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Knobs

by Academy of Audio®

Education Music

Season 1

How We Mix the Rhythm Section

What is actually on Simon and Terry's channels when they mix a drum kit and bass? This one is the guided tour. In Episode 15 of KNOBS, Simon Moro and Terry Hart go through the mixer left to right, channel by channel, and talk through exactly how they treat the rhythm section: the kick, the snare, the toms, hi-hats, overheads, rooms, percussion and bass. They start with the idea that holds it all together, the mix template: a rig of dormant, deactivated plugins that sit ready to click on the moment a sound needs them, so the boring decisions are already made and the time goes into the music. From there it is trick after trick. Samples blended under real drums for consistency, the Pultec-into-a-160 move for tight low end, ducking the bass with the kick, using transient decay to make a chorus feel faster, treating the snare like an actor with a character to play, the pink-noise reverb trick for a snare that cuts, why they expand toms instead of gating them, and why you should stop high-passing your overheads and rooms. Then bass: one source of truth for the low end, splitting into bands, and spoon-feeding the speakers a clean sub because, as they put it, speakers just cannot move that much air. Whether you mix in the box or on a console, this is a proper look under the bonnet of two working mixers. Topics covered: The mix template and dormant plugins. Kick: samples, Pultec into a 160, ducking the bass. Transient decay and perceived tempo. Snare as a character, the pink-noise reverb trick. Toms: expand, don't gate, audience perspective. Why you should not high-pass the rooms. Rooms make the kit sound like one thing. Riding faders on percussion. Bass: one source of truth and clean subs.

Why Digital Has Too Much Detail

What if the thing we love about film and tape is not their fidelity, but exactly where they choose to lose it? In Episode 14 of KNOBS, Simon Moro and Terry Hart chase a single idea sparked by seeing Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey on real film in IMAX: that analog puts detail where you want it and lets it slip away everywhere else, while digital spreads the same relentless detail across every part of the frame. Simon walks through how film actually works, the silver crystallising where the light hits, so Matt Damon's face is packed with detail and the sky beside it has almost none. Then he maps it straight onto audio: tape, biased so that loud gets darker and soft gets brighter, quietly doing the mix moves we now chase with saturation and compressors. Digital, by contrast, is perfectly crisp everywhere, which can feel less like magic and more like a 7-Eleven under fluorescent lights. From there they wander somewhere only an unscripted conversation goes: quantum physics and whether the universe is "digital" underneath, the brain's own frame rate, why too-detailed TVs and 3D break the illusion, and whether there could be a better, more focused kind of digital that loses fidelity on purpose, the way film and tape always did. Whether you mix in the box, chase that analog feel, or just love a good rabbit hole, this one will change how you hear detail. Topics covered: Film, crystallisation and detail where you want it. Tape bias as automatic mixing. Why digital loses detail in a bad way. Is the universe analog or digital. The brain's frame rate. Mood lighting vs fluorescent. Too much detail on TVs and in 3D. Could there be a better digital.

Safe Spaces vs the Perfect Take

Should a studio ever be an "unsafe" space if that is what the performance needs? And where exactly is the line? In Episode 13 of KNOBS, Simon Moro and Terry Hart take on their most contentious topic yet: the tension between today's safe-space climate and the uninhibited, un-self-conscious energy that great records are so often built on. Simon sets the scene with a two-week rock session where the artist brought the tequila, the humour ran locker-room, and the results were, he is convinced, a direct result of that totally free creative space. From there the conversation opens up: why sterile, clinical studios so rarely produce magic, why a producer has to be a chameleon who can move from a boys' locker room to a saged, sacred space, and the real job hiding behind the gear, which is reading and looking after the people in the room. They do not dodge the hard parts. They work through the non-negotiables (never intentional harm, zero tolerance around minors, protecting anyone who is uncomfortable), the awkward unintended consequence of the Me Too era, why it has to cut both ways, and whether a bit of adversity actually makes us stronger. Whether you run sessions yourself or just care about how creative work really gets made, this is an honest, uncomfortable, good-faith conversation. Topics covered: Consensual "unsafe" spaces and capturing energy. Why sterile studios kill the magic. The producer as chameleon. Controlling the personnel in the room. The real job is people, not gear. The unintended consequence of playing it safe. Anti-fragility and where the line sits. Non-negotiables: no intentional harm, minors, forgiveness.

Why Your Reverb Sounds Amateur

Why does reverb sound huge and deep on real records, and either invisible or a swampy mess on yours? In Episode 12 of KNOBS, Simon Moro and Terry Hart pull reverb apart: how the pros actually use it to create space, depth and emotion, and why amateur reverb almost always gives itself away. They get into the multi-reverb approach, a short ambient reverb for width, a long one for size, a plate for mood and feature verbs for moments, and why the ear gets bored so fast that automation is not optional. Then the real secret: pre-delay for intelligibility and putting the vocal out in front, and using darkness to push sounds to the back of a soundstage. Along the way: reverb as sonic world-building tied to emotion, the one-room-plus-pre-delay trick that makes a mix sound deep, panning reverb returns opposite the source, a dark reverb on the kick, snare reverb tricks for momentum, using 100% wet reverb as the sound itself, ducking the reverb with the vocal, and even reverb into a vocoder. Whether your reverbs vanish or drown the mix, this episode will change how you hear space. Topics covered: • Short ambient reverb for width • Building a reverb palette • Why the ear gets bored • Pre-delay, intelligibility and depth • Darkness equals distance • Reverb as world-building • Reverb as sound design • Kick and snare reverb tricks • Ducking the reverb with the vocal

You Need the Rules to Break Them

Everyone online says don't worry about the technical stuff, just be creative. They're wrong. And so is the opposite camp. In Episode 11 of KNOBS, Simon Moro and Terry Hart take on one of the loudest debates in music production: technical knowledge versus pure creativity. Their verdict is that it is 100% a grey area. Obsessing over technique early in your career is a rough creative time, but it builds a foundation you cannot skip. Technical "rules" really can block a brilliant experiment. And a genuine lack of understanding wastes just as much time, chasing hacks that miss the point entirely. Along the way: the painting analogy that explains why professionals have no off days, the reverb an engineer said you "can't" turn up that sounded great, the viral crest-factor video that is a masterclass in missing the point, a coding analogy for how to actually learn production, and why "I won't learn theory so I sound unique" backfires every time. Whether you lean technical, lean creative, or feel stuck in the middle, this episode reframes the whole argument. Topics covered: • Technical vs creative as a false binary • The early technical-obsession phase • When knowledge blocks an experiment • Why a lack of knowledge wastes time too • Learning the language, not just the framework • Knowing the rules to break them • Outsourcing your weaknesses • Understanding the why, not the gear

7 Questions Every Producer Asks

Why does your mix sound great in the studio and terrible in the car? And six more questions every producer ends up asking. In Episode 10 of KNOBS, Simon Moro and Terry Hart run a rapid-fire round of the questions that come up again and again, with honest, road-tested answers. They cover the car test and why translation, not talent, is usually the culprit, what actually makes a mix sound professional, whether expensive microphones are really worth it, why professional vocals sound so much bigger than yours, how loud you should record, whether to EQ before or after compression, and the biggest myth in audio production. Along the way: why a great mix is one you don't notice, why it's less about mic price and more about the product, why the answer to bigger vocals is almost always the vocalist, how to think about gain structure and headroom, and why being the cheap option is the worst career move you can make. Whether you're mixing in a bedroom or a commercial room, this is a fast, practical episode you'll want to keep coming back to. Topics covered: • The car test and translation • What makes a mix sound professional • Are expensive mics worth it • Why professional vocals are bigger • How loud to record and gain structure • EQ before or after compression • The biggest myth in audio production

New Tech, Same Mistakes: From Tape to AI in the Studio

Every generation of studio technology shows up the same way: a shiny new tool that promises to fix everything, gets pushed way too far, and only earns its place once we learn to hold back. Simon and Terry trace the whole arc, from wax cylinders to tape to Pro Tools, Beat Detective and quantising, Auto-Tune, stereo wideners, Atmos and now AI, digging into why the real skill was never the tool. It’s knowing a tool’s shortcomings and serving the song. Along the way: destructive drop-ins on tape, the magic that used to happen during a 15-minute tape rewind, and why “fixing” a performance can quietly kill it. Which leaves the uncomfortable question hanging over all of it. Are we brave enough to risk our musicality for convenience?

The UAD Rabbit Hole, Why Some Plugins Feel Analog

Simon finally gives in and buys more UAD plugins. After years of questioning DSP systems and dismissing expensive plugin ecosystems, Simon and Terry explore why some analog emulations genuinely feel closer to hardware while others miss the mark. The conversation covers circuit modelling, impulse responses, compressor behaviour, UAD vs other plugin companies, why analog gear often works better in context than in solo, and whether modern computers are slowly making hardware obsolete. A deep dive into what actually makes plugins sound “analog” and why workflow still matters more than marketing.

Perfection Is Killing Your Mix

Perfectionism might be the thing ruining your mixes. In Episode 7 of KNOBS, Simon Moro and Terry Hart explore why speed, instinct and creative momentum often beat endless tweaking. Along the way they dive into client feedback, fast mixing workflows, mastering frustrations, old records, dynamic EQs, plugin overload, live sound, loud music, and whether modern production has accidentally become too complicated. This episode starts with tangents and somehow ends up answering one of the biggest questions in music production: How much is enough? Expect practical advice, strong opinions, and a few audio rabbit holes.

Thick, Gooey & Controlled, Building Better Low End

Low end is one of the hardest things to get right in audio production and one of the easiest things to get wrong. In this episode, Simon Moro and Terry Hart unpack the foundation of a great mix: bass, kick drums, groove, monitoring, room acoustics, arrangement, and why adding more layers usually makes things worse. Along the way they discuss bass players vs guitarists playing bass, why room acoustics matter more than plugins, techniques for controlling bass consistency, and whether expensive gear really makes a difference. If your mixes sound thin, muddy, inconsistent, or collapse outside your studio, this episode is for you.

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