The Digital Evolution of Audio Engineering and the Music Industry

Technology is an ever-progressing part of life that never ceases to amaze. In this age of technology, advancement is never ending. What’s considered to be top of the line today could very well be obsolete tomorrow. In the music industry, everything has been flipped upside down. Technology has completely changed the way everything works—for better and for worse.

Back before 1975, the world of music was in an age referred to as the “magnetic era.” (Wikipedia, n.d.) The era was named after the most important component in the audio-engineering industry at that time—the tape machine. A tape machine records audio onto magnetic tape, hence the name of the era. (Robjohns, 1997) Back then, a recording studio costed a fortune to create and maintain. To have one, or even work in one was an almost impossible dream. First of all, it was necessary to have a tape machine, which on its own costed about $140,000. (Jr., 1988) On top of that, the magnetic tape costs about $200 for 14 minutes of 24 tracks. The typical amount of tracks used back then was 48, meaning that for 14 minutes of audio, it would cost a about $400 in just tape. (Kagan, 2013) All of the equipment used was analog, which means that they record or process in real time. They record every measurable unit of time, whereas digital audio equipment records in sections. (Elsea, 1996) Below, there is a diagram of what an analog audio signal looks like compared to a digital audio signal. Analog equipment always comes with a hefty price tag. At the end of the day, to build a professional studio, you would have an over a million dollar hole in your pocket. As time progressed, so did technology. We entered into a new age—“the digital era.” (Wikipedia, n.d.) The cost to own a studio was cut dramatically, to the point where many people have them in their own homes.

In this digital era, audio-engineering has become cheaper, easier, better sounding, and an overall better experience. All you need is a computer, a digital audio workstation, microphones, and studio monitors to have a basic studio. All your work is done in a digital audio workstation (DAW), a computer program or application for recording, editing, and producing audio files. (Digital Audio Workstation, n.d.) Pro Tools, considered the industry’s standard DAW, costs $900, but there are multiple free DAWs such as Reaper and GarageBand that will get the job done just fine. The next and arguably most important piece of a recording studio in the digital era is an audio interface. An audio interface is where you send your analog audio signal into. It then it converts it into a digital audio signal and sends it into your DAW, where you can then manipulate the audio to your will. A top of the line audio interface costs about $1,500, but you can buy one for as little as $100. In the end, you could build a professional studio for as little as $150,000. For a top of the line home studio, you would be spending about $20,000, but you can build a basic home studio that can produce professional quality tracks for about $1,000. (Petulla, 2015) Compare those prices to the cost of building a studio during the magnetic era—a substantial difference. This new digital era enables your everyday person to record themselves for less than it would cost to book a session at a professional studio. Technology is an amazing thing. Below is a diagram displaying how a basic recording setup has changed from the magnetic age (right) to the digital age (left).

Not only has audio-engineering become cheaper, it has also become faster and more efficient as well. Before, to fix the timing of something like the hit of a snare drum, you would literally have to cut the magnetic tape and move it, and you risk ruining the entire recording by doing so. (Liljeblad, n.d.) Now, all you have to do is click the audio file and drag it to where you want it. It’s as simple as that. There are even plugins that allow you to stretch audio rather than just move it. This saves both a great amount of time and many headaches.
During the magnetic era, all the various effects (compression, reverb, EQ, etc.) had to be applied to the audio signal before it was recorded. That means that you would have to know exactly what you wanted something to sound like before you recorded it. People would spend hours doing sound checks to make sure they were producing the exact sound that they wanted, because once it was recorded, it was final, unless you wanted to pay another $400 for new tape and rerecord it. Now, during this time we call the digital era, it is completely backwards. You apply effects to the audio after it is already recorded. That means no constant fear that you’re going to have to spend another $400 on tape. This allows you to maximize your creativity and truly find what effects will suit the song best—a major upgrade from the magnetic era.
A huge upside to the digital era of recording is that you can copy tracks and use them again. (Otewill, 2015) For example, if you record a singer singing a chorus to a song, you can copy it and move it to where the next chorus starts. This means you only have to record that part once, rather than two to four times. This concept applies to anything you record: guitar, bass, drums, etc. This is extremely convenient and saves a lot of time. If you get that “perfect take,” you can use it however many times you need, assuming you use a metronome to keep time when you record.
Recording onto tape, you lose a lot of hi-end detail. That’s why some describe tape machine recordings as “warm sounding.” Some people like the sound of this, but it is less accurate sounding than digital recordings. Digital recordings have more high frequencies which provide a clear sound that can’t be beaten by a tape machine. If needed, you can always use an equalizer plugin to remove some high frequencies. (Otewill, 2015)
There is a huge ongoing debate over whether digital recording is superior to analog recording. Almost all evidence points to digital recording as being superior. A lot of old-school audio engineers are stuck in the past and are unable to accept the new technology. Recently, Universal Audio released a plugin called the “Struder A800.” It almost perfectly emulates the sound of the famous “Studer A800 Multitrack Tape Machine,” which is considered to be the best tape machine ever made. (Universal Audio Studer A800, 2011) That plugin puts digital recording on top of analog recording once and for all, though many will refuse to accept it.
Another aspect of recording in the digital era is the use of MIDI. MIDI stands for “musical instrument digital interface.” (John Bowen, 1983) This is how tools like digital synthesizers and drum machines were born. MIDI is a musical language that can be sent into a DAW and then be manipulated any way you want. This is done with a tool called a MIDI controller. (See diagram below) A MIDI controller has the ability to control a DAW from the controller itself. That means you get physical knobs and faders to control anything from panning to volume. This makes the mixing process much more convenient and less time consuming. Without the invention of MIDI, genres such as dubstep and techno could’ve never been created. MIDI has changed the way audio engineers work forever.

Technological advancements have improved the way music is recorded drastically, but in the music industry, technological advancements have created a major problem: piracy. Piracy, in terms of technology, is the theft of digital property. Music happens to be one of the most pirated pieces of digital property there is. All you have to do to pirate music is download a file-sharing program, type in a song in the search bar, and press download; simple as that. (RIAA, What Is Online Piracy?, 2015) Technological advances have made it that easy, and the music industry is paying for it.
Annually, the United States’ economy misses out on about 12.5 billion dollars, not to mention the 70,000 jobs and $2 billion in wages that were lost. (RIAA, Who Music Theft Hurts, 2015) If it weren’t for piracy, 44,200 jobs would have been added in the music industry as well as $2.7 billion in worker earnings. Annually, federal, state, and local governments lose at least $420 million in taxes. (Siwek, 2007) As you can see, piracy has very negatively affected the music industry and economy. As technology evolves, so does crime. It is a sad but necessary price to pay to further advance technology.
Technological advances have forever changed the music industry. Instead of needing a fortune to record music, you can produce professional quality recordings for less than a grand in your own home. Next to the cost, recording music has become a lot less tedious, more effective, better sounding, and an overall better experience, and it will only get better. As time progresses, so will technology. The recording technology that we consider to be amazing today could be replaced with something far better tomorrow. It is ever-changing, and a forever-progressing part of this world.

References
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