Be the Bass With These Left Hand Techniques — KeyboardMag

Be the Bass With These Left Hand Techniques — KeyboardMag:

Picture this: You got the gig and you’re excited about the music. You get to your first rehearsal and the bandleader wants you to play “bass” on a couple of things. You panic because you’ve never had to be the bass player and cover your keyboard parts at the same time. I’ve been fortunate to play with some of the baddest bass players on the planet, and all of them have asked me to play bass at one time or another. To help be your own bassist, here are a few examples that will strengthen your hand independence as well as add some spice to your left hand. Always remember that as a keyboardist, you already use your left hand more than you know.

Pumping Drums—With No Sidechain! — PreSonus Blog

Friday Tips: Pumping Drums—With No Sidechain! — PreSonus Blog:

The “pumping” effect is a cool EDM staple that also works with other intense forms of music. One of the best-known examples is Eric Prydz’s seminal EDM track from 2004, “Call on Me.” Usually, this technique requires sidechaining, but with the PreSonus Compressor sidechain filter, we’re covered. The effect works best if there are some sustaining sounds with which it can work—like cymbals for drum parts, or pads if you want to pump a non-drum track.

I need to see if I can do the same thing in Logic Pro X. Just because.

Frequency-Selective Guitar Compression — PreSonus Blog

Friday Tips: Frequency-Selective Guitar Compression — PreSonus BlogPreSonus Blog:

Some instruments, when compressed, lack “sparkle” if the stronger, lower frequencies compress high frequencies as well as lower ones. This is a common problem with guitar, but there’s a solution: the Compressor’s internal sidechain can apply compression to only the guitar’s lower frequencies, while leaving the higher frequencies uncompressed so they “ring out” above the compressed sound. (Multiband compression works for this too, but sidechaining can be a faster and easier way to accomplish the same results.)

This handy hint should work similarly in Logic Pro X. I will have to try.

The Complete Guide to Recording Electric Guitar — Pro Audio Files

The Complete Guide to Recording Electric Guitar — Pro Audio Files

One of the biggest fundamentals of getting great guitar tone is having a taste for great guitar tone. It would be hard to cook something in the French culinary style if you’ve never had French food. Yet, I see a lot of guitarists and engineers approach recording guitar this way.

At the heart of any great tone is great ears. Tools like microphones and amps can help sculpt your tone, but if you haven’t acquired a taste for fine tone, how will you know when you’ve arrived?

It’s not simply a matter of placing a mic in position and pressing record. Great guitar tone is often the culmination of many elements.

This sums up lots of thoughts about electric guitar (and other things run through the amps and pedals).

My struggle is with DI signal that’s way too distorted when distorted, and way too loud when the volume pedal got pressed (I think it was a wah-wah). Finally figured out something that started to work, but still have a very hard time.