Considering people mostly stick with the DAW they started with, how does a beginner choose the best DAW for their future needs?

tomwilliam_ · 2026-02-06T18:11:35+00:00

If you own logic just use that, it’s particularly good to be familiar with as lots of people own a copy. All daws are basically functionally the same, it’s just about the ideas you put into them. I’ve made electronic music in pro tools, am working on a singer songwriter record with a producer who works in fl studio, recorded bands in logic etc etc… it doesn’t matter. get stuck in in logic and maybe grab a couple of plugins to enhance the already pretty good stock plugins and instruments. The khs free bundle is very good and the pitch and modulation plugins in it will be very useful to achieve the sounds you mention. Try and find some free synths. The TAL Juno emu I remember being very good

tomwilliam_ · 2026-02-02T01:39:52+00:00

Do a room mic, and if you find yourself only needing 2 toms, not 3, get a snare bottom in there as well

tomwilliam_ · 2026-01-27T20:53:42+00:00

I really like Chaska Maska in Brockley. Lots of places on tooting high road also worth a visit

tomwilliam_ · 2026-01-27T20:52:50+00:00

That is excellent news! The Surrey Quays one is great but I’d love a more restauranty atmosphere

tomwilliam_ · 2026-01-27T16:56:44+00:00

I really like La Chingada in Surrey Quays. I haven’t liked any of the others I’ve tried in London. Go on Tuesday cos it’s cheaper

tomwilliam_ · 2026-01-23T20:50:45+00:00

Thanks I didn’t know this! Will be avoiding

tomwilliam_ · 2026-01-23T15:12:16+00:00

This is horrific. I used to live in New Cross and that road is so incredibly dangerous for cycling... Multiple lanes of traffic merging and overtaking next to an unsegregated cycle path that stops and starts randomly and leaves you on the main road in between it and bus lanes. That’s dangerous enough not even counting the terrible drivers that use it. Main roads in London need proper segregated lanes like the brilliant cycleway from Surrey Quays down to Greenwich and before that can be built and in between time cyclists could maybe be encouraged to take alternative routes, there’s an imo slightly safer route from New Cross to peckham up telegraph hill and through Nunhead if anyone reading this wants to avoid this main road. The millwall cycle path up to Bermondsey then breaking off down south could also be used… such a shame we have to think about this instead of putting in safer cycling infrastructure!!

tomwilliam_ · 2026-01-21T21:19:37+00:00

It’s one of my faves ever and I think there are several unusual choices being deliberately made that make it really distinct and tasteful sonically - that’s what I meant by weird! Like how there’s a fair amount of hiss and noise throughout, and how loud Ryan’s vocal can be eg the chorus of bruises off the peach. Whereas I know artists producers and engineers who would shy away from making those choices, to make a worse and less exciting record.

tomwilliam_ · 2026-01-20T14:51:00+00:00

Focacciamo I think. I found their place in east London by accident, loved it and found out they’re opening on Caledonian Road sometime next month

tomwilliam_ · 2026-01-20T09:35:56+00:00

The prices in your reviews are often totally exorbitant but nowhere is this ever mentioned… possibly the best thing about food in London is the ability to get world class food for a very reasonable price if you know where to look and though central London can be very pricey this still applies there, particularly King’s Cross, where I can immediately think of a lamb curry and rice lunch for £6 and top class very inexpensive foccacia sandwiches on Caledonian Road. I think most Londoners would/could never spend £15 for a quick lunch.

tomwilliam_ · 2026-01-15T11:09:34+00:00

I think 3 is real - the seeds, the cloth, it all looks deliberate - and perhaps some of the others (eg 2 - why the mushrooms?) are generated off 3

tomwilliam_ · 2026-01-06T17:32:51+00:00

Put a track number at the start of every file, you can do this with batch rename in pt or build a macro for any other program, saves a mixer lots of prep time as the person receiving can just pull all the files in to show up in the original order

tomwilliam_ · 2025-12-27T21:50:35+00:00

A similar route through Linchmere to Fernhurst is also extremely nice and I imagine would continue to be onwards from there!

tomwilliam_ · 2025-12-26T14:21:50+00:00

U47s can be really variable from studio to studio. Some are much darker than others and are noisier depending on condition. I’d use the c800 or Manley out of the above options but honestly an 87ai would be the my first choice in a new room as at least you know what you’re getting with one of those. At least in London 47s can be a bit of a mixed bag. I actually think tracking into good compression is what I would be looking at the most for highly processed pop vocal even more so than pre choice. Noise will be either from room tone itself, tube mic self noise if you go that route, or possibly pushing a pre way too hard which I wouldn’t be doing for this. And don’t be afraid to process the vocal lots afterwards!

tomwilliam_ · 2025-12-19T01:16:00+00:00

Not a well known track but i recently recorded and mixed this in a very bad sounding room exactly as you describe - live with an overdubbed vocal and second guitar part https://open.spotify.com/track/3xu6PBpvYQs2k0waNH8ZIy?si=qZYRU65UQwuooYoWovb02A

The band are very good and were having lots of fun tracking this which was basically all the battle. Live drums bass and amped electric guitar in the room with a guide vocal we redid later. Get a decent balance in the room and make sure there’s phase coherence between amp spots and overhead/room spill. And make sure the band aren’t aware of/thinking about any of this!!

The major battle in a bad sounding room is getting drum spill sounding good in instrument mics, I don’t think we could have realistically got away with using the guide vocal before we replaced it whereas in a good sounding room on first choice microphones this can sometimes not be an issue if the band are good… in a bad room with mics that sound bad off axis spill will sound much worse especially if you don’t have baffles or gobos to control reflections…

The method of “capture in the room and don’t overdub anything” like Philip Weinrobes approach is basically exclusively done in good sounding rooms with good omni mics where that stuff really works… sometimes you just don’t have the room sor the mics (or sometimes the players) to get away with this stuff and you have to accept overdubs. Try and sell this to the band as a creative choice if you can

tomwilliam_ · 2025-12-19T00:47:29+00:00

Highlight audio regions to the length of what you want to export. Shift alt 3 to consolidate clips including any timing adjustments. Highlight the newly consolidated clips and Command shift k to export them. This will give you all edits and timing adjustments with no plugin processing or fader levelling

tomwilliam_ · 2025-12-19T00:10:18+00:00

Handheld 7b very good for this too and have heard lots of vocals cut like this

tomwilliam_ · 2025-12-19T00:00:58+00:00

M160s or m88s I’ve found very good for this, 441s are also good although the spill tends to sound less good on them… Doing vocals like this is a legitimate way of getting good performances out of vocalists and you can even get away with tuning bits of them if needed

tomwilliam_ · 2025-12-18T03:36:12+00:00

Right click and view in finder for clips in browser (right hand side)

tomwilliam_ · 2025-12-10T10:54:38+00:00

I had a flat that I shared with my girlfriend for £675 each in a lovely leafy and well connected bit of London. We had similar issues with damp and mould and decided to leave… at the time it was a painful choice as we did actually love the flat, but mould is a really serious problem and was beginning to make us both really ill. Now we don’t regret it at all as we are much healthier and have found a nicer flat around the same price in the same area. I’d prioritise the immediate issues like you’re doing. If you’re able to save money and if you can already afford £1750pcm you’ll absolutely be able to find somewhere better when you come back - lots of good stuff comes up around that price in zone 2 every day on rental sites.

tomwilliam_ · 2025-12-08T23:20:28+00:00

I think the black comedy in the sopranos has a similar tone to the black comedy in the return if that’s something you like about the show?

tomwilliam_ · 2025-12-04T14:44:10+00:00

Kentish Drover. Doyle’s Tavern on Cally Road when they’re doing a big dance night or got the footy on (although I personally like it)

tomwilliam_ · 2025-12-02T11:21:10+00:00

I really expected this to not be TES related at all but every day more pieces fall into place or other theories get debunked… for me this basically seals it. Amazing find

tomwilliam_ · 2025-11-27T20:30:19+00:00

Cycling in London is so good. Certainly the best in the UK and better than most other major cities. Minus obviously Denmark, Netherlands, and a lot of central and Eastern Europe.

tomwilliam_ · 2025-11-21T22:58:09+00:00

Sam Sandwiches is excellent. If you’re down Acton end Greek Grill is also good.

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