Katie Anderson
Katie learned the ropes mixing bands in Southampton's pubs and clubs, a port city used to a steady churn of touring acts. Years behind the desk gave her a practical, no-nonsense understanding of how live sound actually works. She writes about PA, live sound and stage gear.
Wireless Microphone: A Complete Buyer's Guide
Form factor, frequency band and latency are the key variables — this guide walks through each buying decision so you can match a wireless system to your specific application.
Condenser Microphone: A Complete Buyer's Guide
Buying your first quality microphone is an investment worth getting right. This practical guide walks you through specifications, budget tiers and the real-world factors that separate a good choice fr...
Strobe Light for Beginners: A Complete Guide
A gentle, step-by-step introduction to using a strobe light for the first time, with the safety habits explained kindly rather than as a lecture.
Drum Throne Explained: Features, Types and Tips
A drum throne is engineering for drummers. Find out how seat shape, height adjustment and base construction affect your playing, and how to set yours up right.
Common Hi Hat Stand Mistakes to Avoid
Wrong height, over-tightened clutch, ignored squeaks — the most common hi-hat stand mistakes are easy to fix once you know what to look for.
Electronic Drum Kit for Beginners: A Complete Guide
An electronic drum kit is a smart choice for beginners — you can practise at any hour without disturbing anyone. Here's how to set it up correctly and get the most from it from day one.
Istanbul Agop Cymbals Explained: Features, Types and Tips
Istanbul Agop cymbals combine traditional Turkish hand-hammering with B20 bronze to produce a dark, warm, characterful sound that has made them a favourite in jazz and studio settings.
Yamaha Stage Custom Drum Set Explained
Yamaha drum sets span entry-level to professional options with consistent quality across price points. Discover what makes different series suitable for various drummer needs.
Analog Mixer for Beginners: A Complete Guide
An analog mixer follows a simple signal path — in at the top, out at the bottom. This guide walks beginners through gain, EQ, faders, monitor mixes, and a first soundcheck, step by step.
Common Beats Studio 3 Mistakes to Avoid
The avoidable mistakes that trip up most Beats Studio 3 owners, and the quick, practical fix for each one.
Common Bass Drum Pedal Mistakes to Avoid
Most kick pedal problems come down to setup habits and technique, not the hardware — here are the mistakes that trip up drummers at every level.
Common Timbales Mistakes to Avoid
Most timbales problems aren't really about the timbales themselves. Here's what I see most often, and exactly how to fix each one.
Allen and Heath Mixer for Beginners: A Complete Guide
It looks like a wall of knobs, but the concepts underneath are genuinely simple once someone walks you through them properly.
Zildjian Cymbals for Beginners: A Complete Guide
Zildjian's entry-level range makes it possible to start well without overspending. This guide covers which cymbals to prioritise, which series fit different budgets, and how to set them up correctly.
Shure Microphone: A Complete Buyer's Guide
From the SM58 for live vocals to the SM7B for broadcast, every Shure model has a specific sweet spot. Here is how to find yours.
Handheld Microphone: A Complete Buyer's Guide
From the SM58 to the Sennheiser e945 and Shure SLXD: how to choose the right handheld microphone by application, budget and whether you need wireless.
Sabian Cymbals for Beginners: A Complete Guide
Starting out with Sabian cymbals means understanding which series suits a beginner, what a basic three-cymbal setup needs, and how to care for them from day one.
Universal Audio Plugins Explained: Features, Types and Tips
UAD terminology trips a lot of people up. Here's what Universal Audio plugins actually are, in plain terms.
Everything You Need to Know About Bose Speakers Pa System
Bose PA speakers deliver professional-grade sound reinforcement for venues, live events and sound installations. Discover what makes them a trusted choice for sound technicians and venues worldwide.
Everything You Need to Know About Triangle Music Instrument
It's an easy joke - a bent bit of metal, one job. Spend five minutes learning how the triangle actually works and that joke falls apart fast.
Audient Id4: A Complete Buyer's Guide
One microphone preamp or two? The Audient iD4 answers that question by offering one very good preamp rather than two average ones. This guide helps you decide whether that trade-off suits your recordi...
Everything You Need to Know About Mixing and Mastering Headphones
Mastering headphones reveal the truth of your mix with uncoloured, accurate reproduction — the essential tool for any serious mixing engineer.
Paiste Cymbals Explained: Features, Types and Tips
Paiste has been making professional cymbals for over a century — here's how the range is structured and what each line is designed to do.
What Katie Anderson covers
Bass Preamp
Bass preamps shape tone, gain and output for live use, recording and pedalboard-based rigs.
2 topics
Drums & Percussion
The full family of drums and percussion — acoustic and electronic kits, hand drums, pitched mallet instruments, and ever...
118 topics
Marshall Earbuds
Portable in-ear listening for commuting, travel and everyday music playback.
Marshall Headphones
Stylish everyday headphones for travel, home listening and music enjoyment.
1 topic
Yamaha Dm3
Compact digital mixing for live sound, venues and rehearsal spaces. A yamaha dm3 offers modern control in a small format...
Yamaha Hs5
Compact and accurate, the Yamaha HS5 is ideal for small studios, mixing, editing and critical nearfield monitoring.
Yamaha Hs7
The Yamaha HS7 offers accurate monitoring, stronger low end and dependable performance for project and home studios.
Yamaha Hs8
Designed for larger spaces, the Yamaha HS8 delivers powerful, accurate monitoring with strong low-end detail.
