Looking to get started as a music producer? Here’s some key terms I’ve put together that you’ll need to know! To get an idea of how to set up equipment and get it running smoothly, check out my quick studio setup blogs here and here! As always, let me know if you have any questions as this can be somewhat overwhelming and complicated!
Recording Terms
Track (noun) - The location that audio is recorded to on your DAW
Track (verb) - The process of recording audio onto a track (noun)
Arm - Preparing a track to record audio
Solo - Isolating a track for the purpose of listening only to the audio on the track
Mute - Disabling the audio output of a track
Gain - The amount of amplification your mic’s signal is boosted or cut
Input - Where audio is being recieved
Output - Where recorded audio is going
Monitor (verb) - The act of listening to audio as it is being recorded
Phantom Power - Voltage that is sent to specific microphones to power the microphone
Feeling a bit overwhelmed? That’s totally normal! You’ll get the hang of this pretty quickly once you start building your own setup. My recommendation for you would be to briefly read this blog and then get started on your own. You can always come back to reference something here later if you don’t understand it! Let’s dive back in.
Post Production
Mixing - The action of editing and putting together multiple tracks of audio into one final master track
Mastering - The action of polishing and editing a master track with the intent of making it radio ready quality
Levels - How loud audio in a specific track is
EQ - Equalizer. EQs allow you to turn up or down portions of the audio spectrum (lows, low mids, mids, high mids, highs)
Compressor - Compressors allow you to adjust the dynamic range of audio. It reins back the loudness of audio above a certain threshold
Reverb - Reverberation. The audio that lingers around in a space after the source audio has finished. Imagine singing in a small bathroom or the shower
Delay - Audio that is repeated after its source has finished
Bus/Group - A group of tracks. Can be with or without audio effects
Phew! Let me catch my breath real quick. You’re almost there! We just went over post production terms. These are terms that you’ll use a lot, so you’ll learn these in no time with repetition! Lastly, let’s go over the basic equipment you’ll need.
Equipment
TS (1/4" Cable) - This is a standard instrument cable and sends a single channel of audio. This cable can carry audio up to 25 feet without signal degradation
TRS (Dual Channel 1/4" Cable) - This is a stereo instrument cable and sends two channels of audio. This cable can carry audio up to 25 feet without signal degradation.
XLR (Mic Cable) - This cable plugs into a microphone and carries one channel of Audio. This cable can carry audio up to 300 feet without signal degradation.
Interface - Converts analog audio from your microphone into digital audio which is readable by your computer and DAW
Monitors (Speakers) - Speakers that cover the full audio range and allow you to hear audio edits better.
I hope this was helpful for you! This blog covers most of the terms you’ll need to know as you create music. If you’d like to dive in more, here’s a list of keyboard shortcuts you can use inside Logic and Ableton. Almost every DAW has their own set of these. They’re a huge time saver!
As always, feel free to hit me up with any questions you may have. I’m here to help you succeed.
