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Studio Stuff

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by Chris Selim & Steve Dierkens

5.0(3 reviews)

48 episodes

Updated Daily

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Podcast Authority

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FairBased on show quality, social media presence, reviews, charts, and more

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Podcast Overview

The Studio Stuff Podcast is your go-to home studio hangout, where music production, mixing, recording, and mastering meet real talk, practical advice, and the occasional lousy jokes. Hosted by Chris Selim and Steve Dierkens, this isn’t a dry, technical lecture—it’s a laid-back, no-BS conversation about making great music with the gear you actually have. Expect real-world insights, gear, and technique debates, plugin obsessions, and plenty of laughs along the way. Plus, we love hearing from you! Send in your questions, and let’s figure this whole studio stuff thing out together.

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Publishing Since

2/26/2025

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🇺🇸 Charts #3

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Podcast Authority

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FairBased on show quality, social media presence, reviews, charts, and more

Quality70

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YouTube76

Engagement32

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31 minutes

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Recent Episodes

May 26, 2026

Ep 47 - Staying Sharp in the Studio: Sleep, Food, and the Truth About Being Productive

Studio Stuff Podcast #47 | Staying Sharp in the Studio: Sleep, Food, Panning, and Everything In Between It started with Chris being half asleep on a phone call. And somehow that turned into one of our more useful conversations. This episode is about what it actually takes to stay sharp in the studio, and we don't mean productivity hacks or morning routines. We mean the real stuff: sleep, food, hydration, ear fatigue, monitoring habits, and how all of it directly affects the quality of your mix decisions. We break things into categories because there's a real difference between doing some vocal tuning on a tired Saturday morning and making final print decisions on a mix that matters. Knowing where you are in that spectrum changes how you should approach the session, and honestly, whether you should be in the session at all.   👉 Got a question for us? 📩 Submit it here: <a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScQolqQwFebNLmggM-0fGpGvAfknWSkYhwtok0KBg0VVoId7g/viewform?usp=header" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Form Link</a> We pull topics directly from your questions and YouTube comments. And if you’re digging the show, hit follow/subscribe and leave a quick review. It really helps more home studio folks find Studio Stuff. Then we get into a question from the MCC live stream about panning. Does moving a sound off-center actually change its tone? We dig into what's really happening physically, what's happening perceptually, and why your DAW's pan law settings matter more than most people realize. You'll Learn: <ul class="[li_&]:mb-0 [li_&]:mt-1 [li_&]:gap-1 [&:not(:last-child)_ul]:pb-1 [&:not(:last-child)_ol]:pb-1 list-disc flex flex-col gap-1 pl-8 mb-3"> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Why sleep is still the most important variable in creative performance</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">How what you eat at lunch affects your afternoon mix session</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Why monitoring at lower volumes keeps your ears sharper longer</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">What phantom center actually is and why it matters for your panning decisions</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">How pan law settings in your DAW affect the perceived level and tone of a signal</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Why taking a sound off-center changes how it sits in the mix, even if the raw tone hasn't changed</li> </ul> Topics and Stories: <ul class="[li_&]:mb-0 [li_&]:mt-1 [li_&]:gap-1 [&:not(:last-child)_ul]:pb-1 [&:not(:last-child)_ol]:pb-1 list-disc flex flex-col gap-1 pl-8 mb-3"> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Chris zones out mid-conversation about staying sharp. The irony is not lost on anyone.</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Steve's take on food: carbs during the week are basically a wrap</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Why the old rock and roll "no sleep, drugs, and cigarettes" era isn't the argument people think it is</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">The magnesium and theanine wind-down routine we're both apparently running</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Walking. We mean it. Just go for a walk.</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Phone notifications: off vs. intentional breaks, and why both can work depending on who you are</li> </ul> Listener Q&A: Big shoutout to Bullfrog from the MCC live stream for sparking the panning conversation. We talk through why panning a sound changes how it feels in the mix, the role of pan compensation, and why phantom center is one of those concepts that quietly affects everything you do in stereo.

May 16, 2026

Ep 45 - Your Smartphone Knows Your Mix Has a Problem, Do You?

Studio Stuff Podcast #45 | Your Phone Knows Your Mix Has a Problem. Do You? We get into three listener questions this episode, and at least one of them might change how you check your mixes going forward. The first question comes from Northern California, and it is one we have probably all experienced but never quite pinpointed. A listener notices his mix sounds great in the car and on AirPods, but something about the iPhone speaker makes his reverb sound harsh and brittle. When he tries to fix it, the mix loses something on the other playback systems. We dig into what the phone EQ curve is actually doing, why reverb returns tend to live right in the problem zone, and why other people's mixes don't have the same issue on the same device. The phone is not broken. It is telling you something true. The fixes we talk through: high pass and low pass your reverb return as a first move, add a touch of pre-delay to separate the wet from the dry, and check the whole thing in mono while you are at it. We also make a small promise to ourselves to start checking mixes on our phones more often, which is either a great habit or a rabbit hole. Probably both. The second question is about signal flow. Specifically, what is the advantage of routing your mix to a stereo bus group channel rather than going straight to the output? We walk through how we each handle this in our sessions, why the output channel stays completely clean in both cases, and what happens if you run room correction software like Sonar Works and forget to bypass it before you bounce. Chris also explains why keeping that group bus as a middle man makes it easy to import your mix bus chain from a previous session into a new one, which took a few extra words to explain but is genuinely useful. The third question is a bonus, and it is a good one. Does anyone actually track their time on a mix, and if so, how? Steve uses his feelings. Chris blocks time by the day and lets the song fill the window. We also look at a free plugin called Project Time Pro by Hoffa that logs your session time automatically the moment you open the session. Great concept, one small flaw involving an open Cubase session and a backyard barbecue. You'll Learn: Why the iPhone speaker exposes reverb problems that other playback systems let slide The two-move fix for harsh reverb on phone speakers: high pass and low pass the return, then add pre-delay Why pro mixers EQ their reverb returns way more than most home studio producers realize The case for keeping your output channel completely free of plugins How a stereo bus group channel makes your mix chain portable between sessions Why blocking time might be smarter than tracking it, and what a free session timer actually does to your workflow Topics and Stories: The phone speaker that knows too much Why Chris is finally going to start checking mixes on his iPhone The Sonar Works bypass you absolutely cannot forget before bouncing Steve's feelings-based approach to pricing flat-rate mixes The goldfish and the bowl Project Time Pro and the barbecue problem Listener Q&A: We had three great questions this episode. Keep them coming. Submit yours using the form in the show notes or leave a comment on YouTube and we will get to as many as we can.   👉 Got a question for us? 📩 Submit it here: <a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScQolqQwFebNLmggM-0fGpGvAfknWSkYhwtok0KBg0VVoId7g/viewform?usp=header" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Form Link</a> We pull topics directly from your questions and YouTube comments. And if you’re digging the show, hit follow/subscribe and leave a quick review. It really helps more home studio folks find Studio Stuff.

May 9, 2026

Ep 44 - Stop Choosing Mics Based on Price (Do This Instead)

Studio Stuff Podcast #44 | Mic Shootouts, Genre Comfort Zones, and the Music We Love Mixing You've got two mics, one singer, and a session to run. Which one do you reach for? In this episode, we dig into that exact scenario, starting with a great question from Johnny in Denmark. He's got a Rode NT1 and an SE V7, and he wants to know how to think about the choice. We break down the real decision-making process: it's not about which mic is "better" on paper. It's about tone, sibilance, room sensitivity, how much work you'll have to do in the mix, and what the song actually needs. We get into why sibilance is often the first thing that eliminates a mic, why a dynamic sometimes just solves problems a condenser can't, and why committing to two mics at once is a completely valid move when you're still learning what your gear does. We also talk about building an internal catalog of your mics over time, so eventually you walk into a session and already know where to start. Then we shift into Ian's question: what genre do we feel most comfortable mixing and mastering? The answer comes pretty quickly for both of us, and it connects directly to where we each started. You'll Learn: <ul class="[li_&]:mb-0 [li_&]:mt-1 [li_&]:gap-1 [&:not(:last-child)_ul]:pb-1 [&:not(:last-child)_ol]:pb-1 list-disc flex flex-col gap-1 pl-8 mb-3"> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">How to run a real mic shootout that actually tells you something useful</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Why sibilance is a red flag worth eliminating early</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">How room acoustics affect which mic makes sense for a session</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Why testing across dynamics (verse to chorus) matters as much as tone</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">What it means for a mic to "photoshop" a voice before you even hit record</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">How genre familiarity shapes what you listen for when you mix</li> </ul> Topics and Stories: <ul class="[li_&]:mb-0 [li_&]:mt-1 [li_&]:gap-1 [&:not(:last-child)_ul]:pb-1 [&:not(:last-child)_ol]:pb-1 list-disc flex flex-col gap-1 pl-8 mb-3"> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">The new breakfast spot (Korean barbecue bowl, and yes, it won)</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Johnny's mic question: Rode NT1 vs. SE V7 for home studio vocals</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">The SM7B's embarrassing habit of winning shootouts it shouldn't</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Multi-mic recording as a learning tool</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Ian's genre question: rock, jazz, country, and why "people music" keeps winning</li> <li class="font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Steve's salsa dancing backstory (and Jessie making him look good)</li> </ul> Listener Q&A: Big shoutout to Johnny from Denmark for the mic question, and to Ian for sending in a two-parter. We tackle the first half of Ian's question this episode, what genre we feel most comfortable mixing, and we're saving the second part for an upcoming show. Got a question for us? Drop it in the comments on YouTube or hit the link below to fill out the form.   👉 Got a question for us? 📩 Submit it here: <a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScQolqQwFebNLmggM-0fGpGvAfknWSkYhwtok0KBg0VVoId7g/viewform?usp=header" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Form Link</a> We pull topics directly from your questions and YouTube comments. And if you’re digging the show, hit follow/subscribe and leave a quick review. It really helps more home studio folks find Studio Stuff.

48 total episodes available

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What is Studio Stuff?: The Studio Stuff Podcast is your go-to home studio hangout, where music production, mixing, recording, and mastering meet real talk, practical advice, and the occasional lousy jokes. Hosted by Chris Selim and Steve Dierkens, this isn’t a dry, technical lecture—it’s a laid-back, no-BS conversation about making great music with the gear you actually have.

Expect real-world insights, gear, and technique debates, plugin obsessions, and plenty of laughs along the way. Plus, we love hearing from you! Send in your questions, and let’s figure this whole studio stuff thing out together.
How often does this podcast release new episodes?: This podcast updates daily.
Where can I listen to this podcast?: This podcast is available on 4 platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and more. You can also use the RSS feed directly.
Does this podcast accept guests?: Yes, this podcast regularly features guests.

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