In Summary

With no single way to run a successful studio business, the audio engineering community is made up of many different types of people. Which one are you? What can we learn from others? Read on to find out…

Going Deeper

With the modern freelance engineer wearing many hats, it’s easy to overlook just how many different skills we need to survive. From accounting, to diplomacy, via IT support, and artistic endeavour, can there be many more careers as varied as our own? All these different skillsets inevitably speak to a whole rainbow of personality types. Some people are lucky enough to have many or all of the traits to make them absolutely indispensable on any production. For the rest of us, we can always work on the things that are going to make us whole when it comes to being all things to all clients (if that’s even possible!).

Here we take a light look at the different types of engineer working today. We might all see ourselves in some of these, and for the other types we surely will have met a few…

The Gearhead

“Never mind the cost, just look at the ballistics on that VU” is something that you’ll never hear a client say. Not so with the gearhead, or more accurately two or more of them in the same control room. These people have an incredible passion for the tools they use everyday. This can extend to software, but lets face it, no GUI can compete with that brand new shiny box as it emerges from the packaging. Who can blame them? We have a unique relationship with the tools of our trade; at work they can become an extension of ourselves just like the sportsperson’s bat or the carpenter’s saw. The gearhead can hear the difference between high-end convertors or components from the Expensive Transformer Company versus the clearly inferior Brand X offering. Like fine wines, they can select the right piece for the occasion. They like manuals. Most often they like their gear to have lights and buttons. And lots of them.

The Creative

The artistic engineer is the creative’s friend. They are the link between the technology and the people that know what the song needs in its purest form. That’s quite a jump, and the creative engineer not only knows their way around the DAW, but also a great song when they hear one. They understand how the song is so much more to the artist, as a container for their emotions, thought, creative expression, you name it. It’s precious, and with the creative it’s in safe hands. The creative engineer wants to realise the artist’s intent long after the other people in the room have gone home. They know how to interpret their vision. They can understand that sound in the very moment the artist is describing it to them, including for the artist who suddenly asks them to “make it sound like an orange”!

The Businessperson

Whether we like it or not, money is the thing that lets us do what we do. The businessperson gets this and plans ahead, has a calculator, and isn’t afraid to use it. These people know the value of their own work and charge the right amount. Ever had buyers’ remorse after that slightly-too-big purchase? Not the businessperson, because they have maths on their side. Only when that client finally pays up, (at the right price) does the businessperson think about the warm glow of their next important investment. When they need the services of another, they pay without delay having already pinned down the terms with others who have trouble remembering who agreed what with whom, when it would happen, and how much it was going to cost…

The Computer Nerd

The DAW is the gift from Tech Heaven that keeps on giving. All that power needs a home to work from and that place is the one machine that most of the planet cannot live without: the computer. Most know enough about them to comfortably keep their studio running smoothly, but the computer nerd knows more than you. Sure, they know how to point mics, and create mixes that fly as well. They know what to do far beyond Off and On, Uninstall and and Re-Install, pref dumps, network adaptor driver updates, kext files, and all the other things that are going to save the day after the analogue junkies have given up and retreated to the pub.

The Diplomat

They say that diplomacy is the art of letting other people have your way. The studio diplomat is so much more, because they have mastered the even darker art of letting other people have each other’s way. If there’s room, the diplomat might sneakily get their own way after all. But only in the name of a successful project - this is all about the music, remember?

The diplomat is just a great person to have around. They can resolve any disagreements and make everyone feel like they’re being listened to. To chance a few cliches, we’ve all been in situations where the singer might be having an ‘artistic’ moment. Or where the drummer thinks that they can do really good harmonies. Or the guitarist genuinely believes that one degree of rotation on their volume constitutes turning down their amp. We are of course only joking. The drummer can never do really good harmonies…

The Academic

With an innate curiosity for all the stuff that makes our gear and software tick, the academic has made it their business to know what’s happening under the hood. Virtually all engineers know how to do the work, but the academic also knows how the gear actually works as well. Their conversations might admittedly be a bit ‘niche’, but without the details, there is nothing. If that piece of vintage hardware goes down, it’s hardly going to end up in the bin. The academic understands components, amplifiers, transformers, and knows how to handle a soldering iron without setting fire to the curtains.

Whether its the physics behind pickup patterns, or the advantage of linear phase EQ, or just what exactly our dB metering is telling us, the academic has it covered. OK, so they might not always know where they left their keys but who’s perfect?

The Pragmatist

There are few certainties in life, but one thing is for sure: things break. Whether it’s a dead lead, a temperamental synth, or that most dreaded of all ailments, the dead drive, the pragmatist’s zen-like calm will ensure that the session goes on regardless. So what if the air-con has decided to break down, or worse still, leak into the studio? Or that Just One More Tweak is threatening to miss them the last train home? The pragmatist doesn’t worry, because if they don’t have a Plan B they can think of one there and then.

The pragmatist can also conjure up a new mic stand out of two old ones, or produce simple studio furniture armed with only some MDF and the tools they remembered to bring. Some think if something can go wrong it will go wrong; the pragmatist agrees to differ but always has a Way Out if they need it.

The Guru

The Music Biz can be a tough old game, and there comes a time in every artist’s life where the warmth of the studio becomes more appealing than listening to the bass player snoring (or worse) in the confined space of a tour van. The guru has been there and done that, and now seeks to show others the way in the studio. With stories of far-off lands, famous people, and a tonne of practical knowledge of the studio, they are the ideal mentor for the next band of young guns making their next record. They know what it’s like, and they want their proteges to make the very best record they can. Didn’t they used to be in That Band? The guru may have been, but they have since found the light and seek only to show others the path to true enlightenment in the studio…

All Things To All People?

Most engineers understand the need to grow and it’s pretty true to say that we can never stop learning, especially from other people. Having read through our roll-call of studio characters, we might see some of ourselves in some of them. If not, we almost certainly will have known a few of these people! One thing’s for sure: there’s usually something to learn from some if not all of them. You might be one of the chosen few with all of these qualities without even knowing it. If you are, relax: your work here is done.