Morph Productions

I've been using the Great River preamps for a few weeks now and I'm loving them. Aside from their sweet microphone amplifying characteristics they're also great for running mix stems through. I've been experimenting with running the stereo mix of my drums, bass, guitars, keys through the Great Rivers and I have to say I love the final result. The mixes I've been doing have been more musical and sound, for lack of a better explanation, more expensive. I'll put some sound clips up soon of before and afters but here's a picture of my digital mix stem of the drums and then what it looks like after it runs through the Great Rivers. Compressed much? :)

I was working the other day with a hip hop crew that bought some beats online. One of the beats they bought was based off an obvious sample which more than likely wasn't cleared. A beat with a sample in it can create a lot of hassles for artists who want to get their music out to the public. Some artists I've spoke to about this have the attitude that, "At the time it becomes a big deal, I'll have the money to pay everyone off". This isn't really a good plan though for many reasons. Lawsuits inevitably always cost more than clearing something properly to begin with. It can also put your career on hold when matters are decided in court. A lot of times in this business you only get one chance. You don't want to blow it because your #1 hit is tied up in a legal battle for several years. By the time matters are settled, everyone will have moved on to the next artist and you will be long forgotten. This is of course if your song can even get out there. ...

The Great River MP-500NV preamps arrived a week ago and I have to say they sound awesome! These preamps were designed to be a "modern" take on the Neve 1073 sound which is one of the most sought after sounds in recorded music. I've had a week to play around with the Great Rivers a bit and I'm really digging them. I have been recording with an API preamp for about 7 years now so I'm really use to that sound. I was almost wondering if I was taking that sound for granted because I'm so use to it. I haven't had a lot of time to compare between the API and the Great River but I did have some listen tests with vocals. Without music I found they sounded relatively similar. When I added the backing music and listened again though there was a big difference. I can definitely hear what people mean now when they talk about the API "push". The API vocal stood out whereas the Great River settled in with the mix. I also found I could add more top end...