Who is the best hip hop engineer?

[vdfebduderocks]

to be clear, there are typically 3 types of engineers in music production: Audio Engineer(the one who makes sure the mics are setup right, audio levels are good), Mixing Engineer (making sure the mix levels are good between all the instruments/vocals), and Mastering Engineer (finalizing the track). They're all a domino effect: mess up the audio levels, get a bad mix; mastering can't save a bad mix as well.

Most of the people mentioned are mixing engineers, but for clarification purposes, let's separate the mastering and mixing people into two categories (audio engineers are lower level and not really known as well):

Best Mixing Engineers:

Dre
DJ Quik
Mixed By Ali (notice all three working together at different stages)
Young Guru
40
Mike Dean (though I generally hate the Kanye distortion sounds - tho that might be on Kanye more than anything)
Anthony Kilhoffer
Leslie Brathwaite
Manny Marroquin


Best Mastering Engineers:

Brian Big Bass Gardner
Mauricio "Veto" Iragorri (worked with Dre)
Tony Dawsey

 

[W.I.Z.E.]

Great engineering






Bad engineering

 

[Clayton Endicott]

I believe that 99% of music fans are not audiophiles on a high enough level to recognize engineering styles and appreciate them to the point they have a favorite or top. They may confuse it with most known or most familiar. Basically, let’s cut the bullshyt, nikkas barley can name 5 engineers without including guru or mike dean, let alone have a favorite, and can articulate what makes them great compared to others. Including myself, and I’m a hip hop head who makes beats and feel I have a higher appreciation for shyt like that as a fan, but still barley pay it any mind. Engineering is one of those things where they are probably most appreciated by other engineers.

I actually wanted to go to school to become one when I was in highschool. I was a liner note nerd since I was a kid. I remember names like Bruce Swedien (one of the GOATs) Brian "Big Bass" Gardner, Mike Dean, Keston Wright.

 

[erker]

Dp

 

[erker]

Not Jay Electronica’s Engineer

No Young Guru in your top 3 I guess

 

[Cryptocurrency Scarface]

No Young Guru in your top 3 I guess

Whoever said anything about Exhibit C i’m talking about his recent unmastered projects

Let’s not act like Jay Electronica as genius as he is doesn’t have unfinished unpolished projects

 

[Ohene]

Mike Dean

 

[erker]

Whoever said anything about Exhibit C i’m talking about his recent unmastered projects

Let’s not act like Jay Electronica as genius as he is doesn’t have unfinished unpolished projects

No one said anything about Exhibit C, myself included


I was talking about A Written Testimony, his album with Jay-Z earlier this year. That Young Guru engineered. Many people complained about the mixing on that one. Personally, I don't mind it.

Also, can you really fault his engineer for the mixing on his unfinished projects?

 

[Air Nikes N Hats]

I believe that 99% of music fans are not audiophiles on a high enough level to recognize engineering styles and appreciate them to the point they have a favorite or top. They may confuse it with most known or most familiar. Basically, let’s cut the bullshyt, nikkas barley can name 5 engineers without including guru or mike dean, let alone have a favorite, and can articulate what makes them great compared to others. Including myself, and I’m a hip hop head who makes beats and feel I have a higher appreciation for shyt like that as a fan, but still barley pay it any mind. Engineering is one of those things where they are probably most appreciated by other engineers.

It seems the number of “audiophiles” has grown a lot and continues to do so. The headphones sub-culture is pushing that along. More and more people have these conversations about highs, lows, mids, etc....People discuss Bose, Grado, Senheisser, and other headphone brands/companies.

I do agree with you, that the art of engineering an album is one only a handful of people have an understanding/appreciation for. Most people don’t even know how to express that, they speak as if they know about this stuff just because they own a pair of expensive headphones from a company most causal music listeners never heard of.

Hell. I know what and how I like music to sound, but I’ll never pretend I know all this headphone/audiophile terminology

 

[Cryptocurrency Scarface]

No one said anything about Exhibit C, myself included


I was talking about A Written Testimony, his album with Jay-Z earlier this year. That Young Guru engineered. Many people complained about the mixing on that one. Personally, I don't mind it.

Also, can you really fault his engineer for the mixing on his unfinished projects?

Yes

 

[erker]

Yes

No. The tracks might not even have went past an engineer. The project is unfinished for a reason

 

[Cryptocurrency Scarface]

No. The tracks might not even have went past an engineer. The project is unfinished for a reason

Engineering your own shyt still means you had an engineer

 

[W.I.Z.E.]

Engineering your own shyt still means you had an engineer

Yeah, ur either really really dumb or just don't know wtf ur talking about.

 

[Sound (∀√a) Maths]

Mixing:
Bob Power
Russel Elevado
Dexter Simmons (OutKast)
Neal H Pogue (OutKast)
Alvin Speights (OutKast)
Leslie Brathwaite (OutKast)
Troy Hightower
Kevin Crouse
DJ Quik
Dr. Dre
MixedByAli
David Kennedy (Black On Both Sides)
Eddie Sancho

[Older]
Jimmy Douglass
Manny Marroquin
Tony Maserati
Jean Marie Horvat
Axel Niehaus

Mastering:
Tom Coyne (R.I.P.)
Dave Kutch
Brian Gardner
Chris Athens
Tony Dawsey

 

[Cryptocurrency Scarface]

Yeah, ur either really really dumb or just don't know wtf ur talking about.

I record music with an engineer

A sound engineer is someone who oversees the recording and mixes it afterward

If you’re your own engineer and you haven’t mixed your shyt that’s your problem



Maybe form a proper rebuttal instead of calling people dumb

What was intended as a joke about Jay Electronica’s lack of mastered projects has gone on a bullshyt tangent