Mastering

[Emerge]

lmfao

[I Am..]

Man, I know this is off topic, but I've always wanted to ask. Opey, Tax and others..I just always wondered how you know all the things you know. I mean did you teach yourself as you went along and gain experience from others on the way? Or did you study it at university? Or what? I'm just amazed at the amount of information you know. Just curious.

[Emerge]

We read.

Well, actually.

Tax reads, then I bug him and he tells me. Opey smokes weed and eats books and derives knowledge purely from osmosis.

[WillieWil]

lmao...yea...I aske dOpey the same thing a while ago...told him I wanted to his "understudy"....he just said that it was all trial and error...I'm startin to see this now...but at the same time I'm still buggin the shit out of him...

[Opie M.]

i started by researching this forum. this is the reason i joined RB. People like me, tax, alcatrakz, Fade Out, av, merge, etc just find shit out by chance, read about it, or get told about it then share it on here and over aim convos and we all learn from each other. u gotta take in any knowledge you can get your hands on... but for god's sake consider the source LMFAO

[Emerge]

Yeah, it's always good to compare to other people's opinions.

[Kris Cain]

just to confirm how i learn...
i read alot about music in general.
and i network with alot of other engineers around my area and in atlanta.

[TheUnderRated]

I go to school for it... and network with local cats as well ... also I just try shit out I learn the knowledge behind something not just the upfront shit like alot of other cats do... like I don't know the meaning of the word preset unless the word user is before it every track has infinite potential and depending on how I feel shit turns out how it does.

[I Am..]

i started by researching this forum. this is the reason i joined RB. People like me, tax, alcatrakz, Fade Out, av, merge, etc just find shit out by chance, read about it, or get told about it then share it on here and over aim convos and we all learn from each other. u gotta take in any knowledge you can get your hands on... but for god's sake consider the source LMFAO

Yeah, man. I knew absoloutly nothing about music hardware or software, before I came to this site. Now, I'm able to help and answer some of the questions asked. I've learnt a lot just by reading your replies. Everything I recommend to people, I've seen you recommend somewhere. For the microphone and pre-amp threads I made, I researched every single one of your posts which was microphone/pre-amp related and did it. I thought ya'll went to university for it. I still have a very, very long way to go. I'm learning as I go along, though.

Tax, have you ever studied under somebody? An engineer maybe, or something? Becuase you know a lot of the technical things and it would be pretty hard to teach it all to yourself. Just wondering.

[Opie M.]

I go to school for it... and network with local cats as well ... also I just try shit out I learn the knowledge behind something not just the upfront shit like alot of other cats do... like I don't know the meaning of the word preset unless the word user is before it every track has infinite potential and depending on how I feel shit turns out how it does.

That's a good point right there. Learn WHY the shit works... not just how it works.

And yea... I have books, DVDs, and videos up the wazoo lol. and i forgot about the studio sessions... people need to actually take their asses into the studio and pay attention. Going to a studio as a producer helped me a lot cus there's a lot of time to talk with the engineer while the artist is busy. Ive learned that old heads are great for learning techniques and younger dudes are great for knowing the newest equipment. You can't really talk equipment with an old head cus he's generally just tryin to keep up with the times lmao

[Opie M.]

Yeah, man. I knew absoloutly nothing about music hardware or software, before I came to this site. Now, I'm able to help and answer some of the questions asked. I've learnt a lot just by reading your replies. Everything I recommend to people, I've seen you recommend somewhere. For the microphone and pre-amp threads I made, I researched every single one of your posts which was microphone/pre-amp related and did it. I thought ya'll went to university for it. I still have a very, very long way to go. I'm learning as I go along, though.

Tax, have you ever studied under somebody? An engineer maybe, or something? Becuase you know a lot of the technical things and it would be pretty hard to teach it all to yourself. Just wondering.

I've been at this for around 4 years and still have a rediculous amount to learn. No one's gonna teach you equipment tho. You just have to know what you're looking for in certain equipment and actually go try the stuff out and decide if you like it. I've learned that equipment reviews generally suck because dudes will sound intelligent as shit but have no clue wtf they're talking about. I've seen reviews putting an MXL 990 mic on the same pedistol as a Neumann multiple times. And the arguments will be convincing. But anyone that goes to the store and tries both mics next to each other will want to slap the reviewer in the face.

[Kris Cain]

i taught myself most of everything i know.

the rest is from personal experience, reading, and other engineers telling me shit.

[Emerge]

Syntax masters opey's anus.

[I Am..]

That's a good point right there. Learn WHY the shit works... not just how it works.

And yea... I have books, DVDs, and videos up the wazoo lol. and i forgot about the studio sessions... people need to actually take their asses into the studio and pay attention. Going to a studio as a producer helped me a lot cus there's a lot of time to talk with the engineer while the artist is busy. Ive learned that old heads are great for learning techniques and younger dudes are great for knowing the newest equipment. You can't really talk equipment with an old head cus he's generally just tryin to keep up with the times lmao

Yeah, i'll definatly do that. I'm going to see where I can get some DVD's or books to help me out. I don't know too many producers or engineers though, so I guess i'll have to do without the on-hand experience. I'm going over today to check out a couple of mics and learn about them. Thanks for the advice though, Opey. I'm seriously thinking of getting into it. I might not be able to teach myself as easily as Tax did, but I'll give it a shot.

[Brandon Heat]

just to add my 3 1/2 cents...


I knew alot about... live music... mixing blah blah blah... concerts... micing pianos blah blah blah... I'm musically trained and shit... however... I tried using it in a studio and the shit didn't work... so I spoke to Tax... Opey... and Merge diddy... and learned everything I could from them... and well... I researched a bunch of shit... cause I didn't want to fucking bother them like you all bother us... read a fuckin book... go to guitar center... and guitarcenter.com... GUITAR CENTER... it's a store... they have a shit load of books to read...



another way that helped was listening to re-mixed/re-master releases of older music... as well as listening to Timbaland beats... as far as knowing how to build a "stage" and "fill space"... this is all shit I read about and didn't understand until I heard it...



and don't think I didn't think like 99% of you do... I got a mxl 1006... and a blue tube pre... why don't I have great quality..!? Well... because bullshit in... = bullshit out...



If you're willing to learn about your craft... invest the money in your craft... and don't say... I'm only 12-21 and I don't have money... I've spent 10,000 in equipment to get somewhat the sound I want... and I worked my ass off to get it... if you aren't serious about doing music professionally... go to a studio... I think you should waste money in a studio with someone who somewhat knows what they are doing... rather than on equipment you'll never use after a week...







































in conclusion... go read a book.



don't ask what book to read... any book about any piece of music... after you read one... You'll need another to explain little things in the first one... and that's how you learn... this shit isn't a sprint... it's a cingular marathon...



get it... shit carries over.