Ken Stringer

Remote Rock Mixing

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6 Reviews (2 Verified)
Ken Stringer on SoundBetter

Ken Stringer of Daws Hill Music studios is an experienced, dedicated, and passionate mixing engineer and musician.

I have been involved in music for many, many years, and bring my own unique experience and sound to any project. I play guitar, bass guitar, and dabble with some other instruments. I'm extremely passionate about music and work tirelessly to produce the best product for each an every client, as if their project was my own. I want to help make your music stand out and get the attention it deserves.

Send me an email through 'Contact' button above and I'll get back to you asap.

6 Reviews - 1 Repeat Client

Endorse Ken Stringer
  1. Review by Brian Griffin
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    Great to work with Ken! Beautiful song and easy clear communication and collaboration with him to get a great arrangement. Looking forward to the next project!!

  2. Review by Chris
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    by Chris
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    Very professional, easy to work with and a great person.

  3. Review by Chris
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    by Chris
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    Fantastic a true professional, it was a real pleasure working with him. I got was I was looking for.

  4. Review by Prince L.
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    We recorded our debut album with Steve Albini who’s done Nirvana, Pixies, PJ Harvey, Led Zeppelin’s Page and Plant, Iggy Pop and The Stooges, etc...and we love our album. Steve does EVERYTHING on analog tape so the ONLY process he doesn’t touch is MASTERING...so who’s great enough to master our album after Albini did his magic: Ken Stringer of Daws Hill Music that’s who. We sent a track to a few people to master and after not being satisfied, we luckily discovered Daws Hill Music and sent him a track to master. When he sent it back the next day: we were blown away. He did our full album now.

  5. Review by Royal D.
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    We could have worked once again with Grammy Award Winning producers and mixers, as we have in the past, but once Ken Stringer at Daws Hill Music mixed our first track: we immediately knew who to work with. An absolute professional and master at his craft, he perfectly mixed our “Live At Whisky A Go-Go” album and then we decided to continue working with him to produce and mix our studio album. He’s that good. It’s amazimg that his prices are still so reasonable. This guy will receive a Grammy someday for his mastery. We highly suggest any artist in rock oriented music contact him ASAP.

  6. Review by Barb D.
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    As Barb Wire Dolls we have been fortunate to have recorded our debut album with Steve Albini and our next two studio albums with Jay Baumgardner. When it came time to record our 4th studio album, we happened to hear a track mixed and Produced by Ken Stringer of Daws Hill Music. And we were blown away. Ken understands our need for precise perfection and how to really make a track jump out and grab you. We are super excited to be working with him on our new record and with his talent in music, and his dedication to making us happy sonically, it was a no brainer to go with him. 100% happy!

Interview with Ken Stringer

  1. Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?

  2. A: Guitars

  3. Q: Tell us about a project you worked on you are especially proud of and why. What was your role?

  4. A: I produced, mixed and mastered the Royal Distortion album "Live at Whisky a Go Go". Getting to be involved with this awesome band and an making an album recorded at such an historic venue was a lot of fun, and a great experience.

  5. Q: What do you like most about your job?

  6. A: Helping artists achieve their musical goals and dreams.

  7. Q: What do you bring to a song?

  8. A: I'm a musician and songwriter myself, so I have my own unique perspective and style that comes through in what I do. Whether that's mixing and mastering, doing overdubs, etc.

  9. Q: Analog or digital and why?

  10. A: I love the analog sound and feel, but digital is so much easier to work with so that's it for me now. No need for a huge console and a whole room full of outboard gear anymore.

  11. Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?

  12. A: I will work tirelessly to give you the best sounding final product possible.

  13. Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

  14. A: What is your expectation of me and my service? When do you need it completed? Can you tell me a good reference track to use, the sort of sound you are going for? Can you explain to me what you want me to do / provide for you? What is the song tempo and key? Is there anything you really like that you want to have emphasized in the song?

  15. Q: What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?

  16. A: How much (depends on the project) How long will it take (depends on the project and how much current backlog I have)

  17. Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?

  18. A: Paul McCartney...well, because he's freaking Paul McCartney and no other reason is needed. Also Dave Grohl, I feel like we have similar styles and would work well together.

  19. Q: What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?

  20. A: Find someone who you feel comfortable working with. Chat with them a bit before committing, and make sure that they feel like they can provide what you are after in terms of sound, style, etc. Make sure they are available to do it in the timeframe you want / need it done.

  21. Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?

  22. A: I've been in bands and writing, recording, mixing, etc. off and on for 30 years. It has just been the last 10 years or so that I have been getting more involved with mixing and mastering for other bands / artists. My real passion is working with up and coming bands to help get them where they want to be.

  23. Q: How would you describe your style?

  24. A: I feel like I just have a good ear for what sounds good. I like for everything to come through in a mix, all instruments and vocals to be heard and noticed.

  25. Q: Can you share one music production tip?

  26. A: High pass filtering is your number 1 friend for developing a good low end in a track.

  27. Q: What's your strongest skill?

  28. A: Being able to quickly see (hear) the whole picture and what an artist is reaching for with a song. That, and I'm also tenacious and a very hard worker and I will not stop until I feel like something is perfect.

  29. Q: What's your typical work process?

  30. A: When I start a mixing session, I upload the files and first turn everything down to zero. I start with bringing up the kick, snare and bass guitar, then the other instruments and vocals. I get a good rough mix and panning set while listening through the song 4 or 5 (maybe more) times. At this point I tend to leave it and come back another time to start adding any EQ, compression, etc., and start tweaking things. Once I get it where I think I like it, I step away from it again for a day or so, and then listen in multiple environments / systems before doing any final edits. Once done, I print it to left and right mono tracks and import it to a mastering session.

  31. Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

  32. A: I'm an all digital / in the box guy. I use an iMac with current ProTools setup, with Focusrite audio interface. I have many plugins including many from Waves, and I also use the Slate Digital Everything Bundle, TRack, and many others. I am also set up to do some overdubs including vocals, guitar (acoustic and electric), and synths. As for mics I've got Shure SM7B and of course SM57's, plus some Lewitt mics.

  33. Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?

  34. A: That there's not much to it, you know, just set some levels, pan stuff around a bit and call it good.

  35. Q: What type of music do you usually work on?

  36. A: Rock, indie, punk, country rock, americana

  37. Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?

  38. A: Bradley Cook, Dave Grohl, Shelly Yakus, Butch Vig, Warren Huart, Dave Jerden, Bobby Owsinski, Steve Albini, Andy Wallace...to name only a few

  39. Q: What are you working on at the moment?

  40. A: I just finished producing and mixing a live album for Royal Distortion, and I'm currently mixing a studio album for them. Also working on some new tracks for Barb Wire Dolls, for a future album.

  41. Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.

  42. A: Most of the work I do for clients is mixing and mastering, with some producing and arranging. I have done this for both studio recordings as well as live show recordings. I also track guitars, synthesizer, and other instruments / audio parts for client songs when requested.

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Falling by Ken Stringer

I was the mixing engineer in this production

Terms Of Service

My turnaround time is typically 14 days or less, and will be quoted when services are discussed.

My rates include up to 3 revisions.

GenresSounds Like
  • Foo Fighters
  • Ken Stringer
  • Tom Petty
Gear Highlights
  • ProTools
  • Waves and Slate Digital Plugins (and many others)
  • Slate VSX
More Photos