In the past few columns, we’ve examined various uses
of compression with guitar—
both in pedal and plug-in form.
We’ve seen how sometimes
it’s best to capture your guitar
sound as clean as possible,
without the effects in-line. That
way, you can add processing
at the mix stage—rather than
while tracking—in the context
of the finished song. This is
especially relevant when tracking with a delay unit or echo.
As a mixer, I receive many
different kinds of tracks in various states of readiness. Some
sessions arrive with tracks that
are perfectly printed, trimmed,
and labeled. Others can be a
mess, with extra-hot levels and
track names like “Audio 1”
or “Extra track.” Though irksome, many of these problems
can be fixed later on. But some
things—including guitar parts
printed with integral delay
effects—cannot. You simply can’t peel off or alter the
delay or echo if it turns out it
doesn’t sound like what you’d
hoped for when you tracked it.
Of course, it’s understandable that layers of echo may
be an essential part of your
sound. The Edge and Albert
Lee are two players who often
build parts around precisely
timed delay. But most of the
guitar tracks I receive do not
need to have delay applied
during the recording process.
However, if you must have
delay on the track to get the
right vibe, here are a few
things to consider when laying
down your initial parts.
To give yourself—and your
mix engineer—the greatest
flexibility in the final stages of
production, consider splitting
your signal before it hits the
delay and capturing two gui-
tar tracks, one clean and one
effected. This approach works
whether you’re recording direct
or mic’ing an amp, or doing
both simultaneously.
This screenshot from a Pro Tools session shows a mono Tele track (top
waveform) above a printed stereo delay track.
But don’t just stop there—
make sure you label the track
clearly. For example, “Guitar
1 Delay Print” reminds you
or informs the mix engineer
about what is lurking in that
waveform. Also, in the notes
section of the track, write
down what delay you used,
as well as the most important
parameters. I’ve even taken
screenshots of plug-in settings
to save with the relevant session. Just remember to label
those, as well.
One advantage of using
software plug-in delays (and
there are many amazing ver-
sions available from various
companies) as opposed to a
rackmount unit or stompbox,
is that you can go back after
the session to tweak the delay
by changing the settings. If
you do that, simply reprint
the new settings directly over
the old printed track or save
a new track called something
like “Guitar 1 Delay Print -
Version 2.”
While I’m on the subject of
printing tracks, many of us also
use guitar-amp simulator plug-
ins. As with delay, it’s a good
idea to print your amp-simu-
lator tracks. This ensures that
any mix engineer who receives
your session will have the exact
guitar sound you wanted.
RICH TOZZOLI is a
Grammy-nominated engineer and mixer who has
worked with a wide range
of artists, including Al Di
Meola, David Bowie, Ace
Frehley, and Hall & Oates.
He composes music for the likes of Fox
NFL, Pawn Stars, and Gene Simmons
Family Jewels, and is the author of Pro
Tools Surround Sound Mixing.
