Analog Obsession: 100% UA, Part 1
By Will Shanks
I often get questions from customers and colleagues on my approach to mixing and recording, so I thought it would be educational and fun to break down a song in its entirety, from beginning to end. If you don't already know, I don't just work for the company-I use this stuff on a regular basis. I was a fan of Universal Audio tools, new and old, even before I worked here. I have an ever-growing collection of old and new Universal/UREI equipment in my arsenal that I love and cherish. This article will be the first in a series that break down the recording process using "100% Universal Audio" processing.
TRACKING
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Mooney tracking through a Brauner AE with an LA-610
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Drums
The drum performance was by Dave Roda. The drum recording was done in a nice-sounding 19-by-17-foot room with a 20-foot ceiling. Only three microphones were used: a pair of Neumann cardioid KM 184s in a traditional XY configuration about two feet from the cymbals and an Audix D6 kick drum mic about two feet away from the front of the kick. The drum kit was a decent 1972 Ludwig four-piece, with no muffling in the low-tuned kick besides the Aquarian muffle-ring beater-head. The Precision 8110 was used for all three tracks, with shape position on the overheads set to Off and set to 1 for the kick. The Precision was chosen for its wonderful high-frequency response on drums and cymbals, which often fly without any additional EQ on mixdown. The gain of all three channels was goosed to add some color and natural compression.
Vocal 1 / Acoustic 1
The main vocal was performed live with the main acoustic guitar, for the benefit of the vocalist's performance. A nice modern Taylor cutaway was used. A Brauner Anniversary Edition (a cardioid mic) was used in the control room with the SE Reflexion Filter to dry up the room sound. The mic was positioned for a good balance between the two sources, but was closer to the voice than the guitar for a reasonable volume advantage. The mic was positioned about a foot from the sources. The LA-610 was used, with moderate Gain and Level settings and compressor output gain set fairly high. About 3 dB of gain reduction was occurring on peaks. A 1.5 dB boost at 10 kHz was used on the high-shelf EQ for added air. The vocal has some minor pitch issues, but these were deemed acceptable. This highlights the pros and cons of performance versus track isolation.
Vocal 2
The second vocal is doubles the original vocal in a lower octave, with harmony variations on the chorus tag. It was sung as an overdub much like the first vocal, this time in my mixing room at home, with the same mic and SE Reflexion Filter. Perhaps 3 to 5 dB of gain reduction was occurring. No EQ.
“I find the 1073 a very specialized tool, giving a larger-than-life sound, particularly with the mid-band frequency.”
Acoustic DI
In addition to the mic, a DI feed was taken from the acoustic, mostly as a safety net for a backup guide track in the event we scratched the vocal but kept drums. This was fed into the 6176 Hi-Z input with a small amount of limiting.
Acoustic 2
The second acoustic was also recorded using the LA-610/Brauner Anniversary Edition and SE Reflexion Filter with a bit of gain reduction. This time, the guitar was a beautiful-sounding Epiphone jumbo from the early '70s. It was played in a lower register to thicken the acoustic part.
Bass
The bass was recorded in the drum room as an overdub performed by yours truly, with undisciplined hands on a passable instrument. It was recorded with the Brauner PhantomV on Cardioid, with the mic three feet back, placed at the height of the lower neck area. The mic was chosen over several others that were auditioned because it gave the best definition, frequency response and low noise levels needed for such a recording distance. It was also chosen for its strong reach, adding the same room sound that drums possessed. The LA-610 was used again, with a somewhat aggressive 5 to 7 dB of compression and a 3 dB boost at 200 Hz on the low-shelf EQ, for a mild low-frequency enhancement.
Knee Slaps
The stereo knee slaps on the choruses were tracked immediately after the basic tracks were captured, using the same mics and same settings that were used for the overheads. In fact, the drummer simply returned to his throne to do the knee slaps.
Mellotron Flute
The Mellotron flute comes from a wonderful virtual instrument from G-Force called M-Tron, which is essentially a sample player for all the original Mellotron tape loops from the '60s and '70s. The part was played, and the MIDI data was captured, then bounced to real audio, all within the DAW.
MIXDOWN
Overhead
Not much was needed on the drums as the performance and recording were already solid. The effects used were more for slight enhancements to the recording. I modified the default preset of the Fairchild 670 slightly: I adjusted the DC bias counterclockwise to achieve a hardened knee to get more of a limiter effect and a lowered threshold. I like the expanded room sound that the Fairchild provides, particularly on drums. I use the "1" time constant about 80% of the time for a fast release.
Kick
I also used the 1176LN plug-in as a limiter, selecting a 20:1 ratio and a medium attack and fast release with 1 to 2 dB of limiting. The effect was chosen to slightly improve transient consistency of an already great performance. On many transients the meter isn't even registering gain reduction.
Vocal 1 / Acoustic 1
As mentioned, the vocal and main acoustic guitar were tracked mono on the same mic. This of course limits processing and automation, so I chose the gentle program-dependent LA-2A plug-in for optimal transparency with just the right amount of glue to avoid automation moves. Panned a little to the left.
Vocal 2
The second vocal has an LA-2A with a slightly lower threshold (greater gain reduction) for tighter tracking of the dynamics than the first vocal. However, more automation was used on the second vocal to bring in the interesting parts. In addition, the BOSS CE-1 was used (mono to stereo) to widen and thicken the track, for a bit of pop effect-the chorus is set to maximum effect. In addition the plug-in is set to "dual," a CE-1 mode that operates as if two CE-1 pedals were being used. Panned a little to the right.
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Will Shanks in his trailer studio with a trailer guitar
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We ended up using the DI signal as a subtle enhancement to the mic source, to add some additional transient attack. No additional processing was used on the acoustic DI. Panned hard left.
Acoustic 2
No additional processing was used on the second acoustic guitar. Panned right.
Bass
The bass recording was a bit lackluster, and I wanted a somewhat processed, aggressive sound on the instrument. I chose the 1073 for the unique qualities of the filters. I find the 1073 a very specialized tool, giving a larger-than-life sound, particularly with the mid-band frequency. I boosted 1.6 kHz to almost the extreme to give a hyperrealistic bite to the attack of the instrument. Another favorite "trick" I use with the 1073 is engaging the high-pass filter at 80 Hz while boosting at 60 Hz on the low shelf. In my opinion, this filter combination is one of the recognizable signature sounds of the Neve EQ. I also added a touch of air (for greater room effect) with the high shelf.
In addition, I used not one but two LA-2As on the bass. As the performer and instrument were less than stellar, just one was not enough to tame unevenness across the note range. Often, lesser upright basses have an uneven frequency response, as was the case here. One extreme compressor might have induced compression artifacts, but cascading two compressors gave the desired result in a transparent way.
Knee Slaps
No additional processing was used on the knee slaps.
Mellotron Flute
The mono Melltron flute was affected and "stereoized" with the Roland Dimension D, to add space and depth. Dimension 3 was used.
Bus Reverb
I used the Plate 140 selection "A" with minimal decay to complement the already-existing small-room sound of the track. I applied reverb only to the Vocal 1 / Acoustic 1 track.
MASTER BUS
EQ
I love the high-pass filter on the Precision EQ-I use it on every track I mix. It is perfect for clearing out subharmonic information that clutters a mix and distorts cheap speakers. I high-passed the mix at 30 Hz. This approach works great in combination with a shelving boost, in this case around 250 Hz. I used Precision EQ to sweeten the upper mids and highs with a gentle shelf boost. I also gave a slight 0.5 dB peak to add a bit more clarity and articulation.
Brickwall Limiter
I used the Precision Limiter as a safety net for digital overs. I typically mix to the K-12 scale. The snare mostly sees reduction in this case, with the greatest peak reduction at -5 dB.
| Download an mp3 mix-down of the song, "Friend of Mine". Download a zipped folder containing all the unmixed audio files of the session in MP3 format. The files are bounced as contiguous data allowing them to be dropped into any DAW. The VST presets are also included, which can be loaded in VST or AU format via the UAD’s VST preset loader, within each plug-in. |