Headphones tend to get dropped, placed, or temporarily forgotten on the studio floor - right? And then stepped on, tripped over, and/or kicked and busted. And once they are broken, they need to be...
MXL has been making affordable microphones since 1998 (the ubiquitous MXL 2001, anyone?). One of their latest offerings is the PA-5K Pro six piece drum microphone ensemble. The kit consists of two...
Back in Tape Op #130 I reviewed the Triad-Orbit reissue of the Starbird mic stand and was very favorably impressed, as have been all the engineers who've used it here at Panoramic House Studios. Since...
For years, I've been tortured by drum gates. First, in the analog realm, where I'd be mixing poorly-recorded tracks (sometimes my fault) and I'd attempt to use gates to add punch and clarity to my...
SpectraLayers Pro is an exceedingly powerful program for restoring, editing, and manipulating audio. I mistakenly ignored this product, classifying it as just another spectral editor. Ultimately,...
If you have a studio, you have a microwave – odds are the inside of which looks and smells like a truck stop toilet apocalypse (or a Hertz rental car return from Burning Man). Interns would...
Yes, I'm a bit biased. I'm a fan of CruzTOOLS' solid line of problem-solving musical instrument tools. I own and use one of their Guitar Player Tech Kits [Tape Op #69] (awesome for general guitar tech...
A year ago, I stumbled across a Kickstarter campaign to build a robotic mic mount. I'd always wanted something like this, where I could remotely move a mic from the control room while actively...
DrumClips came to me by way of a professional session drummer I'd worked with recently. During our session together, I walked into the live room with a roll of gaffer's tape — an all too...
The Effect Integrator pedal is a quick and easy way to introduce your favorite guitar stompboxes into your mic signal chain. As a former FOH guy and constant pawn-shop pedal peruser, I decided to give...
Here's another product from Radial Engineering that has much more to it than meets the eye. At first glance, the Workhorse SixPack has the same form factor as any other six-slot 500-series frame with...
Brad Avenson is great at packing a lot of hi-fi functionality into the smallest possible, heavy-duty aluminum cases. His latest product aimed at guitarists and studios is a "remix" of his IsoDi....
As I barrel toward the half-century mark, I find I am way more active with guitars than in the past. Not only am I playing more than usual, I'm also adjusting, setting up, fixing, and even cobbling...
