Audio Doesn’t Matter. The Impact of the Music is Much More Important!

Let’s face it, good music will always be amazing even if the audio quality sucks.

In the end, the audio doesn’t matter at all. It’s the impact of the music that dictates whether it’s any good.

An average listener isn’t going to care that it was recorded with Neumann U87s, mixed with outboard tube compressors and mastered with Lynx A/D converters.

They just care if the music is any good.

So what does this mean for you?

It means less pressure for the home recordist. Just use whatever you’ve got and make some great music. An awful song is going to stay awful even if it sounds awesome. But a great song is going to stand on its own without gear. A great melody is still going to get stuck in your head whether it’s recorded with a cheap dynamic mic or an expensive condenser.

Don’t worry too much about the gear all the time. Just try to make the most of your situation and record the great music you have in front of you. If the music is great then people will listen to it.

Why do you think everybody loves bootlegged, shitty recordings. Because they love the music.

The early recordings of anything sound shitty compared to today’s standards. But nobody cares. Robert Johnson is a legend, but his recordings suck. But it doesn’t matter. The music mattered, and it transcended generations.

I remember way back when I was downloading bootleg recordings off the internet of bands I liked. Believe me, these bootlegs were legit. There was more crowd noise and static than there was actually music. The recordings were awful, recorded on the first generation cellphones that allowed audio recording.

But I didn’t care.

I wanted to listen to A Perfect Circle cover Crazy Train and Love Song at the same time in one song. It was awesome and since I couldn’t get it on an album it didn’t matter. I didn’t care about the audio quality. I cared about the music.

So just focus on the music and record with whatever you’ve got. It doesn’t have to cost thousands, or even hundreds of dollars. Just make do with whatever you have and have fun creating the music that inspires you, and pushes the buttons within you.

P.S.

For practical and easy-to-use recording tips for any instrument, check out Recording Strategies:

www.audio-issues.com/strategies

Image by: ViaMoi

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