| |
| |
|
|
Music Information |
|
|
|
If Setting The Gain Correctly is So Important, Why Dont Mic Preamplifiers Have Meters?
When you first learn how to use a mixing console, you will be shown how to set the gain. Your instructor - either in audio school or in the workplace - will emphasize the importance of this and kick your ass every time you get it wrong, until you can't do anything other than get it right. Setting the gain correctly optimizes the signal level for further processing in the mixing console. EQ, inserts, auxiliary sends, routing, fading, solo and mixing all depend on having the right signal level for optimum performance, and the gain control is precisely where you set that. But outboard microphone preamplifiers commonly only have rudimentary metering facilities - perhaps only a single 'clip' LED - or no metering at all! So how can you possibly set the gain correctly? The answer is that firstly the preamplifier needs to be correctly designed with plenty of output level available. For example, the Manley Labs Mono and Dual Mono microphone preamplifiers can supply up to 30 dBV of output before clipping. That is one hell of a voltage in audio terms - around 30 volts, compared to normal operating level of around one volt. It's probably fair to say that there is no way you are ever going to clip this brute of a preamp, whatever you are driving. So if there is no possibility of clipping, there is no need for metering. Where you do need metering is in the equipment you are driving with the preamp, probably your recording system. So the procedure for setting the gain with the Manley preamp is to choose the lowest setting of gain, and also set the 'input attenuate' control to its lowest setting (the attenuator controls the level of signal going into the preamp circuit). Then reduce the amount of attenuation while watching the meter on your recorder. When you are getting a good, healthy signal level with a reasonable margin before clipping on your recording, you have the right settings. If if the level from the mic is too low to reach a good indication on your recorder's meter, increase the gain as far as necessary but no further. Setting the attenuator and gain controls in this way will optimize the noise and distortion performance of the preamp. Now since this is a tube preamp with variable 'character' according to the gain setting chosen, then once you have mastered setting the gain in the technically correct way, you are free to break the rules... When you see smoke coming from your recorder, that's when to stop! David Mellor, Record-Producer.com
MORE RESOURCES: The ‘Race Against Time’ to Save Music Legends’ Decaying Tapes The New York Times Sabrina Carpenter to White House: Don’t use my music to tout ‘inhumane’ agenda - The Washington Post Sabrina Carpenter to White House: Don’t use my music to tout ‘inhumane’ agenda The Washington Post Tell us your favourite albums of 2025 The Guardian Apple Music’s Replay 2025 is here TechCrunch “Apt,” “Luther” and “Die With A Smile” Lead Apple Music’s Top Global Songs of 2025 The Hollywood Reporter Supreme Court Hears Copyright Battle Over Online Music Piracy The New York Times Efforts to block internet music piracy hit Supreme Court skepticism The Washington Post My Deezer Year 2025: The music that defined the year and a retrospective of your own musical love story Deezer Newsroom Grammys will celebrate Latin music with prime-time CBS musical special Los Angeles Times Words & Music with Marfa wmot.org MSU experts: How divisive concepts laws affect music classrooms Michigan State University Historic Heights Theater sold to owners of Chicago's Music Box Theatre Bring Me The News Sony Music Publishing Elevates Jeff Smarr MusicRow.com A Ass Pocket of Blues NUVO.net CSB and SJU music community unites for Christmas shows College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University Udio 2.0 Could Face Consumers Reluctant to Embrace AI Music luminatedata.com URI music professor releases new album inspired by representation – Rhody Today The University of Rhode Island A joyful noise: Rounding up some holiday music offerings in and around Evanston Evanston RoundTable 11 Musical Love Letters From Artists to Their Heroes The New York Times Roundtable: What’s your favorite holiday music? dailycampus.com Clements to be inducted into Oklahoma Music Educators Association Hall of Fame Southeastern Oklahoma State University Sabrina Carpenter slams White House for using her song in 'evil and disgusting' social media video NBC News Interview: Composer Dalit Hadass Warshaw, Winner of the 2026 Azrieli Commission for Jewish Music Blogcritics Chicago’s Music Box Theatre Expands, Adding Screen and Acquiring Minnesota’s Heights Theater IndieWire Tosco Music Holiday Party Charlotte Parent Angel Du$t Premiere New Single & Music Video "DU$T" From Upcoming New Album "COLD 2 THE TOUCH" Metal Underground.com NWACC music drive fuels growth, sparks funding push, December concerts KUAF Public Radio Pittsburgh’s People of Year 2025 — Music: Danielle Mashuda and Maddy Lafferty Pittsburgh City Paper Music on the holiday horizon at MCC Meridian Star Tampa Bay’s best live music and concerts happening December 4-11 Creative Loafing Tampa Paleface Swiss Premiere New Single & Music Video "Everything Is Fine" From Upcoming New EP "The Wilted" Metal Underground.com Christian 'Mississippi soul' singer is AI. His music hit No. 1 on iTunes The Clarion-Ledger Fullerton College Breaks Ground on State-of-Art Music & Drama Complex Fullerton Observer Nominate Your 2026 Barefoot Country Music Fest Theme Ideas Now Cat Country 107.3 After 43 Years ‘Thriller’ Still Outpaces Modern Music The San Diego Voice & Viewpoint Apple Music Reveals the Top 5 Songs of 2025 — and the Internet Isn’t Letting One Detail Slide parade.com The Heavy Heavy with Laney Jones and the Spirits at The Southern Café & Music Hall 12/6 C-VILLE Weekly Drake Named Apple Music’s Most-Streamed Artist Worldwide in 2025 Ratings Game Music White House trolls Sabrina Carpenter with her own lyrics after she slams Trump admin for using her music in ICE video New York Post Blackpink’s Rose dominates Apple Music's year-end chart The Korea Herald |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Guitar Buying - The Pros and Cons of Vintage vs. Reissue To most people, owning the "genuine article" is the only thing that will suffice. As a guitar player, and one who appreciates classic "vintage" instruments, I can fully understand this point of view. Reasons to Ditch Your Guitar Pick Lately, I haven't been using my guitar pick all that much. I got this tab book of some good ol' Gatemouth Brown finger picking blues. Performance and Gigs "For optimum amp tone onstage, plug your amp into your own AC outlet.. Music Licensing Music licensing can be a very confusing subject. My intent with this article is to give you enough details on what music licensing is and what are your rights to use music in advertising and / or video productions. Rickenbacker 4003 Electric Bass Guitar The Rickenbacker 4003 electric bass guitar is one of the few electric basses to have earned the accolade "classic" as a title for itself. The Rickenbacker 4000 Series guitar is attributed for creating new dimensions of bass playing capabilities. How To Find The Right Guitar Teacher Finding a good teacher is not always easy, at any level. At the beginner level it is important to get on the right foot and as an intermediate player you need to know that your teacher really knows his or her stuff if you want to move forward. The Didjeridu In Northern Australia the Didjeridu is seen as a phallic symbol and therefore a male instrument. Women are prohibited from playing. Make Money with Your Music - the Top 5 Ways Songwriters dream of making their living by writing, and sometimes performing, their songs. But until that day comes they've got to make a living somehow! Sound familiar?With a little imagination, you can probably find a way to convert your love for music and songwriting into a means of making money. How to Play What you Feel Many students think that being able to play what you feel is difficult. They believe you must have years and years of training in improvisation and theory. Spectral Muses Revisited: The Channeled Melodies of Rosemary Brown Rosemary Brown (1916-2001) was a middle-aged South London widow, making ends meet as a grade school kitchen assistant, who rocketed to international fame in 1968 through a BBC broadcast recounting her purported collaborations with long-dead composers. These included Liszt, J. Making Music As A Lefty Author Interview with Ryan Thomson, seacoast New Hampshire resident, and author of a new book advocating left handed violin playing by lefties. - Playing Violin and Fiddle Left Handed. They Laughed When I Sat Down at the Piano... but When I Started to Play... Remember the old ad that used to run endlessly in magazines and newspapers:"They laughed when I sat down at the piano.. Visualization Techniques for the Pianist Controlling the images of the mind through image projection has proven valuable not only for psychotherapy, but also as a learning aid. Visualization can have as much impact on the subconscious, memory, and entire body as a "real" experience. Guitar Tuning Tips Most new guitar players and even some experienced ones have trouble staying and playing in tune. I'll try listing here some of the common mistakes and there solutions. Piano Playing and Performance Anxiety I'll never forget the first time I played the piano for an audience.It was my first concert and it was fairly full up. How to Remove DRM from WMA - Is It Legal and Worth the Effort? Technically, it's illegal to remove DRM from WMA protected music. Digital Rights Management (DRM) is part of the music industry's effort to curb piracy. Piano Playing is Easier than You Think When You Understand Musical Form Form is the key that unlocks the musical map of a song or a musical compostition. Like a house has rooms, so a song has rooms or sections. Vintage Guitar Collectors Can Still Find Deals If you're a recent vintage guitar collector, the stories you've heard are true. You once could step into pawn shops or flea markets and find vintage Gibson Les Pauls and Fender Stratocasters for $50 to $100. Independent Music Promotion on the Web: 3 Steps to Success Let's face it, the wildfire spread of web-based portals designed to introduce independent music to the world has created a bewildering array of opportunities and costs. So where do they all balance out? When does the cost of signing up to yet another music promotion service yield results? What results are we looking for anyway?The key is to make your web promotion targeted, systematic and rich. Improvising On The Piano: Jazz Musicians Do It -- Why Not Other Styles? Why jazz piano improvisation?Why not gospel piano improvisation?Is it not possible to improvise classical music, or sacred music, or any other kind of music?Bach improvised many of his fugues and inventions while playing organ in church. Many others in all musical styles have improvised within the context of their own persuasion.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |