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Bill Simpkins

@bill_simpkins

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Bill is a music producer and engineer in Bellingham, WA USA.
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AI learned from our recordings, not from experiencing the instruments. Isn't it a little strange? We take an instrument apart with microphones and isolation, then we spend hours, sometimes days, rebuilding it for two speakers, hoping that it will sound (and feel) as good as or better than the instrument in the room we started with? Pianos, voices, guitars, drums, even ensembles if you consider that a single instrument. In our quest for perfection, isolating everything so we can adjust it later, fix it later, mangle it later, be creative later, we kind of lowered the bar, making music more predictable, easier to digest, making it easier for AI to imitate. More and more now, I appreciate an out of tune acoustic guitar in a pub, or an unconventional song structure. Even a simple flawed sentence in a word processor, that would be easy to correct, but left untouched, may someday be a treasure. by @bill_simpkins
Just some racks doing rack stuff for a 6 piece band tracking session. by @bill_simpkins
To control the level of slaps on an standup bass, I like to use a de-esser in full range mode. The range control essentially just becomes a volume knob for the slap. by @bill_simpkins
Red is for ribbon. by @bill_simpkins
Today’s guitar re-amping mess. Was a good day! #reamping #recordingguitar by @bill_simpkins
I did a project with the United Nations that was just released today. It was a journey in the making, literally. My friend Chris (aka Dr Chrispy) came up a few years with a song to mark his trip to space he was taking. I added some chord changes and Sir Stephen Fry narrated it. This year, the United Nations chose it for their Space Week song and wrote a string arrangement for it, recorded strings and piano, Chris put some new parts on it and then I mixed and mastered it. It's out now on the UN site and all the streaming platforms. All streaming platform proceeds go to the OCHA fund. link in bio. #WorldSpaceWeek #WSW2026 #Space4All #StephenFry #UnitedNations #UNChamberMusicSociety #drchrispy #alpenglowsoundstudios by @bill_simpkins
Setting up for a six person band. This is for one of the singing guitarists. by @bill_simpkins
Princeton Pi Pedal Power. by @bill_simpkins
This is a pedal I didn’t understand for the longest time and then eventually realized the brilliance of it. It can bring to life a sound and add a magical and energetic midrange boost without making it obviously overdriven. by @bill_simpkins
A Neumann U67 (top) and Neumann U89 (bottom). For very dynamic singers I commonly set up two microphones. The U67 is set optimally for tone with the pad off, the preamp gain set close to saturation, and a little limiting is added as well. Meanwhile, the U89 has the pad on, very conservative preamp gain and no limiter. I do adjust the preamp gain dynamically also for the U67 but the U89 in this case is a failsafe. The U89, despite its smaller size, is also considerably fuller and rounder sounding than the U67, so it works well if the vocalist is singing high, loud or shrill. #recordingstudio #bellinghammusic #seattlemusic #homerecording by @bill_simpkins
One is old One is new One is better And has no glue I run a studio in Bellingham, WA, and do freelance production, mixing, and mastering, remote or in person. Message me anytime. by @bill_simpkins
The LA-3A is one of my favorite compressors. Like the LA-2A, it is an optical compressor, but unlike the LA-2A, which has a tube amplifier, the LA-3A is solid state, with harmonics that to me sound more like the 1176. I would describe the LA-3A sound as a little faster and more forward than the LA-2A, but a bit more forgiving and adaptive than the 1176. It also does something magic with the low-mids, which is the part all the plugin versions miss. My favorite uses for the LA-3A are electric and acoustic guitars, very dynamic singers, pillowy kick and snare and bass guitar. I run a studio in Bellingham, WA, and do freelance production, mixing, and mastering, remote or in person. Message me anytime. by @bill_simpkins

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