Should you be using a higher sample rate? | FAQ Friday - Warren Huart: Produce Like A Pro

The featured question from today’s video is this: “Am I overthinking that going to a higher sample rate will be better? Should I go back to 48kHz as maybe it’s all you really need?”

In the Academy, we do a lot of stuff in 48kHz because we want to make sure that everyone can download the multitracks whether they have a high-end interface or the cheapest one, or if they do not have an interface at all, but just have their laptop. We want to make sure everyone can download and use the multitracks we offer!

But I have recommended in the past that people record at higher sample rates to future-proof their recordings. After saying this, I had a lot of people saying that everything is going to end up at 44.1kHz and 16-bit, and other people saying that you can’t hear the extra difference anyways.

The reason why I said to do this in order to future-proof recordings is because film and TV often require that recordings be at a much higher sample rate, and before you know it, everything will be 192Khz. So when I say “future-proof”, I mean record in the highest rate that you can, so if somebody likes your song and they want to use it in a film or TV show, you have recorded it at the sample rate and bitrate that they want it to be at. This is a really smart business reason to record at a higher sample rate, because you will be making sure that you can always be competitive and your music can be used in every different format!

Many people make amazing careers out of getting their music used in film and TV, so don’t exclude yourself from that possibility by recording at a rate that does not work for that format!

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Do you have a question you want featured on the next FAQ Friday? Comment below!

[ksubs]

Sets higher sample rate. Uses samples recorded at 44.1k. Listens to final product on an iphone.

[L.Scott_Music]

"I placed the mic and got it sounding good, but then I read the manual so I changed it. Now it doesn't sound as good but I guess that's how it's supposed to be. Anyway, enjoy your 'by the book mix'." :-)

[alejandrowizbourne]

For mixing ITB its great to record in highest possible samplerate because of math. It gives you a lot cleaner tuning result, less sample transitions inside plugin math, reduses linear filtrating (a part of plugin processing when oversampling). So aliasing artefacts goes to not audible freqs.

[mednone]

About placing a mic in front of guitar cabs: You needn't run back and forth to the control room. Just put a single tap delay of about a second or so on the signal. Then have the guitarist play a second then pause for a second. Now you can evaluate the mic position on the headphones because you hear the delay of the signal when the guitarist pauses.

[MichaelMarucci]

The conversion in my shop is handle by a Lucid 88192, absolutely stunning converter with an incredible feature set. The fact that it supports 192, was certainly in the list of reasons I went for it over some other beautiful legacy converters such as the Lucid 8824, and the Apogee AD8000. That being said, I record all my projects at 44.1 and only work on mixes at higher sample rates, but knowing I have the future proofing is exactly why I went the route I did.

It's all about options in this day and age.

[derrickbaranowsky]

Warren, I am partial to very good electric guitar sounds. While I generally don't have to use headphones while moving a 57 around to find my sound, something you can do if you ever did need to is to simply turn the guitar amp volume down very low while using isolated headphones like drummers have. Look for what you need while at this volume to find your placement, then remove headphones, crank the volume of amp back up, and listen to a pass in the control room to verify satisfaction. While the sound of a tube amp will be different at low volumes, it should not effect your choice of placement as you will know what character you are after regardless. You will end up having a marvelous day. I love your videos!!

[lucasrodenbush]

I’ve been deliberating for years over this as I used to own a Spirit 328 Digital, which I loved then... I found its limitations at 48k in light of the prevalent HD systems of the day... since then, I’ve been strictly in the box (making things sound “Good”, figuring things out, Scratching my head about what‘s been “missing”) until about last Spring when I came upon a Zed mixer on loan from a friend... I have since been conducting many experiments and am now personally convinced that Analog is the way!!! (Because of Physics, Vibe and Energy :) ) And I am back at the Analog-Summing Digital Mixer solution, as I would rather store settings rather than take photos :P ... I have chosen the SQ7 because it operates at 96k... and it Sounds Amazing, as a matter of fact. Very Happy!!! 🤗 The glue I have been missing for all this time since I turned my back on the Analog Process after the Great Digital Distraction of late...

[migzhaleco]

Warren answers every question that I have in mind that I couldn't find elsewhere on YouTube. Kudos sir!

[roq_itrecordingstudio]

Yes, Warren is correct about the UA interfaces. I use two Apollo 16, tracking a band or drums, I track hybrid style, committing plugs and hardware to the tracking session. UA is just wonderful to use. Tracking from 1 track to 20-21 tracks at a time. Just fantastic.

[jmi]

Highly recommend the Fab Filter video on sample rate. You'd be surprised at the truth of high sample rates.

[thecapsicumkid]

Hey Warren the tips for recording a choir was very useful. I'm actually recording an orchestra soon in an auditorium. I will experiment with your advised techniques!

[MartinLuxen]

Self-producing is so difficult, I totally agree and have the same feelings/doubts as you! However, when I listen back to something a while later, I might kinda like it. Especially when I listen to older recordings (months!) I might actually like it a lot...

[jamesstonehouse]

Depends on clock jitter characteristics of the interface. Some work better in 44.1 or 48kHz than at the higher rates. If jitter is an issue, then a high sample rate will likely sound worse than at the lower rates.

[doerrjams]

When I do tracking for ITB software instruments like Omnisphere, etc. There is a strikingly obvious difference in sound between playback on an 88.2 or 96k session to a 44.1/48k session.Especially is the sounds have higher frequency content in them. It has to do with downsampling filters in either the DAW or the virtual instrument when the samples in the plugin are 96k. To avoid over-ringing artifacts, the downsampling filters will roll off just under 20k. Sometimes that takes off just a bit of the top end that is still audible. So, if I'm doing a 48 or 44.1k mix, I'll track the virtual instrument stuff in the higher sample rate, then bounce the tracks out and batch downsample them in iZotope RX7. The downsampling filters in RX7 seem to preserve more of the top end clarity. If I do it that way, then I usually can't tell enough of a difference afterward to make a fuss about it. A

[stefankessels]

good call on the mic placement...go the distance to check the sound in the control room - kinda reminds me of the advice to put the pallet 20 ft away from the canvas, also to take a sec to look at the effect of your "move" on the bigger picture (what does the change in mic placement do within the mix?)

[jadealger]

Hi Warren, I would love to see a video on recording classical guitar. I play the classical guitar in pretty unorthodox ways, with alternate tunings and such - and I mix it with cello, drums, vocals etc. But I've found that when recording classical, it's easy to get too much of the nasty lower mids which muddy it up. Realising that you probably don't record a lot of classical, I'd still love to see a video on it if you get a chance.

[jamesmontgomery]

I use the pinky out sipping tea method, or thumb in mouth end of trumpet (pinky tip) facing mic giving perfect distance and elavation. thats just my op for vocals :)

[SNDTEK]

I have found vocal mic placement does indeed work best about 8 inches or so from the singers mouth..sometimes with a couple of pop filters and maybe a windscreen over the capsule of the mic to cut down on breath pops. it gives more "chest" to your track.

[darrenross]

Hi Warren, Thanks for another great FAQ Friday, really good advice, all the best.