Microphone Review: Shure SM57 Microphone

It is quite obvious that the better the equipment you use, the better your recordings will sound. However, as you all know, I'm a cheapo and try to focus on doing things cheaply with the best results.

The first proper pieces of equipment you should look at buying are decent microphones. This will improve your sound drastically. Different microphones have different applications, but for a cheap home setup the most important aspect to look at is versatility. You will want two types of mics: a decent instrument mic like the Shure SM57 microphone and then a decent condenser mic for practically everything else. A dynamic mic uses a diaphragm and an electromagnetic coil to induce a voltage signal, whereas a condenser mic uses a diaphragm and an electrostatic plate (capacitive effect). If that confused you, don't worry it's not too important - it just means that dynamic and condenser mics record sound differently and will thus have different sounding outputs.

The first decent microphone I ever bought was Shure's SM57 instrument/vocal mic and it has served me well. The picture below shows what it looks like:

The Shure SM57 is said to be one of the best mics for use on guitar amps, drums, wind instruments and is therefore very versatile. You can see from its frequency spectrum below, that it has an excellent mid-frequency response which gets a little wobbly towards the high-end. This explains its claim to fame, because electric guitars and drums dominate the mid-range. The SM57 is actually the exact same mic as the common SM58 vocal mic, it just doesn't have a pop filter. It can therefore be used, with quite nice results, as a live vocal mic as well. For studio vocals, a condenser mic is better as it has a flatter high-range, but as a cheapo, this mic will work there too.

Another cool aspect of this mic is what Shure calls the "proximity effect". This suggests that the closer the sound source is to the mic, the louder the bass response, meaning you can get some serious punch out of your mic. I highly recommend that you check this mic out if you are looking to improve your sound with equipment. For more information you can check out the Shure website.

Other posts you might find interesting:
Firewire Audio Recording Devices
Sound Proofing and Room Acoustics Basics
Monitor/Speaker Placement
What Gives a Guitar its Tone?
Sound Mixing Tips: High There?!

What gives a Guitar its Tone?

Hey guys,

I've come across an excellent set of articles all about guitar tone. Have you ever wandered what makes a guitar sound the way it does? These articles deal with exactly that. Each part of the guitar affects its tone. The author cleverly discusses these parts individually. They are:

1. The Strings
2. The Neck
3. The Body
4. The Bridge

The author explains these concepts fundamentally from the types wood to the pickups. I find that the basic idea with the tone of any instruments or a room, is simply that hard surfaces (eg. a brick wall) reflect high frequencies whilst soft surfaces (eg. a soft sofa) absorb the high frequencies.

Using light as an analogy to sound works well because they are both waves and both reflect and refract off materials. Think of hard surfaces like a mirror - they reflect almost all the light. Soft or rough surfaces diffuse the sound, similar to how a glazed bathroom window diffuses light.

You will notice that guitar tone is governed by the same fundamental rules. Hard materials brighten the tone and soft materials seem to boost the low frequencies, creating a warmer sound. All the same, the above mentioned articles are definitely worth a read because they go into way more detail about which woods or materials create which sound.

Other posts you might find interesting:

Microphone Review: Shure SM57 Microphone
Speaker Placement
High There?!
Panning for Gold
Audio Recording in Ubuntu Studio - Part 1: Plan your Project

Firewire Audio Devices

Using Linux unfortunately limits one to certain hardware. This is because the companies which make these devices do not create Linux drivers. This is a downfall, but one which is easily avoided - don't buy equipment before you know it works in Linux! How do you check this? Well thats why I'm writing this article.

When buying audio hardware you would want a multi-channel recording facility. In other words, you want a mixing desk or soundcard which can record to multiple channels in Ardour or another DAW simultaneously. In my opinion the best way to do this is to use firewire...it is super-fast and quite well supported in Linux. FFADO (previously known as FreeBoB) is an organisation which creates firewire support within Linux. Here is a link to FFADO's list of devices they support: FFADO Devices Support. Make sure that any firewire products you want to buy appear on their list before you buy it!

The Mackie ONYX and M-Audio NRV-10 mixers are both excellent choices for home recording projects. I heard of Linux-users who are happy with the PreSonus Firepod which is essentially a multiple input firewire soundcard. There are many audio devices out there which work exceptionally well in Linux... just please make sure you do your homework before you fork out tonnes of cash on something.

Other posts you might find interesting:

Microphone Review: Shure SM57 Microphone
The Best Programs in Ubuntu Studio
Audio Recording in Ubuntu - Part 1: Plan your Project
Audio Recording in Ubuntu - Part 2: Recording a Hydrogen Drumbeat
Hydrogen Drum Machine Basics

The Best Programs in Ubuntu Studio

Ubuntu Studio rocks - it's a fact, you're just going to have to come to terms with that. Here's a list of my favourite open source recording programs which come with the Ubuntu Studio package:

• Jack is a fantastic interface which sits between ALSA (essentially your soundcard) and most other audio applications. This allows you to connect all your audio programs together in which ever way blows your hair back.
• Ardour is an excellent professional multi-track recording program which just kicks arse (Ardour is similar to Pro Tools). There are others, Audicity and Jokosher, but they fall far short of Ardour.
• Hydrogen is a great program which allows you to make drum tracks using MIDI inputs or just your creativity. There are also many different drum and percussion sounds available which are easily loaded into the program. These drumkits can also be created and edited all within the program. With a bit of patience and the right drumkit, your drum track can really sound mean.
• JAMin is a killer mastering program which can be used as an insert effect on your master track in Ardour. This mastering program can really take your songs from being mediocre, home recording losers to buffed-up, professional sounding hits.
• ZynAddFX or Virtual Keyboard can be used to record MIDI sounds if you, like me, don't own a real keyboard.

Those are not all the programs that come with Ubuntu Studio but they are without a doubt the best ones. Another advantage of Ubuntu Studio is that it comes with many effects already installed.

Other posts you might find interesting:
Beginner's Guide to Ubuntu Recording
Hints and Tips for using Ardour
Hints and Tips for using Hydrogen
Hints and Tips for using JAMin
Hints and Tips for using JACK