Are top recording engineers underrated (vs famous mixing/mastering ones)?

[mementus]

The recording engineer oversees many technical and aesthetic aspects of a recording session and is responsible for the overall sound of all recorded tracks, ensuring that the mixing engineer has good material to work with and that the final product satisfies the artists and producers.

Mixer Hobbyist here. There is a lot of buzz about great mixer and mastering engs but what makes the real difference, after the arrangiament and artist talent, is the quality of the recorded tracks, isn't it?

Yet, outside the industry, they are rarely as much glorified as the mixing/mastering ones.
Why?
Feel free to share your thoughts.
Long life to the talented recording engineers!

[jamcat]

The recording engineer is way more important than the mixing engineer. If the recording engineer did his job right, there is very little for the mixing engineer to do other than run off a mixdown and ink another endorsement deal with Waves.

[Shabdahbriah]

Are top recording engineers underrated?

Not by famous mixing/mastering ones.

[BertKoor]

The musicians are way more important than the recording engineer. If the musicians do their job right, it almost already sounds like a proper record, and there is very little for the recording engineer to do other than put the mikes there, dial in the proper gain/trims on the console, and get some coffee.

[Morgaxx]

The parents of the musicians are way more important than the recording engineer. Without their encouragement or indifference towards their kids abilities/interests there would be no coffee needed.

[whyterabbyt]

Yet, outside the industry, they are rarely as much glorified as the mixing/mastering ones.

outside the industry, none of them are glorified. some producers used to be, until folk started calling themselves that because they'd farted at a microphone.

[enroe]

The recording engineer is way more important than the mixing engineer. ...

The musicians are way more important than the recording engineer. ...

The parents of the musicians are way more important than the recording engineer. ...

Mmmmh, that all seems right ...
Is there perhaps a pattern there?

[Monsieur_FyP]

Is there perhaps a pattern there?

[VariKusBrainZ]

Yeah, you can keep folleeing the chain back and at some point someone will credit God. Usually at an award ceremony….

[jamcat]

But does God have his own signature Waves plugin?

[mementus]

But does God have his own signature Waves plugin?

According to Sound On Sound miracolizer VST should be released n the next jubilee year

[BONES]

The musicians are way more important than the recording engineer. If the musicians do their job right, it almost already sounds like a proper record, and there is very little for the recording engineer to do other than put the mikes there, dial in the proper gain/trims on the console, and get some coffee.

Do you not see how absurd this is? If the studio engineer doesn't do his job properly, it won't matter how good the musicians are, it will come out sounding like rubbish. Placement of mics is crucial, not something any dickhead can do. Undervalue those skills at your peril.

Anyway, a good engineer knows his shit backwards and is intimately familiar with every piece of equipment in his studio. He's the guy who will get you set up to sound as good as you possibly can. The thing is, though, that if you are working in your own studio, you are probably the guy with all that knowledge, so getting someone in from outside is a waste of time. And if you aren't recording drums, guitars and/or vocals, he's pretty useless anyway. But if I was in a four piece band with guitarist, bass player and drummer, and we were heading into a pro studio to record, I would absolutely want the best engineer I could afford. But we do 95% of everything ITB and we always record vox in the same place, which I know reasonably well by now, so we have no real need of an engineer.

Overall, I have way more respect for studio engineers than I do for mastering engineers (don't get me started) but, at the same time, I have very little need of one.

[Monsieur_FyP]

(don't get me started)

« Don't get me started » is the most unexpected line coming from you!