Sonic Faults

Drum micing

This audio recording was so distorted the only thing that was clear was the background noise. The problem here is that the microphone was too close to the drum that when it was played it would be recorded loudly and caused it to distort. To fix this i would move the microphone further away and/or turn the gain down on the microphone so it does not peak. The drum does not sound like a drum but rather like it has been bitcrushed. The fixed version of this audio shows that placing the microphone further away would mean no distortion and a clearer and crisper sound. The drum in this recording is not to loud or too quiet and is easy to listen to.

Microphone Choice

Microphone choice is a major factor in recording. Using the wrong type of microphone could mean a really quiet or low quality recording, or even a really loud and distorted recording. In the audio recording the microphone was crackling as well as the drum not being clear. I would fix this by using a better microphone that does not crackle when recording. In the better recording the drum is clear and there is no interference such as crackling from a poor quality microphone. The drum is not loud and is easy to listen to.

Microphone Positioning – Close

Having the microphone too close could easily cause pops and clicks as well as distortion. In this example the loud notes are distorted immensely which ruins the recording. To fix this problem just place the microphone further away or even lower the gain on the microphone so it does not distort. A pop shield is also recommended to prevent any pops or clicks.

Microphone Positioning – far

The microphone position being further away from the performer means they are not loud and there is no distortion. However the problem with the microphone being further away is that the rest of the room can be heard like background noise and reverb. 

Pops and clicks 

In the first recording the speech includes many words beginning with “P” this is very common to create pops in recordings. This means when listening to recordings the “P” comes out of the speakers loudly and most often is distorted. To fix this issue place a pop shield in front of the microphone and stand further away from the microphone. This means the microphone will not pick up the “P” sounds as loud as they usually would.

Headphone bleed

In this recording the headphones are playing audio very loudly. This means during the recording it can be heard that ruins the recording of the guitar. To prevent this lower the volume of the music or stop it all the audio in from coming out the headphones all together and or lower the gain of the microphone so it will not pick it up so easily. 

Close Micing and DI

In this example we used an electric guitar to show the importance that some instruments require certain ways of recording. When we close miced the electric guitar it was mainly strings and was not very loud or interesting. When we DI’ed the instrument not only could we edit the recording and change the sound on logic using an insert but it also sounded louder and interesting with much more atmosphere to the recording. In other examples such as if close micing a guitar amp you would get the plucking of the guitar where as if using a di box you would not hear the plucking. Close micing a guitar amp would mean the recording would be more realistic than using a di box and the close miced guitar amp possibly sounds better. This is because the recording would already have settings changed, making it sound like the finished product.

Room sounds

Room sounds and environments are of great importance to recordings, depending on the surroundings could mean a totally different recording if recorded in another room. For example in the first recording the bottom of the drum is aimed at the corner of the room with the microphone and performer facing each other. The drum’s low frequencies were bounced off the wall towards the microphone and it lost most of the high frequencies resulting in a very bassy drum. However in the other recording the drum is in the centre of the room with the microphone and performer facing each other and it creates a less bassy drum.

Tuning

Tuning is very important, if a performer is using an instrument that Is out of tune then the notes the performer wants to play would be wrong and the song would sound flat or sharp. To fix this i would tune the instrument and record the track again or use a synth instead. In the correct recording the notes the performer wants to play are correct and in tune with the song. An un-tuned instrument could result in a unprofessional sounding recording. 

Fan Noise

 Fan noise from certain equipment is also a large impact on recordings. It can be heard underneath the song and show unprofessionalism and become annoying.  In the first example you can hear a whirring, which overpowers the guitar and can be heard throughout. In the correct recording there is no fan noise which means a clear and professional recording.

Mixes

Mixing recordings have the most impact. The changes made hear are meant to improve and make the song sound professional. Inserts can be added and EQ to make the song sound better and implement your own ideas into the song. Overdoing some inserts and randomly altering frequencies on the EQ would not make the song sound better but possibly worse. This is important as when the song is bounced and mastered the final version would not sound particularly great. The main idea of mixing is to edit everything to make the song sound as best as it could be. However if the recordings have many faults within them then mixing would be much more difficult. As you would be trying to correct petty mistakes such as headphone bleed, pops and clicks or distortion. This would also mean the final mastered version would not be the best it could be.

Top and Tail

Top and tail shows professionalism, removing any noises, such as background noise or people talking/coughing at the start and end of recordings as well as during quiet parts of the songs, is important. It means the song sounds professional and the song flows well with no interruptions and starts and finishes the way it was intended to. 

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