RSR548 - Roger Alan Nichols - Drum Tuning, Microphone Choices & Getting the Sound Right
Recording Studio Rockstars
Lij Shaw
4.8 • 543 Ratings
🗓️ 6 March 2026
⏱️ 130 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Ever wonder how the chaos of remote recording setups and complex signals can actually come together in a studio environment? Get access to FREE mixing mini-course: https://MixMasterBundle.com
My guest today is Roger Alan Nichols, a Nashville-based producer, engineer, and songwriter with a résumé including Grammy-nominated projects, work with Hayley Williams, Steven Tyler, and the band Dreaming in English. He's also been a guest on the podcast multiple times, sharing detailed insights into studio workflows and production challenges. In this episode, Roger and I get into the nitty-gritty of managing complex signal chains, especially when remote elements are involved. We discuss how he navigates the technical maze of audio routing via apps like Audio Hijack and virtual devices, as well as practical strategies for recording drums and vocals in unpredictable environments. Roger shares stories about tuning drums, tracking with unconventional microphones, and how his experience with different gear influences decision-making in real time. We also explore the evolving role of gear and technology in Nashville's music business, including the impact of internet-based collaborations and sample libraries. Throughout, Roger emphasizes the importance of listening carefully, trusting your instincts, and simplifying setups to keep projects moving efficiently without sacrificing quality.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This episode of RSR is brought to you by Isotope Native Instruments, S-A-E-Institute, Adam Audio, Spectra |
| 0:09.8 | 1964, Grace Design, and Picker. These are tools that I use every day in my studio from the Spectra |
| 0:18.0 | 1964 STX-600 and Native instruments complete 15 to isotope ozone and |
| 0:25.7 | RX, atom audio monitoring and headphones, and the central hub for my studio, the Grace Design |
| 0:33.4 | M701 audio interface. Check out my studio profile on the Picker app on iPhone or Android and follow the |
| 0:41.6 | sponsor links in the show notes. Grab my free mixing course at mixmasterbundle.com and remember to like |
| 0:48.6 | this video and subscribe on YouTube because it's a great way to help support this show. Now, get ready to rock. |
| 0:56.3 | One of the things that I do is every time I'm done with a session or a project, I put everything |
| 1:01.0 | away. I could leave it up and leave everything miced up. And in a scenario that I was talking about |
| 1:06.2 | earlier, where I had three artists coming in over three days. I had to. You can't do a session and strike it and then get in it, you kill yourself. But the reason why I do that is so I don't get stagnant in how I'm hearing stuff. We hear stuff, we hear sounds, we chase sounds, and we get acclimated to the things and they become comfortable. It's like the guys that I've worked with know that if the snare and the kick don't sound |
| 1:29.6 | good, I don't think the song sounds good. |
| 1:31.6 | Yeah. |
| 1:31.9 | Because I want the experience to be great as it comes out of the speakers. |
| 1:35.4 | Yeah. |
| 1:48.4 | Welcome to Recording Studio Rockstars. |
| 1:56.2 | I'm Lid Shaw, and this is the podcast created to help you become a rock star of the recording studio. Rockstars, if you want fresh song ideas, complete 15 from native instruments has the tools to kickstart your creativity. |
| 2:10.9 | With Contact 8's chords tool, you can generate and customize chord progressions instantly for songwriting, and the phrases tool |
| 2:19.1 | gives you ready-to-go melodic inspiration right at your fingertips. |
| 2:24.2 | With 165 instruments and over 150,000 sounds, Complete 15 helps you turn blank pages into music. |
| 2:35.1 | Pair that with a complete control keyboard or machine hardware |
| 2:38.7 | for seamless integration and hands-on control. |
| 2:42.3 | Go to native instruments.com and use the code Rock 10 for 10% off. |
... |
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