DIY Acoustically Treated Wall8/25/2016  I'm in LOVE with my acoustic wall! I can't wait to record music and get a crisper, cleaner recording. Plus, it looks so badass!
It ain't easy to make a sound-treated wall in a dorm room. My ceilings are high, my room echoes when I talk, and I'm not even allowed to make any permanent changes to my walls! But I've figured out the best way to do it - and I couldn't be happier with my results! How to Make a DIY Acoustically Treated Wall (even in a dorm) Step 1: Gather materials. On Amazon for about 20 bucks, you can order 12 panels of 1'x1' pieces of acoustic foam. I got the kind with straight line groves (because it was the cheapest and like I've said...I'm a college student) but any kind will work. Now, if you're working in a room that you own and you can significantly alter, buy some spray adhesive, make your life easy, and just permanently stick the foam to the wall! If you are working with a rented space, you're going to need to find a hot glue gun, some poster board, and sticky tack or masking tape! Step 2: Hot glue. So.... the foam WILL NOT stick to the walls unless spray adhesive is used. I tried tirelessly to use everything and anything non-permanent. The foam is just too porous. However...you can use the permanent stuff on the foam, and just glue it to poster board, and the poster board will attach to the walls using nonpermanent methods! So you can hot glue (or spray glue) the foam to squares of poster board. I suggest cutting the squares of poster board slightly smaller than the foam panels. Step 3: Get it ready for the wall. Now that you've attached all the panels to poster board, you can hang the poster board side to your wall using any method you prefer! I did some with sticky tack, and some with masking tape, and had success with both. Step 4: Arrange accordingly. To get the best results with my straight groove foam, I did every other board horizontal and vertical. Not only does it look awesome, but it will be the most effective arrangement for blocking out noise! I hope this helped all my fellow college student DIY musicians! Rock on. -Brenna Lynn
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Tips For Choosing Equipment8/18/2016 It's SO HARD to choose equipment! Especially if you are like me and struggle with making decisions. And it gets even HARDER when money is a [very] limited resource. But don't worry musicians, I can give you some tips!
Tips for Purchasing Recording Equipment 1. Define your price range. Sure, I'd love a $700 microphone. But I don't have $700 to spend on a mic right now. And even if I did, I wouldn't want to pour all of my funds into one piece of equipment. Consider how much money you HAVE to spend, and how much money you are willing to spend. Typically, better equipment costs more...but usually there's some type of plateau. For example, you probably need to spend at least $100 to get a good mic, but spending $150 doesn't necessarily guarantee better quality than the $100 mic. Consider your price range, and define the options for that price range. 2.Speak to a pro. Whether you have someone in your contacts that you can speak with, or if you need to email some strangers, you should really speak with a professional. Talk to someone who's been doing this for years! I asked my teacher of my recording program for his advice, and it was BEYOND helpful! He suggested my mic to me, the AT 2035. 3. RESEARCH. This is a big one. What the heck is a low band pass filter? Do I need one? ...Look into it! Are you hoping to get a condensor mic, or will a dynamic work for you? What are you recording? What mics work best for that? Or should you just plug the instrument in? I know, I know, it's so overwhelming. But that's ok. Read up on everything that you can get your hands on. Maybe you won't understand every word you're reading, but you know more than you did yesterday! This starts to give you an idea of what questions to ask at the very least. Research the heck out of your equipment. 4. Consider all pieces equally. You music recordings are only as good as the weakest link. It won't matter if you have the best mic ever created...if you don't also have good cables, software, audio interfaces, and everything else, it won't matter. You need to consider the best way to distribute your funds over multiple pieces of equipment. 5. Test things out. This is why I love Sam Ash Music Co. They always let me ask endless questions and test out their equipment. This is so important. You might save a buck buying something online, but if you haven't seen for yourself how something sounds, you just don't know what you are buying. I definitely suggest making some physical trips to stores before purchasing equipment. Trust no one's ears but your own. I hope this list helps you figure out what you want to buy! If your curious, here's my equipment list -Audio Technica AT 2035 (mic) -Basic mic stand -Basic pop shield -Pig hog XLR cable (mic cable) -Presonus Audiobox (audio interface) -Desktop computer with Presonus Studio One (DAW) -Sennheiser over the ear headphones Next on my list that I hope to purchase (once I've got the dough) is a pair of monitor speakers. Good luck recording artists! Music Video8/18/2016 I've been really wanting to make a music video from one of my songs. Should I make one about my song "Rain" or about my song "Arm Candy?" You tell me! Please comment on this post, dm me on instagram or twitter, or private message me on facebook. Thanks! Can't wait to see what I create!
Equipment...finally!8/18/2016 Well Brenna Lynn fans, I am super pumped to announce that I officially have each piece of my recording equipment chain. I'm finally ready to get some music recorded! Hopefully I will be pumping out albums (almost) as quickly as I write them now! I still need to do some work to turn my lousy dorm room into a functional recording studio, but I'm on my way.
Once I get my studio all set up, I'll be giving out some tips on how to set up your studio in even the most inopportune places! Anyway, the first song that I record and mix all on my own will be released FOR FREE on my facebook page. The song is a surprise for now, but I can tell you this...it is LONG anticipated! If you want to receive a FREE SONG, be sure to like my facebook page! Simply search Brenna Lynn Music, or go to https://www.facebook.com/BrennaLynnMusic/ . So excited. Stay tuned. Brenna Lynn
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