5 Tips All Sound Engineers Should Know

During my holiday break, I decided to take some time and research what kinds of things engineers should always keep in mind, and many times it’s the little things that we tend to overlook.  So I came up with 5 Tips All Sound Engineers Should Know!

“Command S” All Day Long!

Back in the day, a hard drive was something that you could brag about having and feel proud that you were being proactive with your work, but now with a terabyte being not even 100 bucks, there’s no excuse not to keep up with the trend of ample amounts of storage space for your important work and data.

Can you imagine having worked around the clock on a project, only to come and find that in the middle of your payed session, technology decides to remind you that it is not 100% guaranteed perfect.  Stuff breaks and gets older, so protect yourself and invest in yourself.

Warm Up ALL Your Instruments

The better the source, the better the product; that was one of the most insightful pieces of advice I had found while doing my research.  Proper tuning whether it is with vocals before tracking, a set of guitar strings, or replacing a drumhead, tuning is apart of giving the best quality of sound any musician possibly can, and being warmed up and prepared is a weight that everyone should be pulling together.

NOTHING Leaves Without the Green!

This might seem like common sense, but obviously there is a reason why this tip was found when I did my research.  NEVER let any mix of any kind leave your possession without first having the money for it in your hand, pocket, but preferably bank account.

Remember that this includes mp3 deliveries via email and CD-Rs that you send with a rough mix… NOTHING leaves!

Keep Things Simple

One of the biggest problems commonly found among new engineers is trying to be too fancy for your own good.  Much of your time and money as well as your clients’ will go to waste trying to do too many things at once.  Examples I found were doing too many vocals, using a stereo track when a mono would have been just fine, and recording too many guitar layers, and I am sure the list continues.  Reputation takes time and working your way up is just the name of the game.  Enjoy the process!

Set Up Shop

So this tip I found was one that I personally would not have thought of probably until a situation occurred where it was needed, but keeping spare parts seemed to be a popular suggestion.  Like I said before, stuff breaks and it is always wise to have a spare or two just to be safe.   Some examples are mic and instrument cables, drum sticks, guitar strings, etc.

What Tips or Skills do you keep in your arsenal?