Things "NOT" to say to an experienced engineer

[snuffinthepunk]

Being that many of you around here are pretty experienced, what are things you don't want to hear out of a newbie who is working with you?

I thought of this post because I randomly remembered what one of my instructors said once. I was having a simple problem hearing "sounds being triggered by MIDI" because I forgot one simple detail, so I asked him to come over and said that I wasn't hearing the MIDI. He responded with "Well you're not hearing the MIDI because MIDI is not audio." I wanted to shake my head and say DUH, DIMWIT, I'M NOT STUPID! but of course, I didn't. The class was called "Advanced Workstations." I figured he'd know that I understood what MIDI is, but I guess he assumed that I didn't and I was really annoyed by it...it was if he was assuming I'm stupid. But would my saying that bother anyone here? Is there a way to better rephrase the question? Saying "I'm not hearing the audio that is being triggered by MIDI messages" seems a bit superfluous.

[TapeOpLarry]

I agree with your instructor. Phrasing things correctly in the studio, even when it takes a few more words, will save everyone a lot of time and confusion.

Things I hate to hear from people in the studio (besides "warm" and "punchy"):

"Are you going to compress ____ later?"
"Do you always record ____ that way?"
"I think you should ______."
"Why didn't you use the ______?"
"My instructor said to _____ the _____."


But the worst is when they utter disparging comments about the client or the client's work without any prompting from me. They might as well leave and never come back right then... Bringing that negativity to a session is something people can pick up even if you never say a word of it in front of them. Incredibly stupid and pontless if you plan to do this for a career.

[space_ryerson]

I imagine 'so, do you know how to use that thing?" would be a pretty bad one to ask.

[mjau]

"Can't we fix it with autotune?"

[cgarges]

The thing that annoys me the most is the type of person who chooses to hire me as an engineer based on the recommendation of several people or work that they've heard, then questions my methods because they read in some magazine that you should do things a certain way. Everyone has their own methods and some people's methods are similar to others. Some people have entirely different methods and often those methods are what makes that person's work stand out. If you're working with someone who comes highly recommended or whose work you enjoy, give them a chance to do their job and develop some trust with that person.

Trust is such an important part of making a record. I don't demand to work with guitar players who only play Rickenbackers, why should anyone care what piece of gear I'm using if they like the way it sounds. And frankly, what it looks like on the screen it doesn't matter in the end.

Chris Garges
Charlotte, NC

[tubejay]

Don't try to show anyone how much you know about engineering while interning/assisting. That means, don't make know it all statements about anything the engineer/producer is doing. Honestly the best thing to do is be a fly on the wall, ready to do whatever they want you to do, including getting coffee and lunch. And just do it, and soak in everything the engineer is doing. If you can anticipate what the engineer needs next, and are 100% confident of what they need next, try to get it prepared, be it a mic or whatever.

My experience is that engineers and producers are VERY edgy about working with new assistants and interns, because interns and assistants tend to say and do stupid things. So just be a fly on the wall, keep your talking to minimum, and don't ever give the engineer advice unless he asks you for it. Eventually, they WILL start asking for your advice, if only to involve you. That usually takes some time though. Even when you get to know an engineer, don't ever second guess them unless you know for fact they want your input. Otherwise, you're just going to piss them off, even if you mean well.

The midi thing was good too! Don't say that!

[Maurice]

I don't demand to work with guitar players who only play Rickenbackers, why should anyone care what piece of gear I'm using if they like the way it sounds. And frankly, what it looks like on the screen it doesn't matter in the end.

Good points. About the only exception I can think of is if the artist is going to be working on some tracks at home, or wants to do some kind of processing in an environment they're familiar with. As an example, while I've used PT, most of my computer work is now in Ableton Live. Not a lot of studios use Live, so if I wanted to work on a bunch of things at home and then take them to a studio for mixing, we'd have to find a way of working around a software/hardware/environment difference. This could involve taking notes on everything and just passing .wavs/.aiffs back and forth, or hooking my system up to a multi-channel D/A and dumping to tape, or something else. Before working all this out, I'd need to have a discussion with the engineer about what the studio has, what he or she is comfortable using, and whether or not they want to do this kind of thing.

As far as people coming in with brand/gear/"once read an article and it made me an expert" snobbery, though, yeah, it sucks.

[cgarges]

As far as people coming in with brand/gear/"once read an article and it made me an expert" snobbery, though, yeah, it sucks.

Yeah. I know first hand. Just for the record, I just worked on a project that was started in PT, work copies were made in Live, and those files were transferred to RADAR for some overdubs. Broadcast wavs were kicked out of RADAR for additional work in PT. No issues at all. Well, one--the keyboard player who's sending tracks kept managing to convert the work stuff to 44.1 and send 16/44.1 files for us to work with. So far, all of his 16/44.1 files have been prone to drift. He started sending 24/48 wavs and all has been cool.

Chris Garges
Charlotte, NC

[Maurice]

Just for the record, I just worked on a project that was started in PT, work copies were made in Live, and those files were transferred to RADAR for some overdubs. Broadcast wavs were kicked out of RADAR for additional work in PT. No issues at all.

Wow--no issues apart from the keyboard player? Impressive! I would have thought that all those conversions would be more of a nightmare. How'd you manage the PT to Live conversion--just print the PT tracks individually, but with all effects/send channels, or the straight, uneffected tracks, or did you just print the two-track? I'm curious as to how you made this work.

In any case, for making it work, salut!

[cgarges]

Wow--no issues apart from the keyboard player? Impressive! I would have thought that all those conversions would be more of a nightmare. How'd you manage the PT to Live conversion--just print the PT tracks individually, but with all effects/send channels, or the straight, uneffected tracks, or did you just print the two-track? I'm curious as to how you made this work.

In any case, for making it work, salut!

All those platforms support broadcast wav files. It's pretty simple, really. Export broadcast wavs and don't change anything from the original files. If stuff is saved correctly, it should all open correctly (assuming everyone knows what they're doing.) One thing the keyboard player did, for example, was to cut out several measures of click at the front, which was cool for however he worked, but made lining up more of a pain because now the "zero" start time for the tracks wasn't the same. We're working on this as if it's a reel of tape. Any effects that are key are printed, not just applied as plug-ins. That way, all the stuff will work anywhere we take it.

Chris Garges
Charlotte, NC

[digital eagle audio]

i'm actually in that awkward transition phase between intern and engineer at the moment. when i started at my studio a year ago, i had zero recording experience. i think the reason i've been able to pick up so fast is that i was raised to keep my mouth shut in front of "adults" (i'm 23, but you know what i mean). if i absolutely have something i need to tell the engineer, i'll write it down in my notebook and wait till there's a pause. i always ask questions, but i always make certain that the engineers aren't busy. past that, i just make it clear that i'm there to do whatever they need me to do. i've seen a lot of interns come in who have graduated from full sail or . . . well actually it's mostly been the full sail kids, but they come in and can't wait to show off what they know (i even heard one guy tell a pianist to alter a chord), but i've outlasted them by simply shutting the fuck up and busting ass. now if only sitting quietly and being polite was a god way to find clients . . .

[joel hamilton]

The thing that annoys me the most is the type of person who chooses to hire me as an engineer based on the recommendation of several people or work that they've heard, then questions my methods because they read in some magazine that you should do things a certain way. Everyone has their own methods and some people's methods are similar to others. Some people have entirely different methods and often those methods are what makes that person's work stand out. If you're working with someone who comes highly recommended or whose work you enjoy, give them a chance to do their job and develop some trust with that person.

Trust is such an important part of making a record. I don't demand to work with guitar players who only play Rickenbackers, why should anyone care what piece of gear I'm using if they like the way it sounds. And frankly, what it looks like on the screen it doesn't matter in the end.

Chris Garges
Charlotte, NC

It amazes me to this day that someone would want to pay me my rate to debate my methods, even when what is coming out of the speakers is making everyone happy!

Totally weird waste of money, and so mind boggling!?!?

It would be like me hiring an acoustical engineer to tune the room, and when he/she suggests something about the control room I would be like "no. That is totally weird. Are you sure? do you think you would always do it that way? how come you are doing that here and not at that other studio i saw your stufff in ??"

I could go on for an hour about this. I have come to be really weary of the "engineer" in the band....

I have had amazing times in that situation, and then i have had babysitting sessions where i had to psychically repel the vibe coming from the person in the band with an Mbox...

Why would you pay someone for expertise, then let your own lack of experience dictate the pace of the session? HUGE mistake. Watch, learn, repeat.
I do it every day! i learn something every day. Every sesison is different.....

Ok, I am stopping...

[MichaelAlan]

Your wife's hot.

[drumsound]

Your wife's hot.

HAHAHAHA!

I hate to be second-guessed as well. I don't mind being told "we don't like that" or people making suggestions. But "why would you use a condenser mic, those are better?" or "if we had XXXX this would work better" or things like that. I hate to be second-guessed, but I don't mind being sent in a certain direction, even if I might want to go the other way.

[davedarling]

......"I'll see you in court." I hate that one.