Metal Music Manual

Contents

• Acknowledgments
• Foreword
• Chapter 1: Introduction
• Audio
• Video Interviews
• Forum
• Chapter 2: Contemporary Metal Music
• Chapter 3: The Parameters of Heaviness
• Distortion
• Proximity
• Perceived Loudness
• The Distortion Paradox
• Sonic Weight
• Transients
• Spectral Dynamics and Transient Brightness
• Clarity
• Definition
• Intelligibility
• Performance Precision
• Pre-Production
• Chapter 4: Pre-Production
• Vision and Leadership
• Rehearsals
• The Budget
• Click Tracks
• In Practice
• Tempo Mapping
• Click Tones
• Guide Tracks
• Click-Free Tracking
• Live Guide Tracks without a Click
• Overdubs without a Click
• The Click Track Acid Test
• Chapter 5: Sound at Source
• Drums
• Drum Shells
• Shell Thickness, Diameter, Depth and Hardware
• Symmetry and Flatness
• Drumheads and Re-Heading
• Batter Heads
• Resonant Heads
• Re-Heading/Bedding-In
• Drum Tuning
• Kick Tuning
• Snare Tuning
• Toms Tuning
• Dampening
• Kick Dampening
• Snare and Toms Dampening
• Hats, Ride and Cymbals
• Bass and Guitar
• Down-Tuning
• Baritones/Longer Scale Lengths
• Guitar Overdrive Pedals
• Amp/Cab/Mic Simulation and Modelling
• Amplifiers
• Bass Amps
• Guitar Amps
• Loudspeakers and Loudspeaker Cabinets
• Engineering
• Chapter 6: Engineering Overview
• Isolation=Separation=Control
• Headroom
• Printed Compression
• Printed EQ
• Chapter 7: Drums
• Set Up
• Kick Drums
• Attack Mic
• Porthole Placement
• Low Frequency Capture
• Isolation Tunnels
• Double Kick Performance Solutions
• Kick Building
• Snare Top
• Snare Bottom
• Toms
• Batter Mic
• Double Miked Toms
• Concert Toms
• Metalwork
• Hats
• Ride
• Cymbals
• Spaced Pair
• Close Miked Cymbals
• Paired Cymbal Miking
• Room Mics and Controlled Cohesion
• Triggers
• Recording Drum Hits from the Kit used for Tracking
• Sample Creation
• Drum Edits and Quantization
• Gridding
• Phase
• Retention of Human Feel
• Micro-Editing
• Quantization-Based Tools
• Chapter 8: Guitars
• D.I.'s and Re-amping
• Speaker Selection
• Isolation Tactics
• Amp Volume
• Mic Selection
• Loudspeaker Frequency Radiation
• Mic Placement
• Proximity Effect
• Off-Axis Placement
• Double Miking
• Double Tracking (vs. Quad Tracking)
• Quad Tracking
• Tonal Variation
• Multi Amp/Cab Recording for Double-Tracked Guitars
• Mix Center Rhythm Thickener
• Chapter 9: Bass
• D.I.
• Dirty D.I.
• (Series) Amp/Cab Distortion
• Amp/Cab/Mic
• Isolation, Speaker Selection & Master Volume
• Mic Selection
• Mic Placement
• Double Miking
• Phase Alignment
• Emulation
• Layers
• (Parallel) Reinforcement Distortion
• Chapter 10: Vocals
• Scheduling
• Coaching, Communication and Comping
• Engineering
• Polar Patterns and Gang Vocals
• Handheld Vocal Recording
• Vocal Compression
• Monitoring
• Headphone-less Vocal Recording
• Recording Further Instruments
• Mixing
• Chapter 11: Edits, Polarity and Phase Alignment, Samples and Gates
• Edits
• Mix Groups
• Polarity and Phase Alignment
• Drums
• Phase Alignment
• Bass
• Guitars
• Waveform Edits
• Multing
• Drum Samples - Overview
• Drum Sample Selection
• Drum Samples Libraries vs. Samples Created from the Kit used for Tracking
• Kick Sample Selection
• Snare Sample Selection
• Tom Sample Selection
• Sample Implementation
• Kick
• Snare
• Toms
• Isolation vs. Cohesion
• Gating
• Kick and Snare Gating
• Keyed Gating
• Toms: Gating vs. Automation vs. Waveform Edits
• Chapter 12. Balance and Stereo Width
• Mix Group Component Balance
• Mix Balance
• Panning and Stereo Width
• Mix Center
• Sides
• Monitoring and Room Acoustics
• Monitoring Level
• Headphone Monitoring
• Chapter 13: Compression
• Signal Chain Order
• Compression Parameters
• Timbral Coloration and Transient Design
• Drum Compression
• Signal Stability
• Punch
• Transient Design
• Attack Settings
• Release, Threshold, Ratio
• Make-Up Gain
• Hats, Ride, and Cymbal Compression
• Room Mic Compression
• Parallel Compression
• Drum Bus Compression
• Bass Compression
• Reinforcement Distortion
• Series Bass Compression
• Signal Bracketing
• Parallel Bass Compression
• Bass Automation
• Keyed Compression
• Rhythm Guitar Compression
• Palm Muted 'Chug-Thump'
• Lead Guitar Compression
• Vocal Compression
• Parallel Vocal Compression
• Sibilance and De-Essing
• Limiting
• Chapter 14: EQ
• Parametric EQ
• High Pass Filters
• Sweep EQ
• Corrective and Surgical EQ
• Instrument EQ
• Drums
• Kick Drum
• Optimized Kick HPF Cut Settings
• Kick Weight
• Low-Mids - Broad Corrective EQ
• Attack/Click
• Frequency Bracketing
• Snare Top/Snare Samples
• The Baxandall Curve
• Intelligent EQ
• Snare Bottom
• Toms
• Context and Interdependence
• Metalwork
• Room Mics
• Low Pass Filters
• Spectral Masking
• Distributed Creative and Corrective EQ
• Anti-Masking in Mono
• Bass
• The Missing Fundamental
• Low-End
• Low-Mids
• High-Mids
• Additional Layers
• Bass Reinforcement Distortion
• Frequency Bracketing
• Channel EQ / Group EQ
• Rhythm Guitar EQ
• HPF and Low Frequency Emphasis (Cabinet Thump/Sonic Weight)
• Mids
• Big Mono vs. Panoramic Width
• Low highs - Mid Highs
• Mirrored EQ
• Dynamic EQ
• Vocals
• HPF and Lows to Low Mids
• Mids
• Highs
• Chapter 15: Effects Processing and Automation
• Reverb
• Reverb Decay and Pre-Delay Times
• Drums
• Decay vs. Level
• Snare Reverb - Aux Sends
• Guitars and Bass
• Vocals
• Processing the Reverb Return Paths
• EQ
• (Reverb Return) Transient Design, Compression, Tape Emulation and Pitch Shifting
• Reverse Reverb, Special Effects and Automation
• Delay
• Processing the Delay Return Paths
• Pitch Thickening Width Enhancement
• Distortion
• Parallel Snare Distortion
• Megaphone and AM Radio Effect
• Sine Wave or White Noise Reinforcement
• Analogue and Tape Emulation
• Mix Referencing
• Automation
• Chapter 16: Master Buss Processing
• Master Buss Compression
• Master Buss EQ
• Master Buss Limiting
• Summing
• Mastering
• Chapter 17: Mastering
• DIY and the 'Four Es' of Mastering
• Signal Chain
• Mastering EQ
• High Pass Filters and Low End Control
• Low-Mids and Mids
• Low-End Foundation
• Upper Mids and High Frequencies
• Stereo EQ vs. Mid/Side EQ
• Low-end Localization
• Reverb
• Unified Mastering - Bridging the Divide
• Compression
• Broadband Compression vs. Multiband Compression
• Broadband Compression
• Mid/Side Compression
• Side Chain Filtering
• Multiband Compression
• Two Band
• Three-Band
• Four-Band
• Multiband Parameters
• Low Band
• Mid Band
• High Band
• Mid/Side Multiband Compression
• Parallel/Upward Compression
• Harmonic Enhancement
• Stereo Width Enhancement
• Stem Mastering
• Soft Clipping
• Limiting
• Automation
• Fades
• Mastered Output Peak Levels - CD
• Chapter 18: Loudness Normalization
• Loudness Metering and Mastering Practice
• A Final Word
• Index