If you’ve ever wanted to make your mixes sound more like the Fab Four’s, you can use this guide to do just that.
We’re huge, and I mean H-U-G-E, Beatles fans here at Blackbird (you can guess where the studio’s name comes from). And for this column, I’d like to give you some ways you can add some old-school Beatles sound to your mixes. Tighten up those belts, the Dojo is now open.
The Beatles’ recording process has been well-documented—instruments, mics, locations within the various studios, outboard gear, consoles used during the tracking and mixing process, etc. Recently, I had a Blackbird Academy student ask me how he could get more of a Beatles “vibe” while mixing his recent recording session. In the not-too-distant past, the best solution was to go to Abbey Road Studios. But now, today’s technology can get really impressive results with plugins that model the timbre and behavior of the original vintage outboard gear.
Original Recipe
On February 11, 1963, the Beatles recorded their first album. The 10 songs they recorded that day would be combined with their first singles to make up the U.K. LP Please Please Me. After you take into account the individual touch and feel that the Fab Four brought to their instruments—which I strongly believe is the biggest contributor to their sound—the remaining factors consist of the room acoustics (in Abbey Road Studio 2) and all the recording gear.
Just like the classic Coke flavor, the early 1963 recordings of the Beatles had a specific engineering recipe with a signal chain that was initially and most notably developed by Malcolm Addey and Norman Smith (Beatles aficionados will note that the legendary Geoff Emerick didn’t come on board until Revolver)—specifically, four pieces of outboard gear. The EMI-designed REDD.37 four-track mixing desk, the EMI RS114 limiter (a favorite of Smith’s), and two American compressors: the Altec 436B, which was so heavily modified by EMI it became the RS124, and the holy grail mono Fairchild 660.
The good news is that most of this gear has been faithfully modeled and recreated as plugins! Checkout Waves’ Abbey Road collection ($229 street) and Universal Audio’s Fairchild Tube Limiter Collection ($89 street). Chandler Limited has faithfully recreated the RS124 ($2,995 street) as well as other legendary EMI/Abbey Road gear for those who may want the analog experience.
Just like the classic Coke flavor, the early 1963 recordings of the Beatles had a specific engineering recipe.
The Process
During these early recording sessions, the REDD.37 desk’s four-track inputs were typically arranged in a consistent way. Track 1 was dedicated to the rhythm section with the Altec/RS124 compressing lightly. Track 2 was dedicated to rhythm instruments (acoustic and electric guitars) and compressed with the RS124 while tracks 3 and 4 were reserved for vocals and individually compressed with the Fairchild 660. Any bounced mixes (i.e. recording tracks 1–3 onto track 4 to free up the previous tracks and allow for additional recording) would also be processed through the RS124s. These compressors were also involved in mixing, mastering, and lathe cutting rooms at Abbey Road as well.
Your Turn
Let’s emulate this approach on a mix by taking a similar approach. Open one of your multi-track sessions on your DAW. Route all your drums, loops, and percussion outputs to a new aux bus and label it “Rhythm Section.” Place an RS124 on this bus and put your recovery on the fast side and try for around 3–10 dB of compression. Use your ears for this and don’t be afraid to go too far and then back off until it feels just right.
Repeat the process for all of your keys and guitars—route their outputs to a new aux bus labeled “KYZ-GTRS,” use an RS124 on this bus, another RS124 set for medium to slow release, and perhaps around 3–5 dB of compression for starters.
Create two other aux busses for your BGVs (background vocals or solos, or both) and one for your lead vocal (or main melodic instrument if there are no vocals). Use a Fairchild compressor for each of these busses. Set the time constant to position 2, and adjust the threshold until you get 2–5 dB of compression. At this point, you’ve reduced your mix to four main elements that you can control and automate as you see fit with broad use of specialized compression targeted for specific elements of your mix.
Finally, add a stereo version of an RS124 or use a Fairchild 670 (also stereo) on your main stereo bus as well as the REDD.37 mixing desk, and listen to the differences. Be sure to play around various subtle degrees of compression levels and reduction, and check out the drive knob on the REDD desks.
Until next time, namaste.
Inspired by the 1962 Gibson that John Lennon played in the film Help! and on many Beatles recordings, the Epiphone Lennon J-160E has a solid spruce top and mahogany body, with a mahogany neck.
This low-budget replacement for a long-gone Gibson has its own winning qualities.
Every now and then I'll see a guitar on TV or in a magazine, and say to myself, “Yeah, I used to own one of those. It was a great guitar. Wonder why I sold it?" A Gibson J-160E was one of those guitars. The Beatles used J-160Es on all their albums. Years ago, I owned one from the '60s, but sadly let it slip away.
About six months ago, I ran across an Epiphone John Lennon signature model EJ-160E, but it had a few problems. The first was a tiny split in the wood at the soundhole near the pickup. The second was a tuning gear that was broken off at the stem. The seller had plenty of pictures, so I studied them thoroughly—especially the ones pertaining to the problems.
The tuning gear didn't bother me. I figured I could find a replacement easily on eBay. And the wood split wasn't a big deal, because it was not a structural split in the wood, only cosmetic, and looked to be only about 1/8" long in the pics. So, I sniped the guitar at the last minute, winning it for $200 plus $19.29 shipping.
The seller said he was out of town for a week, and asked if he could ship it upon his return. I said “no problem" and began looking for sources for a Kluson Deluxe tuner. I found that I could get a full set of the replacement tuners for $7.25, including shipping from China. I figured I could always use the extra tuners on projects down the road, so I pulled the trigger on a set.
This guitar's mini acoustic humbucker is pinned tight to the body end of the neck, which has a rosewood
fretboard with trapezoid inlays.
My tuners arrived a few days after the guitar, and changing out the bad tuner took only three minutes. What's interesting about the tuners I got from China is they're stamped “Gibson," while the original Epiphone ones are not.
Another interesting thing: This guitar has the lowest action I think I've ever encountered on an acoustic. And it's not just mine. I've tried other J-160Es and they were the same way. Way to go Epiphone.
Although it's a perfect swap-out, the replacement tuners Will Ray ordered from China bear Gibson's name. The guitar's original Epi tuners have no branding.
Bottom Feeder Tip #3171: Sometimes you can find a guitar with a flaw that can be easily corrected if you've got the skills. Changing out a tuner is pretty easy—especially if you're using a direct replacement.
So, how is the guitar? I really like it! It has become my go-to acoustic for songwriting, and playing it is easy as pie. It sounds good as an acoustic, and when plugged in it has more of an electric guitar sound instead of your typical piezo sound—likely due to its stock acoustic mini humbucker. Keep in mind, the pickup is a fair distance from the strings, so you can't exactly rock out like you can on a regular electric. Check out my sound sample and judge for yourself. It's a keeper.
A Beatles fan enlists a young artist to handpaint the guitar of his dreams.
Name: Bruce Carrick
Hometown: Victoria, British Columbia, CanadaGuitar Model: Fender Korean Stratocaster
I’ve had this Yellow Submarine guitar idea in my head for years. Like so many out there, I feel the Beatles truly defined my life after seeing them on The Ed Sullivan Show. I never wanted to do anything except play guitar.
My idea was finally brought to life by a very talented artist by the name of Phillip Souder (you can find him on Facebook). He’s a young man with some serious talent! My guitar is 100 percent handpainted—no tracing, or anything like that—which is not an easy task to be this accurate and tasteful. He absolutely exceeded my expectations! The poster on the back is truly the icing on the cake. As you can see, Jeremy is forever alone in the sea of holes way up on the headstock. That was my only contribution to the context.
Yes, I play lefty upside down. This guitar, while being a run-of-the-mill Korean Strat, is a great player. A large part of that is the handwound pickups done for me by a killer guitar player and tech, my friend Dave Vidal, from Vancouver, Canada.
I’ve attached a pic of me with my Gibson ES-335, too, as I haven’t used the Yellow Sub guitar live yet. I always thought the Yellow Submarine characters would translate well on a guitar, and thanks to the brilliant work of the artist, the end result surpassed my vision.
Maybe the next one should be Sgt. Pepper’s on my Tele?
Send your guitar story tosubmissions@premierguitar.com.