Craig Anderton

If the term “DJ” makes you think “someone playing Barbra Streisand songs at my cousin’s wedding,” then you might think gas is $1.20 a gallon, and wonder how Ronald Reagan will turn out as president. DJing has changed radically over the past two decades, fueled by accelerating world-wide popularity, technological advances, and splits into different styles.

The article title alone is enough to cause some professional mastering engineers to run to various forums and start complaining. "That's what's wrong with this industry, these kids don't know how to master, you gotta have a professional do it, blah blah blah."

Normally I'd be a lot more deferential if I didn't hear so many horrible mastering jobs from "professional" mastering engineers. Will people mastering at home just add to this mess? Very possibly...then again, maybe the project/home recording people will be able to restore some sanity to the overcompressed, overhyped style of mastering that has ruined many a good recording.

I used to have a terrible time with jet lag. If I had a gig in Europe when traveling from the US, I either had to arrive a couple days beforehand, or just try to tough it out at a sub-optimal level - and trips to Asia were even worse. So I started researching jet lag to see if there were any ways to reduce its effects, and then over a period of years, tried different techniques to determine what worked and what didn't.

If your mixes don't make it, maybe you're not plugged in. Effects can further enhance good recordings: You can tweak your sounds so that they blend in better, stand out more, acquire more character, or whatever is needed to create the ultimate mix.

As with physical mixers, most host programs offer three places where you can insert plug-ins. Choosing the right location maximizes the effect's impact, conserves processor power, and allows the whole system to work at optimum efficiency.

When you see pictures of studios in magazines and brochures, it always seems the single most important piece of gear is missing: A fire extinguisher. Granted, they're not the most aesthetically pleasing objects in the world, so it's not a mystery as to why they're not visible. But if the reason you don't see one is because the studio doesn't have one, then that's a serious oversight.

I met Billy Bumluck at a video store in the early 80s. We were both proud owners of new VCRs; he was browsing in the Beta section, I was looking at VHS. "You use VHS?" he asked. When I nodded, he said "Too bad, man. Beta is the only way to go -- better picture, more reliable, and it has Sony behind it. Your VHS machine will be a doorstop next year, so enjoy it while you can!"

If you go through withdrawal when you're away from your studio, there's hope: Laptop computers have evolved into serious music-making tools. Not only can they operate as studios unto themselves, they make perfect "satellites" for your main studio.Best of all, today's laptops offer enough power for most types of remote recording, editing, and composing projects.

Usually, I like to write about some clever trick. But this time, I want to explore stupidity, particularly because stupidity breeds stupidity: Sometimes a stupid mistake will make you do an even stupider mistake, like re-installing your computer's operating system when it isn't really necessary. Here's a chance to learn from my stupid mistakes, and those of others.

Preamps—just like mics, speakers, and record company lawyers—are shrouded in mystery. They provide that all-importrant link between a mechanical transducer, such as a mic or guitar pickup, and the circuitry that follows it, such as a mixer or computer audio interface.

It used to be that the idea of buying expensive mic preamps for a home studio was outlandish. But as the cost of recording has nose-dived, more disposable income has been freed up for devices like monitor speakers, mics, preamps, and other accessories.