I just bought a used Mbox “Classic,” that’s what I call the original vertical Mboxes. It was a total deal. I was so happy that I was about to add Pro Tools compatibility to my rig. It was going to be great. But it was also going to take me hours to get it to work. The first place I went for help was Digidesign’s website.
Oh my god! How many versions of Pro Tools are there?!? Just finding the correct version took me way longer than it should have. Then I found that each version had different compatibility issues with different versions of Mac OS and different Macs. Check out the Pro Tools LE Version Compatibility Grid for Mac OS X to get an understanding of what I’m talking about.
I was having lots of problems. The biggest was that none of my software could see the Mbox, even though my System Profiler knew it was there. Why?!? Well, I soon found the following recommendation on Digidesign’s support pages: “Do not use Apple’s automatic Software Update or the Mac OS X 10.4.9 Delta Update. Instead, install the Mac OS X 10.4.9 Combo Update for Intel-based or PowerPC-based Mac.” Excuse me? Is Pro Tools the most important application on my computer? It seems Digidesign feels it is, and that I should change my computer use habits to keep Pro Tools running smoothly. Argh!
I finally found the software update I needed to run on my specific machine with my specific version of OS X. Success… almost. Although things did run, the first time I closed my test Pro Tools session I got a kernel panic message. For those of you who don’t know, this is like the Mac’s version of the “blue screen of death.” After restarting my computer everything seemed to be okay. Even though Digidesign doesn’t officially support the version of Mac OS I am running (v10.4.10).
Despite all my troubles, I’m happy to have Pro Tools running. The thing is, Pro Tools is to recording studios as Word and Excel are to offices. There are other options out there, and some might be better for your specific needs. But compatibility is king and sometimes you have to go with the majority. Or as I see it, I like to have the option.
Wow, I ranted so much I got a little off topic there. Regardless, I want to end by saying that I have been running Logic Pro 6 since it was released in January of 2004 with a MOTU 828mkII and I’ve never had big issue upgrading thought the decimal upgrades of my OS. And when there’s a new version of Mac OS X, such as the imminent release of Leopard 10.5 this October, I know that MOTU and Apple will have updates ready within weeks, or even days. As it is the software and hardware still work with my machine, and it’s never been challenge to keep them up to date. Let’s hope my next Pro Tools upgrade will be just as painless. -mc
Convolution reverbs are awesome. They really made mixing inside the box sound as good as using high end outboard gear. But one of my favourite uses for Logic’s convolution reverb, Space Designer, is as a speaker simulator. Take a listen. FYI, this is Fender Jazz Bass played with fingers (no pick), direct into Logic. I’m using the “Speaker 1” preset. No additional EQ or compression was used on either sample. This recording is an out take of Showroom’s The World Is Too Much With Us sessions.
Note: The difference is mostly in the low, low end so you won’t hear much difference listening though built-in computer speakers. Plug in a good pair of headphones or make sure you’re hooked up to some good monitors.
1. Original DI bass guitar
2. Processed bass guitar
The difference maybe subtle, but to me the processed bass has a lot more weight to it. I find it sounds more “real.” Of course, this won’t work in all situations, but if your bass is sounding thin and you’re looking for something phatter, give this a try. It’s usually best to blend the two sounds. Have fun! -mc
Well after much speculation, we are now able to see all that Logic Pro 8 has to offer. And perhaps the most surprising part of the announcement is the price: $499 for the full suite, and $199 for the upgrade. I thought it had to be wrong, but it seems Apple has actually cut the price in half and added some very helpful new features.
The consolodated window is a very welcome feature (thanks to the folks at MOTU for coming up with this — Digital Performer is way ahead of Logic here). Basically, this means you can access the mixer, arrange, transport, piano roll editor or whatever else you want to see in one window. There have been many times that I hit F9 (Exposé) only to find I have over a dozen windows open — and I’m not using 10 of them! The whole look seems a lot more “Apple,” meaning simpler.
The new multitake and comping tools also look amazing. I won’t try to describe them here. Check out the Logic Studio pages for more details.
The inclusion of Soundtrack Pro was not that surprising to me. I think this really allowed Apple to focus on Logic as a music production application and leave out features (and complexity) that would have duplicated Soundtrack Pro’s functionality.
The surprise for me, is a new application in the bundle called MainStage. This application basically allows you to use your favourite soft synths in a live performance setting without having to have Logic open. The look and feel of this app is also very simple — a welcome feature for live use.
The latest release of Logic is in no way a “Pro Tools killer,” but rather a very professional music production suite that allow both musicians and engineers a swiss army knife of tools to create — and perform — with ease and flexibility. I’ll be picking up my copy shortly. -mc
Access to the most recent articles is limited to paid subscribers, but most older articles are available for free online. Their website contains archives going all the way back to 2002 – useful if you’re working with an older version of SONAR.
There are dozens of studio software packages to choose from. These can range from a $10,000+ Pro Tools rig to free open source applications such as Audacity. Your options narrow slightly depending on what operating system you’re running. Still, considering the number of software applications multiplied by the number of audio interfaces available on the market, there are easily hundreds of possibilities.
The best place to start is to ask yourself what you plan to use your recording setup for. Are you a singer songwriter looking to make demos? A five piece pop-rock band wanting to record your first EP? Knowing what you want to accomplish helps you make the right choice. How many audio inputs and outputs do you need? Is advanced MIDI editing necessary? Virtual instruments? Or what about integrated CD authoring?
Thoughts on the M-box
I asked singer/songwriter Scott Cooper about his setup, and why he chose it. Here’s what he had to say:
I have the M-box 2 Mini. It’s a pretty neat little thing, but for a little bit more money you get WAY more bang-for-your-buck with the standard M-box 2. I went the Mini because my needs were to find a portable Pro Tools solution for writing/demo’ing, and also for mobile editing on my laptop. Which meant portability/size was a factor, too.
The Mini is basically the cheapest real Digidesign hardware/software interface option to get Pro Tools + factory plug-ins. (I know there are technically cheaper M-Audio/M-Powered options, but I just wanted the real thing. Plus, M-Audio has so many hardware options it began to confuse me.)
Mini cons are no MIDI interface, and only one XLR input. (2 inputs total, the other is just a 1/4″ line) it does have +48V, though. I’ve also found it to be quite a resource hog for a laptop. I have 2GB of RAM and I still occasionally bog it down.
As a singer/songwriter the main purpose of Scott’s setup is for songwriting and creating demos. He also uses it for editing work he does in a professional studio running Pro Tools.
For Scott, having “real Digidesign” hardware and software is important. Because he does work elsewhere in a full-blown Pro Tools studio, compatibility between his personal setup and the pro studio he works at was important.
Likewise, if you collaborate with other musicians, it’s a good idea to find out what software they’re using. If they like it and you’re going to be working together, get the same thing so you can easily trade files and projects.
If you’re recording a full band, small 2 or 4-input interfaces are going to force you to cut some corners when recording. If you can afford it, consider an interface with at least 8 inputs. And, if you don’t need to be 100% compatible with Pro Tools like Scott, there are more options. I’ll talk about those in Part 2. -mc
Do you ever feel like you just can’t wait to get the update to your favourite DAW software? I know many Logic users feel that way right now, but this feeling doesn’t apply to them only!
I was reading through some forums the other day and ran across a post criticizing people for dreaming about Logic Pro 8. The post said (I’m paraphrasing) “Do you really need an upgrade? Have you already mastered all the features in Logic Pro 7?” To be fair, many amazing recordings have been made using much less than any of us would stand for now. Thinking about using Pro Tools on a 66 MHz PowerMac using OS 7 makes me shudder! But really, do we need to know every inch of our software? There are lots of features for synchronizing video and printing notation that I hardly will — if ever — use. Bring on the new loop recording modes, software synths and plugins. That’s the fun stuff, and I’m willing to pay to upgrade to get it.
Finally, there are the bugs. Every piece of software has glitches. Usually they get fixed one by one in the free decimal upgrades (you know, v5.0 to v5.1 to v5.2 and so on). But sometimes they stay. Sometimes they make it past full number upgrades and more decimals. That’s when we get frustrated and hope the software developer finally fixes it in the next big revision.
Maybe I just make up reasons to buy new software. Hey, if it makes me happy and feel more productive, that’s okay with me. -mc
Audio recording software such as Logic, Cubase and Pro Tools are powerful tools; trouble is, they’re expensive. Stuck with a low or nonexistent budget? Consider one of the free open-source and other inexpensive programs that are available.
Free open-source programs
First of all, let’s define what we mean by “free” and “open-source.” Free software is not necessarily software available at zero price (although it often is). Free software is defined in terms of giving the user freedom. This includes the freedom to copy a program and redistribute it to your friends and neighbours to use (something the makers of commercial proprietary software typically frown on, oddly enough). Open-source software also means users are free to use, change, and improve the source code. This means that development of open-source software typically happens in a public, collaborative manner.
Open-source has its drawbacks. Since no one is technically responsible for open-source software, there’s no guarantee a bug will be fixed. And don’t count on finding a 1-800 number for technical support; you’re on your own. However, if you’re technically-minded and willing to tap into the growing online communities of open-source software users and developers for support, free and open-source audio recording software might be for you.
Here are some of the options that are available:
Audacity (Mac OS X, Windows, Linux)
Audacity is a free and open-source digital audio editor. It can run on Mac OS X, Windows, and Linux. It’s easy to use, and especially popular among podcasters. You can see a list of its features here. The Audacity website lists a number of helpful tutorials; there’s also an Audacity Wiki and other step-by-step tutorials available online.
Rosegarden (Linux)
Rosegarden is an audio application that includes audio mixing plugins, a notation editor, and a MIDI matrix editor. Sound on Sound calls it “the closest native equivalent to Cubase for Linux.” Free documentation, tutorials and other helpful resources are available here; there’s also a free Rosegarden Companion.
MusE (Linux)
MusE is a MIDI/audio sequencer with recording and editing capabilities. According to its website, “MusE aims to be a complete multitrack virtual studio for Linux!” There’s an online FAQ and documentation.
Brahms (Linux)
Brahms is a fully-featured midi sequencer, notation system and music laboratory with excellent score features. Development has been very sparse lately though; the last update seems to have been about five years ago.
JAZZ++ (Windows, Linux)
JAZZ++ is fully-featured audio-capable MIDI sequencer for Linux and Windows. It too hasn’t been updated for a very long time though.
Low-cost alternatives to pro audio software
These applications aren’t free open-source, but they’re very inexpensive alternatives to expensive professional audio software. When all you need is a digital equivalent to a tape recorder, buying Pro Tools is like buying a Hummer just to drive to the corner store. While some of these programs are very basic, some offer a lot more features and functionality than you’d expect.
Anvil Studio (Windows)
Anvil Studio is a multi-track audio and MIDI sequencer with a very basic user interface. The free version will let you create an unlimited number of MIDI tracks, and a one-minute audio track. You’ll need to buy the $19 USD Multi-Audio accessory to record up to eight 60-minute audio tracks.
LUNA (Mac OS X, Windows)
LUNA is an ultra-light music application. It doesn’t have a complex feature set, but it’s an easy-to-use and rock-solid musical tool. There are two versions of LUNA: LUNA Free and LUNA Unlimited. LUNA Free is free (duh!); LUNA Unlimited (€29 EUR) supports an unlimited number of VSTis and mixer strips.
Quartz (Windows) Quartz Studio is a line of simple multitrack digital recorders. Quartz Studio Free is the free version (limited to 4 simultaneous audio tracks); you can upgrade to Quartz Studio (8 tracks - $19 USD) or Quartz Studio Pro (16 tracks - $29 USD). Quartz Audio is a fully integrated digital mixer, recorder, sound and time line editor which also comes in various configurations to accomodate your needs and budget. Quartz Audio Master also includes a MIDI sequencer; there’s a free (4 audio track, 16 MIDI track) version available, along with some inexpensive 16, 32, and 128 audio track versions.
KRISTAL (Windows)
KRISTAL Audio Engine is a powerful multi-track recorder, audio sequencer and mixer. It’s designed as a modular system. The main application provides a mixing console; the audio sequencer, live audio input, etc. are loaded as separate plugins. KRISTAL is free for “personal, educational and non-commercial use.” A KRISTAL single-user license for commercial use will set you back around €25 EUR.
n-Track Studio (Windows)
n-Track Studio is multitrack audio recording software that lets you record, edit, overdub your audio tracks, apply effects, process audio live input, mix and then burn audio CDs or create mp3 files. The standard version costs $54 USD. There’s also a 24-bit version that costs $79 USD.
REAPER(Windows)
REAPER is a powerful Windows application for multitrack recording and editing of audio. It has a flexible but easy to use interface. Sound on Sound recently praised REAPER’s “remarkable flexibility, advanced feature set and responsive development team” in a June 2007 review. You can download REAPER without technological limitations for evaluation purposes. Once you’ve evaluated REAPER, you should purchase a license. A non-commercial license will cost you around $40 USD; a commercial license costs around $200 USD.
Of course one program I haven’t mentioned here is GarageBand (Mac OS X) which comes free with every new Mac. Sometimes hardware comes bundled with free versions of commercial proprietary software; for example, our MOTU 828 interface came with AudioDesk, a basic audio-only version of Digital Performer.
The moral of this tale is: don’t let the high price of DAW software stop you from creating music. There are lots of low-cost options available that won’t break the bank! (Now, if only someone would make a free open-source microphone…!) -kf
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I just bought a used Mbox “Classic,” that’s what I call the original vertical Mboxes. It was a total deal. I was so happy that I was about to add Pro Tools compatibility to my rig. It was going to be great. But it was also going to take me hours to get it to work. The first place I went for help was Digidesign’s website.
