Recording: Then and Now - Part II

I started out in the previous post talking about comparing recording methods, and it seems I immediately wandered off into an historical jaunt. You'll find as you get to know me that this will probably happen more often than either of us would like. It's just my nature. I hope you don't mind too much.

Anyway, let's go back to the early '80s and look at how it was. I mentioned we were recording to tape. The mic chain in that first studio I recorded in looked something like this:

mic -> preamp -> mixer -> tape deck

Today's mic chains look almost the same, with just a change at the end:

mic -> preamp -> mixer -> analog/digital converter -> digital storage

The last two pieces in the chain are usually combined as something like a CD-R deck or a computer. That last little piece of equipment is the one thing that has made the most difference in how things are done, in my opinion, but I'll come back to that another day.

The biggest thing I've noticed over the years is how little the hardware has really changed. Don't get me wrong--there have been major changes in quality and selection of mics, brands, sizes, and quality of preamps and mixers, and so forth. But the basic devices have remained very similar to what they were back then. And yet, the whole recording industry has changed vastly due to the change in that last link of the chain--the digital part. So how did I get from doing work in a completely analog studio to doing work on my own digitally-based equipment? Therein lies the real history.

I left off last time having decided to leave behind the idea of a career in show business in favor of something a little more stable. That decision took me through working in cable TV, a warehouse, delivering pizza, and the U.S. Air Force before I found myself--seemingly inexorably--in front of a microphone again. We'll get there next time.