fire to my ears

Home Studio: Vocal Booth

2009-06-18T08:47:00.000-07:00

Everyone knows that the sound of your vocal recording is the MOST important piece of your song. If you have a great track with crappy vocals, people will not digg. Turn that around...you have a whatever track but amazing vocals and people will still listen. A lot of home recording projects have trouble getting that tight sound you get in big studios simply because the average room is probably one of the worst places to record acoustically.

One of the WORST materials for acoustic treatment is tile. And guess what, my entire floor is TILE! So when people sing in my home studio, the vocals are bouncing everywhere. To add to the problem, there's some computer hum, and it gets hot with the windows closed.

What to do, what to do!??? I needed a vocal booth, plain and simple. So, I ended up doing a lot of research on different ideas. I ran through all sorts of ideas...using a room divider, building one out of plywood, or even spending $300 dollars on the se Reflexion Filter.

Now from what I've heard, the se Reflexion Filter is great. People swear by it. However, after doing my research on it, here are the cons:

1. The price is a whopping $300.
2. It's heavy. Really heavy. In fact, you have to use a weighted mic stand and some people even have to put weights on the bottom of their weighted mic stand to keep this thing stable.

I needed something better. And better I found. Read on.

One of the sites I came across was the inspiration for my design. Harlan Hogan's site basically talks about how he discovered that in order to get a clean recording, the singer doesn't need to be in a treated acoustic space, only the microphone need be! That right there folks, is BRILLIANT. Here's his design:

The basic materials you need are:

1. Whitmore Cube (you can buy this at Target)
2. Acoustic Foam (the triangular kind, it is superior to the other types of acoustic foam)
3. Serated Knife to cut the foam.

Ok, now if you are a broadcaster, this is absolutely perfect. However, if you are in the business of recording singers, rappers, etc...this will not suffice. I needed this to work for a microphone boom stand. Here's what I came up with:

LET ME JUST SAY THIS THING IS LEGIT!!! I basically had to go to Lowe's and brainstorm like it was nobody's business. I did however make a few modifications to the original design. So, without further wait....here's how to make this bad boy.

MATERIALS

- Whitmore Cube
- Acoustic Foam
- Microphone boomstand
- 4 x 32' rods with screw grooves (you can buy these at lowe's)
- 1 bag of 8-32 hex nuts
- 1 bag of #8 washers
- Adjustable hose clamp
- Good scissors
- Sharp Knife with pointy tip
- Serated Knife for cutting acoustic foam
- Screwdriver
- Two Pins (can be any kind as long as they are at least 2.5 inches long)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Get the Whitmore cube and the acoustic foam as described in Harlan's website.

2. Use a sharp scissor to cut a line down the middle of the bottom side of the cube and a little rectangle in the center to allow for the cube to slide over the microphone stand like so:

3. Use the tip of a sharp knife to poke a small hole in each of the four corners of the cube. Take each of the 4 rods and use one washer and one nut and screw it down the rod about 1 - 1.5 inches from the top. Poke the prepared rods into each of the holes and screw the another washer and nut from the inside of cube to secure the rod.

4. Slide the box over the microphone stand and hold the bottom of each of the 4 rods onto the bottom half of the microphone stand. Use the hose clamp and screwdriver to secure them together.

5. Now, for the acoustic treatment. One modification I made is that instead of cutting 3 squares for the two sides and the back, cut one long piece to curve around from one side to the other side. This is to somewhat emulate the shape of the se Reflexion filter. I noticed that when there was too much room in the cube, the sound becomes a little too boomy. Then, fill in the top and bottom with triangular shaped pieces to fill in the gaps. The top part is tricky and I simply used push pins to hold them to the top. There are much better ways to do this part, but this is what I had laying around the home! This is how it should look:

6. Get your beautiful microphone all warm and cozy in this bad boy. Here's my AT4033Cl sipping on a margarita in the foam kingdom.

And there you have it, folks. Cheapest and most effective vocal booth for the home without spending thousands of precious moola on a real vocal booth.

Now you are all wondering, "what does thing thing sound like!???". I know. So, I did a little vocal snippet of a song I was jamming to while making this thing, "Mrs. Officer". Holla back. Keep in mind what I told you about how my room sounds, computer noise, my window wide open, etc. To make things even worst, two cars even drove by my window while I was recording this! But it STILL sounds good :) Enjoy.

Song of the Day: EDX - Casa Grande (Original Mix)

Rihanna Demo - Lovesick Highway

2009-06-08T09:52:00.000-07:00

Here's a demo track I wrote for Rihanna's upcoming album, "Dark Angels". Check it out.

Written By: John Puangco
Collaborators: Joshua Luv
Vocals: Michelle Stevens
Produced By: Bridgetown

LYRICS:
VERSE 1
I was, hurting
You were, causing
The pain, in my heart

Slowly, I tried
digesting, my pride
it wasn't easy to go down

PRE HOOK
Sometimes I wonder why
I never realized
I could just walk away

CHORUS
I found the exit
on the love sick highway
and I'm over you

Dont wanna be driving
on a road going nowhere

I found the exit
on the love sick highway
Going somewhere new

I found the exit
I'm getting away from you

VERSE 2
My kiss, my love
I want my refund
cause I aint satisfied, no

It's time we, retire
my time's, expired
Im gonna find me a real man

PRE HOOK
Sometimes I wonder why
I never realized
I should be running away

REPEAT CHORUS

BRIDGE

Watch out cause I'm changing lanes
No one can slow me down again
This is where I leave you for good

REPEAT CHORUS

Recommended Fire: Little Dragon

2009-05-26T16:51:00.000-07:00

Ok, I know I haven't posted in a while. Things have been hectic! Grindinggg. So anyway, a friend of mine introduced me to this group called Little Dragon. After my first listen of their hit song, "Test", I fell in love with their unique flavor. If I was to describe their sound, it would be a combination of electronic, jazz, and soul, with a hint of dub. Very interesting indeed.

Their group is based out of Gothenburg, Sweeden and comprises of lead singer Yukimi Nagano (a mesmerizing Sweedish-Japanese hottie), Erik Bodin, Fredrik Wallin, and Hakan Wirenstrand. They have a show tommorow night @ The Casbah in San Diego. (For more info, check out their Last.FM site).

Here are a couple of their videos for you to check out. Enjoy.

Song of the Day: Butterfly Boucher - Gun for a Tounge

Fire For Your Studio: Glitch VST, Chopped and Skrewed

2009-04-17T14:02:00.000-07:00

Ever wonder how to get that glitchy, chopped and skrewed sound? Here's a fun and FREE way to do it. Glitch VST, is a free VST that I highly recommend for your studio. It's a cool plugin that let's you add real-time effects to the audio as it plays.

I've messed around with Glitch VST and its pretty fun. It can be a little tricky at first however. Basically, you add Glitch onto an audio track as an insert effect. When the track audio plays, Glitch will loop through an effects pattern that you can modify as you wish and change the audio real time. You can then use the envelope on the track to turn it ON/OFF during certain parts of the track.

Some of the obvious purposes...creating cool drum and vocal effects. The imagination is the limit. You can get Glitch VST at:

Official Website:
http://illformed.org/plugins/glitch/

Here's a couple sample videos of Glitch VST in action:

Song of the Day: Midnight Juggernauts - Into The Galaxy (Album Version)

Feeding The Fire: Mad Labs Recording Studio

2009-04-04T11:04:00.000-07:00

Here's some pics from hanging out at the Mad Labs Studio in Hollywood, CA last tuesday night. Kickin it with Mack, some other producers, songwriters, and upcoming female duo "Sweet Rush." PLUS...a REAL rhodes.

Song of the Day: Ciara and Justin Timberlake - Love, Sex, Magic

Sneak Peak of My New Track + Tips on Recording Electric Guitar

2009-03-20T09:26:00.000-07:00

As I promised, I was going to record a track with my new Godin LGX. Here's a little sneak peak of one that I'm currently writing on right now. At first I had a difficult time recording this sucker. Like I mentioned before, recording guitar is a pain in the thing your momma gave you.

Thanks to some suggestions from my cousin, John B., here's how I recorded the guitar:

Amplifier:

VOX Valvetronix AD50VT - Clean amp setting. I lowered the bass A LOT and used slightly more mid than treble.

Microphones:

I used my condenser microphone AT4033CL and a Sennheiser dynamic microphone. I placed the dynamic in the center of the cone about 4-5 inches away. The AT4033CL is right behind the dynamic about 3 inches back, elevated above the dynamic.

The results...belissimo. But don't take my word for it, listen for yo' self.

Note: Also, if you look at my post on 808 Kicks and Bass production, this song uses both! I'm not gonna lie...mixing the two was not a walk in the park. Using the tips I mentioned, I believe it came out pretty nice.

I'm currently planning to write this for a male voice, but I feel that a female voice will work as well. Send me your thoughts people!

Production Tip: Secrets of the Mix Engineers. 808 Kicks, Bass, And More...

2009-03-19T14:32:00.000-07:00

I know a decent bit about mixing, but I like to turn to other producers and engineers for advice. If you have ever been sitting in the studio, frustrated with your mix (like I do), here's a little article I found on mixing tips from the pros.

Lately, I ran into a problem mixing 808 Kicks with a strong bassline. The problem is that the frequencies are all in the low-end spectrum. Without careful attention, this causes clashing between the bass and kick drum. I found that putting a limiter/compressor on the 808 kick and cutting everything but the low frequencies and eq'ing the bass a little higher than normal seemed to work well for me.

This is an interview of Jason Goldstein, the mixing engineer for some of Beyonce's recent hits. Here he talks about how he mixed everything from the vocals, 808 kicks, bass, and more. I found it extremely useful.

Sound on Sound Magazine Article:

Secrets of the Mix Engineers: Jason Goldstein

Pictures from My Spanish Adventure

2009-03-19T13:26:00.001-07:00

So, I posted some of the pictures I took from my vacation in Spain. It was an amazing adventure through southern Spain including Madrid, Granada, Ronda, Cadiz, Seville, and Cordoba! Here's a few of my favorite pictures:

Spain 2009, Group shot at the Alhambra Palace in Granada.

Spain 2009, Group shot near in the plaza with the Cathedral in Seville.

Spain 2009, Jammin...Really Oldschool. Organ in the cathedral of Cadiz.

Spain 2009, Picture of the Mesquita in Cordoba.

I would have reviewed the organ, but they wouldn't let me near it. Sorry. But hey, you can see the rest of my photos here:

http://www.flickr.com/jpuangco

And now...back to the hits.

Song of the Day: Usher - Something Special

Feeding the Fire: NYTimes Article on Music Production Group, "Stargate"

2009-03-18T14:03:00.001-07:00

Here's an article I came across from the NY Times about the music production duo, "Stargate." If you don't know who they are, you've surely heard their music. Some of their biggest hits include "So-Sick" and "Miss Independent" by Ne-Yo, "Irreplaceable" by Beyonce, "With You" by Chris Brown, and "Unfaithful" by Rihanna.

I personally think these guys are brilliant. They're making some of the HOTTEST r&b tracks today, and the surprising part is that they are just two white guys from Norway. Here's their story published in 2007 from NYTimes.com, which I found inspiring as an aspiring producer.

ARTS / MUSIC

Wizards in the Studio, Anonymous on the Street

By BEN SISARIO

Published: May 6, 2007

Tor Erik Hermansen and Mikkel S. Eriksen are wholesome-looking Norwegians who have quickly become two of the most in-demand figures in pop music.

Recommended Fire: Electro House Mix by DJ Chris Wren

2009-03-17T11:42:00.000-07:00

Here's a nice electro house mix by DJ Chris Wren from http://www.thefreshpage.com. Enjoy.

Tracklisting:
Soul Avengerz - ‘Heard It All’ (Ian Carey Mix)
D.O.N.S. feat. Terri B ‘You Used to Hold Me’ (David Tort Remix)
KC Fightt - ‘Speaker’
Skydrive - ‘I know Better’ (Bart B More Mix)
Danny Tenaglia feat. Celeda - ‘Music Is The Answer’ (Gabriel Vezzola Mix)
Celeda vs. Par-T-One - ‘Crazy Underground’
Tim Belcher & Katherine Ellis - ‘Stilleto Slut’
Faithless - ‘Music Matters’ (Mark Knight Mix)
Antoine Clamaran - ‘Dance 2′ (David Vendetta Mix)
Juliet Sikora - ‘Turkish Delight’
Nadia Ali - ‘Crash & Burn’ (Dean Coleman Smash Vocal Remix)
Bit Crushers - ‘What She Said’
Dennis Christopher - ‘Set It Off’ (Dirty Secretz Mix)
Nadia Ali - Love Story (Sultan and Ned Shepard Remix)
Housemates - Can’t Get Enough
Y&D - Russian Roulet
Basement Jaxx vs. Ida Engberg - ‘Jus 1 Disco Volante’
Danny Tenaglia - Elements
Chris Lawyer & Thomy feat. Niki - ‘Fight’ (Agent Greg Mix)

For more information, go to: http://www.thefreshpage.com/blog/housemusicdownloads/electrohousemusic-thefreshcast

Song of the Day: Nujabes - Luv Sic Pt.3 feat. Shing02

Recommended Fire: The One I Love by Ryan Pinkston (American Idol)

2009-03-13T08:56:00.000-07:00

This guy has got to be the best singer I've seen on American Idol. Unfortunately, Ryan Pinkston was cut from the competition during the group phase. What a shame.

Anyway, if you haven't seen him in his natural element, you gotta listen to this sweet tune. It's called "The One I Love." I came across this video about a month ago and wanted to share it with you guys.

Song of the Day: Zuco 103 - Outro Lado (Presence Mix by Charles Webster)

Brand New Axe: Godin LGX

2009-02-25T13:58:00.001-08:00

I just got a new guitar, the Godin LGX, and I'm happier than Michael Jackson inside a pre-school. (Sorry MJ, you're still the man!). It's a beautiful piece of work and sounds like cheddahh.

What are Godin guitars?? Don't worry, many people are unaware of them. Godin guitars are a rare gem in the guitar world that offer exceptional quality, craftsmanship, and originality for musicians at an unbeatable value. My first guitar teacher owned a Godin and ever since my first lesson (YEARS ago) I've been determined to own one of them. Here's a little review and information on the Godin LGX.

why the lgx?

This guitar is the ultimate versatile instrument. The incredible part is that it features a 2-Voice technology. One is the exceptionally clean electric output produced by the custom humbucker pickups. The other is an acoustic output that's produced by the L.R. Baggs saddle pickup. This makes your electric guitar sound frighteningly close to a real acoustic guitar. You can use them separately or together along with the 5-way switch to produce a large palette of sounds.

construction

The body is made of mahagony and capped with a maple carved top. The neck is made of honduras mahogany which is typically a wood of choice for quality acoustic instruments. My favorite part is the blue flame. The finish is hot as Megan Fox. Oww!

pickups

Even if you can't play to save your life, pluck a few notes. You'll be an instant rockstar. Each note is crystal clear with warm and crisp tones. Using the different combinations of the acoustic, electric, and 5-way switch, I found myself in a playground of sound that will be useful for both live and recording applications. I've already begun recording some music with this bad boy and the other guitars I've used in the past aren't even in the same league.

Electric (Neck) - The neck uses a Seymour Duncan SH II Jazz

Electric (Bridge) - The bridge has a Seymour Duncan Custom III.

Acoustic - L.R. Baggs Transducer Saddles

I'll be sure to post something that I've used my new guitar in soon. However, I will be in Spain starting on Friday. So it will have to wait until I return from the land of tapas and siestas. Until then, here are some pictures of my new axe. Enjoy.

Song of the Day: Stephanie Mckay - Jackson Avenue

Recommended Fire: Making Mistakes by Haley

2009-02-18T16:00:00.000-08:00

I hit up the home page of youtube and stumbled on this little gem. Very nice. Artist named Haley, I intend to find out more. Enjoy!

"Each night i compromise what i want, what i dont, whose by my side, and i can never be alone
I dream of you while im next to him, in this stale love life im livin in and its not fair to anyone.
I need to get away if only for today, im playin games.

I call you up, to meet me out, in the park after dark everybodys out, just us and thoughts of this is so bad.

Feels good at first but its quickly worse, now all i think is loves a curse and why am i always so selfish

I need to get away if only for today, im playing games...making mistakes, taking this love for granted i have with you today, but theres tomorrow, and its left untold but you swear ill always have you to hold.

I need to get away if only for today, im playing games

I see your face and im filled with guilt from tearin down this love weve built, but im holding on to strings that were left there.

Ill try and sew them back together but im afraid that we will never seem the same way as before I was playin these games."

Britney Spears - Circus (Jonii P Electric Whale Remix)

2009-01-21T16:53:00.000-08:00

I did a remix of Britney Spears' single, "Circus". It's an electro-house style track with some trance elements. Check it out in the music player. Unfortunately, I can't post the link to DL it, but contact me if you are interested in getting a copy. Enjoy.

Song of the Day: Sotu The Traveller - Flow (Feat. Maya Azucena)

Minimal Is Not So Simple

2009-01-13T16:26:00.000-08:00

Recently, I have found myself secretly delighted with the minimalist sound. In particular, DeadMau5 is a DJ who I wasn't sure of at first but later declared that he effing rocks. His style is minimalism electronica with house and trance elements.

Naturally, I decided to do some of my own stuff in this style. However, I'm not a fan of true minimalism. According to wikipedia, minimalist music is defined as follows:

"In art music of the last 35 years, the term minimalism is sometimes applied to music which displays some or all of the following features: repetition (often of short musical phrases, with minimal variations over long periods of time, ostinati) or stasis (often in the form of drones and long tones); emphasis on consonant harmony; a steady pulse; hypnotic effect; sometimes use of phase shifting where sound waves gradually move out of sync with each other."

Sounds easy right? WRONG. Guess what...the hardest part about making a good song is to find the best fundamental feature to exploit. Soooo many choices, but as highlander would say..."There can only be one."

Anyway...for this track (entitled "Fargo" in the music player), I wanted to incorporate the feel of minimalism but add more of a story to the song as a whole and keep a lot of house elements in the mix. Hope you enjoy.

Production Tip:
If you are attempting your own minimalist style track, try to come up with a repetitious melody that can stand on its own without anything else. That's a good place to start.

Song of the Day: DeadMau5 - Ghosts n Stuff

PS: The song of the day is "Ghosts n Stuff" by DeadMau5. It's NOT one of his minimalist tracks, more of an electro-house track (which is another sick genre I have yet to get good at). Ch-ch-ch-check it.

New R&B Joint: Prove Your Worth

2008-12-09T15:19:00.000-08:00

I finally got around to finishing a track that I started a while back. The idea was to do a track with that indie hip-hop flavor and lay some classic r&b vocals on top of it. Something new with a familiar sound.

I wrote this song for all my people out there who have fallen for someone that they thought was only useful as a tension reliever. Yes, it happens.

On this song, I featured a talented vocalist I'm working with, Julien, and an upcoming rap artist, Sun E Boi. Special shout outs to their skillzzz on this project. Here are the lyrics to the song for your listening/viewing pleasure:

Prove Your Worth
(Credits: Jonii P, Julien, Sun E Boi)

Verse 1
It don't matter what I try
I get this feeling and it keeps me up all night
And I think of how we spent our time

Though I don't live with no regrets
I wonder was it just the sex
Or something more like fire

Now I don't see what I've gained
Only some joy and some pain
And I'm still stuck inside this game

Chorus
And I love it
But I hate love
Cause it feels good
But it hurts much
Are we still workin'
Goin' nowhere
I always put you first
Now it's time to prove your worth

Verse 2
We were never serious
Just locked in our own prisons
With late night visitations

Afraid that things would be so right
We tried harder to deny
Can't stop ourselves from comin

Always down to bend in the bed
I still like to get ahead
So for now I'll let this go

Repeat Chorus

Rap Verse
She hates me, she loves me not
Or maybe does she?
Thinkin' bout her up late at night, it used to bug me
But now I'm just a dude consumed, I can't trust thee
Feelings that we had, was it love or just lust
We gotta work this out, I don't want it to end
But everytime I call, the voicemail again
I always put your first cause I need you the worst
But now you gotta call me back girl
And prove your worth

Repeat Chorus x 2

Gotta love the hip hop + Production Tip (Kick Drum)

2008-11-09T21:50:00.000-08:00

I know I've been MIA. I've been pretty busy so I decided to post one of my most recent tracks. I love doin' the hip hop thing here and there. This one has some r&b/indie flavor that I digg. Check it out. It's called "Last Chance" in the music player.

Production tip: To make your kicks sound more "organic" try lowering the tone of the kick so its a little deeper. Use the EQ to reduce the higher frequencies and drop off all frequencies below 100 Hz. This leaves room for the bass to come through the mix.

Happy producing.

Song of the Day: Greg Laswell - Days Go On (This song rocks)

Recommended Fire: Joe Feat. Mario - Last Sip

2008-10-11T14:25:00.000-07:00

Joe and Mario have teamed up with Bryan Michael Cox on this new joint, "Last Sip." I'm lovin' this one. Check it out.

Song of the Day: CSS - Let's Make Love and Listen Death From Above

New Slow Jam: BICC (Beautiful Intelligent Confident Classy)

2008-09-14T23:12:00.000-07:00

How come there are no more good slow jams these days? Here's my first slow jam. Check it out in the music player. Hope you like.

BICC (Beautiful Intelligent Confident Classy)

Verse 1
The reason that I call you is because
Can't get you off of my mind
Cause everytime we're talkin' I know
Something about you just feels right

We only met not too long ago
But I can feel the sparks fly
And this feeling is trippin' me out
Because I haven't felt this way in a long time

(I need something more than physical)

Baby I'm in love with your mind
You just earned your place in the category
Sexiest girl out of all time

Chorus
I think this could be the start of something real
Give me a chance to show you how I feel
I wanna take you around the world
And tell everybody you're my girl

I didn't plan to fall so soon
I just wanna make love to you
Why? You've got everything I need

You're beautiful, intelligent, confident, and classy

Verse 2
There's a simple thing called chemistry
And that's what we got going on between us
You're the solution to my equation
A perfect balance of real infatuation

I just wanna be with you
See what's on your mind
Ask you how your day was
And when the day is done
I wanna get it on

(I'll get you bursting with excitement)

All I wanna do is make you smile
Cause baby when you're smiling
It makes me feel warm
Just like the sunlight

Bridge
I wanna treat you like
The queen of my life
We'll rule together
And ride off in the sunrise

We got a special thing
Ever since we touched
It's unbreakable
Everyone is envious

So please excuse me if
I get a little scared
This is overwhelming but
I just can't get over it

You're too fine
You got it all
Everything I'm lookin' for
And I won't let this go...

New House Track - Matchstick

2008-08-27T23:35:00.000-07:00

Check out the new house track I just finished. You can listen to it in the music player, "Matchstick." I'm planning to have a nice female vocal on top. Feedback is welcome. I did this one using a vox sample kit I made with my voice. Cheers.

Get That Sound: T-Pain Vocals, Vocoder or Auto-Tune?

2008-08-26T09:48:00.000-07:00

Have you ever asked yourself the question, "How does T-Pain get that vocal effect"? Well, when I first heard his tracks on the radio, people kept telling me that he was using a vocoder. But then again, most people cannot be trusted.

What is a Vocoder?
Here's the definition of a vocoder from the official wikipedia article:

"A vocoder (a portmanteau of vox/voc (voice) and encoder) is an analysis / synthesis system, mostly used for speech in which the input is passed through a multiband filter, each filter is passed through an envelope follower, the control signals from the envelope followers are communicated, and the decoder applies these (amplitude) control signals to corresponding filters in the (re)synthesizer." - Wikipedia.com

What does that mean, poindexter? Essentially, vocoders take advantage of a technology called PCM or Pulse Code Modulation. The original sound wave gets passed through multiple filters that modify the waveform until the desired effect is achieved. I have a couple vocoders in my studio, and they are fantastic for vocal effects. But, is this what T-Pain uses? Read on my friend...

Digging a Little Deeper
So even other sound engineers I know weren't completely sure what effect he was using. It was easy for us to duplicate the sound using tuning software, but we were not 100% sure. So, I did a little digging and found an article where T-Pain mentions he uses tuning software. Mystery solved. Thanks for nothing, Dean Cain.

Here is a snippet from the article in the San Francisco Chronicle:

"It is T-Pain's frequent use of Auto-Tune voice processing -- a sound first popularized on the 1999 hit "Believe" by Cher -- that most sets him apart from other R&B singers and producers.

"All I've got to do is sing the right notes and it'll make it sound like it's robotic or whatnot," he says of the software. "Being that I'm a producer, I try to use that to make my voice an instrument. A lot of my songs that I use that on are, to me, like super-long instrumentals. You know how in the old days they wouldn't even make songs -- they'd just make long instrumentals? That's basically what I want to do, but the way music is now, you've got to have words."" - SFGate.com

Get The T-Pain Sound
The way to achieve this effect is by using a tuning software. There are different ones available, but the most well-known one (and the one I recommend people using) is Antares Auto-Tune. There is also a new version of this software available called "Evo". Basically, you just have to put the correction speed to the fastest setting and put the tracking setting to "relaxed". If that's not easy enough to understand, then you should just go home and cry in the corner and listen to "Bartender" until it hurts. Or, you can just watch this video that I found on youtube that explains it for me.

What About the Vocoder?
Well, if you are reading this thinking "DUHHHH..." and you are more interested in the vocoder, then let me go into that a little bit. I have used the vocoder in many situations for a cool vocal effect. You can even put the effect on drums, percussion, or whatever your heart desires.

One of the vocoders that I recommend, if you are interested in using one, is the Prosoniq Orange Vocoder. If you are still unsure of what a vocoder sounds like, here is a sample from their website:

- Vocoder Speech Sample, Orange Vocoder - prosoniq.com

Wayy cool. Kind of like realizing there are boxer-briefs, the best of both worlds.

So, if you were confused before, I hope this clears things up for you. If you still don't get it, then you might want to give up on life. I keed. Happy producing.

Song of the Day: Simbad feat. Steelo - Soul Fever

Recommended Fire: Gnarls Barkly - "Who's Gonna Save My Soul?"

2008-08-25T11:42:00.000-07:00

If you have ever had your heart broken, you will love this. I was born without one, so this doesn't make sense to me...at all. Or maybe I'm just bitter.

Song of the Day: Red - Already Over

New Track: Let's Cruise Tonight + More

2008-08-24T23:37:00.001-07:00

This weekend gave me some good time to start bangin' out a lot more stuff. I did a few this things weekend (which I will share a couple of them with you).

For one, I finished recording a new track this weekend with my boy, Classic. It's a smooth r&b/hip-hop joint with some throwback elements. I did this track a few months ago I was in a chillaxin mood. A real crusin' track :) Check it out in the music player:

"Classic & Jonii.P - Let's Cruise Tonight"

I also made a new house/electronica track that's a work in progress. Check it out too. More to follow...

Recommended Fire: Joe - Why Just Be Friends

2008-08-22T09:32:00.000-07:00

Last night I was kickin' it with one of my biggest musical influences, Micayle "The Mack" McKinney, the producer of many hit songs including the 2008 smash hit, Danity Kane's, "Damaged". I have mad respect for this dude...I learned a lot from this guy on how to produce good music. I got to check out some of his projects that are in the works. All I have to say is that after listening to his music last night, it made me realize just how much harder I need to work :) Here is one of the latest tracks he did which I think is some serious fire. Ch-ch-ch-check it.

Time for me to lock myself in my studio...

Song of the Day: Danity Kane - Damaged

Recommended Fire: RAC Volume 1

2008-08-21T09:43:00.000-07:00

For you indie/electro fans, it doesn't get much better than this. I found this while reading one of my favorite blogs, Stereogum (featured in my blog section on the side menu).

RAC (Remix Artist Collective) is a group dedicated to doing remixes run by a Portugese artist, Andre Allen Anjos. Its a FREE MP3 album with some seriously good music. I love free. So, I checked this out the other day and was blown away. Now, I'm jamming to this in my ride. Thank you RAC, for making my life a little bit kooler.

You can preview the music here:

If you digg this, you can download the whole album in a ZIP file: RAC Volume 1

For more information, check out the Stereogum Blog page. Happy Thursday. The week is almost over...

Song of the Day: Slightly Stoopid - This Joint

My Favorite All-Around VST Instruments

2008-08-20T10:31:00.000-07:00

In my experience as a music producer, one secret I've learned is that you MUST have one (or more) good all-around VSTi's in order to make solid music. Another secret, stop using Fruity Loops! Ok, sorry that's another topic in itself. Back to the plugins...

I'm talking about that one plug-in that you use in pretty much every project you do. Why? Because it has such a wide range of standard instruments that can be useful in any situation. Here are two of the VSTi's that I cannot live without...

1. PlugSoundPro by Ultimate Sound Bank

This is one of the greatest, bang-for-the-buck, complete sound banks you will find out there. It has everything you need from guitars, drums, hip hop tools, synths, keyboards, basses, and more. And from personal experience, I can tell you these are not your cheezy sounding patches that you get pre-packaged in your sequencer software. Professional quality indeed.

"PLUGSOUNDPRO delivers 8 Gb of of the most useful sounds ever used. It includes ALL the sounds from the award-wining Plugsound Box (with some enhanced presets like the pianos), a new Classical section providing a wide range of acoustic instruments, and a complete selection of loops and phrases carefully sorted and ready to use." - UltimateSoundBank.com

Cost: $149.oo
Fire Rating: 8.6 out of 10 Flames. (Partial flames DO exist)

2. Dimension Pro by Cakewalk

This bad boy is a little hidden gem like that one in your mom's jewelry box. It has a HUGE variety of sounds that will make you go gaga. And these sounds are well organized and have a very unique flavor to them that makes your music stand out from other people's music.

"Dimension Pro is the critically-acclaimed synthesizer that combines real instruments with advanced synthesis, giving you endless sound possibilities. The immense two DVD sound library that ships with Dimension Pro makes it the ideal go-to instrument for musicians, while its deep editing and sound generation capabilities have a natural appeal to sound designers." - Cakewalk.com

Cost: $249.00 (a little more expensive, but worth the price)
Fire Rating: 8.6 out of 10 Flames

Song of the Day: Hot Chip - Ready for the Floor

Recording Tip: Acoustic Guitar

2008-08-19T10:03:00.000-07:00

After all the recording I've done, I still find it a major pain in the you know what to get a solid recording of an acoustic guitar. For one, acoustic guitars all have different tones and overtones. Some are bright, some are warm, some are dull, some are boomy, some are dry, some are resonant, and some are a weird combination of the fore-mentioned qualities. That said, here are some basic tips that I recommend for recording acoustic guitar. Each section also contains some bang-for-the-buck products that sound great but won't kill ya' stash.

Guitar Body:
I have personally found that a nice wooden body top (spruce, ash) will get you the best tone. I'm currently recording with a full mahogany electro-acoustic body which sounds great live, but can lack that resonance that adds that extra character when recording. Of course, this is all preference and each guitar can add the right (or wrong) texture to your mix depending on the type of track you are doing. I'm just talking about in general...

$$$ Bang-for-the-buck:
- Ibanez Artwood Series Acoustic Guitars

Strings:
I know many of you guitar players out there love your standard elixir strings. They sound great. However, for recording acoustic guitar I would recommend using bronze acoustic strings. Elixir also makes a nice bronze string set but you can pick up a nice pair of Martin bronze acoustic strings that will also do just fine. The point being, that you want to capture all the bright tones in addition to the warm tones. This will help the guitar cut through the mix. PERSONAL TRICK: Sometimes I use electric guitar strings on my acoustic. Put some coated D'Addario DX strings on there and you will be amazed at how bright your guitar will sound.

$$$ Bang-for-the-buck:
- Martin Phosphor Bronze Acoustic Guitar Strings

Microphone:
Ah ha! Here is the tricky part. So how exactly do you record with the microphone? Well IDEALLY if you have a mixer, you should use two microphones. But dont fret (I'm so clever), you can still get away with using a single microphone.

- Two Mic Setup
Place a condenser microphone around the neck area of the guitar to capture the higher tones and finger noise. Then, place a second dynamic microphone around where the neck meets the body to capture the middle and bottom tones. This will give you the most control on shaping the sound to fit your mix.

- Single Mic Setup
You don't have a mixer, you say? Ok, well that's fine. If you have to use only one microphone, I recommend using the dymanic microphone. Place the dynamic microphone in the same position but slightly higher at the bottom of the neck.

Regardless of the setup you choose, you want to have about 6 inches separating the microphone and the guitar. And ALWAYS, use a preamp!!!

$$$ Bang-for-the-buck:
- Sennheiser E825S Dynamic Microphone
- Audio Technica AT3035 Condensor Microphone
- Presonus TubePre Preamp

Mixing:
I'm not going to go into too much detail here because this topic is too broad. But generally, you want to add a little reverb, light compression, and reduce some of the lower frequencies to come out with a nice clean sound.

Happy music making.

Song of the Day: Nujabes - Aruarian Dance

Tweakbench VST, 100% Free

2008-08-18T14:34:00.001-07:00

If you are a cheap-ass music producer (aren't we all) looking for some nice free plug-ins, I highly recommend taking a look at the Tweakbench bundle. Tweakbench is a site run by a guy named Aaron Rutledge, a VST software designer who develops high-quality freeware. I have used some of his applications in my work. There are both VST Instruments and Effects available for free. They have a very unique sound, especially good for indie/electro styles IMO but can be useful in many situations.

One that I particularly find interesting is the padawan vst (pictured below). Has some interesting sounds with an ambient texture.

"Padawan is a hybrid synthesizer inteded for pad and ambient sound creation. the first oscialltor is analog style, while the second is based on wavetables. there are some nice modulation options, all synced to host tempo. for effects there is a nice stereo chorus and a simple reverb" - Tweakbench Website

Definitely check it out. For more information, visit the Tweakbench website:

http://www.tweakbench.com/

Recommended Fire: Live Mark Farina House Mix @ Focus 01/29/2008

2008-08-18T12:23:00.000-07:00

I was at Focus Tuesday for this special Mark Farina event back in January 08. I was checking out some old streams from the Focus website and remember how fire his set was. If you don't know who Mark Farina is, he is a deep house legend. Peep it.

Listen/Download: Mark Farina Live @ Focus 01/29/2008

More Info on Mark Farina:
- Mark Farina Myspace
- Offical Website
- Wikipedia - Mark Farina

What happened to good old fashioned R&B? Come back. Please.

Song of the Day: Montell Jordan - Let's Get It On Tonight

New Track: Hypnotized

2008-08-15T17:25:00.000-07:00

It's been forever, but I finally decided to record a new track called "Hypnotized". I'm working on developing a new sound, so hopefully you enjoy thiss. If you digg it, lemme know and pass it on.

Download/Listen >> Jonii.P - Hypnotized

CHORUS

I'm hypnotized
by the way you touch your hair
when I look into your eyes
and try to figure out what's there

I am surprised
cause I'm seein' something new
that I just can't find in no one else
no one else but you

VERSE 1

Desirable in every way
you got it goin' on
Everybody wants a piece
but no one's gettin' none

Sexiness can't be described
using only words
Gotta see this girl in person
and see the way she works

VERSE 2

I find my life's electrified
when you're near to me
your tantalizing eyes
that make me strong
but also weak

Can't get enough of you
like poison to my brain
No matter what I try
I just can't get away

PS - If you think I'm crazy for putting this together, then you are probably right.

Song of the Day: Eric Clapton & Bob Marley - Knocking on Heavens Door

Timbaland Remix

2008-08-15T17:22:00.000-07:00

I recently started doing remixes for shits and giggles. Enjoy.

Timbaland - The Way I Are (Jonii.P Remix)

Song of the Day: Timbaland - The Way I Are (Original Version)

VST Review: V-Station by Novation

2008-08-15T13:09:00.000-07:00

Currently I'm working on some new dance/house music projects and I needed to use something that could give me that edge. Last night I decided to try out the well-known "V-Station" made by Novation Music. I won't go into a detailed review because I didn't have enough time to fully utilize all of the features of the VST Instrument.

Initial thoughts:
The available presets were arranged in a odd way. They essentially used a grouping of different instruments by number. For example, the list would look something like this:

Bass 1
Keyboard 1
Brass 1
Pad 1
Trance 1
Bass 2
Keyboard 2
Brass 2
Pad 2
...

Is that a little weird? I think so. But its no biggie, what matters is the sound right? Right...

Sound Quality:
The presets available were pretty decent in quality. However, in my opinion they are not plug-and-play ready. The synths required some tweaking before I found them useful.

Sound Customization:
The V-Station has some pretty nice delay effects and it was easy to customize the presets using the Attack, Release, Decay, Sustain controls. After modifying these to my liking, they were a lot nicer.

Overview:
The V-Station appears that it can come in handy for some nice sounds. However, it's definitely not all that it is cracked up to be especially with the price tag ($245 on Amazon.com). I believe there is more potential if you customize your own sounds and there are many expansion packs available for this nice little synth. All in all, pretty decent.

Fire Rating: 7 out of 10 Flames.

Song of the Day: Nelly Furtado - All Good Things Come to an End (Kaskade Remix)