RECORDING September 2022 - 4

publisher: Thomas Hawley
associate publisher: Brent Heintz
EDITORIAL
i
FadeIn
Welcome to the September issue of RECORDING, dedicated to the sacred,
revered art of mixing. Last year in this very same issue, I shared my thoughts on
the question, " What's your take on Atmos and spatial audio? "
My feelings then were a mix of " Its incredible in theory and impressive when
done well, " balanced with skepticism of, " Will it ever catch on? Is it the next fad
like 5.1? " It's expensive ...
Here I am one year later, and I now have a set of Apple AirPods Pro specifically
so that I can enjoy spatial audio with nothing more than my iPhone, Mac
Studio and Apple Music. Is every spatial audio mix a winner? No, but neither is
every stereo mix I hear. But, having the convenient option of a pretty convincing
binaural fold down on good-sounding consumer earbuds is hard to argue. Case
in point, my 17-year-old son never turns the spatial audio option off; it's just how
he experiences music, movies and even games.
Do I think it's a fad? The " get off my lawn " skeptic is still not entirely sure,
but I am starting to side with many folks who think it may be more akin to the
encroachment of stereo overtaking mono in the 60s. Remember, some people
wondered why the hell we needed two speakers.
One reason I think it is already more viable than 5.1 is two-fold. First, in one
of my conversations with engineer Will Kennedy (who, along with Matt Wallace,
brings us this month's Fade Out), he pointed out that an accurate Dolby Atmos
system needs to adhere to a stringent set of standards so that the music translates
from system to system. Unlike the less than optimal results of the hodge-podge
5.1 systems where engineers and home users alike coupled cheap rear and
center speakers with their nicer main monitors. Plus, it's not just about the price,
as Matt and Will put together a stellar-sounding, yet highly affordable, Atmos
system [see our July 2022 issue for details].
The second reason it is catching on can be currently summed up in one
word, Apple. Not only in the company's push to make it easily accessible
to listeners, but as we see in both our interviews this month with YouTube
sensation Jonathan Morris and composer Ramin Djawadi, spatial audio and
full binaural rendering are now available to content creators directly in Apple
Logic. Beyond Logic, many popular DAWs are also adding full-fledged spatial
audio mixing tools. All this to say, don't be surprised if by next year I have
not taken the plunge in some way, shape or form into the Atmos/spatial audio
world. It's just too tempting and exciting.
Beyond the spatial, we have great mixing advice from Marc Urselli, Alex
Hawley and Mark Hornsby, along with Joe Albano's look at virtual tape machines.
We have ten reviews this month featuring great mixing tools and more, and
with that, I will stop chattering so you can dive in.
Enjoy the issue, my friends!
editor: Paul Vnuk Jr.
músico pro editor: Rodrigo O. Sánchez
CONTRIBUTORS
associate editor: Alex Hawley
copyeditor: Kristi Douglass
Joe Albano, David Blascoe, Mark Hornsby,
John Czerwinski, Will Kennedy, Bill Stunt,
Aaron J. Trumm, Marc Urselli, Matt Wallace
SOCIAL MEDIA
Brent Heintz, Paul Vnuk Jr.
ART & PRODUCTION
production manager: Colin Courtney
art director: Colin Courtney
VIDEO PRODUCTION
Paul Vnuk Jr., Alex Hawley
Cameron Heintz, Lauren Hawley
CIRCULATION
circulation manager: Tiffany Sepe
ADVERTISING SALES AND MARKETING
director: Brent Heintz
classifieds manager: Colin Courtney
ADMINISTRATION
accounts receivable: Thomas Hawley
EXECUTIVE OFFICERS
president: Thomas Hawley
vice president: Brent Heintz
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RECORDING MAGAZINE
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4 RECORDING September 2022
RECORDING September 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of RECORDING September 2022
