Re-Amping: The Studio Secret to a Better Sound
Re-amping with an outboard: The Ultimate Studio Hack for More Flexibility
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Recording the perfect synthesizer, guitar or bass sound can be a real challenge. Often, after recording, the desired character, dynamics, or punch is missing from the mix. If you are thinking of re-recording, i.e. looping recorded tracks or sounds created by plug-ins through external effects, you should instead consider a proven technique: re-amping. This technique opens up a multitude of creative possibilities and allows you to drastically (and most importantly, positively) change the sound of an already recorded track. Whether it is guitar, synthesizer or even drum tracks, re-amping allows you to make sounds more organic, spatial and individual with just a few extras!
All About Re-Amping
What is Re-Amping?
Re-amping is the process of taking a clean DI (direct input) signal that has already been recorded and sending it through a guitar amp, bass amp, or external effects unit/guitar pedal to create a new sound. Instead of committing to a final sound during the recording process, this technique allows you to adjust the sound after the fact without having to re-record the actual performance. Especially in studios with limited recording space or unfavorable room acoustics, re-amping can help you add real amp character to sounds without having to start from scratch.
If you have an audio interface with a Hi-Z input, you can avoid using a DI box when recording the direct signal. Of course, sound design also benefits from re-amping. And that goes for all genres of music. That’s why this tip is not just for guitarists and bassists, but also for electronic music producers (like me). Because this is exactly the method you can use to improve your sound and creativity – if you work with external effects (here is a workshop on how to integrate external effects into Ableton Live).
Why do we Need This Technology?
The need for this technology is driven by several factors. One of the most important is flexibility in the mix. While a mic’ed guitar, drum, or vocal track often depends heavily on room acoustics, microphone selection, and amp settings, a DI track remains completely neutral and allows for subsequent sonic experimentation – both in the box and out of the box.
If you notice during production that an instrument sounds too thin or too dominant, you can re-amplify it to perfectly match the mix. Not only does this save time, but it also allows you to adapt the sound to different styles without having to bring a musician back into the studio or re-record the track.
Another key advantage is the ability to combine multiple amps and effects. While a conventional recording usually involves only one amp and one microphone setup, re-amping allows you to record multiple amps or effects simultaneously or in sequence. This is where the fun begins! The result is rich, multi-dimensional sounds that are even easier to place in the mix.
For example, if you are mixing a modern rock production, you can use re-amping to send a DI guitar through a tube amp for warmth and a transistor amp for attack. The same goes for electronic music: a synthesizer, recorded vocals, or an analog drum machine can be enhanced with various effects. Then there’s the “jam factor,” where you can play the effects knobs live to add slight or strong changes (live modulation). Tip: Record the effects track separately to test different takes or to run it through another effect (or plugin).
Technical Implementation
To make re-amping work smoothly, you’ll need something called a re-amping box. This acts as an impedance adapter, since an audio interface or mixing desk shouldn’t be connected directly to a guitar amp or stompbox – try it yourself and you’ll see the difference such a box can make. The Re-Amping Box converts the line signal from the audio interface into a high impedance signal that resembles a real instrument signal. This eliminates level problems and ensures authentic sound reproduction from the amplifier.
The process is simple: first, the instrument signal is recorded through the DI box and routed to a track in the DAW (Digital Audio Workstation: Ableton Live, Cubase, Logic, Bitwig Studio, FL Studio, Pro Tools, etc.). Once the recording is complete, the signal from the DAW is sent through the re-amping box to a guitar amp, bass amp, or effects unit. The newly created signal can then be picked up by microphones (or sent to the audio interface via the effects unit’s output) and re-imported into the DAW.
You can repeat this process as often as you like to try out different amp and effect combinations – and don’t forget the tip above about recording to a separate track. It’s very exciting!
Re-Amping with External Effects
It’s not just guitars and basses that benefit from this technique – synthesizers, drum machine tracks, and even vocals can be given a whole new sound and depth by re-amping them with external effects units. For example, adding an analog delay or spring reverb to an electronic drum kit can add a lively, organic feel to the sound. Similarly, digital synthesizers can be “warmed up” with analog guitar pedals to create a fuller sound. This is how I work in my studio.
This technique offers a wealth of possibilities for experimental productions: perfect lo-fi effects can be created by intentionally overdriving a track with an overdrive pedal or tape echo, which would otherwise be difficult to achieve in digital productions. Combining this technique with vintage amps is particularly exciting, as it can add a very unique character to the sound.
For example, sending a clean synth track through an old tube amp or a cool guitar distortion (overdrive, distortion) will give you a warm, saturated, overtone-rich texture that fits perfectly into organic mixes. And let’s face it, analog really does sound better than digital emulation, even if using plug-ins is certainly the easier way. For example, a bassline from a 303 Acid track that you send through an analog overdrive, saturator, or directly into a distortion pedal after recording is more than cool.
This Hardware is Necessary for a Better Recording
Depending on the features (knobs for volume, splitting, mute, ground lift, high-pass filter, phase reversal buttons and other functions, XLR or “only” jack inputs and outputs), the small boxes cost more or less. Especially in a studio environment, you should be aware that re-amping hardware is actually only available in mono. This is logical, since the technique originated in the guitar and microphone world, where only a mono signal is needed. However, many effects require a stereo signal, so you will have to dig deeper into your wallet to buy two re-amping boxes.
Especially in electronic music, there are many synthesizers that only work in mono (303, Minimoog, some drum machines with mono outputs, etc.). That’s why you should get two mono blocks to be perfectly set up – you don’t need a box that processes a real stereo signal. Here are a few examples that are more than suitable for re-amping.
Conclusion: An Indispensable Studio Tool
Whether it is guitar, bass, synthesizer (plugin or analog), vocals, rap or drums, the technique of re-amping offers enormous sonic advantages and significantly increases production flexibility – and above all, sound quality. The ability to re-amp a pre-recorded track with real amps or external effects not only saves time, but also provides an authentic depth of sound that is often difficult to achieve with software simulations. This is true analog sound design.
Especially for professional studio work or demanding music productions, re-amping can make all the difference (in terms of sound) in the final mix. Anyone who explores this technique is sure to discover a whole new world of creative sound design. I, for sure, highly recommend giving this technique a try in your music room. It’s worth it!
How interested are you in the subject and do you work with re-amping and external effects? Maybe you have more tips and tricks for dealing with the “amp problem”. Please let us know in the comments below. Maybe you have additional hardware suggestions, which we are also interested in.
Further Information
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