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Sunday, August 22, 2010

Home Studio Fundamentals



I'm not an engineer, but I did represent Manhattan in a NY Energy Fair once, where my (miniature) solar-powered car ranked top 20 from hundreds of NY state district science projects... and I got a scholarship to study Electrical Engineering at Trinity College in Hartford, CT. Even though I turned down a nice production deal with Def Jam (J.M.J. Rest In Peace) to pursue the New England college degree, I wish I'd figured out a way to do both at the same time.

Going to college for engineering enabled me to move out momma's crib in the projects and raise more money for recording in my own home. But my rap skills enabled me to pass science class and graduate from the most competitive high school in NY (Stuyvesant Science & Mathematics). If you're wondering how... I recorded raps about the ozone layer or whatever we were studying and submitted those instead of final papers.

So studying science has helped me survive as a rapper. And being an MC has helped me survive as a student of science. But I'm not an engineer. Yet, here I find myself - once again - having to know a little bit of science to be a better MC. In particular, I'm converting a regular room at my crib to a better recording space.



One thing I've learned is that successful (productive, happy) people don't waste time reinventing the wheel. Instead, they learn from those who've already succeeded, and if possible they befriend them. I'm fortunate to have 2 such professionals as 2 of my best friends, and in this post, I'll let you eavesdrop on what I learned from them. One is Zaquan, who does a spoken word piece on the title track of my new album "Manhattan Night", and produced one of the bonus tracks as well (can you guess which one?). The other is Mez, who is my partner on rhyme featured on every track of the "Manhattan Night" album (now on sale for limited time here).

Mez barely sleeps since he records, mixes, and masters very big records almost every day, in a top notch professional studio basically around the clock. He's been extremely influential in the career of one of the hottest MCs out right now - J. Cole (Jay Z's lyrical number one draft pick). Zaquan also works around the clock, but he built his own studio into his apartment. He focuses on recording the best underground lyricists in New York City. Since the underground cats don't have a large recording budget, Zaquan has to get the best sound from them in the least amount of time.



Here's a little bit of what I learned from them in a couple very short conversations. Just keep in mind - these points are a streamlined version of MY OWN UNDERSTANDING of the answers they gave me, to the questions I PERSONALLY ASKED them, so this isn't a representation of THEIR EXTENSIVE KNOWLEDGE by any means.

1. Soundproofing a room isn't just about making it quiet for your neighbors and roomates, it also creates a balanced sound in the room.

Due to the shape of a room, the same exact sounds heard in different parts of a room will sound different. When music hits these different parts it will bounce back into your recording device (like your mic), or from your listening device (like your speakers) at different speeds which makes the final recording sound different in your room than it would in another room (or in another studio).

2. Sound bouncing back and forth across the room is the main way that the music becomes unbalanced, "unflat", and full of reverb (reverberation).

In other words it doesn't really matter that your sound hits an unpadded wall, what really matters is that it continues hitting that wall because it's bouncing off the opposite wall and coming back repeatedly. This is why the corners of a room are the priority in sound proofing. The middle of the wall is furthest from every other wall, but the corners are where the walls connect, so the sound bounces between walls alot faster there.

3. Due to the above, the priorities in a room are to soundproof the corners, have lots of space for the sound to travel through before hitting a surface, and avoid reflective surfaces in between.

Soundproofing the walls in between the corners, and soundproofing small rooms would be secondary. For example, padding the walls of a small closet would not be as effective as cushioning the corners of a big room, in terms of soundproofing.

4. Bass traps are more effective than the thin absorption sheets and styrofoam.

Bass traps are thick cusioning materials that absorb sound (converting sound energy into trace amounts of heat energy). The thickness and composition of the materials in bass traps, such as mineral wool or owens corning fiberglass are able to absorb extremely low frequency sound waves (bass), as well as the higher frequencies, while thin soundproofing sheets only absorb high frequency sounds.



That's all for now. I hope this helps you save some money and time. Just remember I'm not an engineer - I'm an MC - independent, and every CD sale helps me support my family (not to mention pay off the college loans). My CD is on sale for a limited time here!

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Goals to Action Newsletter: Are you a goal "hoarder"?

Rodger Constandse has posted an article I wrote during his last 28 Day Goal Achievement session as a series of newsletters. Here is a sample of part 1 (you can join the GTA newsletter to get the rest of the series)...


Are You A Goal Hoarder?

>>> NOTE: If you want a proven system that can help you get
organized, increase your productivity and make better use of your
time, you need to check out Achieve Planner:

--> http://www.effexis.com/AchievePlanner/

Hey there,

Today I have a treat for you. One of the members in the 28 Day Goal
Challenge wrote a couple of very interesting posts about the idea
of "Goal Hoarding" and he agreed to let me share them with you.
Today you'll get part one of the series, I'll send you Part 2 next
week. He is a recording artist and recently released an
inspirational rap/R&B album. You can learn more about him and his
album here (You get a special discount until August 7th):

http://rapoets.com/ManhattanNightSale.html


I hope you enjoy his article about "Goal Hoarding"...

Has anyone seen the television show "Hoarders"?

It's about people who keep a whole bunch of "stuff" in their house,
making it hard to move around, find things, and have other people
share the space with them. In many cases the homes become dangerous
obstacle courses, as well as extremely unattractive, and
unsanitary. I've noticed some STRIKING parallels to people who
don't accomplish goals (like my former self!), which I'll point out
in just a moment. But first, here are some recurring personality
traits of a hoarder:

Even though they haven't used any of the "stuff" in years, you'll
notice that the hoarders are EXTREMELY EMOTIONALLY ATTACHED to the
"stuff".



1. They only notice how dangerous and nasty the mess is when other
people are around.

2. They project human attributes on to the stuff, whether it's a
photograph, a dirty old teddy bear, or rusty piece of metal. So,
they respond to throwing out a piece of junk the same as a normal
person would respond to abandoning a small child.

3. They are so focused on "protecting" their "stuff" that they
often end up pushing away family and friends, in some cases
screaming at, ignoring, and ending relationships with loved ones,
after treating them like junk – while treating their junk like
loved ones should be treated!

So what's the similarity?

When I switched my challenge goal to creating an effective system
for selling shows, recordings, & merchandise, I also had to switch
my milestones.

The steps required to reach each milestone are simple and I KNOW I
WILL ACHIEVE THEM.

But... as I looked at my previous spreadsheet, I felt bad about all
the... "STUFF" I wouldn't get done – LOL! At that point I realized
that my slowness in achieving this goal was STRIKINGLY SIMILAR to a
hoarder's slowness in cleaning their house – wow – humbling!

I've created a list so anyone can catch themselves "Goal Hoarding",
as well as see how similar it is to the unattractive habit of
Hoarding old "Stuff"...



1. Hoarders only notice how dangerous and nasty the mess is when
other people are around.


I was always busy, and always had lots of "to do lists" of more
things to do, as well as records of all the interesting stuff I've
been doing. That let me know I was doing the right thing... even
though I WASN'T!

It was only when other people asked, "Where can I buy your album?",
"Do you have any videos of your shows online?", "When will you have
more clothes for sale?", and so forth, that I realized my busywork
wasn't getting results.

Keeping a list of your actual goals that you can look at every day
prevents you from using busy work as an excuse for goal achieving.

But a list of your actual goals should be a very short list. My
goal progress worksheet has 1 major goal for the month. It includes
1 Major milestone to reaching that goal each week. And finally it
includes no more than a few steps to take each week.

Each step is precise and can be measured with a "yes" or "no", such
as, "Did I store new album files securely online?" or "Did I write
a paypal script to download files after a verified purchase?"

So that's the difference between a Goal Progress Worksheet and a
To-Do List.

Think about it, a "Stuff Hoarder" has a house full of stuff that
they are absolutely sure they will use... but never do.

A "Goal Hoarder" has a To Do list full of activities they are
absolutely sure will get them to achieve their goals... but never
do!



If you are using a very long To-Do list, instead of a very short
Goal Progress Worksheet, the neurons in your brain are mostly
likely as disorganized as the "stuff" in a hoarder's home.

Stop Goal Hoarding!

Pull your major Goals and milestones of the month out of the To-Do
list hoards, and look at your Goal Progress Worksheet Daily. Don't
wait for someone else to interrupt your "busywork" and ask you
where you're major goals are hiding.

You'll get Part 2 next week. Here's some more information about
Rapoet:

The Rapoet appears (performances, lectures, and workshops) at
venues ranging from cafes to colleges, receiving praise from poets
like Alice Walker and MCs like Talib Kweli. Recently, he performed
at Yale University, hosted the Hartford Hip-Hop Festival with Rock
Steady's Crazy Legs, rocked the International Hip-Hop Festival with
KRS ONE, and completed teaching his 2010 Spring semester RapOetry
(positive self-expression) youth classes. He is currently teaching
a RapOetry Summer 2010 course, and releasing a new album.

Learn more about the album here:

http://rapoets.com/ManhattanNightSale.html


And if you want to join us in the 28 Day Goal Challenge, you can do
that here:

http://www.28DayGoalChallenge.com/signup/


Have a great week!

Rodger Constandse


P.S. Here's another resource that you might find helpful:

Is procrastination, indecision or lack of motivation holding you
back?

If you want to understand WHY you are procrastinating and discover
how to find the RIGHT strategies to overcome it once and for all,
you need to
visit:

http://www.GoalsToAction.com/EndProcrastinationNow/