He’s incorporating together USB mics, more conventional XLR and analogue microphones, requiring the very best from his gear to reliably and consistently get the job done.
The Lyrical is, for lack of a better word, a multi-faceted creator. Karl is a musician and gamer, but his use of tech to tie all this together means he needs the right gear to make everything interface with each other. Jumping between stations in his studio, while also demo-ing his own original music requires a reasonably complicated array of gear to get the best result, something that he thinks helps him to engage with his audience as he’s focused on the content, not the tech.
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He’s always been a musician, but began streaming his gaming in 2017 before 2020 made performing live impossible. Pushing him to streaming, Karl picked up his old Twitch account and began streaming his music live, quickly finding a community of like-minded musicians and fans online. His love for gaming, art and podcasting hadn’t stopped, so his channel began to involve everything he was doing creatively, requiring a more complex set-up with more hi-fidelity audio to produce high-quality streams.
A quick look through The Lyrical on socials reveals he’s relying on some Audio-Technica equipment to get the job done, namely the AH-M50xSTS Streamset for streaming, as well as some 40 series and 20 series microphone for his music, their ability to capture multiple sources well making them a great solution for someone so involved in multiple disciplines.
We sat down with The Lyrical about his process, passions and the equipment he uses to make it all happen.
We understand your journey started with music, but how do you define The Lyrical now?
I love music so much. But gaming is where my passions lie. It was as big a part of my upbringing, as were the trees on the beach in the Solomon Islands. How I define myself has been a challenge for so many years haha. I’m a musician professionally, and creatively I will always connect with music when it comes to making art, but at the same time being part of the gaming community/industry has been (and continues to be) one of the most fulfilling parts of my life.
So… short story long, [I’m] a musician who doesn’t just love games, but believes in the art and importance of video games – this was a much bigger question than I expected to start with haha!
What are your goals for your career?
I started off determined to keep them separate, but the more I thought about it and the more honest I was with myself as a person, the more I have been determined to mesh the two worlds of gaming and music together.
Can you explain this answer a bit?
I want to combine the disciplines because it’s the way my mind works. Less because I’m trying to make some sort of hybrid art form, but more because I just want to be seen as a professional and an entertainer involved in the two worlds openly because that’s a thing I think should happen more.
What does your streaming setup look like? Are they meticulously planned or mostly improvised?
My setup has five screens (one of them is a tablet and one of them is essentially a TV monitor wired from across the room for my consoles), a whole bunch of consoles – I have a few camera angles, and my guitars, amps and keyboards are usually within reach as I like to keep everything close, just in case things go in a direction I don’t expect.
The only relative plans I have are: video games on Tuesday, music on Wednesday… the rest is up to the universe. And I like to just be ready.
Do you find you use microphones for dedicated specialist jobs or are microphones generally useful for anything and everything? What kind of mics are you using for different tasks?
Absolutely adore my Audio-Technica AT4033a – I think it’s my favourite mic I have ever owned. Primarily for singing, but I’ve started using it instead of my Audio-Technica BP40 for streaming and podcasts because [of] the way it captures my voice. And that actually changes the way I project and perform.
My BP40 is actually currently micing up my Fender Deluxe amp, and I’m in love with the warm tones it gets that I wouldn’t normally get from a normal instrument mic.
Do you record and produce your own music as well? If so, what gear are you using for this kind of project?
I do very little recording at home outside of demos/random story videos/note taking for my producer, when I do I usually use the AT4033a for vocals and the BP40 makes it very good and kick mic for my Cajun, I plug my guitar straight in. The AT2040USB actually comes in very handy to just record my vocals and keyboard on occasion as well!
Keep up with The Lyrical here.
