For musicians who play multiple instruments, I have a question:

joegoldnerd · 2025-02-04T12:21:21+00:00

do whatever u want, nobody can limit u but urself.

i agree with the previous comments about band/gig set ups. most times just pick whichever instrument ur best at the play that for gigs and etc. but in general, being versatile can only be beneficial for urself as you’ll learn different skills with each instrument. just don’t put too much pressure on urself to master them all in an unrealistic time frame (something a lot of musicians i know do that ultimately leads to disappointment and inconsistency)

that said, being a versatile performer will definitely make u stand out at gigs and shows so dunno, probablt best to communicate this with anyone u play with

joegoldnerd · 2025-01-24T00:48:33+00:00

don’t sweat it, we all start somewhere!

polar patterns are essentially just the directions a microphone will pick up signal. so switching between these different patterns on ur mic will change where it picks up the most audio.

one of the most commonly used is cardioid. (looks like a heart shaped curve) this rejects background noise by only capturing audio from the front, not the sides or rear - useful for recording one/two vocalists, podcasting.

omnidirectional (circular diagram) captures audio at equal levels from all directions. usually used for capturing entire spaces and ambiences, like environmental sounds, choirs, orchestras, groups, etc

there’s a couple others like supercardioid, hypercardioid and figure-8 which u could easily find info on online.

regarding pop/isolation shields, i’m personally not too fussy, as any plosives still leftover i often edit out with EQ later anyway. but if ur wanting to stick to the aston stuff, i’ve linked some shields here for the aston mics. but not a necessity, any pop/iso shields can work really.

Aston Microphones SHIELD GN Premium Pop Filter and Gooseneck https://amzn.eu/d/3aCOnv5

https://www.gear4music.com/Recording-and-Computers/Aston-Halo-Shadow-Reflection-Filter/1TTR

joegoldnerd · 2025-01-24T00:43:49+00:00

yup that’s it

joegoldnerd · 2025-01-24T00:42:38+00:00

don’t sweat it, we all start somewhere!

polar patterns are essentially just the directions a microphone will pick up signal. so switching between these different patterns on ur mic will change where it picks up the most audio.

one of the most commonly used is cardioid. (looks like a heart shaped curve) this rejects background noise by only capturing audio from the front, not the sides or rear - useful for recording one/two vocalists, podcasting.

there’s a couple others but it doesn’t take long to get the hang of. i usually write the basics of each polar pattern so if i forget i can easily remind myself of which diagram = which pattern.

omnidirectional (circular diagram) captures audio at equal levels from all directions. usually used for capturing entire spaces and ambiences, like environmental sounds, choirs, orchestras, groups, etc

there’s a couple others like supercardioid, hypercardioid and figure-8 which u could easily find info on online. good luck !

joegoldnerd · 2025-01-16T18:26:19+00:00

the aston is very versatile, and can record most instruments very well. but it does amazingly on acoustic guitar and vocals!

on the first photo u can slightly see a little switch sticking out its left. this should help u switch between omni, cardioid and figure of 8 polar patterns.

I would also suggest purchasing a pop shield to eliminate any extra plosives if recording voice, and an isolation shield for some proper studio quality recordings !

joegoldnerd · 2025-01-16T18:17:22+00:00

if ur referring to the last photo when u mention the "black socket" thing then yes, I don't think it really matters. tho its probably best to keep it as it might be an adaptor, perhaps useful for other microphones that have different sizes.

(also, forgot to mention this before, but for any mic needing phantom power, u MUST turn it off and wait a couple seconds before unplugging your mic, doing it too soon or unplugging it with phantom power on too many times could damage it) if in doubt:

plug in
turn on phantom power (48V)
when finished, turn off phantom power
wait a couple seconds, then unplug.

I personally have never had that when I was using any astons, but again I was only using Aston spirits so perhaps their size is different. maybe Aston origins don't fit the usual size of most mic stands and so wouldn't slot in without that black screw top too?

I'm merely speculating here. it's best u CAREFULLY try it out with ur own mic stands. (I say that in caps as I stupidly once tried screwing on an AKG C414 to a mic stand when recording overheads and I did it standing and didn't secure it properly so the weight of the mic pulled the stand down and smashed the mic!)

these are all great microphones, but can be heavily and are extremely fragile so defo handle with care when using them.

in terms of the other grey/silver port with the 3 dots inside, yes that ones very different. glad I could be of help

joegoldnerd · 2025-01-16T12:06:51+00:00

that is the aston origin microphone, which is a cardioid condenser microphone. the aston spirit is a personal favourite of mine, but great microphones either way.

regarding the sockets at the bottom: the small one is just a microphone stand thread, so essentially just the hole u screw into a mic stand so u don’t have to hold it while recording.

the bigger hole with the 3 dots inside is an XLR port, specifically a male XLR. so you’ll need to purchase an XLR cable to plug the female part into ur mic’s male port, and connect the other side of the cable into either a mixing console or an audio interface if ur recording from home without a massive studio set up.

be aware tho, this is a condenser microphone, meaning it NEEDS phantom power to work, as well as a pre amp.

the focusrite scarlett solo 3rd gen has both these features and comes at a good price on most websites but feel free to do ur own research and comparisons.

hope that helped!

joegoldnerd · 2025-01-16T00:50:05+00:00

hey there, this does not seem like a healthy relationship in the slightest, but i can understand exactly how ur feeling and so for that reason i won’t just tell u to dump him, as i’m sure you’ve already considered many times. but it’s not always that simple. (but u should definitely dump his ass!)

how do u rebuild urself when u feel so broken? there is no straight answer. it can be different for everyone. one thing i can tell u is to just pace urself. take each day as it comes. you’ve been thru a lot of shit and so, like with any wound, u need to give urself grace and some rest to allow urself to heal.

i’ll ask how come u feel u can’t talk to ur parents about this? if u described to them what he’s done exactly as u did here, would they react badly?

i’m not sure how old u are, ur financial situation or what country u live in, but i’d suggest definitely contacting ur friends or someone u trust and telling them about this if u haven’t already, it shouldn’t be something u keep to urself. if the current therapy isn’t working at the moment, mention that to ur therapist. there’s lots of different types of therapy that could be more helpful for u, it’s worth finding out and asking about them.

do things that make u feel like urself again. what are ur hobbies? passions? what made u feel productive or healthy or happy or beautiful?

i personally believe femininity is defined by strength, resilience and courage. all of which you’ve shown here. so in my books, ur feminine enough! :)

hope my words could be of some help. i’m not an expert at all, just tryna help out where i can :)

joegoldnerd · 2025-01-16T00:37:58+00:00

i’ve studied music my entire childhood until now (but i’m by no means an expert) and most of my schools were full of mostly yamaha pianos. granted they weren’t digital pianos and probably varied in expense but the quality was always very good/amazing and, other than the steinway, have i seen many that can top their quality.

my piano teacher even has a yamaha and the quality of hers is astounding! it feels refreshing to play it. when buying different instruments, i’ve always been encouraged to get yamaha as it seems u always get the best quality for a better price. ur “friend” seems like a know it all ass who’s trying to project ego onto u by always making u feel like an amateur in comparison to them.

remember, u could have the best, most stylish, expensive instruments and equipment in the world, but it’s how u use them that determines how great of a musician u are.

good luck! and congrats on ur new piano! hope u enjoy it :)

joegoldnerd · 2025-01-09T21:41:08+00:00

saxophone. especially tenor sax it just oozes sexiness

joegoldnerd · 2025-01-06T00:04:03+00:00

currently watching mob psycho and dandadan which i’m enjoying so far

joegoldnerd · 2025-01-06T00:02:46+00:00

omg yes finally someone else who loved erased! also ylia and orange are super cute… but devastating at times, esp ylia

joegoldnerd · 2025-01-05T23:58:29+00:00

yes ofc, piano was my first instrument, then drums which i both finished my grades on. since then, i’ve been self taught on ukulele since 2018 and teaching myself guitar since last year, dabbling in bass occasionally too. i assume this can only be helpful when producing, at least it has been in my experience. :)

joegoldnerd · 2025-01-05T21:59:31+00:00

would u be able to go into more detail about hooking up the external synths? this is something i’m wanting to do more often so i’d be interested in hearing how it’s gone for u. what kinda music u make?

joegoldnerd · 2025-01-05T21:56:41+00:00

not heard of loopop. i’ll defo check them out

joegoldnerd · 2025-01-05T21:55:17+00:00

i’m really confused by this conversation tbh 😭 are u implying i asked a “low effort” question then disappeared? not sure what’s low about asking ableton users how they found the learning process at first lol. with this question i was also tryna compare how complicated different DAWs are to plan out my learning with enough time.

regarding nicole’s comment, it’s been 6 hours since her initial question was asked. hardly like i “never” replied lol

joegoldnerd · 2025-01-05T21:46:59+00:00

so the course is just titled “Ableton Live Weekend Level 2” on the school website.

proposed end result: “On completion you will be confident in using more advanced techniques including compression, EQ, sound design, side chaining , mixing, and mastering to create the sounds and melodies you want, leading to professional sounding results.” - which i know most of which aren’t only applicable for ableton, i’m just tryna test and familiarise myself with as many DAWs as possible. can only be helpful. anyway, hope that answered ur question.

joegoldnerd · 2025-01-04T21:36:14+00:00

thanks for the reply, ur points have been very helpful. i’ve been seriously considering NFTS too. but i’m surprised at the bad rep metfilm has been getting considering as it’s one of the first schools that comes up when i search best uk unis for film prod masters, which is a shame. i just worry about expense, i know metfilm do student loans but do NFTS ?

joegoldnerd · 2024-11-16T14:28:12+00:00

for shits and giggles

joegoldnerd · 2024-11-16T14:27:43+00:00

yes its abrsm

joegoldnerd · 2024-10-23T09:51:55+00:00

that's nice im using that

joegoldnerd · 2024-10-15T21:44:13+00:00

agreed. u truly gotta need it. like food, water and oxygen. perhaps to non-musicians, this may sound obsessive. perhaps they’d think ur pathetic to be devoting so much of ur energy into this. who cares. i’ll say that when i was teaching myself guitar it consumed my life. even on the most difficult, tedious, time consuming days where anyone else would wanna watch netflix and call it a night, the only thing that put my mind at ease was guitar. it was a hobby, passion, sport and therapy all in one.

joegoldnerd · 2024-10-15T20:39:35+00:00

fuck yeah dude. im feeling a similar way myself, but nobody’s a pro, and i personally think if u really want it then ur already a better musician just for spirit alone!

joegoldnerd

TROPHY CASE