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MPR4C001R-003 Portfolio: Production & Log 2 Template

Task 1 – WAV Mixes

Please add your uncompressed audio files to the block below

Use Me – Bill Withers

Jazz track

Use Me Remix – Alex H

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Task 2 – Production Log Book

1500 Words

Please use the sections below to evidence your personal contribution to the production for the portfolio. Please include details for all the tracks produced as a part of this portfolio.

Provide rationale for any of the production decisions that you made as a group. Include any multimedia (pictures, videos, audio recordings etc) evidence to the relevant sections.

Consider the following:

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Track 1 (Genre Specific Emulation) Use Me – Bill Withers

For this track, the objective was to emulate ‘Use Me’ by Bill Withers as accurately as possible, and as a result, we took into account many things, including equipment, instrument timbre, as well as our recording environment. We decided that focusing each recording session on 1 or 2 specific instruments would help as achieve the most accurate sound for each area of the track, as well as help us organize each studio session better.

In our first session, we focused on recording our acoustic guitar and getting the claps heard at the 2:40 mark. We organized for this session to be in studio 104, mainly because it was a smaller studio, making it more suitable for just two parts to be recorded. When I arrived, I set up the microphones, and stayed in the booth to record and monitor audio levels, adjusting whenever needed, and after this, we started recording to the guide track. When recording for the acoustic guitar, we used a Neumann KM184, as it can capture high frequencies in great detail, and replicates the microphone used to record the acoustic guitar in the original track accurately. (Soundref, 2025)

For our next studio session, we booked out studio 109 to record a vocalist for our track, but ended up scrapping the recordings after realizing the vocalist was not right for the piece, and had struggle belting certain sections. As a result of this, a member of my group stepped up and insisted on recording them himself, and after running his vocals through the distressor compressor, using the Warm Audio U87 and using Neve 1073 preamps (giving the vocals a warmer, more vintage, and 70s vibe), they sounded a lot more accurate to the original. Furthermore, we placed the vocalist around half a meter away from the microphone as he sang, a common 70s studio technique to balance out the vocal performance with the room ambiance. (Homerecording, 2014)

Before recording the drums, my group booked out studio 104 again to experiment tuning the drum kit to the track, and test out different drum techniques that would help make the drums sound more accurate. After hitting the drums on different parts, and finding the right part of the rim to hit for the track, we booked studio 113 for a different day to properly record. We used an Audix D6 on the kick drum for a reliable low-end punch, a common microphone for kick drums, and Oktava MK012s and Sennheiser MD421s as overheads to capture both the cymbal detail and the ambience of the room, which when layered into the mix, can help fill out space.

For our studio scheduling, each recording session was fairly consistent in terms of the date, the time, the room and for how long, with each session lasting about 5 hours, normally from around 6 until 11PM, and using only either studio 104 or studio 113, with minor exceptions.

Finally, to record bass, an AKG D112 placed on a Trace Elliot bass amp was used to give a strong and well rounded sound. After recording was finished, in the studio sessions that followed, we started mixing and adjusting the levels of each track, trying to make the sound, the levels, and the stereo image of each instrument be as accurate as possible. When mixing we made the bass a lot quieter, as in the original, it can only be heard on occasion, as well as put very minimal reverb on a few of the tracks, such as the vocals. We then panned the tracks, and sent out the final mix to everyone in our group.

Gallery 1:

Acoustic Guitar and Claps Session:

Drums and keys recording:

Failed Vocal Session:

Vocal recording:

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Track 2 (Live In the Studio Stereo Recording) – Jazz Track

For our live stereo recording, we recorded a jazz trio, consisting of a double bass player, a pianist and a snare drum player. We chose this group as we believed that they would be perfect for a stereo recording, mainly because each of the instruments they play rarely ever overpower a mix, but often sound soft instead, allowing them to theoretically balance each other very well.

For this session booked for April 13, we booked out studio 113, which is the largest and most spacious studio the conservatoire has to offer, which after setting up for three musicians, their instruments and our microphones, was definitely the right decision. When arriving in the studio, it was my job to test the microphone technique that had been set up, by moving a sound around the microphone, hoping that the microphones would follow my sound. However, after trying this for around 10 minutes and monitoring the signal levels, we realized there was a problem, causing us eventually to have to switch the microphones and the technique being used to a more reliable and less experimental one. From that point, I stayed in the studio monitoring levels, and adjusting whatever needed it.

The setup we ended up using was a Warm Audio WA251 tube microphone in the centre, and two Schoeps cardioid small diaphragm condenser microphones in an XY stereo configuration positioned left and right to record the group, as shown in the photo below. This technique utilized angling two microphones very close together, to the point were they were nearly touching, creating a unique but professional sounding stereo image, and overall, works effectively in capturing the room ambience, and the warmth of what is being played. (ZoomCorp, 2025)

For the snare drum player, we chose to put him in the middle of the room, as shown in the photo below, mainly because his style of playing truly balanced the session, and acted as an anchor for the recording. Furthermore, being the only instrument that was playing rhythmically instead of melodically, the instrument stands out a lot more in the mix, and as a result, fits better when heard from the centre.

The double bass player was placed to the left of the snare player, helping add an audible separation between him and the piano player, and mimicking how a traditional live jazz performance stage setup would be set up in both a traditional jazz recording and performance. Therefore, the piano was positioned on the right side of the room, mainly to separate the low-end frequencies played by the bass from the high frequencies that the piano was playing in this session. Lastly, placing the piano on the far right fully balanced the stereo image, and allocated each instrument with their own space in the mix,which created a rich and specifically nice cohesion when listening. (Motunation, 2008)

Even though we had the studio booked from 6-11PM, after around 3 perfect takes, taking around 3 hours, we realized that no more recording was needed, and we started packing away early, making it one of the most efficient and short sessions I have had in a studio so far.

Although the session sounded warm and natural, during the session, we forgot to see how it sounded in mono, which if we had done, would have revealed phasing issues that could have been fixed during the session, instead of in the mix stage. In the future, we could improve this by using a plugin to check phase relationships, and put the track into mono when recording to make sure that either side is not louder or quieter than it should be. Despite this however, the studio sessions that followed revealed that not a lot of mixing needed to be done, mainly because the recording was supposed to sound natural and live. Nevertheless, we made the snare quieter, as it often overpowered the rest of the mix, increased the volume of the piano and the bass, and sent the final bounce out to everyone in the group.

Room Setup:

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Track 3 Remix Track

For my remix track, I wanted to create a piece that used a wide variety of different ideas from different music scenes and genres. To incorporate electronic and DJ music, I first chopped up the vocals first recorded in our ‘Use Me’ recreation, and turned it into a catchy new idea, reminiscent of sounds heard in Dubstep and DJing.

Specifically, I chopped up the lyric where he says, “Use Me“, and where he goes, “Ayaya- said I wanna spread the news”, layering it in the background of the mix until it eventually created a rhythmic vocal in the background, to act almost like a hook to the song. After the hook was created, I wanted to add some chords to it, which was when I asked my friend Elliot to play a piano riff that could be looped throughout. I then ran the raw piano track through a stock Logic Pro X Amp, giving it a vintage and old-timey texture.

Next, I wanted to create the musical atmosphere to the song, and started creating a sound with my synthesizer that could be used in the background, to which I eventually landed on a space sounding reverb sound, which I then looped throughout the track. To create the bass sound, I just simply tuned it down and decreased the octave on my synth, giving a rounded and electronic sounding bass.

For the electric guitar at the end, I wanted to incorporate a metal sounding electric guitar sound to merge another genre, and therefore, used a UM pedal, running it through DI to record it onto logic, which gave the guitar a powerful and epic sound, bringing the track to a close effectively.

Finally, since I have experience in beatboxing, I figured I wanted to incorporate one more genre within the track, and therefore, created a Hip-Hop sounding beatbox, that I layered onto the track. To create the percussive high tapping effect, I simply recorded the sound of me hitting a spoon, and looped it, creating a rhythmic tapping that worked well with the track. To finish off, I ran these sounds through the ‘Telephone vocal’ effect on logic, further giving that Hip-Hop vintage sound, and finishing off the track.

Instruments used:

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Videos:

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Bibliography:

Post #2 (2014). Distance from Condensor Mic. [online] HomeRecording.com. Available at: https://homerecording.com/bbs/threads/distance-from-condensor-mic.371736/ [Accessed 21 April 2026].

Narang, P. (2024). The Definitive Neumann KM 184 Review | 2024. [online] SoundRef. Available at: https://soundref.com/neumann-km-184-review/. [Accessed 21 April 2026]

‌Anon, (2025). ZOOM Corporation. [online] Available at: https://zoomcorp.com/en/gb/news/xy-stereo-recording/. [Accessed 23 April 2026]

Motunation.com. (2008). Panning with a trio – MOTUnation.com. [online] Available at: https://www.motunation.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=30914 [Accessed 23 April 2026].

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