Post by Heather on Oct 26, 2008 17:39:48 GMT -5
Article from Digizine September 2004
www2.digidesign.com/digizine/archive/digizine_september04/contents.cfm?body=feature/
Evan Taubenfeld: Pro Tools Makes Things Less "Complicated" for Avril Lavigne
By Stephanie Jorgl
Avril Lavigne and Evan Taubenfeld
Some artists find it tough to focus on recording while out on the road, amid the many available distractions. But Avril Lavigne's engineer, guitarist, and co-songwriter Evan Taubenfeld feels differently. In fact, the band regularly tours with three Pro Tools rigs.
"It's really easy for me," Taubenfeld says. "I find it's the same as working in the studio — just without as many pieces of equipment. I think it's really cool to edit tracks on the bullet train in Japan, or punch in bass guitar on a track from our Munich show when we're in Australia." However, he admits there is a downside to the mobile life: it can be a real pain when the rigs are packed up each day.
"That's why I use my Mbox a lot," he says. "I can just plug in and go."
Hooking Up with Avril Lavigne
Taubenfeld's last band had just broken up when Avril Lavigne's A&R rep, Josh Sarubin, called him up to see if he was interested in auditioning for Lavigne's band. "Four days later I had the job and was shooting the video for 'Complicated,'" he says.
In addition to his live performance experience, Taubenfeld had already spent several years recording, engineering, and producing tracks. He even composed an entire musical while still in high school. Naturally, he soon started writing with Lavigne and engineering tracks for the band.
Taubenfeld started to seriously get into Pro Tools LE when he began working with Lavigne. "When I first got Pro Tools, I spent hours just looking around the app — I didn't even record anything the first few days," he explains. "I'd load in some random audio and mess with it to see what kinds of edits and adjustments I could make. It was fun. And it helped a ton to watch great producers and engineers work in other studios. I think I get a lot of my tricks just from watching people."
Taubenfeld was initially slightly skeptical about recording to digital versus tape, but as soon as he started working with Pro Tools, he never looked back. "There is so much you can do with digital recording that you can't do with analog — and you save so much valuable time," he says. "They're not comparable. A lot of people say 'analog is so much better sounding,' or 'digital editing has made things too sterile.' But I think digital recording has brought so much more to music. People are doing things that would never have been possible on analog."
These days, he relies exclusively on Pro Tools as his digital audio workstation. He also uses apps like Reason for sound design, effects, and beats.
For Taubenfeld, the convenience of Pro Tools is a major benefit. "I'm constantly making crazy comps from tons of tracks, and it saves me so much time to be able to edit the way Pro Tools lets you," he says. "Hand-drawing automation data such as volume, plug-in automation, and panning has been amazing for me in the mixing and editing process. And when I'm in the studio, Beat Detective is a lifesaver. The Smart Tool is also quite awesome."
Pro Tools On Tour
"Digital recording has brought so much more to music. People are doing things that would never have been possible on analog."
Taubenfeld does extensive editing on the road for Lavigne's live shows. "We've got some cool sounds and loops we like to add to the shows, so they all have to be taken off the record and built into these different arrangements for our shows," he explains. "We're always changing the lengths and tempos of songs, so there's always work to be done."
For international shows and television, each region tends to have different lengths of songs and different arrangements, as well. "We constantly have to take the full CD master and chop it up for performances in different countries," explains Taubenfeld. "Avril and I wrote a lot for this record just on my Mbox. We used it for a lot of new ideas, and actually did all of our demos for the label in my hotel room. Pro Tools is such a great writing tool, because it's so easy to transfer from rig to rig."
A total of three Pro Tools rigs go on tour with Lavigne and the band. But Taubenfeld keeps his personal songwriting setup close at hand. "On the road, we have two main rigs: one Pro Tools|HD 2 Accel system with 192 I/Os, and a Digi 002 Rack," he says. "Also, I keep an Mbox and a PowerBook with me for writing and recording. It's my little mini studio in a box."
The Pro Tools|HD 2 Accel system is used for multi-track recording of all Lavigne's shows. "It's great, because we can comp between the different shows and make a master live recording that we're able to release," Taubenfeld explains. "We also have a Digi 002 Rack on the tour, which I use to edit all the live tracks that we play to, and for editing all the different versions of songs for when we do promos in different countries. And we used that same rig for recording our entire mall tour." They were able to cut a CD straight from those recordings.
Smooth Integration
On the rare occasions Taubenfeld is at home, he tries to write and record song ideas as much as possible. "I've got all the instruments I need to make a full recording, so I usually sketch out the entire song and then take that into the studio," he says. "A lot of the time, we'll end up keeping parts from my original recordings — for me, that's one of the greatest parts of the process. It's awesome to physically take an idea from my home studio and build onto it to create a master that we actually use."
Taubenfeld's home studio setup is simple, but powerful. "I'm running a Digi 002 Rack with Pro Tools LE 6.4 software on my G4 PowerBook, and I use the Command|8 control surface," he says. He also uses an iMac for some of his heavy edits.
"I've got a few pres, compressors and processors in my rack, but this setup is mostly just for writing, so I keep it simple," he says. "I do all my major stuff at Wright Way Studios in Baltimore, MD. There we use Pro Tools run through an Apogee AD-8000 A/D converter with an SE upgrade and a Digi 888|24 I/O, alongside an SSL console. They've also got racks and racks of great outboard gear that we're using constantly."
Taubenfeld loves the way that Digi I/O interfaces integrate directly with Pro Tools. "It's plug and play, no messing around whatsoever," he says. "All the interfaces have different things about them that I like. The Mbox is so small and portable, yet still has two preamps in it that I use regularly. I don't know of any other portable interfaces that work as well as the Mbox and provide the same options for such a great price. And the 192 I/O is a great interface. I've used both the analog and digital ones, and have been very impressed with both."
He's also a fan of the Digi 002 Rack. "The 002 Rack is amazing," he says. "It sounds good, and it's got all the ins and outs we need for editing and recording. You can really do a lot with it — and the fact that it can be rackmounted has helped us a ton on the road."
Monitoring the Mixes
Taubenfeld uses Yamaha NS10 monitors both in his writing studio and at Wright Way Studios. "We keep a bunch of reference monitors around, but we do most of the tracking and mixing on the NS10s," he says. "I've actually been watching Steve Wright [Wright Way's head engineer and producer] mix on some boom boxes recently, and I've been very impressed with his mixes."
On the road, Taubenfeld uses headphones to monitor, since space is limited. "When we need to mix, we'll rent a studio for the day and use whatever they've got," says Taubenfeld. "But my Sony MDR-7506 headphones are usually all that I need while I'm on the road."
The Power of Plug-ins
When it comes to Pro Tools plug-ins, Taubenfeld gets busy with an array of Antares, Bomb Factory, Line 6, Native Instruments, and Waves products. "There are so many great plug-ins available, and each has its own great applications," he says. "I use a ton of the Bomb Factory compressors: the BF-3A, BF76, and Purple Audio MC77 compressors rock! I find them to be extremely versatile. The functionality of the Waves stuff is second to none. I'm also a big fan of the D-Fi stuff."
He cites Absynth and the B4 as his current favorite virtual instruments from Native Instruments. And he adds, "Say what you will, but Antares' Auto-Tune has made my job a lot easier when working with singers."
"Pro Tools is such a great writing tool, because it's so easy to transfer from rig to rig."
And for guitar processing plugs, Line 6 gets his vote. "You're never going to beat an awesome amp cranked to 10 just blasting out some great guitar, but I find myself using Amp Farm a lot for layering and making combinations of tones. With a few little tweaks, I can find tones I'm comfortable with. Echo Farm is great, too."
Taubenfeld also uses Line 6's outboard processors: He has a PODxt Pro at home and uses two POD Pros in the studio. "They're great tools to have around," he says. "I often get scratch guitar tones with them that I end up keeping. I don't like doing sessions without them."
Taubenfeld still gets a lot of use out of his pedals, but recognizes the uunique beauty of both hardware and software versions of effects and instruments. "I like plug-ins because of their amazing integration into Pro Tools," he says. "I've got a lot of effects units and pedals that are one of a kind and can't be reproduced. But certain plug-ins can do things that the outboard versions simply can't."
www2.digidesign.com/digizine/archive/digizine_september04/contents.cfm?body=feature/
Evan Taubenfeld: Pro Tools Makes Things Less "Complicated" for Avril Lavigne
By Stephanie Jorgl
Avril Lavigne and Evan Taubenfeld
Some artists find it tough to focus on recording while out on the road, amid the many available distractions. But Avril Lavigne's engineer, guitarist, and co-songwriter Evan Taubenfeld feels differently. In fact, the band regularly tours with three Pro Tools rigs.
"It's really easy for me," Taubenfeld says. "I find it's the same as working in the studio — just without as many pieces of equipment. I think it's really cool to edit tracks on the bullet train in Japan, or punch in bass guitar on a track from our Munich show when we're in Australia." However, he admits there is a downside to the mobile life: it can be a real pain when the rigs are packed up each day.
"That's why I use my Mbox a lot," he says. "I can just plug in and go."
Hooking Up with Avril Lavigne
Taubenfeld's last band had just broken up when Avril Lavigne's A&R rep, Josh Sarubin, called him up to see if he was interested in auditioning for Lavigne's band. "Four days later I had the job and was shooting the video for 'Complicated,'" he says.
In addition to his live performance experience, Taubenfeld had already spent several years recording, engineering, and producing tracks. He even composed an entire musical while still in high school. Naturally, he soon started writing with Lavigne and engineering tracks for the band.
Taubenfeld started to seriously get into Pro Tools LE when he began working with Lavigne. "When I first got Pro Tools, I spent hours just looking around the app — I didn't even record anything the first few days," he explains. "I'd load in some random audio and mess with it to see what kinds of edits and adjustments I could make. It was fun. And it helped a ton to watch great producers and engineers work in other studios. I think I get a lot of my tricks just from watching people."
Taubenfeld was initially slightly skeptical about recording to digital versus tape, but as soon as he started working with Pro Tools, he never looked back. "There is so much you can do with digital recording that you can't do with analog — and you save so much valuable time," he says. "They're not comparable. A lot of people say 'analog is so much better sounding,' or 'digital editing has made things too sterile.' But I think digital recording has brought so much more to music. People are doing things that would never have been possible on analog."
These days, he relies exclusively on Pro Tools as his digital audio workstation. He also uses apps like Reason for sound design, effects, and beats.
For Taubenfeld, the convenience of Pro Tools is a major benefit. "I'm constantly making crazy comps from tons of tracks, and it saves me so much time to be able to edit the way Pro Tools lets you," he says. "Hand-drawing automation data such as volume, plug-in automation, and panning has been amazing for me in the mixing and editing process. And when I'm in the studio, Beat Detective is a lifesaver. The Smart Tool is also quite awesome."
Pro Tools On Tour
"Digital recording has brought so much more to music. People are doing things that would never have been possible on analog."
Taubenfeld does extensive editing on the road for Lavigne's live shows. "We've got some cool sounds and loops we like to add to the shows, so they all have to be taken off the record and built into these different arrangements for our shows," he explains. "We're always changing the lengths and tempos of songs, so there's always work to be done."
For international shows and television, each region tends to have different lengths of songs and different arrangements, as well. "We constantly have to take the full CD master and chop it up for performances in different countries," explains Taubenfeld. "Avril and I wrote a lot for this record just on my Mbox. We used it for a lot of new ideas, and actually did all of our demos for the label in my hotel room. Pro Tools is such a great writing tool, because it's so easy to transfer from rig to rig."
A total of three Pro Tools rigs go on tour with Lavigne and the band. But Taubenfeld keeps his personal songwriting setup close at hand. "On the road, we have two main rigs: one Pro Tools|HD 2 Accel system with 192 I/Os, and a Digi 002 Rack," he says. "Also, I keep an Mbox and a PowerBook with me for writing and recording. It's my little mini studio in a box."
The Pro Tools|HD 2 Accel system is used for multi-track recording of all Lavigne's shows. "It's great, because we can comp between the different shows and make a master live recording that we're able to release," Taubenfeld explains. "We also have a Digi 002 Rack on the tour, which I use to edit all the live tracks that we play to, and for editing all the different versions of songs for when we do promos in different countries. And we used that same rig for recording our entire mall tour." They were able to cut a CD straight from those recordings.
Smooth Integration
On the rare occasions Taubenfeld is at home, he tries to write and record song ideas as much as possible. "I've got all the instruments I need to make a full recording, so I usually sketch out the entire song and then take that into the studio," he says. "A lot of the time, we'll end up keeping parts from my original recordings — for me, that's one of the greatest parts of the process. It's awesome to physically take an idea from my home studio and build onto it to create a master that we actually use."
Taubenfeld's home studio setup is simple, but powerful. "I'm running a Digi 002 Rack with Pro Tools LE 6.4 software on my G4 PowerBook, and I use the Command|8 control surface," he says. He also uses an iMac for some of his heavy edits.
"I've got a few pres, compressors and processors in my rack, but this setup is mostly just for writing, so I keep it simple," he says. "I do all my major stuff at Wright Way Studios in Baltimore, MD. There we use Pro Tools run through an Apogee AD-8000 A/D converter with an SE upgrade and a Digi 888|24 I/O, alongside an SSL console. They've also got racks and racks of great outboard gear that we're using constantly."
Taubenfeld loves the way that Digi I/O interfaces integrate directly with Pro Tools. "It's plug and play, no messing around whatsoever," he says. "All the interfaces have different things about them that I like. The Mbox is so small and portable, yet still has two preamps in it that I use regularly. I don't know of any other portable interfaces that work as well as the Mbox and provide the same options for such a great price. And the 192 I/O is a great interface. I've used both the analog and digital ones, and have been very impressed with both."
He's also a fan of the Digi 002 Rack. "The 002 Rack is amazing," he says. "It sounds good, and it's got all the ins and outs we need for editing and recording. You can really do a lot with it — and the fact that it can be rackmounted has helped us a ton on the road."
Monitoring the Mixes
Taubenfeld uses Yamaha NS10 monitors both in his writing studio and at Wright Way Studios. "We keep a bunch of reference monitors around, but we do most of the tracking and mixing on the NS10s," he says. "I've actually been watching Steve Wright [Wright Way's head engineer and producer] mix on some boom boxes recently, and I've been very impressed with his mixes."
On the road, Taubenfeld uses headphones to monitor, since space is limited. "When we need to mix, we'll rent a studio for the day and use whatever they've got," says Taubenfeld. "But my Sony MDR-7506 headphones are usually all that I need while I'm on the road."
The Power of Plug-ins
When it comes to Pro Tools plug-ins, Taubenfeld gets busy with an array of Antares, Bomb Factory, Line 6, Native Instruments, and Waves products. "There are so many great plug-ins available, and each has its own great applications," he says. "I use a ton of the Bomb Factory compressors: the BF-3A, BF76, and Purple Audio MC77 compressors rock! I find them to be extremely versatile. The functionality of the Waves stuff is second to none. I'm also a big fan of the D-Fi stuff."
He cites Absynth and the B4 as his current favorite virtual instruments from Native Instruments. And he adds, "Say what you will, but Antares' Auto-Tune has made my job a lot easier when working with singers."
"Pro Tools is such a great writing tool, because it's so easy to transfer from rig to rig."
And for guitar processing plugs, Line 6 gets his vote. "You're never going to beat an awesome amp cranked to 10 just blasting out some great guitar, but I find myself using Amp Farm a lot for layering and making combinations of tones. With a few little tweaks, I can find tones I'm comfortable with. Echo Farm is great, too."
Taubenfeld also uses Line 6's outboard processors: He has a PODxt Pro at home and uses two POD Pros in the studio. "They're great tools to have around," he says. "I often get scratch guitar tones with them that I end up keeping. I don't like doing sessions without them."
Taubenfeld still gets a lot of use out of his pedals, but recognizes the uunique beauty of both hardware and software versions of effects and instruments. "I like plug-ins because of their amazing integration into Pro Tools," he says. "I've got a lot of effects units and pedals that are one of a kind and can't be reproduced. But certain plug-ins can do things that the outboard versions simply can't."