proworkshop Basic Training about Signals and Levels.

PROWORKSHOP BASIC TRAINING, UNDERSTANDING SIGNAL LEVELS

Introduction to Recording Studio
Signals and Circuits

by Mark King for Proworkshop.com

If you want to make any audio system function at it's best* then you need to know what is going through the wires.

Electrical signals** represent sound in an audio system, they are the electricity that runs through the wires in an audio system.

But what is it? What are those signals? How do we connect them up?

PAWN SHOP STRAT STYLE WASHBURN ELECTRIC GUITAR, CUSTOM WD MUSIC PICKGUARD

WASHBURN STRAT STYLE PAWNSHOP GUITAR

WD MUSIC CUSTOM PICKGUARD

SEYMOUR DUNCAN LITTLE '59 PICKUPS

Washburn Strat Style Guitar retrofitted with Seymour Duncan pickups, original pickguard

Here is the guitar before I start the pickguard conversion. To my old eyes the white pickguard looks so cliche' and common, I've adopted an all black look on my other strat style guitars so I wanted this one to have it too. Even though it looks like a Strat, it's not the same at all and a Fender replacement pickguard would not work, not even close.

STUDIO DRUM SET

MEET THE PROWORKSHOP STUDIO DRUM SET

We've spent a lot of time and money figuring out how to record great sounding drum tracks.

Here is what it takes:

COMPARING AUDIO TRANSFORMERS

AUDIO TRANSFORMERS, SIZE MAKES A DIFFERENCE

JIG FOR TRANSFORMER A-B TESTING

A friend asked me to compare a small isolation transformer to a larger model I'm familiar with so I set about making a jig so I could easily switch between two transformer-parts under test or bypass. I chopped some alligator test clip leads in half to make it simple for connecting to the transformer under test. I used the standard Crimson input-output wiring color code for the test leads.

STEREO MICROPHONE CABLE

TWO MICROPHONE CABLES IN A SINGLE CABLE

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

Twin mic leads exit a jacket which is just slightly bigger than a standard single mic cable

I use a coincident pair of microphones over my drum set, it's always been sort of messy and fiddly with two cables and some clamps or velcro to hold it all up out of the way of the performer below. If you want to make adjustments then you've got to deal with both cables and it just seems like unnecessary technical clutter. Here is how I fixed the problem.

VU METER BOX REBUILD AND REVIEW OF JLM VU METER BUFFER CIRCUIT KITS

35+ YEAR-OLD DIY VU METER BRIDGE REBUILT WITH JLM DIY BUFFER KITS

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

DIY QUAD VU METER PACKAGE ORIGINALLY CONSTUCTED IN 1979

Back in 1979 I had virtually no money to spend. I was playing in a band and taking college courses so recording was very low on the financial priority list. There was no internet and raw hardware components were hard to find and expensive.

RACK PANEL ON LEFT, CHASSIS ON BENCH, NIBBLED OUT HOLES LET METERS MOUNT

I wanted to build some rack mount equipment so decided I could make a low cost two-rackspace enclosure by attaching a standard rack panel to an aluminum chassis. After building the prototype of the rack mount packaging I needed to build something into it so I decided to build a quad VU meter bridge.

ORIGINAL BREADBOARD VU METER DRIVER CIRCUIT FROM 1979

ORIGINAL 741 OP AMP INTEGRATED CIRCUIT ON BREADBOARD DRIVERS

I used Radio Shack breadboard to make the circuits required to drive the VU meters. Each meter had an adjustable trim pot to set the 0-VU level point. Since the op amp is not in the audio path I could use inexpensive 741 DIP type parts because the sound quality was not important to the meter.

ORIGINAL BUILD RCA PHONO CONNECTOR ON EACH METER

On the original build each meter was connected via an RCA/phono type connector. This allowed me to do lots of testing as I was prototyping the circuits.

ORIGINAL POWER SUPPLY BREADBOARD

COMPLETE ORIGINAL POWER SUPPLY SECTION

I have no data about the power supply design, I don't remember how I came up with the original layout, there are no regulators in it.

I've been carrying this original VU meter package around for a long time. Back in the 80's most of my recording system was unbalanced Tascam and Fostex equipment. It was very difficult controlling ground loops with that equipment but we ended up making some good sounding recordings with it anyway. It's time to refresh this piece of equipment with new guts.

ULTRA LOW MASS MINI MOGAMI DRUM MICROPHONE CABLES

LOW MASS, LOW NOISE MOGAMI MICROPHONE CABLES

by Mark King for proworkhshop.com

Three Tom Tom mini microphone cables by standard mic cable for comparison

The drum set in the Proworkshop recording studio is sitting on a floating plywood platform which decouples the kit from the floor, the plywood is covered in carpet. The goal of the floating floor is to isolate all the vibration of the drum set from the building, this keeps the building around the drums from resonating and causing distortion in the recorded drums. I had my headphones on and was adjusting the kit for a recording session when I detected some very low frequency rumbling mechanical noise. All my microphones are in shock mounts so where was the rumble coming from?

API 3124 MIC PREAMP QUAD OUTPUT ATTENUATOR DIY

API MIC PREAMP OUTPUT ATTENUATOR PACKAGE DIY

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

Quad Attenuator box under API 3124

I'm a big fan of the API microphone preamps, they have transformer coupled inputs and outputs along with a wonderful op amp made from discrete components. There is one big problem with these preamps, they have too much output-level for most modern recording equipment.

The solution is to add a master volume control after the output stage. In this DIY article we'll look at how to bring the vintage API 312 mic preamp in to the modern studio and control the output-level in a way that makes this preamp much more useable.

PROWORKSHOP BASIC TRAINING, RECORD BETTER TRACKS IN THE FIRST PLACE

RECORD BETTER TRACKS IN THE FIRST PLACE!

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

Signal processing and plug-ins are seductive but they can cover up and distract you from a weak musical performance. 

ULTIMATE HEADPHONE OUTPUT SELECTOR BOX

RECORDING STUDIO HEADPHONE OUTPUT SELECTOR BOX

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

Custom built Heaphone Selector Box mounted to side of mixing console stand

In my studio there are five headphone outputs I need to access regularly, they are:

1 The output from my digital mixer

2 The output from my Powerplay headphone mixer

3 The output from my stereo mastering recorder

4 The output from my Neve mastering mixer

5 The output from my Soundcraft 40-channel analog console

I wanted to build a selector box so I could pick headphone sources without physically moving my headphone plug from gadget to gadget. This DIY article will show you how I did it for our studio.

TRS-THRU STUDIO-MUSICIAN HANDY-BOX

THE TRS-THRU HANDY-BOX FOR MUSICIANS AND STUDIOS

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

WHAT'S WRONG WITH THESE LABELS? LOL

I have a lot of wiring in my studio that uses Tip-Ring-Sleeve TRS connectors. I also have a lot of unbalanced phone plugs on guitar cords. I came up with this handy little problem solver a few months back and just built three more.

MAXING OUT THE FENDER SQUIRE JAGUAR SHORT SCALE BASS

PT 2. MORE SQUIRE JAGUAR BASS MODS

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

Previously I detailed the first round of mods on our Squire Jaguar short scale bass, you can read that here.

That article mainly involved replacing the cheap sounding stock pickups with a bodacious pair of Seymour Duncan Quarter Pound models. This time we're going to work on tone from a more physical point of view, replacing the bridge and the nut.

REVIEW WARM AUDIO EQP-WA vs KLARK TEKNIK EQP-KT, PULTEC-STYLE TUBE EQ SHOOTOUT

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

We've been using the Warm Audio EQP-WA since they first hit the market, as early adopters we purchased two from the very first batch, we've since added a second pair because we liked the first pair so much.

Several months after the release of the Warm Audio EQP, British designer Klark Teknik announced they were also going to release an EQP-KT model for the same price as the Warm Audio product.

The KT model made an uneventful entry in the market place and after a very short time Klark Teknik reduced the price, first to $499 and then to the unbelievable price of $299 each. This low price combined with encouraging threads on various audio forums like Gearslutz caused a run on these units. Almost overnight dealers went from some on the shelves to triple digit backorders of the unit.

User reports about the EQP-KT have been very positive so we ordered a pair for the Proworkshop studio in July, 2017. They finally arrived September 16. Were they worth the wait?

REVIEW KEMPER PROFILING AMPLIFIER RACK

IS THE KEMPER PROFILING AMPLIFIER WORTH IT?

PRELUDE

Getting ready for the real tube vs digital smackdown

The Kemper Profiling Amplifier is a digital guitar amplifier. It has an input gain control, digital effects processing, speaker cabinet simulation and a standard complement of bass, mid, treble and presence tone controls. It is available in an oversize lunch box package or a rack mount unit, either configuration can be optionally configured with a 600 watt internal power amplifier. All that is the standard stuff. What really sets this thing apart is the somewhat bizarre, and totally unique way it can sound like any amplifier through a process called "profiling". Will Kemper destroy the tube amplifier industry by cloning the sound of all the best pieces into digital profiles?

SHORT SCALE FENDER SQUIRE JAGUAR BASS MOD

SEYMOUR DUNCAN 1/4-POUND BASS PICKUP SET TO THE RESCUE

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

I bought this short scale (31”) Squire Jaguar Bass for Mary to noodle around with. I’ve already adjusted the neck to be very straight and the action is low but not buzzing. The top-loading bridge on this bass is very similar to what Fender puts on their USA P-bass and Jazz bass instruments. The volume and tone control layout is the same as the classic Fender Jazz bass. 

PAWNSHOP GUITAR REBUILD, CAN $55 USED GUITAR SOUND GOOD?

REBUILDING THE STRAT-STYLED WASHBURN LYON

for Proworkshop.com by Mark King

I bought this Washburn Strat style guitar for $55 at a pawn shop in Jacksonville with my friend Paul back around Y2K. Here’s a pawnshop shopping tip, if you’re looking for a low priced guitar find one that does not work. The price of this Washburn instantly dropped in half when I showed the store it did not make any sound. I also got a non-working Squire Stratocaster for $50 which I fixed up and gave to my friend Captain Welsh, both of these guitars had very simple wiring problems. 

GIBSON FLYING VEE REBUILD

REBUILDING 2003 GIBSON FLYING VEE

PRELUDE
I bought this Gibson Flying Vee "preowned" in 2006 at Eddies Guitars in Maplewood, Missouri for $400. The neck and body are all mahogany, it's finished in a rough coating that is dull and feels slightly unfinished.

CAN MADE IN MEXICO STRATOCASTER SOUND AS GOOD AS AMERICAN?

CAN A MIM STRATOCASTER 

SOUND AS GOOD AS AMERICAN MADE?

by Mark King for Proworkshop

MIJ left, MIA center, MIM right

So far I’ve updated and improved my 1986 MIJ (made in Japan) Fender Stratocaster and my 2006 MIA (made in America) USA American Standard model. The MIJ got new Seymour Duncan pickups that really made it a fabulous sounding guitar. The American Standard kept it’s original pickups but NOW utilizes a simpler single volume and tone control circuit instead of the classic Fender 3-knob design.

Now lets do a rebuild on this Made in Mexico Stratocaster, can this low cost model possibly sound as good as its Japanese and American cousins?

10 BEST PLACES ONLINE FOR GUITAR STUFF

BEST PLACES ON INTERNET

FOR GUITAR STUFF

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

PRELUDE
What is Guitar Stuff? It's everything except for main stream branded instruments. It's pots, bodies, pickups, tuners, capos, slides, strings, string cranks, stomp boxes, speakers, tape echo, true bypass switches, tone controls, all sorts of interface boxes, tremolo systems, instrument cables, transformers, tubes, op amps, patch cords, patchbays, and on and on it goes. 

Where are the best places on the internet to get this stuff?

PROWORKSHOP BASIC TRAINING, USING EQ AND COMPRESSORS

TIPS FOR SOUND AND RECORDING

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

Using Equalizers and Compressors

The answer to these questions comes from the man himself, Chris Lord Alge

You've got a vocal that needs a compressor and an EQ on it, what order should they be in?

Does it really matter?

Is it the same when you use plug-in's?

PROWORKSHOP BASIC TRAINING, MOST IMPORTANT CONTROL IN SOUND SYSTEM

TIPS FOR BETTER SOUND AND RECORDING

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

#1. What is the most important control on any sound system?

As the sound engineer it's your responsibility to know where this control is and how to operate it at a moments notice. 

It might sound simple to experienced operators but it is amazing how often I hear the results of it being used poorly.

REBUILD FENDER JAPAN STRATOCASTER WITH SEYMOUR DUNCAN PICKUPS AND POTS

MADE-IN-JAPAN FENDER STRATOCASTER
 WITH SEYMOUR DUNCAN PICKUPS

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

MADE IN JAPAN FENDER STRATOCASTER AT BEGINNING OF THE PROJECT

PRELUDE

I bought this Japanese Fender Stratocaster at a Pawn Shop in Jacksonville Florida around the year 2000. According to the Fender web site and the serial number on this guitar it was originally manufactured between 1984 and 1986. The pawn shop used price was only $180 with a nice hardshell case. It's time for a rebuild!

THE BEST WAY TO TUNE DRUMS FOR THE BEST SOUND

TUNE-BOT DRUM TUNER MAKES TUNING DRUMS
EASY, FAST, REPEATABLE

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

TUNE-BOT DRUM TUNER CLIPPED TO DRUM RIM

I've owned drum sets for over 40-years but I never knew how to tune them correctly to get the best tone. At best it was just a guessing game. I watched tons of videos. I've had drummers tell me how great my kit sounded and others tell me my set was totally wrong and then they retune the whole kit. Did it sound better? Not to my ears.

 DW DRUMSET IN PROWORKSHOP.COM STUDIO

PROWORKSHOP BASIC TRAINING, HOW TO SOLDER CORRECTLY

DIY = BETTER QUALITY,
MORE OPTIONS, LOWER COST

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

HOW TO SOLDER AUDIO ELECTRONICS, CABLES AND CORDS

MY FATHERS VINTAGE CRAFTSMAN SOLDERING IRON WITH WOOD HANDLE AND ASBESTOS CORD

I remember watching my father soldering when I was only five. He was building a Heathkit tube preamp and a matching tube power amp. I was totally intrigued, amazed and enthralled with the process. I did not know what he was building but it sure looked cool. 

REVIEW YNGWIE MALMSTEEN SEYMOUR DUNCAN SPEED POT FOR STRATOCASTER

WORLDS FINEST POTS FOR STRATOCASTER GUITARS

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

SEYMOUR DUNCAN POTS FOR FENDER STYLE GUITARS

We own a lot of Fender style guitars in our recording studio. When a volume or tone pot goes bad I replace them with these YJM High-Speed Pots from Seymour Duncan. 

Yngwie asked Seymour about better, easier to turn pots. This is what Seymour came up with. 

WHAT IS SO SPECIAL ABOUT THESE?

LESLIE 147, THE MAGIC ROTATING SPEAKER SYSTEM

LESLIE 147 TUBE POWERED ROTATING SPEAKER SYSTEM

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

THE REAR OF STOCK LESLIE 147, UPPER AND LOWER COVERS REMOVED

PRELUDE

I bought a Leslie 145 brand new in 1972 (identical to 147 except a shorter wood-cabinet). It contained the 40 watt tube amp, came with the weird thick brown cable which is 30-feet long (the only choice). It also came with a good looking chrome preamp box, the whole thing was around $650; that was a lot of money for me. More than my car! But it had an amazing sound and I carried that thing around to many band jobs over the next 25 years. One bitterly cold winter night it almost killed me when I slipped on some ice while unloading the beast after a band job. I retired it from live performance use after that gig, it was just too big and heavy to haul around.

YOUR RECORDING SESSION, WHAT TO EXPECT

YOUR RECORDING SESSION

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

This article is intended to give recording artists an overview of the recording studio process. These steps are common in any recording studio.

PROWORKSHOP BASIC TRAINING, BUILDING YOUR OWN STUDIO MICROPHONES

BUILDING MICROPHONES AND TOOLS NEEDED

by Mark King

12-251 from microphone-parts.com

Why would you build your own microphone? The first answer is to save money and the second is to get a microphone that sounds like you want it to sound.

Besides looking at building microphones we'll take a look at the basic tools you need for doing electronics and DIY. If you're looking for just the tool information scroll down to the TOOLS section head to see what's needed.

REVIEW FULLTONE 69 DISTORTION PEDAL

FULLTONE '69 MK II = FUZZFACE ON STEROIDS

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

I like Fulltone products. They are very solidly built using the finest components from around the world. Each box is designed by Mike Fuller the man behind the Fulltone brand. These little jewels of tone mayhem are each individually handcrafted in the USA by the small Fulltone factory located in Los Angeles, California. I really like products that are designed and manufactured by the same company, this almost always results in products that provide superior performance to those jobbed out to contract manufacturer's. 

This review is going to focus on another great Fulltone distortion, the '69 MK II. This model replaces the original '69 pedal by Fulltone. The original had four knobs in a row while the MK II has reduced two of the knobs to small shafts that poke out under the two larger control knobs. The original design required a lot more hand wiring inside which limited production from the factory. The MK II utilizes a new smaller enclosure so it takes up less space on your pedal board. It has a new circuit board design that is faster and easier to build while enhancing reliability and improving the tone.

REVIEW AUDIO TECHNICA ATM 450 MICROPHONE

THE AUDIO TECHNICA ATM450 REVIEW

An excellent & unique cymbal mic

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

Everybody has opinions, mine have been developed and derived from over 50-years of recording experience. Life has given me many unique opportunities to try out lots of equipment. Back in the 70's I had virtually no money to play with. That led me to try out microphones by a Japanese company called Audio Technica. Their electret condenser microphones were a particular favorite of mine because they were affordable and sounded good. They had fantastic clarity and uniform frequency response that made them indispensable in my recording adventures. 

REVIEW BEYER DYNAMIC M 201 MICROPHONE

THE INCREDIBLE BEYER DYNAMIC M 201 

WORLD'S BEST SNARE DRUM MIC

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

Beyer Dynamic is an old German company that builds microphones, headphones, wireless systems and conference systems. Beyer Dynamic has been family owned since it was founded in 1924. In this article we're going to look at the M 201 TG, a hyper cardioid dynamic microphone that is arguably the worlds best snare drum microphone. 

BEHRINGER X32 IN THE STUDIO

BEHRINGER X32 IN THE STUDIO

FOR FIVE YEARS

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

This is part two of a two part adventure. You can read part one here. It's about how we coped with recording before the X-32 hit the market, the X32 Jurassic Years.

THE X32 LANDS IN MY HANDS

I think it was 2011 when I first saw a prototype of the X32 at a Namm show. It had motorized faders which was a fantastic feature. Overall I was very impressed with the way the X32 looked but how would it sound? 

Apogee was coming out with a new converter system, oh no, another cycle of sell what I've got for half what I paid then buy the new one for twice as much? Not this time.

The x32 finally hit the market and I ordered one from my Sweetwater sales engineer in 2012. 

X32 FLAGSHIP MODEL

The X32 had Firewire in it and could direct connect to the Mac without any additional driver support. It seemed very odd that Behringer had finally bent their product to support Audio-Units on the Mac.

With few exceptions most previous Behringer products favored Windows or Unix software applications. In Europe, PC's are much less expensive compared to Apple Macintosh computers. In Asia where they're manufactured PC's are almost free. 

I was wary of Behringer commitment to product support on the Mac but my fears have proven unfounded. Not only is the X32 supported very well on the Mac there is a full set of iOS applications available for iPad and iPhone. The iPad support for the X32 is really a huge game changer but that's for another article.

POWERPLAY HEADPHONE STATION

I acquired the Powerplay-16 headphone mixers and they integrated with the X32 perfectly. We used the Powerplay headphone system extensively in live shows and recordings. It allows each player to adjust their own mix independently. The Powerplay system works flawlessly.

The iPad app for the X32 finally gave me the freedom to engineer from anywhere in the studio. I can go into the drum room and balance up all the drum microphones by myself using the iPad X32 app. I can see the levels and tweak the gain controls remotely without having to run back and forth to the mixing console. 

X32R RACK MOUNTABLE MIXER

The X32R became available in 2013, this is the full X32 mixer in a 3-rack space package. I studied the X32 information hard, I was considering buying and S-16 remote input box for our drum room. After a lot of reading and a support phone call to Music-Group (Behringer's Parent Company) I decided to buy an X32R instead of the S-16 stage box because it can do the same thing and the mixer can do so much more. The X32R did cost more than an S-16 but it gave me more control in the drum room and it's a stand-alone digital mixer all by itself.

The Apogee hardware continues gathering dust in our warehouse. After five years of using the X32 equipment as our converter system I guess I should sell off the Apogee because I'm never going back to it. 

X32 UNIVERSE EXPANSION

In 2014 we moved from California to a secluded 5-acre farm in Florida. Now we can really make a lot of noise without disturbing anyone and we have lots of studio space. We have a wonderful drum room and have expanded our drum set to a two-story rack system with an S-16 remote preamp box to plug the drum microphones in. (The X32R has moved to the keyboard room).

S-16 REMOTE PREAMP BOX

We have a lot of guitar speakers located in an isolation room at the rear of our building. I put an S-16 remote preamp box in there to mic up all the guitar speakers. 

The X32R makes a very nice keyboard mixer. I gave it an independent router for wireless control and have an iPad Pro to control it while fiddling with synthesizers. The 16 XLR inputs are fed from a Behringer Patch Bay which normalizes the synthesizers in to the mixer. This also lets me quickly substitute other synths as inputs to the mixer if I need to by going into the patch bay front panel inputs.

S-32 REMOTE PREAMP BOX

I added an S-32 remote box to give us an additional 16-hardware analog outputs from the X32. Now we have 32 analog outputs from the X32 which I mix on a Soundcraft GB8-40 analog mixer. This digital-recording/analog-mixing hybrid approach lets me use all my favorite signal processing and effects when I'm mixing. I get the editing power of the DAW, the setup recall on the digital mixer and the flexibility of mixing on the analog desk. It's the best of all worlds for my workflow.

During the first two years of owning the X32 I tried mixing on it exclusively but I really longed for some of my old favorites. I like my hardware 1176 compressors and my Lexicon reverbs. With my patch bay I can route signals wherever I want to. Working inside the X32 was very limiting by comparison. I could easily use the X32 mixer live and be totally happy with the built-in effects and processing but in the studio I wanted more power.

There is no owners manual for a recording studio. It's up to each engineer to design his hardware and workflow to match. I spent a good deal of time coming up with the system connections and the workflow I'm using today. 

It took me five years to stuff the system out to the level it is today. I never imagined I'd buy all these remote input boxes and take the X32 system this far. It's a testimony to how well the system was engineered in the first place, how good the whole system sounds and how reliably it performs. My Mac has locked up a few times but the Behringer X32 has never locked up or done anything weird, I think that is pretty amazing for such a complex digital product, it's very robust. By contrast friends who've bought Presonus digital mixers have reported horrible incidents where the console locked up on a live show and they had to stop and reboot the mixer. Nothing could be more embarrassing and a total show stopper than the mixer locking up. 

BIT DEPTH AND SAMPLE RATE

I have recorded and done mastering at 96K sampling rates and yes it did sound better to me than 44.1 but operating the DAW at 96K takes so much more system resources that it does not seem worth it to me for the very slight difference I hear when we get the project completed. 

Rock music tracks that I mastered at 96k did not sound appreciably better once they'd been chopped down to 16-bit/44.1 for CD. Even worse, MP3 is what most consumers listen to and the possible benefits of the 96k sampling rate are even further diminished or eliminated depending on the content.

In my experience, if I do a digital audio conversion from 24-bit/44.1 to 16-bit/44.1 it sounds better than converting 24-bit/48 to 16-bit/44.1. 48k sampling is the standard for film and video so I switch to 48k if I'm working in these mediums. I also have a hardware sample rate converter to move files back and forth in real time between the two sample rates without leaving the digital domain. In my experience 48k does not sound noticeably better than 44.1k so I just stay with the 44.1 sample rate.

Most of my sample libraries are sampled at 24-bit/44.1k so using them with the computer set to 48k causes everything to resample, that drags the computer performance down dramatically, down to practically unusable. the first time it happened I thought my DAW was dying. It did not take long to discover there was a problem with the sample rate and the sample library I was using (EZ Drummer). Since I like and use sample libraries a lot I keep my music sessions set to 24-bit/44.1k and the system flies along with very little system resources required.

The X32 can only record at either 44.1 or 48k, there is no higher sampling rate. The X32's cousin, the Midas M32 can be switched to a 96k-internal processing rate but the input-output with the DAW is still either 44.1 or 48k, there is no communication with the outside world at higher sampling rates on the Midas version of the X32. The M32 running at 96k-internal loses some other features as a result. Inside sources have told me, off the record, that there is no advantage sonically to running the M32 at 96k internal, it's a marketing feature they added to the M32 to differentiate the M32 from the X32.

24-bit/44.1k sounds good to me, much better than the standard Compact Disc specification which is only 16-bit. We're currently using a Mac Pro Cylinder to run Logic X. The X32 is plugged directly into the USB port on the Mac. We're using USB-3 solid state hard disks that are four times faster than our old 7200 RPM spinning disk drives. 

The digital/analog, split-console approach we're using allows the analog console to stay patched up with effects and processors, ready to mix as soon as tracking is complete. The analog console gives me all the insert points I was craving to use my effects processors and compressor-limiters. 

I don't ever bounce any tracks, everything I mix on the Soundcraft is usually first generation coming out of the DAW. Reducing the number of digital audio bounces or eliminating them entirely makes better sounds to my ears. When the tracks are hitting my stereo mastering recorder they're first generation so my mastered CD stereo tracks are at worst only second generation. 

HARSHNESS BE GONE

If you read part one of this story you'll remember I was talking about how harsh my original Digidesign system sounded? I think digital audio got a lot of bad press from all the crappy converters manufacturers were producing. Apogee figured out how to make good sounding converters, so have Midas and Behringer. 

The original Motu system sounded pretty harsh to my ears too. I have not bought or had any experience with their products since 2005 so I can't say if they've improved. 

The converters on my X32 mixer system sound very good, neutral, not colored and not harsh. Using the right microphones and preamps I'd call the sound sweet. I never thought I'd say that about digital audio. 

I like to have at least 10 dB of headroom above whatever level I'm recording at. This is also part of the tonal magic, not operating so close to the maximum system headroom. With 24-bit recording it's unnecessary to record as hot as possible for maximum resolution. 

CONCLUSIONS

The X32 is a great tool for studio recording and for sound reinforcement. The X32 is not just a product, it's an entire universe of products that interconnect logically and reliably. The network interoperability and quality components all function beautifully together. 

My original investment has been rewarded with a long and stable hardware life-span. I've become so accustomed to using the system I can't imagine using anything else. This is the best and most versatile studio set up I've ever had.

Audio purists will question my choice of converter hardware and that's fine, everyone is entitled to their own opinion. I really like the way our recordings are sounding. Customers who come into the studio and hear what we're creating are impressed and that is all that matters. 

The X32 is one of those rare products that over-delivers. It sounds expensive but does not cost that much to get into it. It's an excellent product no matter how you use it. 

Good music to all!

THE FIRST BEHRINGER X32 DIGITAL MIXER

THE END OF ANALOG MIXING IS AT HAND, TOTALLY UPDATED JULY 2023

IS ANALOG MIXING IN THE STUDIO DYING?

by Mark King for proworkshop.com

OUR SOUNDCRAFT GB8-40 INSTALLED

UPDATE: I've left the original article as it was but be aware, our studio electronic architecture has changed a lot since this article was first published (the X32 mixers have been replaced with Neve 1073spx preamps). To see a few of the updates scroll down to the end of the original article. 

ORIGINAL ARTICLE FOLLOWS

In our studio we use a split-console metaphor which essentially means one mixer to record and a completely separate mixer for mixing. I decided it was time to upgrade our analog mixing console. I needed more Aux-Sends and they all needed to be post fader for effects-sends. I needed more subgroups and a more versatile stereo master group. I needed better solo capabilities. I've been building and repairing electronics all my life, I wanted something new so I could focus on mixing not repairing or hot-rodding some 30+ year old beast. 

REVIEW WARM AUDIO EQP-WA TUBE EQUALIZER

WARM AUDIO EQP-WA 

TUBE EQUALIZER REVIEW

by Mark King for Proworkshop.com

WHAT IS IT?

The EQP-WA is an equalizer based on a 1960's design by Pultec Audio. The original units are some of the holiest of grail in professional recording studios and fetch astronomical prices. For years mere mortals like me could who could not afford to drop 4000-7000 dollars on a single vintage piece (provided you could even locate one) were doomed to not know the magic of the Pultec EQ.

REVIEW KLARK TEKNIK 1176-KT COMPRESSOR-LIMITER

KLARK TEKNIK 1176-KT REVIEW

by Mark King for Proworkshop.com

Up until the last couple of years if you wanted a real 1176 style FET compressor-limiter like the one Bill Putnam invented you had very few choices. Now there's a new kid in town from an old and well respected British brand name, Klark Teknik. In the following review we'll take a look at the similarities and the differences of the original UA-1176 by Universal Audio, and the Klark Teknik 1176-KT.

NEUMANN U-47 MICROPHONE ORIGINAL SCHEMATIC

NEUMANN U-47 MICROPHONE ORIGINAL SCHEMATIC

Click on the picture to enlarge it

Take notice of how few electronic components are used in constructing a working microphone. This does not include the power supply components which energize the mic and provide connectivity to the outside world. 

U47 PARTS LIST

CAPSULE
POLARITY SWITCH (ON OFF)
VACUUM TUBE
OUTPUT TRANSFORMER
EIGHT RESISTERS
THREE CAPACITORS (NOT INCLUDING CAPSULE)

It's easy to see from examining this list of parts that the electronic components which will have the greatest impact on the sound are:

#1. The Capsule (the ear drum of the mic),
#2. The Tube (the amplifier),
#3. The Output coupling capacitor
#4. The Output Transformer (connects the microphone to the rest of the world)

More than any other marketing hype, these components account for 95% of the way a vacuum tube microphone sounds. The physical shape and construction of the head that houses the microphone capsule is the other big determining factor in what creates the sound the microphone produces.

If the Head/Grille sounds like the ocean when you hold it up to your ear and listen through it you're going to need to mod the grille work to get rid of that sound or else the capsule will hear that too and it will bias the tone of your recordings.

COST EXAMINATION
The tube used in a Neumann U-47 is no longer made. For cost comparison we'll use the most similar functioning counterparts that are plug and play compatible with the original microphone.

$400.00 Thiersch PVC M-7 Style Capsule from Germany
$750.00 Replacement VF-14K from Telefunken
$300.00 Classic BV-8 from AMI

There is the bulk of the cost for building one of the best U-47 style microphones

If a different, lower cost tube is used then the cost would also be correspondingly lower. As of today there are still good alternative N.O.S. glass tubes which are similar in characteristics to the original steel can VF-14 tubes. One such alternative is the Telefunken EF-800.