Josh Hoffman

Used for the overheads on Why'd I Try, as stated by bandmate Michael Kirsch in this self-written October 5, 2010 SonicScoop article. The outboard gear list for Electrical Audio (where Why'd I Try was recorded) specifies an 8200.

Drums (Kentucky)

Bass Drum Front: Beyer M380 -> 1176 Limiter Slow Release, 20:1

Bass Drum Batter: Shure SM98

Snare: Sony C37e -> NTI EQ

Rack Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Floor Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Overheads: Royer 122 (L&R) -> 1178 Limiter -> GML EQ + 678k + 3726k

M-S Stereo: AKG C24 M.S (0 + ?) -> Electrical M-S Matrix

Room Ambience: Neumann CMV563 + N55k Capsules (L&R) -> 20ms Stereo Delay

Rimshot: Shure SM98 -> GML Limiter

Used for the rimshot on Why'd I Try, as stated by bandmate Michael Kirsch in this self-written October 5, 2010 SonicScoop article. The outboard gear list for Electrical Audio (where Why'd I Try was recorded) specifies an 8900.

Drums (Kentucky)

Bass Drum Front: Beyer M380 -> 1176 Limiter Slow Release, 20:1

Bass Drum Batter: Shure SM98

Snare: Sony C37e -> NTI EQ

Rack Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Floor Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Overheads: Royer 122 (L&R) -> 1178 Limiter -> GML EQ + 678k + 3726k

M-S Stereo: AKG C24 M.S (0 + ?) -> Electrical M-S Matrix

Room Ambience: Neumann CMV563 + N55k Capsules (L&R) -> 20ms Stereo Delay

Rimshot: Shure SM98 -> GML Limiter

Used for lead vocals on Why'd I Try, as stated by bandmate Michael Kirsch in this self-written October 5, 2010 SonicScoop article.

Vocal (Kentucky facing Center Field)

Main: Neumann U48 -> John Hardy M2 Preamp -> 1176 Fast Release 20:1

Vocal Ambience: Crown PCC -> Expander Keyed to Vocal Mic

Kirsch describes the vocal recording process in depth in "Part III" of the article series.

During our live shows Josh sings while drumming. Nevertheless, we decided to overdub the vocals in the studio. This was primarily for technical reasons: we wanted to have more control of the vocal in the mix, separate from the drums.

Albini’s approach to recording vocals was organic. Using two microphones and an actual metal plate reverb, he set up a vocal chain that would respond to Josh’s voice dynamically and in real-time.

Ordinarily in a lively, reverberating acoustic chamber, the depth and quality of reverb would be directly related to the volume of the voice. A quiet vocal would have minimal reflections whereas a loud, belting vocal would resonate more. In order to capture this on tape, a Crown PCC microphone was setup on the floor of Center Field.

Josh stood in Kentucky, facing Center Field with the door open. The Crown mic was keyed to an expander set to only turn on when he sang loudly. This technique can be heard clearly on our song “You’re Strange.” (Download here — at approximately 3:53, and 4:07 you can hear the Crown mic turn on.)

A Neumann U48 was used as a close mic, capturing all the delicate detail and nuance of Josh’s voice. The vocal was chain was also bussed out to an original Echoplate reverb, built in 1969.

The Echoplate is a large mechanical unit that uses a large sheet of steel, a transducer and contact microphones to create and record reverberation. The voice is sent through a transducer, which vibrates the steel sheet. The resonance is then recorded by the contact mics. The Echoplate provided a rich yet realistic sonic space for the vocal in the mix.

Featured in this July 16, 2012 Instagram post by Grandfather and visible in this December 7, 2012 Instagram post by Grandfather.

Visible in this February 1, 2012 live photo of Hoffman, as taken from this February 6, 2012 NYC Taper page of the Grandfather's February 1, 2012 show at Grasslands

Used on Why'd I Try, as stated by bandmate Michael Kirsch in this self-written October 5, 2010 SonicScoop article and as visible in this photo from the article. The equipment list for Why'd I Try (archived from the original Grandfather website) specifies maple.

Tama Starclassic four-piece drum kit all miked up at Electrical

Used on Why'd I Try, as listed in this archive of the equipment list from Grandfather's official website.

Used on Why'd I Try, as listed in this archive of the equipment list from Grandfather's official website.

Used on Why'd I Try, as listed in this archive of the equipment list from Grandfather's official website.

Used on Why'd I Try, as listed in this archive of the equipment list from Grandfather's official website.

Used on Why'd I Try, as listed in this archive of the equipment list from Grandfather's official website.

Used on Why'd I Try, as listed in this archive of the equipment list from Grandfather's official website.

Used on Why'd I Try, as listed in this archive of the equipment list from Grandfather's official website.

Used as an ambient mic for the lead vocals on Why'd I Try, as stated by bandmate Michael Kirsch in this self-written October 5, 2010 SonicScoop article.

Vocal (Kentucky facing Center Field)

Main: Neumann U48 -> John Hardy M2 Preamp -> 1176 Fast Release 20:1

Vocal Ambience: Crown PCC -> Expander Keyed to Vocal Mic

Kirsch describes the vocal recording process in depth in "Part III" of the article series.

During our live shows Josh sings while drumming. Nevertheless, we decided to overdub the vocals in the studio. This was primarily for technical reasons: we wanted to have more control of the vocal in the mix, separate from the drums.

Albini’s approach to recording vocals was organic. Using two microphones and an actual metal plate reverb, he set up a vocal chain that would respond to Josh’s voice dynamically and in real-time.

Ordinarily in a lively, reverberating acoustic chamber, the depth and quality of reverb would be directly related to the volume of the voice. A quiet vocal would have minimal reflections whereas a loud, belting vocal would resonate more. In order to capture this on tape, a Crown PCC microphone was setup on the floor of Center Field.

Josh stood in Kentucky, facing Center Field with the door open. The Crown mic was keyed to an expander set to only turn on when he sang loudly. This technique can be heard clearly on our song “You’re Strange.” (Download here — at approximately 3:53, and 4:07 you can hear the Crown mic turn on.)

A Neumann U48 was used as a close mic, capturing all the delicate detail and nuance of Josh’s voice. The vocal was chain was also bussed out to an original Echoplate reverb, built in 1969.

The Echoplate is a large mechanical unit that uses a large sheet of steel, a transducer and contact microphones to create and record reverberation. The voice is sent through a transducer, which vibrates the steel sheet. The resonance is then recorded by the contact mics. The Echoplate provided a rich yet realistic sonic space for the vocal in the mix.

Electrical Audio, where Why'd I Try was recorded, specifies a PCC-160 in its equipment list.

Used for the lead vocals on Why'd I Try, as stated by bandmate Michael Kirsch in this self-written October 20, 2010 SonicScoop article and as visible in this photo from the article captioned: "Electrical Audio has the original prototype for Jim Cunningham's Echoplate plate reverbs."

During our live shows Josh sings while drumming. Nevertheless, we decided to overdub the vocals in the studio. This was primarily for technical reasons: we wanted to have more control of the vocal in the mix, separate from the drums.

Albini’s approach to recording vocals was organic. Using two microphones and an actual metal plate reverb, he set up a vocal chain that would respond to Josh’s voice dynamically and in real-time.

Ordinarily in a lively, reverberating acoustic chamber, the depth and quality of reverb would be directly related to the volume of the voice. A quiet vocal would have minimal reflections whereas a loud, belting vocal would resonate more. In order to capture this on tape, a Crown PCC microphone was setup on the floor of Center Field.

Josh stood in Kentucky, facing Center Field with the door open. The Crown mic was keyed to an expander set to only turn on when he sang loudly. This technique can be heard clearly on our song “You’re Strange.” (Download here — at approximately 3:53, and 4:07 you can hear the Crown mic turn on.)

A Neumann U48 was used as a close mic, capturing all the delicate detail and nuance of Josh’s voice. The vocal was chain was also bussed out to an original Echoplate reverb, built in 1969.

The Echoplate is a large mechanical unit that uses a large sheet of steel, a transducer and contact microphones to create and record reverberation. The voice is sent through a transducer, which vibrates the steel sheet. The resonance is then recorded by the contact mics. The Echoplate provided a rich yet realistic sonic space for the vocal in the mix.

Used for lead vocals on Why'd I Try, as stated by bandmate Michael Kirsch in this self-written October 5, 2010 SonicScoop article.

Vocal (Kentucky facing Center Field)

Main: Neumann U48 -> John Hardy M2 Preamp -> 1176 Fast Release 20:1

Vocal Ambience: Crown PCC -> Expander Keyed to Vocal Mic

Electrical Audio, where Why'd I Try was recorded, specifies a four channel M-2 in its equipment list.

Used for lead vocals and the bass drum front on Why'd I Try, as stated by bandmate Michael Kirsch in this self-written October 5, 2010 SonicScoop article.

Vocal (Kentucky facing Center Field)

Main: Neumann U48 -> John Hardy M2 Preamp -> 1176 Fast Release 20:1

Vocal Ambience: Crown PCC -> Expander Keyed to Vocal Mic

(...)

Drums (Kentucky)

Bass Drum Front: Beyer M380 -> 1176 Limiter Slow Release, 20:1

Bass Drum Batter: Shure SM98

Snare: Sony C37e -> NTI EQ

Rack Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Floor Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Overheads: Royer 122 (L&R) -> 1178 Limiter -> GML EQ + 678k + 3726k

M-S Stereo: AKG C24 M.S (0 + ?) -> Electrical M-S Matrix

Room Ambience: Neumann CMV563 + N55k Capsules (L&R) -> 20ms Stereo Delay

Rimshot: Shure SM98 -> GML Limiter

Electrical Audio, where Why'd I Try was recorded, specifies it to be a modded Urei 1176LN.

Both of our 1176s are modified by Bob Alach for less noise, better linearity, and more headroom. Some 1176 units invert polarity, both of ours are non-inverting.

Used for drum overheads on Why'd I Try, as stated by bandmate Michael Kirsch in this self-written October 5, 2010 SonicScoop article.

Drums (Kentucky)

Bass Drum Front: Beyer M380 -> 1176 Limiter Slow Release, 20:1

Bass Drum Batter: Shure SM98

Snare: Sony C37e -> NTI EQ

Rack Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Floor Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Overheads: Royer 122 (L&R) -> 1178 Limiter -> GML EQ + 678k + 3726k

M-S Stereo: AKG C24 M.S (0 + ?) -> Electrical M-S Matrix

Room Ambience: Neumann CMV563 + N55k Capsules (L&R) -> 20ms Stereo Delay

Rimshot: Shure SM98 -> GML Limiter

Electrical Audio's equipment list entry is dated only one year after the release of the MKI, while Why'd I Try preceded the release of the MKII.

Used for the toms on Why'd I Try, as stated by bandmate Michael Kirsch in this self-written October 5, 2010 SonicScoop article.

Drums (Kentucky)

Bass Drum Front: Beyer M380 -> 1176 Limiter Slow Release, 20:1

Bass Drum Batter: Shure SM98

Snare: Sony C37e -> NTI EQ

Rack Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Floor Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Overheads: Royer 122 (L&R) -> 1178 Limiter -> GML EQ + 678k + 3726k

M-S Stereo: AKG C24 M.S (0 + ?) -> Electrical M-S Matrix

Room Ambience: Neumann CMV563 + N55k Capsules (L&R) -> 20ms Stereo Delay

Rimshot: Shure SM98 -> GML Limiter

Used for the mono-stereo drum recording on Why'd I Try, as stated by bandmate Michael Kirsch in this self-written October 5, 2010 SonicScoop article.

Drums (Kentucky)

Bass Drum Front: Beyer M380 -> 1176 Limiter Slow Release, 20:1

Bass Drum Batter: Shure SM98

Snare: Sony C37e -> NTI EQ

Rack Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Floor Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Overheads: Royer 122 (L&R) -> 1178 Limiter -> GML EQ + 678k + 3726k

M-S Stereo: AKG C24 M.S (0 + ?) -> Electrical M-S Matrix

Room Ambience: Neumann CMV563 + N55k Capsules (L&R) -> 20ms Stereo Delay

Rimshot: Shure SM98 -> GML Limiter

Used for the "bass drum front" on Why'd I Try, as stated by bandmate Michael Kirsch in this self-written October 5, 2010 SonicScoop article.

Drums (Kentucky)

Bass Drum Front: Beyer M380 -> 1176 Limiter Slow Release, 20:1

Bass Drum Batter: Shure SM98

Snare: Sony C37e -> NTI EQ

Rack Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Floor Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Overheads: Royer 122 (L&R) -> 1178 Limiter -> GML EQ + 678k + 3726k

M-S Stereo: AKG C24 M.S (0 + ?) -> Electrical M-S Matrix

Room Ambience: Neumann CMV563 + N55k Capsules (L&R) -> 20ms Stereo Delay

Rimshot: Shure SM98 -> GML Limiter

Used for the overheads on Why'd I Try, as stated by bandmate Michael Kirsch in this self-written October 5, 2010 SonicScoop article.

Drums (Kentucky)

Bass Drum Front: Beyer M380 -> 1176 Limiter Slow Release, 20:1

Bass Drum Batter: Shure SM98

Snare: Sony C37e -> NTI EQ

Rack Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Floor Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Overheads: Royer 122 (L&R) -> 1178 Limiter -> GML EQ + 678k + 3726k

M-S Stereo: AKG C24 M.S (0 + ?) -> Electrical M-S Matrix

Room Ambience: Neumann CMV563 + N55k Capsules (L&R) -> 20ms Stereo Delay

Rimshot: Shure SM98 -> GML Limiter

A CVM563 with an N55k capsule was used as an ambient mic for the drums on Why'd I Try, as stated by bandmate Michael Kirsch in this self-written October 5, 2010 SonicScoop article.

Drums (Kentucky)

Bass Drum Front: Beyer M380 -> 1176 Limiter Slow Release, 20:1

Bass Drum Batter: Shure SM98

Snare: Sony C37e -> NTI EQ

Rack Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Floor Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Overheads: Royer 122 (L&R) -> 1178 Limiter -> GML EQ + 678k + 3726k

M-S Stereo: AKG C24 M.S (0 + ?) -> Electrical M-S Matrix

Room Ambience: Neumann CMV563 + N55k Capsules (L&R) -> 20ms Stereo Delay

Rimshot: Shure SM98 -> GML Limiter

Used for the snare drum on Why'd I Try, as stated by bandmate Michael Kirsch in this self-written October 5, 2010 SonicScoop article. It is erroneously written as a "C37e", but the microphone list for Electrical Audio (where Why'd I Try was recorded) specifies a C37p.

Drums (Kentucky)

Bass Drum Front: Beyer M380 -> 1176 Limiter Slow Release, 20:1

Bass Drum Batter: Shure SM98

Snare: Sony C37e -> NTI EQ

Rack Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Floor Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Overheads: Royer 122 (L&R) -> 1178 Limiter -> GML EQ + 678k + 3726k

M-S Stereo: AKG C24 M.S (0 + ?) -> Electrical M-S Matrix

Room Ambience: Neumann CMV563 + N55k Capsules (L&R) -> 20ms Stereo Delay

Rimshot: Shure SM98 -> GML Limiter

A mirror of the miking list was posted to Kirsch on the TapeOp Message Board on August 12, 2010.

Used for the snare drum on Why'd I Try, as stated by bandmate Michael Kirsch in this self-written October 5, 2010 SonicScoop article. The outboard gear list for Electrical Audio (where Why'd I Try was recorded) specifies an EQ3.

Drums (Kentucky)

Bass Drum Front: Beyer M380 -> 1176 Limiter Slow Release, 20:1

Bass Drum Batter: Shure SM98

Snare: Sony C37e -> NTI EQ

Rack Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Floor Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Overheads: Royer 122 (L&R) -> 1178 Limiter -> GML EQ + 678k + 3726k

M-S Stereo: AKG C24 M.S (0 + ?) -> Electrical M-S Matrix

Room Ambience: Neumann CMV563 + N55k Capsules (L&R) -> 20ms Stereo Delay

Rimshot: Shure SM98 -> GML Limiter

Used for the "bass drum batter" and rimshot on Why'd I Try, as stated by bandmate Michael Kirsch in this self-written October 5, 2010 SonicScoop article.

Drums (Kentucky)

Bass Drum Front: Beyer M380 -> 1176 Limiter Slow Release, 20:1

Bass Drum Batter: Shure SM98

Snare: Sony C37e -> NTI EQ

Rack Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Floor Tom: Josephson E22s Top and Bottom

Overheads: Royer 122 (L&R) -> 1178 Limiter -> GML EQ + 678k + 3726k

M-S Stereo: AKG C24 M.S (0 + ?) -> Electrical M-S Matrix

Room Ambience: Neumann CMV563 + N55k Capsules (L&R) -> 20ms Stereo Delay

Rimshot: Shure SM98 -> GML Limiter

Featured in this July 16, 2012 Instagram post by Grandfather and visible in this December 7, 2012 Instagram post by Grandfather and this December 8, 2012 Instagram post by Grandfather.

Featured in this July 16, 2012 Instagram post by Grandfather and visible in this December 7, 2012 Instagram post by Grandfather and this December 8, 2012 Instagram post by Grandfather.

Featured in this July 16, 2012 Instagram post by Grandfather and visible in this December 7, 2012 Instagram post by Grandfather and this December 8, 2012 Instagram post by Grandfather.

Used for vocals on In Human Form, as featured in this February 14, 2012 Instagram post by Grandfather and this August 28, 2012 Instagram post by Grandfather.