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It's a clip that you use to hold music books open on the stand, like so:
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There are (at least) two types of speakers referred to as monitors, and (at least) two types of speakers referred to as loudspeakers:
studio monitors -- speakers that are specifically designed to have flat response, minimal distortion and so on. Their intended use is in the context of a recording studio to provide unadulterated playback of the recorded ...
32
Well, every mic you toss into the mix also adds more ambience, a bit of feedback from PA and monitors, and will pick up sounds that aren't really supposed to be heard at all, like breathing. Now, this isn't necessarily bad – in particular in the studio, I rather like the compact room sensation caused by many mics picking up bleed from different sources.
...
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Computer: You're using one right now. You don't need a fancy new computer to make music.
DAW: There are many free DAWs. REAPer is free if you don't mind a nag screen, Audacity is free and open source.
Keyboard/Synth: You can get an entry keyboard for $100 that will work fine.
VSTs: There are many free VSTs available from plenty of websites.
Samples: Free on ...
30
So, I work in live production, specifically in audio. With very, very few exceptions the mics themselves and the mic cables have no immediate redundancy other than someone being ready to deal with a problem should one occur (though if a lead vocalist is using a wireless mic, there may be a wired mic tucked away someplace on stage the talent can get to ...
29
The first terms that came to my mind are "gearhead" (like in this article), and "suffers from GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome)".
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It doesn't need to be expensive.
Computer: You don't need an expensive system, and chances are that the one you are using right now is more than enough. I have used a 2GB RAM, 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo system for production (including mixing). The more powerful your system is, the bigger your real-time toolbox is: more channels, more effects, more programs, ...
13
Never understood why any mic needs to be live when not in use. Every mic I use on a gig will be equipped with an on/off switch, and it's expected to be used. My own vox mic is only ever on when I sing. (I don't want the audience hearing my asides!)
As a former soundman, I would always pull a mic down if it wasn't being used - it saves any possibility of ...
12
It is true that a tube amp should not be operated without a load, i.e. without speakers (or a dummy load) connected. Solid state amps don't have that problem. The reason is that (almost) all tube amps use an output transformer, which can produce high voltage peaks if its secondary (output) winding is not connected, because the energy from the primary (from ...
12
Use a music clip. There are two kinds. When I first started playing piano, I was using one of these:
You put the clip around the top of the book, which holds it flat. Problem is, it doesn't work well for large books which are too thick to fit the clip, and when you're playing something at the beginning or end of the book the two sides become unbalanced. It ...
12
There are several youtube videos showing live setups for large bands, and you'll see that there is a LOT of redundancy in there. Thinking of Billy Joel's keyboard player David Rosenthal - he has two separate identical racks of equipment, set up so that pressing a single button can send the midi data to the B rack while the A rack is restarted, and he has a ...
11
Expensive compared to what? If you looked at learning sax, guitar, piano etc., and bought new, as you appear determined to do, you would shell out a load of money with those.Especially electric guitar, because you would feel you need a decent amp., then effects, et al.
When you learned to ride a bike, you hopefully didn't go and buy a $3000 racing road bike,...
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When using an amp with microphone, it means that you play the guitar through a physical amp, and using a microphone to direct this sound into your recording system.
An amp simulator is software that literally simulates an amp; you plug your guitar into your computer (through an interface for better quality), and this sound is modified by the software that ...
10
It turns out that strength is not what is needed to improve your ability to finger barre chords, or any chords. It's mostly about precise placement and using the minimum amount of force to hold it down.
It's not necessarily that equal pressure is correct. You just need the right amount of pressure for each fret and string.
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A recording engineer's job is to do essentially this, not just with guitar signal chains but also with microphones and plugins for vocals or any instrument. He's hired by people who've (hopefully) gotten the composition and the musicianship sorted out, and they need somebody whose expertise lies is getting the sound the client wants to hear in the mix at the ...
9
The answer is: It depends.
A good amp connected to a good cab in a good room will sound good through a well placed good mic connected to a good preamp. I don't believe that any amp sim can beat that yet. But that's a lot of variables, many things can go wrong, it's not very hard but certainly not trivial.
To me, a good amp simulator sounds way better than ...
8
The answer may surprise you:
colour
Really, it gives you the option to avoid light coloured rosin dust on your instrument. Useful if you have a very dark instrument.
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Every acoustic instrumentalist needs a means to transfer the vibrations of his/her instrument to electric signal. This can be done with a microphone or a pickup.
If you wish to use a microphone, you will need to "close mike." To ensure that no other instruments are "heard" by the microphone, close-miking involves having a microphone be placed in close ...
8
I think the heart of the question is, which is more important: gear or skill?
The answer to that question is skill is more important. Skill is the product of training, practice, and experience, and people with the highest skill levels have a great advantage in producing the best results, in any field.
You specifically asked about the skills of mixing and ...
7
Well, if you're into commercial production within the music industry, it's pretty expensive. A hobby artist does not need expensive equipment at all.
Your focus should be on creating the music, not the bit rate of your sample packs, save that for a re-mix/re-master, let the quality evolve.
There are plenty of free resources to play with:
http://www....
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It's really just a matter of degree.
Monitors are loudspeakers, but you would expect them to be flat, clean & accurate, just the thing to use in your studio - & consequently expensive; whereas generic 'loudspeakers' could be the things in your boom box, or even your alarm clock, right up to your hi-fi.
Often they don't look particularly ...
7
Good, clear answer by @Tetsujin.
Just one thing to add: when musicians talk about monitors in a live setting, this can refer informally to foldback monitors, also known as stage monitors. These are rear facing loudspeakers (usually) which allow musicians to hear what they are playing, and a mix of the other musicians playing with them. This allows musicians ...
7
As mentioned in other answers there are different uses of the word "monitor". The most common usage in music production is the special speakers the sound engineer / producer uses to listen to the mix.
In technical terms what separates these from normal speakers is a flat frequency response.
What does that mean?
If you look at the fourier transform (...
7
My favorite method is to use clothespins to clip the edges of the book to a music stand. If the dimensions of either the book or the stand don't allow that, I use the clothespins to clip a ruler or a similarly sized piece of wood to the front of the book to keep it open.
If the book is stapled together and not too thick, bending it backwards a few times ...
6
Considering that it's the same mouthpiece you used in elementary school, mouthpieces models for beginning instrumentalists are sometimes selected on the smaller side (smaller mouth + smaller mouthpiece = better chance of success!)
There are several reasons why you should invest in a larger mouthpiece, and below are a few:
Horn mouthpieces are cheap - not ...
6
A simple cable "Y" splitter will allow two guitars to work on one amp, if one is using a "clean" sound [no deliberate distortion] and can live with the fact that each guitar's volume control will have some effect on the volume of both guitars (the volume control on each guitar works by both restricting the flow of sound to from the pickups to the cable, and ...
6
Firstly - you need to recognize that actually - you're pretty privileged to live in this day and age of electronic music. Creating electronic music is far cheaper and more accessible than it ever used to be! ie. You can create electronic music with the computer you already own, I recommend a pair of decent speakers (more below), and a DAW.
This is far ...
6
If you're up for using Linux, check out Ardour.
It is an open source DAW, and costs 1$ or more (whatever you want to pay), so I guess it technically doesn't fall into the "those garbage free programs" category. ;-) It has been used by professional musicians and wannabes like me for years, and I'm very happy with the results.
Just go check it out...
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As a volunteer sound guy, I feel like I have to weigh in here. I think Tetsujin and Dave have explained the technical side very well, but there's also a practical side:
If you want good sound, you must keep the stage as quiet as possible!
Even for rock concerts.
Most performers will ask for more of something in their (foldback) monitors because they can'...
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