Pelly – Discovery
I’m very proud to share Pelly’s Discovery. Michael Pelley spent the better part of a year writing and perfecting this collection of songs before teaming up with me at Distorted Music Productions to record, edit and mix. We put a ton of time into this album and honestly, it shows. I encourage everyone to check it out, share it with their friends and leave some feedback.
Contact Pelly for physical copies.
Andrew Bonsell – Shelter & Love
It’s been a very busy time around the studio lately and I wanted to share the latest release to come out of Distorted Music Productions, LLC.
Andrew Bonsell – Shelter & Love is a collection of six acoustic songs by a local singer/songwriter. These songs were recorded in one session back in November, mixed over a couple days in January before finally being released.
http://andrewbonsell.bandcamp.com
New Project – Boss DS-1 Distortion Pedal
Running my own recording studio has taught me to be self-reliant when things break down and need to be fixed. A good money saving technique is to fix things yourself and to also be able to make your own cables. This has led me to be rather comfortable around a soldering iron.
This led me to try another little challenge. I found a mod kit in the style of the Keeley Mods for my Boss DS-1 Distortion Pedal. If you play guitar you probably recognize this as the most common pedal out there. In fact, it was my very first guitar pedal, which I’ve owned for about 12 years. These are very common because they are inexpensive pedals and beginners love adding that distorted sound. But the truth is they are not the greatest sounding pedal.
The mod kit was $20 and claimed a dramatic improvement in the ever-chasing tone.
Boss DS-1 Disassembled
Pedal with modification
The mod took me several hours. Longer than I initially thought but not bad for my first attempt. My biggest concern was, Would it Work? I was overjoyed when I plugged it in and the new blue LED came to life. I was even more excited when I plugged my guitar in and started playing. The difference is staggering. Immediately I started looking for mod kits for some of my other pedals. My next mod will probably be to my Boss SD-1 Overdrive pedal. Like the DS-1, the SD-1 leaves a lot to be desired.
Mod Completed And Ready To Rock
Adrian Torbenson – Just Can’t Move On
This afternoon Adrian Torbenson’s debut album ‘Just Can’t Move On’ went live on cdbaby.com.
Check it out HERE. Give it a listen.
Sometimes it’s the little things.
In the audio game we spend a lot of money on gear and software and sometimes it’s great to know a company has your back, even if it’s a rather minor thing. Recently I bought a new pair of headphones opting to get Audio-Technica’s ATH-M50’s. Now like a lot of gear I checked out the used markets of Craigslist and eBay before buying. The pair I ended up purchasing were like new from a seller on eBay. They arrived looking in mint condition but the one noticeable thing was the absence of the 1/4″ adapter. Now if you don’t know headphones typically have a 1/8″ plug but professional audio gear require a 1/4″ adapter.
I have some snap-on adapters that fit and some screw-on adapters that did not fit. So I hit the internet in search of a suitable screw-on replacement. After a bit of searching I could not find anything with the Audio-Technica name to it and the ones I found I would not be guaranteed they would fit.
I then went straight to the source and emailed Audio-Technica. They must have replacement adaptors available for purchase. My email was responded to immediately with an email asking for my address so they could send me a free replacement. That’s right they said free. I shot them back my email and a couple days later my adapter arrived in the mail. I couldn’t believe it was so easy. And like I said in the beginning it’s the little things. All I needed was an adapter but they responded to my email immediately and shipped me a replacement for free. That’s the kind of support I greatly appreciate.
New tube, Well kind of.
This afternoon I received and installed a “new” tube into my Presonus Studio Channel Tube Preamplifier.
As you may know a lot of tube gear comes from the factory with a shiny new Chinese tube and for those looking to upgrade their gear and their sound replacing the tube with a vintage tube is a great way to go. For this I took to eBay and purchased myself a 1960’s Tung-Sol 12AX7 tube. So while it is new to me and it tests as New Old Stock, it is not actually new.
Presonus Studio Channel with Tung-Sol 12ax7
- Close-up
Now that I have a serious upgrade at the tube the real question is, How does it sound? Well honestly I don’t know yet. I just installed it and snapped a couple of pictures. I need talented artists to get into the studio and try it out. And then you will now.
The Phantom Dream
This week we finished up tracking for The Phantom Dream. Check them out on Facebook. Definitely a great group to work with. Look forward to the release of their Ep.
Adrian Torbenson – Singer/Songwriter
Recently singer/songwriter Adrian Torbenson has been in the studio working on recording his solo acoustic songs for his first release. Check out his Facebook Fan Page for more information. And stay posted here for more information on this great album.
Distorted Music Productions, LLC. 