
Jim Anderson: Working with Reverbs
03/08/23 • 91 min
For nearly 50 years, Jim Anderson has set the standard for acoustic audio engineering and production, capturing pristine, high-definition stereo and surround sound recordings that have garnered thirteen Grammy and Latin Grammy Awards, two Peabodys, and a pair of Emmy nominations among countless other accolades.
Born and raised in western Pennsylvania, Anderson attended Duquesne University on a musical performance scholarship, and it was there that his passion for sound and technology first collided in the music school’s on-campus recording studio.
After graduation, he took work at the local public radio station, WDUQ-FM, and one year later, he made the leap to NPR in Washington, DC, where he engineered broadcast sessions for everything from news and documentaries to performances by jazz icons, classical orchestras, folk singers, and contemporary composers.
In 1980, Anderson moved to New York to launch his career as a freelance engineer and producer, and over the next several decades, he would go on to record studio albums, live concerts, and film scores across a diverse array of genres with the likes of McCoy Tyner, Christian McBride, Arturo Sandoval, Petula Clark, Patricia Barber, John Zorn, and hundreds more.
In 2003, he became a professor at the prestigious Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music in the Tisch School of the Arts at NYU. In 2008, he was elected President of the Audio Engineering Society.
Today, Anderson and his wife/production partner Ulrike Schwarz are widely hailed as industry leaders operating at the cutting edge of the immersive audio field, and their world-class recordings are regular fixtures at the Grammy Awards and on critics’ annual Best Of lists.
IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT:
- Recording with limitations
- How to handle high-stakes pressure when you’re working with the best of the best
- Helping artists achieve their vision for their albums
- Adapting to new recording environments
- Adding reverb to your mixes
- Using pink noise to calibrate your reverb levels
- How to create and use Impulse Responses
- Tips for starting your day with a fresh perspective
- How to record piano, horns, upright bass, and jazz drums
- Being intentional with mic placement and selection
- Using mics to create depth
- How the impedance of your DI can drastically change the sound quality
To learn more about Jim Anderson, visit: http://andersonaudiony.com/
Looking for 1-on-1 feedback and training to help you create pro-quality mixes?
Check out my coaching program Amplitude and apply to join:
https://masteryourmix.com/amplitude/
Want additional help with your music productions?
For tips on how to improve your mixes, visit: https://masteryourmix.com/
Download your FREE copy of the Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: https://masteryourmix.com/blueprint/
Get your copy of my Amazon #1 bestselling books:
- The Recording Mindset: A Step-By-Step Guide to Creating Pro Recordings From Your Home Studio: https://therecordingmindset.com
- The Mixing Mindset: The Step-By-Step Formula For Creating Professional Rock Mixes From Your Home Studio: https://masteryourmix.com/mixingmindsetbook/
Check out our Sponsors:
Download Waves Plugins here: https://waves.alzt.net/EK3G2K
Subscribe to the show:
- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/master-your-mix-podcast/id1240842781
- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5V4xtrWSnpA5e9L67QcJej
Have questions you’d like answered on the show?
Send them to [email protected]
Please leave a rating and review:
https://masteryourmix.com/review/
Thanks for listening!
For nearly 50 years, Jim Anderson has set the standard for acoustic audio engineering and production, capturing pristine, high-definition stereo and surround sound recordings that have garnered thirteen Grammy and Latin Grammy Awards, two Peabodys, and a pair of Emmy nominations among countless other accolades.
Born and raised in western Pennsylvania, Anderson attended Duquesne University on a musical performance scholarship, and it was there that his passion for sound and technology first collided in the music school’s on-campus recording studio.
After graduation, he took work at the local public radio station, WDUQ-FM, and one year later, he made the leap to NPR in Washington, DC, where he engineered broadcast sessions for everything from news and documentaries to performances by jazz icons, classical orchestras, folk singers, and contemporary composers.
In 1980, Anderson moved to New York to launch his career as a freelance engineer and producer, and over the next several decades, he would go on to record studio albums, live concerts, and film scores across a diverse array of genres with the likes of McCoy Tyner, Christian McBride, Arturo Sandoval, Petula Clark, Patricia Barber, John Zorn, and hundreds more.
In 2003, he became a professor at the prestigious Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music in the Tisch School of the Arts at NYU. In 2008, he was elected President of the Audio Engineering Society.
Today, Anderson and his wife/production partner Ulrike Schwarz are widely hailed as industry leaders operating at the cutting edge of the immersive audio field, and their world-class recordings are regular fixtures at the Grammy Awards and on critics’ annual Best Of lists.
IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT:
- Recording with limitations
- How to handle high-stakes pressure when you’re working with the best of the best
- Helping artists achieve their vision for their albums
- Adapting to new recording environments
- Adding reverb to your mixes
- Using pink noise to calibrate your reverb levels
- How to create and use Impulse Responses
- Tips for starting your day with a fresh perspective
- How to record piano, horns, upright bass, and jazz drums
- Being intentional with mic placement and selection
- Using mics to create depth
- How the impedance of your DI can drastically change the sound quality
To learn more about Jim Anderson, visit: http://andersonaudiony.com/
Looking for 1-on-1 feedback and training to help you create pro-quality mixes?
Check out my coaching program Amplitude and apply to join:
https://masteryourmix.com/amplitude/
Want additional help with your music productions?
For tips on how to improve your mixes, visit: https://masteryourmix.com/
Download your FREE copy of the Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: https://masteryourmix.com/blueprint/
Get your copy of my Amazon #1 bestselling books:
- The Recording Mindset: A Step-By-Step Guide to Creating Pro Recordings From Your Home Studio: https://therecordingmindset.com
- The Mixing Mindset: The Step-By-Step Formula For Creating Professional Rock Mixes From Your Home Studio: https://masteryourmix.com/mixingmindsetbook/
Check out our Sponsors:
Download Waves Plugins here: https://waves.alzt.net/EK3G2K
Subscribe to the show:
- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/master-your-mix-podcast/id1240842781
- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5V4xtrWSnpA5e9L67QcJej
Have questions you’d like answered on the show?
Send them to [email protected]
Please leave a rating and review:
https://masteryourmix.com/review/
Thanks for listening!
Previous Episode

Matt Ross-Spang: Leaning Into Simplicity
Over the past decade, Matt Ross-Spang has emerged as one of the premiere record producers and engineers working today across country, folk, rock and roll, and R&B. Known for a philosophy of putting artists first and for a skillset that’s enabled him to capture a vintage warmth and energy without ever sounding stuffy or dated, Ross-Spang has a discography that encompasses production, engineering and mixing for legends, perennial critical favorites and some of his own generation’s most exciting music makers: Elvis Presley, Lou Reed, Al Green, John Prine, Jason Isbell, Mountain Goats, Cut Worms, Drive-By Truckers, Margo Price, Lucero, Iron & Wine, St. Paul and the Broken Bones. He has won two Grammy Awards, for engineering Isbell’s 2015 album Something More than Free and again for its follow-up, 2017’s The Nashville Sound.
IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT:
- Working at Sun Studios
- Recording a full band with less than 9 mics
- Vintage recording styles vs. modern approaches
- Recording drums that have character
- Recording in mono
- Using minimal processing
- EQing and compression on busses, instead of individual tracks
- Gain staging your mix
- Embracing bleed in your recordings
- Using far mics for overdubs
- Creating roomy recordings in small environments
- Finding unique places to stick microphones
- Using digital technology in an analog environment
- Making samples sound organic
- Building his studio, Southern Grooves
To learn more about Matt Ross-Spang, visit: http://www.southerngrooves.com/
Looking for 1-on-1 feedback and training to help you create pro-quality mixes?
Check out my coaching program Amplitude and apply to join:
https://masteryourmix.com/amplitude/
Want additional help with your music productions?
For tips on how to improve your mixes, visit: https://masteryourmix.com/
Download your FREE copy of the Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: https://masteryourmix.com/blueprint/
Get your copy of my Amazon #1 bestselling books:
- The Recording Mindset: A Step-By-Step Guide to Creating Pro Recordings From Your Home Studio: https://therecordingmindset.com
- The Mixing Mindset: The Step-By-Step Formula For Creating Professional Rock Mixes From Your Home Studio: https://masteryourmix.com/mixingmindsetbook/
Check out our Sponsors:
Download Waves Plugins here: https://waves.alzt.net/EK3G2K
Subscribe to the show:
- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/master-your-mix-podcast/id1240842781
- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5V4xtrWSnpA5e9L67QcJej
Have questions you’d like answered on the show?
Send them to [email protected]
Please leave a rating and review:
https://masteryourmix.com/review/
Thanks for listening!
Next Episode

Ian Stewart: How to Get Big Low-End
Ian Stewart is a mastering engineer and audio educator from the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts where he's operated Flotown Mastering since 2011. Ian received his B.S. in Music Engineering Technology from the University of Miami in 2007 and has been a passionate advocate for audio quality, and for fostering a better understanding of the topics surrounding it, ever since.
IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT:
- Streaming loudness targets: Do they even matter?
- Should you master to -14 LUFS?
- How to prepare for your first listen of a new project so that you can create a game plan for it
- Establishing a benchmark for what your final mix/master should sound like
- Getting big low-end with your mixes
- Why bass isn’t always about the bass
- Basslane Pro: How it will give you total control over your low-end
- Understanding sample rates and bit depths: Which settings should you use?
- Should you upsample/downsample your tracks when you export?
- What is dither and when should you use it?
To learn more about Ian Stewart, visit: https://flotownmastering.com/
Looking for 1-on-1 feedback and training to help you create pro-quality mixes?
Check out my coaching program Amplitude and apply to join:
https://masteryourmix.com/amplitude/
Want additional help with your music productions?
For tips on how to improve your mixes, visit: https://masteryourmix.com/
Download your FREE copy of the Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: https://masteryourmix.com/blueprint/
Get your copy of my Amazon #1 bestselling books:
- The Recording Mindset: A Step-By-Step Guide to Creating Pro Recordings From Your Home Studio: https://therecordingmindset.com
- The Mixing Mindset: The Step-By-Step Formula For Creating Professional Rock Mixes From Your Home Studio: https://masteryourmix.com/mixingmindsetbook/
Check out our Sponsors:
Download Waves Plugins here: https://waves.alzt.net/EK3G2K
Subscribe to the show:
- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/master-your-mix-podcast/id1240842781
- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5V4xtrWSnpA5e9L67QcJej
Have questions you’d like answered on the show?
Send them to [email protected]
Please leave a rating and review:
https://masteryourmix.com/review/
Thanks for listening!
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