Prickly Epiphany, Part 2
So two days after my initial Prickly Epiphany, I was back on the acupuncturist’s table and had another thought. Although it seems like the world is insane b/c of all the lunatic nutheads doing all sorts of crazy stuff, I wonder if this is just the natural order of things (in degrees, of course).
Here’s a [...]
How Important is Signal Chain?
In a word: very.
Signal chain…you know, the path from creating a sound to capturing it. Or, on the flip side (in mastering), from the recorded source to the speakers (or re-processing back to the computer).
I could go on-and-on about it, but here’s a good anecdote: John Lennon is reported to never use a wind screen. [...]
Prickly Epiphany
I had an epiphany during my acupuncture session today. The world is crazy. Just look at the news: people stealing, lying, cheating, bombing, and killing.
But this made me realize something positive. All this chaos and mayhem is why I own ZenMastering. Not because I’m crazy (although I may be), but because doing something I [...]
ZenMastering’s Advice is Free
I need to call a plumber today to come look at a potentially serious problem at my house. Turns out it was nothing. But the service call cost me $120!
It made me realize that I give free advice to people every day. Don’t worry, I’m not about to start charging for advice. If I have [...]
Too Much Sugary Cereal
What I’ve been noticing lately are mixes that are just too compressed and distorted. Downright crunchy. Some people want crunch, or distortion. I guess it’s like cereal. Some people like sugary cereal and some people like Wheat Chex. I’m fine with either one. But it’s impossible to take the sugar out of Count Chocula, where [...]
The Perils of an International Job
Sounds like the working title of a James Bond screen play, huh? Unfortunately, it’s nothing that exciting.
I’ve owned ZenMastering since 2000, and in the past 8 years (going on 9) I’ve never had a single deadbeat client, as far as payment. That changed yesterday.
I recently did some mastering for a musician in West Africa. I [...]
Lessons of a Good Album
In the era of singles downloaded through iTunes, many people speculate that the traditional album format is dead. But from a recent 60 Minutes segment on Coldplay, it’s apparent some of the world’s best bands still think in long-form conceptual formats. And people like it enough to buy 7 million copies.
I have been checking out [...]
Good Sounding Rooms Don’t Come in a Box
Today, most tracking rooms are small, with no ambiance to speak of. It’s been that way since the ’80s…which is why artificial reverb got so popular. But there’s no replacing the real thing.
I got a chance to do some work in an old-time, TV studio-style room today, and it reminded me what a difference a [...]
Duplication vs. Replication
I got an e-mail today from someone asking the difference between disc duplication and replication. While it may sound confusing, the difference is pretty simple.
Duplication is the act of copying a disc’s contents on to a hard drive (as a disc image, usually) and then burning CD-Rs from that image. This is normally done for [...]
Bad News for Muzak
I heard today that Muzak has declared bankruptcy. Personally I couldn’t be happier. Maybe elevators can just have iTunes piped in, instead of schlocky instrumental covers of good music.
keep looking »About This Blog
From Ohm to Om reflects the opinions of mastering engineer Paul Abbott, owner of San Diego's ZenMastering.
We welcome comments from readers...pro or con!
