Chris McLernon Relies on API Lunchbox
Jun 16, 2006 6:07 PM
Most Popular
advertisement
Polls
TalkBack
Mix goes in-depth into the world of mastering. Tell us how mastering has helped your projects in the past. E-mail us at mixeditorial@mixonline.com.
This Month in Mix
Recording engineer/composer Chris McLernon (pictured) was tapped to record singer London Weidberg for a song that was included in the NBC show Vegas. Rather than have Weidberg come to his studio, Two Heads Music in Charleston, S.C., McLernon packed up his API Lunchbox—which includes a 3124 discrete 4-channel mic/line preamp and a 512C discrete mic/line preamp—and went to Weidberg.
"I grabbed a mic and the API Lunchbox and headed over there," McLernon says. "She was comfortable and I got the vocal performance that I wanted. If I didn't have the ability to pick that up and take it with me, I would have been struggling with whatever gear they had there because I didn't know that room at all."
McLernon tracked the sessions directly into Digidesign Pro Tools, bypassing the studio's console. "She knows her technique, so it wasn't like I had to compress her a lot and I think I ran her flat," he recalls. "She went right in and did a take. It sounded fine to me and I didn't have to mess with it. I don't like to mess with stuff. If it doesn't work from the word 'go,' either something is wrong with the musician or the instrument, or it's the gear you are using. That's the great thing about the API stuff I'm using—it's so consistent and I know how it's going to sound."
McLernon has also found his API gear helpful in getting ready to mix music for a spot. On a recent date, he took a track that was recorded with a Digi 002 using only its onboard mic pre’s and pumped it through his API gear to add the clarity and accuracy that was missing. "I hear people complain that digital can be a little too crisp," he says, "but by [using the API gear], the music seems to maintain a pleasant crispness without the digital sizzle to it. Some people always want to look for that analog warmth, but I think if you don't have clarity, then there is not going to be any warmth."
For more information, visit www.apiaudio.com and www.chrismclernon.com.
Acceptable Use Policy blog comments powered by Disqus
Modern Recording and Mixing
This 2-DVD set will show you how the best in the music industry set up a studio to make world-class records. Regardless of what gear you are using, the information you'll find here will allow you to take advantage of decades of expert knowledge. Order now $39.95
Mastering Cubase 4
Electronic Musician magazine and Thomson Course Technology PTR have joined forces again to create the second volume in their Personal Studio Series, Mastering Steinberg's Cubase(tm). Edited and produced by the staff of Electronic Musician, this special issue is not only a must-read for users of Cubase(tm) software, but it also delivers essential information for anyone recording/producing music in a personal-studio. Order now $12.95
Delivered straight to your inbox every other week, MixLine takes you straight into the studio, with new product announcements, industry news, upcoming events, recent recording/post projects and much more. 
AES 2009: Slate Pro Audio Trigger
Upgrading Studio A at Santa Barbara Sound