HOMEGROWN MUSIC. . .AND MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS!

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In-home recording, on the other hand, offers a relaxed ( and affordable) atmosphere. Instead of spending money to rent a studio for several hours, you can borrow — or rent, if you need to — a few pieces of equipment and record at home. (Even if you plan to do your recording in a studio, it's always a good idea to practice your arrangements in front of the microphones at home before you start that expensive tape rolling. Who knows . . . you might be so pleased with the results of your rehearsal that you decide to skip the more expensive studio method altogether! )

Another moneysaving alternative is to make a master tape at home (where you can take your time and get it just right) . . . and then go to a commercial studio for professional mixing and equalizing. Such a procedure will give a flawless finish to a flawless performance, and cost you much less than you would have spent to record the original, from scratch, on expensive studio time.

TAPING TIPS

So how do you give "homemade" recordings a sharp and clear professional quality? Well, simply by using top-notch equipment and the proper mixing techniques. Obviously, you'll want to get hold of the very best tape recorder and microphones you can lay your hands on. . . but you'll also need a good mike mixer and playback system.

The mixer — which is used for balancing the sound levels of different instruments and voices — could even be one of those normally used for stage mixing . . . as long as it has a "mic" level output. Furthermore, your system for playback should be able, ideally, to approximate both ends of the audio spectrum: from the ultra-faithful sound reproduction of an expensive stereo system to the blare of a noisy car radio. Also, it's important not to listen to your playback only on headphones . . . the music may sound quite different when it comes from speakers, and that difference could affect the way the final product should be mixed.

I've found that — although there is a good bit of difference between expensive recording microphones and moderately priced stage mikes — you can get very good results in a home recording session with the latter kind of equipment. In fact, my friend Phil Williams (who is co-owner of his own record company, Voyager Recordings) says he can actually get better sound quality from condenser mikes than from dynamic mikes in the same price range.

Your best bet, when choosing recording equipment, is to obtain a reel-to-reel setup, because it's easy to duplicate reel tapes and the recordings made on them are generally of a higher quality than those made on cassettes . . . since the reel machines record more rapidly than do cassette recorders. (A multitrack unit will offer more versatility, particularly if you plan to have your tape mixed professionally at a later date.)

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