Members UstadKhanAli Posted October 17, 2007 Members Share Posted October 17, 2007 TapeOp, to me, has this really great attitude of doing it with whatever you have. That said, they've been reviewing and discussing higher-end gear because many of the reviewers have higher-end gear now, and they've progressed. But they still have that DIY - "get the most with whatever you've got" vibe, and that's great. I love that magazine. Even though they don't send it to me anymore. Hmmmm.... At least EQ keeps showing up on my doorstep. Oh, and yeah, it's a very cool magazine. And it keeps getting better!! And speaking of EQ, Craig does sleep. However, what most don't know is that there are several Craig Andertons. You don't think one guy does all that work, do you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members alphajerk Posted October 18, 2007 Members Share Posted October 18, 2007 can we get a article on mark linkous from sparklehorse? he moved down here and built his studio and makes really killer music yet still pretty much underground. maybe a co-article with dave fridmann since he works with him a lot? i think a LOT of us were musicians who kinda were drawn to recording gear for whatever reason... sadly, it took over my life for a while and didnt get to play much [except for some cameos on some albums i did]... but now im trying to get back to do it for myself, which is why i started aquiring gear to begin with. i just got sidetracked for a while, hell... still am and at least im starting to think about an album and writing riffs and such again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MitchG Posted October 18, 2007 Members Share Posted October 18, 2007 Yeow, I can't imagine ever THINKING, let alone writing, anything like that! I was at EQ from 2000 to mid-2005. The '90s would have been the Hector era, I believe.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Anderton Posted October 18, 2007 Members Share Posted October 18, 2007 Yeah, but it's hard to imagine Hector writing anything like that either...anyway, thanks for checking in, Mitch! You'll always be at EQ in spirit...well, at least among the editor types. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jeff da Weasel Posted October 18, 2007 Members Share Posted October 18, 2007 The '90s would have been the Hector era, I believe.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author MikeRivers Posted October 18, 2007 CMS Author Share Posted October 18, 2007 Mike, tell the EDs over at Recording that the last few issues have been killer! I love the anniversary coverYou should tell them yourself. I don't do much for Recording any more, but I enjoyed the period when I was writing monthly articles and I could pretty much write about whatever struck my fancy. I took a lot of cues from the questions people were asking on on-line forums that had to do with fundamentals and how understanding the basics would help them solve their problems. Today they want a lot of short articles and there isn't much that I have anything to say about that I don't have a lot to say about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Anderton Posted October 18, 2007 Members Share Posted October 18, 2007 Today they want a lot of short articles and there isn't much that I have anything to say about that I don't have a lot to say about. Welcome to the post-literate society.I must say, though, I've been very pleased and a little surprised that EQ has been getting such a good response to running loooong interviews with artists. And Steve Fortner from Keyboard said their reader surveys show that people would rather have fewer in-depth reviews than more short reviews. So perhaps the tide is turning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author MikeRivers Posted October 18, 2007 CMS Author Share Posted October 18, 2007 i dunno, maybe its in the interviews? gear reviews? i dunno.... its just something there i cant put my finger on. i mean its free so i cant really complain, but it hasnt been a fulfilling read lately for me. I have to agree. I really want to like Tape Op but most of the time the magazine is filled with articles about artists, producers and engineers who work with music that I've just never been able to get interested in. Occasionally they'll do an interview with an old timer that I can relate to, but that's about it. The occasional DIY articles are pretty lame, and the gear reviews are usually pretty one-sided. But I still read as much as I can of every issue. I read through EQ as well. I usually find at least one or two useful articles, sometimes just little tips, that I try to remember and apply. I guess that's a compliment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author MikeRivers Posted October 18, 2007 CMS Author Share Posted October 18, 2007 The turning point seemed to be with the Pete Townshend issue, where we finally had enough pages to do things like run long interviews. Yeah, I couldn't believe how long that article was, and I learned a lot of interesting stuff about him that I didn't know. I only knew him as the deaf guitar player with a windmill strum. I hope you do more like that. I've always felt (and more now than ever) that magazine articles never really tell me enough. When I started writing for Recording, I expressed that and said that I didn't mind if they wanted to split an article over two or three issues, I wanted to tell the whole story, not just a few highlights, and I was able to do that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ernest Buckley Posted October 19, 2007 Members Share Posted October 19, 2007 Roy- EQ lost its way for some time there but thanks to Craig, it is returning to what it used to be. EQ was a refreshing read every month back there in the early to mid 90s and it started going south in the late 90s up until around 2005 where I would say it hit rock bottom. When you cannot read an editorial because its not written in english, you know things have gone to $hits. Thanks to Craig for righting the ship. EQ is better now. Its getting back to what it used to be and is now once again worth your $$$. Give it a try. I`m sure you`ll like it. Don`t forget to thank Craig. Thanks again Craig.EB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Roy Posted October 19, 2007 Author Members Share Posted October 19, 2007 Sounds like I'm going to enjoy it.Thanks Craig. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ernest Buckley Posted October 19, 2007 Members Share Posted October 19, 2007 Can we talk about Recording Magazine here too? If not, just move it. I actually used to love Recording magazine but it is so overly done now that I hate reading it. The way the pages are set up are so confusing. I really do not get any joy from reading it. I also thought the anniversary issue was nice but again, I did not read much of it because it gives me a headache. I say clean up the pages and I would really appreciate it more. Maybe its just me... same goes for Tape OP. Great mag but my God... so hard to read at times. My vote for cleanest design always goes to EM. I also enjoy their balance of articles. Mix has lost me in the last 2-3 years. Its too politically correct, especially the reviews which to me are pointless. Wheres the meat? EB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author MikeRivers Posted October 19, 2007 CMS Author Share Posted October 19, 2007 I actually used to love Recording magazine but it is so overly done now that I hate reading it. The way the pages are set up are so confusing. I think it may have to do with the (perhaps perceived) short attention span of the readers. My eyes are getting worse and I find that black print on anything but a white background is difficult to read, and I swear the print is getting smaller (maybe to make room for more ads or articles without adding pages). Maybe they need to offer a Geezer Edition. Recording isn't the only guilty party. They're all like that. But graphic artists gotta have a job, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ernest Buckley Posted October 19, 2007 Members Share Posted October 19, 2007 I hear you Mike. What other options are there?If you look back on Recording from the late 80s to early 90s, the mag still had an easy layout. It was simple to read and the pages were universal so it was very predictable. Thats what I miss.EM has stayed close to its layout for years and so I find that still the easiest to read. Like I said about mix, its not the layout that bothers me, its the dryness and sterile writing. I understand reviewers position but every review seems to say the same thing, "if you`re in the market for --------, give this unit a try."Sort of like saying, if you`re in the market for some stink, try smelling your arm pits after a work out. Duh... Know what I`m saying?EB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Lee Knight Posted October 19, 2007 Moderators Share Posted October 19, 2007 EQ is my favorite read lately for sure. Here's what I wish EQ would "borrow" from Tape Op... The user reviews of gear they use and love. To read how a user tried a Radio Shack tom mic and it's good and they're on clearance, etc. is cool. Or the 57 transformer mod available through TAB that some schmoe in Azusa digs. Or a cool fuzz box that's working on voice, etc. Product specific. Candid and personal. From Kenosha to Gila Bend. The candid reviews of readers are cool and useful. To review a product that's been around for 10 (or 30) years but some guy just discovered... that's really helpful. Start a forum for "end user reviews" and pick the cream of the crop every month! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members crossways Posted October 19, 2007 Members Share Posted October 19, 2007 It's the only magazine subscription I am keeping!I love the new format, there a ton of practical tips fo rthe "home recording novice" like me. And I think there is plenty for the professional too, because there are still big chunks of articles that I don't understand! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members alphajerk Posted October 19, 2007 Members Share Posted October 19, 2007 what i like about the new EQ: all the MULTIPLE interviews, especially that they dont focus on gear but approach. and i like the diversity of people... while im not a fan of all the different peoples music, i much like reading how they do things and almost brings more context to their music which i in turn can appreciate more. toolbox is a quick whats new thing craigs software column from VSTi's this issue to skinning them a few issues back i like the guitar/bass/drum/key/vox/mix sections, great info and unique. room with a VU, always like that section. what i dont like: power app alley-never seems to apply to anything i use, and when it does, i already know it [so it is subjective that i am not a fan of it] reviews- too long for each product IMO, i dunno... gear is such a weird thing, i take all reviews with a grain of salt, online or in print. so to me its just a waste of space, i like toolbox better just to see whats out there. although i would like to see that section streamlined in layout so the pics arent so big and maybe include more of them, and/or tie in a quick "review" and not just product sheet info. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author MikeRivers Posted October 19, 2007 CMS Author Share Posted October 19, 2007 EM has stayed close to its layout for years and so I find that still the easiest to read. Like I said about mix, its not the layout that bothers me, its the dryness and sterile writing. I understand reviewers position but every review seems to say the same thing, "if you`re in the market for --------, give this unit a try"Reviews, particularly when all you get is one page, are tough. I told an editor that I could write one mic review and then use it for any mic he sent me other than a really awful one, just changing the manufacturer's name and model in the text. Needless to say, I don't review many mics. EM has a good idea, but I'm not sure they're using it in the best way. They're using their web site to extend the content of the printed copy, and not just with audio examples like a number of other magazines have been doing. I recently wrote my first review for them and was enthusiastic about the idea of being able to include a lot of detail, but I misunderstood their editorial concept. I wrote a 4,000 word review, then condensed it to 1,300 words for the print version, basically explaining what the unit does, but not how, or how well. I left that for the long version, expecting that they would put the detailed review up on the web site. Turns out that what they really wanted for the web was like footnotes or sidebars to the article (kind of like mini articles in themselves), with statements in the article like "for further details, see www.****" wherever there was a further explanation on the web page. I don't think I'd enjoy reading a magazine article that way. I'd be sittin' on the can reading the magazine, then have to go to the computer to read the details. I'd rather read the print article all the way through, then, if that got my interest up, I could read the detailed version on the web. If the print article told me all I wanted to know about the product, I'd skip the web site. It could be that what's really behind this is to get magazine readers to visit the web site (for any reason), which is probably ultimately a money-maker one way or another. I guess they have their reasons. I'll see what they did with my review in a couple more months. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members the stranger Posted October 19, 2007 Members Share Posted October 19, 2007 I don't do much for Recording any more, but I enjoyed the period when I was writing monthly articles and I could pretty much write about whatever struck my fancy. I took a lot of cues from the questions people were asking on on-line forums that had to do with fundamentals and how understanding the basics would help them solve their problems. Today they want a lot of short articles and there isn't much that I have anything to say about that I don't have a lot to say about. Hmmm...guess I'll make a few comments about that when I send them a message. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ernest Buckley Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 Craig- The longer interviews are so much more appealing to me. I want to know as much as possible about these artists and the only way to do it is with more detail and longer articles so keep them coming... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members alphajerk Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 ditto!!! love the long interviews!!!! especially with the tone you [interviewers] impart. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Geoff Grace Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 Steve Fortner from Keyboard said their reader surveys show that people would rather have fewer in-depth reviews than more short reviews. So perhaps the tide is turning.I'm a little biased here because I've always been a fan of Keyboard (I was a charter subscriber), and now I'm an occasional contributor. That said, I've always felt that Keyboard did an admirable job of catering to all levels of players from beginners to full-time pros. Recently, I've felt that EQ has also struck that kind of balance. It's also speaking to musicians who have taken on a DIY engineering role, something that I see less often in other "engineer" mags. I find myself reading much more of each issue these days than I used to, and I couldn't be happier about the new direction. Best,Geoff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Lucky #9 Posted October 21, 2007 Members Share Posted October 21, 2007 EQ and Sound-On-Sound are two of my favs. TapeOp is good as well but in severe need of an eye-candy revamping. It looks like it's produced at home on an old 286 computer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members UstadKhanAli Posted October 21, 2007 Members Share Posted October 21, 2007 TapeOp is good as well but in severe need of an eye-candy revamping. It looks like it's produced at home on an old 286 computer. Wow, that's one of the things I like about it!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Meriphew Posted October 21, 2007 Members Share Posted October 21, 2007 tapeop to me has this pretention to it IMO. they really segregate the "pros" and "amateurs" it seems as black and white when really there is the whole gamut of grey. Hmmm... I have to disagree with you on that one. IMO they're completely integrating the pros and amateurs. Their interviews run the gamut from ultra mega superstar engineers to mildly famous engineers to totally obscure engineers. They run reviews of cheap DIY projects and $10k mics. I'm liking what EQ is doing lately, but Tape Op still has everyone's number IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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