recordinghacks

What is this place?

RecordingHacks is an online magazine about recording gear and techniques, a microphone database and search engine, a directory of commercial mic modders, and the official home of the Tape Op Mic Review Archive.

I feel a great debt of gratitude to Tape Op Magazine and to John B. and Larry C. for many years of inspiration, not only for the vast amount of recording knowledge jammed into every issue, but for their implicit lessons in community-building and generosity. I hope to do as well here.

The microphone database came about primarily from my frustration in researching SDCs for drum overhead use a few years ago. There is a ton of good information about microphones online, but it’s diluted by 10x as much junky information, making the useful data hard to get to. RecordingHacks solves that problem.

Every mic profile contains the mic’s specifications, links to all the best reviews and forum exchanges, a list of related microphones, a tag cloud describing the mic’s characteristics, and a long description that includes, as appropriate, the mic’s origin and history, construction and circuit details, common applications, and more. Modification and upgrade opportunities are provided, with a sidebar showing links to commercial modders who can help non-DIY types. And finally, for boutique mics, I interview the mic’s designer to get a fuller glimpse into the mic’s design intent and some of the technical magic embodied in the physical microphone.

The database provides four distinct navigation schemes for all this information: browse by vendor, browse by tag cloud, search by mic type or classification, browse by “related mics.”

Supplementing all this is the Mic Review Archive, which contains most of the microphone reviews published in Tape Op. These are republished with permission, and represent yet another gift from John and Larry (and me too). Needless to say, the reviews are linked extensively into the microphone database, allowing readers to easily find specs for all the mics mentioned.

Who runs this place?

My name is Matt McGlynn. I’m a drummer and occasional composer and full-time collector of microphones. I used to blog elsewhere about drumming and recording and sourdough baking and Rubik’s Cube and other miscellaneous distractions, although at this point I’m focused exclusively on RecordingHacks.

If you want to reach me, send an email to my first name (matt) at this domain, or leave a comment below. Also you can follow me on Twitter.

Thanks for reading, and welcome.

Who else is here?

I have been blessed with assistance from a number of industry insiders, notably Michael Joly, Klaus Heyne, Oliver Archut, and Bob Crowley. See also the Credits page.

How can I help?

Submit a story, or story idea. Send us rumors about new gear. Take photos of microphones. Add mics to the mic database. Make awesome recordings. See the five ways to get in touch on the Contact page.