The Eponymous Album Update #4 | Recording Workflow

I thought I would post an update on the status of my Eponymous album. I have been working really hard on getting this project done before the end of the year – completing at least one song per day. With this schedule I have recorded 10 songs so far and have three or four more to go.  The album will be available worldwide in stores like iTunes, Amazon, Rhapsody, Napster, LaLa, etc. I am trying to find a reputable disk maker and am wavering between Oasis and Diskmakers (any other suggestions?) for the disks which will be available at my website, CD Baby and a few select stores.

For those that have asked for more details on my workflow I will give a quick numbered list of what’s up with that.

1. I use Logic Studio 9 (Logic Pro) as my DAW of choice. I absolutely love it!
2. I create a new session and name it. I also make sure that it stores absolutely everything, from impulse responses to sample files to notes in the project folder.
3. Next comes the tracks…
   1. I set up a drum track with Ultrabeat as a metronome.
   2. I setup three tracks for the acoustic guitar
   3. I take a split stereo signal from both of my guitar pickups, using a stereo-to-dual-mono cable and record them on two separate tracks
   4. I create two VOX tracks… one for melody and one for the BV if any.
4. I set the bit rate and tempo
5. Everything in items 1-4 are set up in a template so all I have to do is open the template, arm the tracks and record.
6. I then will setup my marker text so that the lyrics are on screen and change as per verse, chorus, bridge, etc. I really like this feature.
7. I then begin hardware routing
8. Vocals go through a Mojave Audio MA201-fet Microphone
   1. The mic plugs straight into a MOTU Traveler – I don’t have the funds for the Universal Audio mic pre I want, so, unfortunately, I must plug straight into the Traveler.
9. The acoustic guitar is recorded by a AKG c1000s and fed straight into the Traveler.
   1. I also have a sweet stereo pickup system on my acoustic that I record at the same time. I use an L.R. Baggs iMix internal mixer that mixes an M1 and a iBeam.
   2. This signal is split at the stereo end pin jack, where I plug in a stereo-to-dual-mono cable. The cable is then plugged from the guitar into the LR Baggs Para Acoustic DI, which is fed to the Traveler.
   3. as a side note… this custom pickup system cannot be beat for live playing. It far surpasses Taylor’s Expression System or any other system I have tried.
10. The MOTU Traveler is connected to an Alesis HD24XR for track backup ( I use it as main recording media for all my live playing) and to a MacBook Pro via Firewire.
11. The sessions are recorded to an external hard drive via an eSATA Expresscard.
12. I lay down the tracks
13. comp the best takes if needed
14. create a rough  balance/mix
15. Send an MP3 to iTunes with all the ID3 tags set and title it [Title]-[mix#]-[date] so that I can check it out on different listening devices.
    1. For those that don’t know, there is a huge difference between mixes and listening environments.  What sounds good in your headphones will not sound the same in the computer speakers, which will sound way different than the home theatre or car stereo.  This is important.  Not every one listens to music solely on an iPod through earbuds.
16. Use the “Notes” window in the project, for the project (not the track notes), to enter the date recorded and what needs to be done next, which is mixing.

This has been my basic workflow/setup for the last 10 songs.  The next step, once I feel I have all the tracks that are candidates for the album recorded and roughed mixed. I will begin the mix down process, which is another topic all together.