Immediately improve your audio endeavours across the board:
Inputs are more important than outputs. That’s right, it’s simple science really: what goes in must come out. Or put bluntly: rubbish in, rubbish out. So, no matter whether you’re recording music, running a live sound gig, or just listening to your favourite tunes – it pays to remember this simple mantra.
Think about it this way: will it matter that you set up your PA perfectly and upgrading to the best speakers available if your wireless system cuts out?
Will your music sound better if you upgrade your earphones, but all your source files are poorly compressed MP3’s?
Will your guitar sound more in tune if buy a fancy new plugin or apply more compression?
Clearly, the answer is no, but you’d be surprised how many times people neglect the source and skip right to a ‘patching it up’ style solution. And, believe it or not, it happens at all levels, from music enthusiast to professional sound engineer.
Your challenge – should you choose to accept it – is to pay extra attention to the source next time you’re doing anything audio related. As a microphone manufacturer, we understand the importance of getting great sound right at the start of a signal chain. However, it is the duty of each individual to make sure a mic is pointed at the best source possible.
For many of you, a philosophy of the source is key might sound obvious – and you might have great source sound already. All the same, we would suggest a process of continual iteration.
Kaizen your audio
Kaizen is a Japanese word, which translates roughly to ‘continuous improvement’. Its rise to popularity in the English speaking world comes primarily from Japanese business strategy and workplace improvement processes that enabled greater productivity and competitiveness. Translated into the world of audio, it could look something like this:
Research and Know your stuff before you begin. Plan what your ideal outcome will be. Knowledge without action is merely fantasy – take your new found skills and put them into action. Check what you are doing and always question your approach. If you approach every audio project as ‘business as usual’ how will you improve!?
Take action on your findings from the previous stage. Rinse and repeat. Through a process of constant iteration and improvement focused at the audio source your audio experience will improve no end.