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1) Make sure your strings are fresh, or at least decent, and tunable. Also make sure your intonation is good, that all jacks, pots are clean (especially if you like doing volume swells!)... and don't forget a strap or 2...
2) Check your amps for cabinet buzzes, blown (or dying) speakers, wiring, etc. Make sure all your effects, cabling, etc. are in good working order. Small amps are definitely preferred in studios, especially in a band-tracking session. Your Blackheart will fit right into that very nicely, so I'd use it first before anything else...
3) Make sure that everybody has the same copy of the lead sheets for each song-btw, I'm not talking about full-on charts, just something that shows the changes, order of sections (verse-verse-chorus, that kind of thing), just so everybody knows where they should be. Don't be afraid to use a music stand, either! That's what they're there for!
4) Unless it's vital to the track (think U2's Edge and how he uses echo) don't use any time-based effects while recording guitar-the studio will have better sounding gear, and it will blend a lot better with the other tracks. Overdrive, distortion, etc. is a different animal, so don't be afraid to experiment a bit there.
5) As mentioned above, the first song will take forever-oftentimes, it will take the engineer at least an hour to get the drum mics setup! Just be patient, it will get done... go ahead and get your guitars in tune and your amp setup, but don't be loud while the engineer is testing other mics... make sure you have some bottled water handy, you'd be amazed how dehydrated you can get in there...
6) Have FUN!!!!
Good luck,
Franc Robert
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