Recording - January 2017 - 4

PUBLISHER: Thomas Hawley
ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER: Brent Heintz

EDITORIAL

EDITOR: Mike Metlay
SPECIAL PROJECTS EDITOR: Lorenz Rychner
TECHNICAL EDITOR: Paul Vnuk Jr.
EDITOR AT LARGE: Beto Hale
COPY EDITOR: Diana Smethurst
MÚSICO PRO EDITOR: Fernando Curiel

How we (really) drum
Welcome to 2017 and to our annual drum/percussion recording issue! Regular
readers know that we cover drum mics and miking throughout the year; it's one of
the most popular topics in our purview and one issue couldn't cover everything we
need to say. This issue does focus on drum mics and miking, but it also looks at
important areas in the percussion recording world that don't always get proper attention. Last year, we covered strategies for rescuing drum tracks that sound awful; this
year, we delve into what to do when recording a live drummer just isn't in the cards.
As Darwin Grosse points out in his article "How We Drum" (page 26), a drummer
in a good room is the preferred way to go, but unless we're really fortunate, we don't
always get that luxury. He sketches out the many different approaches to creating
rhythm tracks without a drummer, namechecking a variety of worthwhile products that
could fit your workflow and help you complete demos and tracks with great grooves.
Paul Vnuk Jr. interviews engineer/producer Sylvia Massy on page 12. Sylvia has
worked with everyone from Johnny Cash and Prince to The Red Hot Chili Peppers
and Tool, and is widely respected for her great-sounding, award-winning album production. If anyone has the street cred to write a book about recording techniques
that are more than a little bit bonkers, it's her... and this interview is a deep dive into
the working style that led to her new book, the aptly-titled Recording Unhinged. She
takes special care to talk about the mics and tricks she uses when capturing drums,
when she's not talking about recording in prisons or in orbit, or positive and negative potatoes... look, just read the interview, okay?
Sylvia also talks at some length about the value of phase alignment and the magic hidden in the little "Phase" button on interfaces, preamps, and consoles. In Part 2 of his series
on phase, Eric Ferguson goes deeper, talking about the difference between "phase" and
"polarity" and how to make these tools work for your recordings. See page 60.
This month's reviews cover all kinds of rhythm-related gear: new drum mic options
from Audio-Technica and Lewitt, the latest additions to the Novation Circuit rhythm
programmer, great new soundware from HandHeldSound, Sonoma Wire Works,
and Toontrack, and SPL's latest iteration of the near-magical Transient Designer.
Because subscribers get the January issue well before the holidays, it's a good
time for year-end reviews of fun toys that didn't fit into our December Buyer's Guide.
This issue has everything from great USB controllers and boutique signal processors
to a fascinating look into the world of wireless Bluetooth in the studio. There's a little
something for everybody, and I hope you find this issue a fun and inspiring read for
the start of your new year.
One final note: In the spring of 1996, Music Maker Publications moved its offices
from the Los Angeles area to Boulder. As part of the move, several new staffers were
hired to supplement or replace employees who elected not to leave California. I was
one of those hires, and I arrived for my first day of work to find an empty office
building and a young man busily assembling a desk. He shook my hand and said,
"Hi, I'm Scott. Grab a screwdriver, would you please?"
Since then, Scott Simmonds has been our Art Director, guiding the creation of (not
that I'm counting) 247 issues of Recording, an equal number of Músico Pro, the
entire multi-year print run of another (non-music) magazine, marketing campaigns,
cover photo shoots, posters for trade shows, and lots more besides. He's been tireless, constantly creative, endlessly patient, and unfailingly reliable through two
decades of hard work, including a stint of several years working remotely from the
East Coast. He's an incredible talent and a very good friend, with his hand in everything you see in the magazine you hold in your hands... and as he wraps up work
on his last issue of Recording, all I can say is: Thank you for everything, Scotto.
Enjoy the issue.

CONTRIBUTORS
Paul Vnuk Jr., Darwin Grosse, Mike Rivers,
Mark Mosher, Joe Wall, Robert Dorschel,
Gary Eskow, Jon Hillman, Eric Ferguson,
Marty Peters, Bruce Kaphan
SOCIAL MEDIA
Brent Heintz, Paul Vnuk Jr.
ART & PRODUCTION

ART DIRECTOR: Scott Simmonds
PRODUCTION MANAGER: Colin Courtney
WEB GOALIE: Colin Courtney

PLAYBACK PLATINUM SERIES
Lorenz Rychner

EDITOR/PRODUCER:

CIRCULATION
Tiffany Sepe

CIRCULATION MANAGER:

ADVERTISING SALES AND MARKETING
DIRECTOR: Brent Heintz
CLASSIFIEDS MANAGER: Colin Courtney
ADMINISTRATION
Thomas Hawley

ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE:

EXECUTIVE OFFICERS

PRESIDENT: Thomas Hawley
VICE PRESIDENT: Brent Heintz

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RECORDING MAGAZINE
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RECORDING JANUARY 2017

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recording - January 2017