Scodiddly wrote:current technology has reached a "good 'nuff" point for most of us. But the companies have to keep selling, so in comes the hard sell for stuff we don't really need.
That was exactly the "epiphany" I had when I wrote the original post. I'm not bashing the high-end stuff, someone out there is obviously making great use of it. But for me, personally, I have spent SO much time reading and researching and planning what I'm going to buy to make my next album just SUPER, and then suddenly, it was like a light went on, just realizing that 90% of the money I was about to spend would only give me "inches" of improvement. I'm recording doom metal for christ's sake, "fidelity" isn't exactly a requirement
My post-epiphany plan no longer involves thousands of dollars in gear and trying to compete sound-for-sound with engineers who devote their lives to sonics. God bless them, for they've certainly brought us a long way, but I can't let myself get distracted by the idea that if "I just have A, B and C, I'll get a good sound and that'll make my stuff 'good'." I'm not an engineer, I'm a musician. I don't hear what they hear and I probably never will. Neither will 99.99% of my audience. So for my case, "good enough" is good enough.
My new plan is:
??Get moved into my new place and mix for a couple months to learn the room and see if I can run any of those room tests (my new dB reader is ready to go!)
??Then, invest in some room treatment (not auralex, probably RealTraps or a competitor), as needed.
??Next, I'm going to get Firepod (or equivalent) and a copy of either DP or Logic (FUCK PRO TOOLS YOU FUCKING SUCK PIECE OF FUCKING SHIT THAT'S COST ME MORE TIME AND GREY HAIR THAN ANY OTHER FUCKING APPLICATION I'VE EVER FUCKING USED YOU FUCKING DIE DIE DIE YOU WHORE!!!!!).
??Finally, I'll probably break down and get a UAD-1, just so I have some decent plugs at my disposal. Maybe not, though. We'll see.
??After than, maybe I'll get an SM-57. I've heard good things about them
That should save me about $7,000 in gear I was planning to buy. And the time I would have inevitably spent researching purchases and learning how to install, use and troubleshoot the new toys will now go to writing more songs and recording them with gear I more or less know. And if those songs are good enough, maybe we'll get someone else to record the next batch and let them worry about the $35 foam pads and comb-filtering and all of that stuff that only "experienced" listeners will ever have a hope in hell of hearing anyway.
New priorities. Kinda liberating.