PAL Adam Stafford

The key to a good bass track starts off with two critical components - a reasonable quality instrument and skill. Once you know you have those two ready, you can begin with the next important choice: do you go amp to mic or DI? Going DI - The Basics For those of you unfamiliar with the term, DI stands for...

  As you are browsing across the web looking for a brand new pedal to add to your board, you might have bumped into noise gates. Sure, the name itself should tell you what they are used for but it still leaves many questions for many of us out there. Below, we take a quick look at how Noise Gate pedals work along with a few great suggestions.   Continue reading →

  There’s a reason why tube amps have remained popular after all these years. Despite their relatively high price tag and an overall delicate design that is firmly rooted in mid-20th-century technology, nothing beats a tube amp when it comes to creating stunning high-gain tone. Whether you’re looking for smooth sustain and compression or fat and crunchy distortion, the signature sound of a tube amp remains the holy grail of guitar tone. Today, we’re going to look at a few tips to that should help you properly care for those delicate yet beautiful tone machines and give them the best shot at a long and happy life!   Continue reading →

  Nowadays, many musicians tend to prefer working in their very own home recording studios. This trend is usually meant to avoid the pesky booking process and exorbitant fees associated with using professional studios. Most of these people feel rushed and constrained to accomplish their projects in the allocated time. Still, putting aside the costly fees for utilizing professional studios, you cannot overlook the numerous advantages of settling for this process. Some of the most notable are being able to work with sound engineers and professional recording equipment. Granted, in-home studios are hard-pressed to offer such unparalleled convenience. However, this doesn’t necessarily equate to obtaining lackluster outcomes. When you take the time to discern the errors, which many a musician often make, you can ensure your projects are successful even if you are on a tight budget. So, here are some few tips on how to make this a reality.   Continue reading →

  It comes as no surprise that since the invention of the pickup, manufacturers have been trying to get rid of that annoying hum that is inherent as a result of the general principles of electronics. Since we can’t change the rules of electricity, manufacturers had to use those very same principles for their benefit, which gave us the humbucker which is essentially two single coil pickups placed next to each other. The hum-canceling properties of these pickups were great but the fact that they were twice as large meant guitars made for single coil pickups, such as the Telecaster, would not be able to use them without modifications.   Continue reading →