Getting that 80s AOR sound ?

[Shredragrammaton]

Hey guys


Ok , so after a longgggg time of saving up, selling stuff , and hard work , i now have a good guitar rig and a decent recording setup;

ADA mp1 3tubemod > Gmajor > Mesa 2:90 > mesa rectifier 2x12 vc30s.

M audio projectmix , shure sm57 , audiotechnika at4040 condenser , Sonar Producer DAW software , alesis mk1 monitors.

So these are a few clips from my "direct" recording days, when all i had was a korg $40 effect board ; www.myspace.com/almightyexcalibur

As you can hear , doesnt have the 80s sound ...

So having my new setup , and a lot of inspiration i wana get recording asap , but i was hoping you guys could give me some of the more technical ideas behind the 80s sound - what kindof reverbs , compression , drumkits , eq etc.

This track in particular has such a lovely oldskool sound, i just cant seem to get it ;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLMoG...eature=related

Any ideas ? The ada should surely do the trick !?

[albee1952]

It might help if you post what you ARE getting for recorded tone. What guitar and pickups makes a difference, as does how you play(2 players can sound totally different on the same rig). I remember loving the ADA MP-1 so I agree that it should do the trick. I would bypass the Gmajor for recording and use plugins for verb/delay/chorus. I know the 57 is "the standard" rock guitar mic, but it is usually run thru a Neve preamp(BIG difference) and is not perfect for everyone. I prefer a Cascade DR2 for guitar(but the FatHead II should be the same). Listen to the 2 tunes on this myspace page[http://www.myspace.com/dantracey] to hear that mic on a Vox AD120VT(listen to the song I Believe). I am an '80's fan myself. I have to try to NOT sound like the 80's. I would try double-tracking the guitars. For solo's, you can try using a mono-stereo delay plugin with 20ms on one side and 35ms on the other side(adjust to taste) to give the solo some spread. Also, for '80's vibe, some mono delay around 375-425ms with a few repeats might work. Toss in a little hall reverb. Maybe a touch of light chorus on the guitar(always feed the long delay and reverb thru aux tracks instead of inserting on the actual guitar audio track).

http://www.myspace.com/cswstudio

[RNRCRAZYKNIGHT]

I went and listened to the AOR track. Great band. When I was listening to it, the tone sounded very familiar in parts. I went to Tommy Denander's website and saw a piece of gear I used to own and really depended on. The Rocktron Progap preamp. I bought my first one after spending 3-4 days in different music shops trying every preamp I could find (A/DA, A.R.T., etc....). I chose it over the others because it has that sound in it. Plus, at the time Steve Lukather and Allen Holdworth were both using this preamp (they both have signature settings that take up the first 10 presets).

Anyway, it is definitely better to record as dry as you can and use the effects plugins in your software.


Scott