BY GEORGE PETERSEN
I often go flea marketing on Sunday mornings and one of today’s odd discoveries—no, I didn’t buy it—was this Digidesign 003 Pro Tools LE hardware DAW controller/interface.
Sadly neglected and somewhat abused with missing knobs, etc., this artifact was marked with a piece of white tape as serial #14. As an audio archaeologist, this was interesting to me as it was obviously a prototype/alpha version of some sort. Clearly, there’s no outer case and the silk screening on the front panel is somewhat different than the later production models. (CLICK ON PHOTO FOR LARGER VIEW)
The annotated stickers in the upper right corner on the unit’s top surface have hand-written scrawls about an ADAT rework, a main software rework, a PLL issue and something about headphones and the monitor fader.
The artifact’s rear panel has no manufacturer’s name, no serial number or country of origin. As you can see in the picture above, the identification of the monitor out channels is different (clearer in final version) and the artifact has hand-punched pop rivets holding the XLRs, MIDI jacks and RCA S/PDIF ports onto the rear panel—a definite indication of a prototype version. Also note the additional air ventilation holes in the production version—right above the XLR mic inputs. (CLICK ON PHOTO FOR LARGER VIEW)
THE REAL MYSTERY
The more interesting story here is the mystery as to where it’s been all this time and how it eventually wound up on some junk merchant’s table.
Just another audio archaeology mystery, but if only this gear could talk…
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BY GEORGE PETERSEN
Now there’s no excuse to not begin creating great recordings, compositions and audio on your computer. PreSonus is now shipping Studio One Free, a new entry-level version of its popular digital audio workstation software for Mac and Windows. Intended for beginners who don’t yet need the advanced features in Studio One Artist, Producer, and Professional, Studio One Free provides all of the recording and editing features needed for basic music production—and best of all, it’s FREE!
To get Studio One Free, simply download the Studio One installer from the Studio One website (CLICK HERE) install it, then choose to run it as Free when the activation dialog comes up. Once you’ve downloaded the application, you can use it immediately; no Internet connection or user account is required, no product key is involved, and Studio One Free will not time out.
LOADED WITH PRO FEATURES!
This new version of Studio One has some of the features originally found in Studio One Artist, including the single-window work environment, the content browser with Search, powerful drag-and-drop functions, Control Link MIDI mapping, sidechain routing, automatic delay compensation, real-time audio timestretching and resampling, unlimited audio and Instrument (MIDI) tracks(!), unlimited effects channels, and unlimited channel inserts and sends. Use native key commands or choose key-command sets from Pro Tools, Cubase, or Logic-or use the included editor to create your own key commands.
Studio One Free offers some of the new Studio One 2.0 features, notably multitrack MIDI editing, single and multitrack comping, and Track Transform (advanced track freezing). And of course, it includes the same state-of-the-art, 32-bit sound engine found in Studio One Artist and Producer.
Eight Native Effects plug-ins come with Studio One Free—Beat Delay, Channel Strip (which includes dynamics processing and EQ), Chorus, Flanger, MixVerb (a mono/stereo reverb), Red Light Distortion, Tuner, and Phaser—plus the Presence virtual instrument with more than 100 presets. Studio One Free doesn’t support ReWire and third-party (VST, AU, etc.) effects plug-ins and virtual instruments, but includes plenty of tools to do most basic production work.
THE CATCH…
Actually the only catch here is that PreSonus wants to you use Studio One Free and love it so much that you want to upgrade to one their more advanced versions of Studio One. In fact it’s really quite easy to upgrade to from Free to one of the advanced versions. Download the free demo of Studio One Professional, test it thoroughly, and at any time-even after the demo times out-convert it into Studio One Free with a single click. Ready to buy Studio One Artist, Producer, or Professional? Convert Studio One Free into a paid version at any time, without having to reinstall.
Yet no matter which path you choose, Studio One Free is an awesome deal—at any price—especially free! But snag this soon, before those crazy guys at PreSonus come to their senses and discontinue this amazing offering!
BY GEORGE PETERSEN
Keeping with its longstanding tradition of faux product launches on the first day of Q2 every year on April 1st, leading wireless mic manufacturer (www.lectrosonics.com) debuts a new accessory for its acclaimed SM Series dual-battery transmitters: the SM-SHAQUE (“SM Shake”). Installed in SMDB or SMQV transmitters as a battery eliminator, the new accessory incorporates a small generator that’s operated simply by shaking the unit and/or the person wearing the hidden miniature bodypack.
The SM-SHAQUE System
The SM-SHAQUE’s tiny generator uses a finely wound wire coil and a powerful unobtainium “rare earth” magnet in to take advantage of Faraday’s principle of generating electric current by passing a moving magnet through a coil. The rarity and supply challenges of these magnet materials have already pushed back the originally planned delivery from October 1, 2011 to April 1, 2012.
The principal application for this accessory is sports broadcasting, as more and more, players are being required to wear wireless transmitters in order to capture play-by-play audio. Theater users are also likely to benefit from this new technology. However, any wireless microphone users that jump around excessively can benefit from use of the SM-SHAQUE.
The Vibro-Belt option provides both a relaxing massage and a quick recharge between sets.
OPTIONS, OPTIONS
Available accessories for the system include the Vibro-Belt massager option ($139.99), which allows localized shaking of any body part where the wireless bodypack may be hidden. In fact, a spirited 10-minute shake session between sets can quickly charge the system for immediate re-use. Another popular addition is a floor jolt system that encourages less-energetic performers to move around more via the use of timed electrostatic releases that roughly approximate the effect of touching one’s tongue to a hard-wired mic when playing through an ungrounded guitar amplifier, and standing in a tub of ionized salt water, sugar-free Peach Gatorade, pickle brine or similar electrolyte solution.
The SM-SHAQUE only works with dual-battery Lectrosonics SM series transmitters, as the batteries are in parallel and the SHAQUE unit charges the single NiMh battery in the remaining compartment directly. Non-Lectrosonics units with dual-AA batteries in series will not work with this accessory, although beta tests underway so far have shown some success using competing bodypack units powered by either a 12 VDC Sears Die-Hard marine yacht battery or a simple 100-amp/440 VAC line feed.
RF transmission power settings of 250 mW are not recommended when using the SM-SHAQUE unless there is a whole lot of shaking going on.
According to Lectrosonics’ president, Larry Fisher, “Battery life has always been a concern when it comes to wireless mic transmitters. This is especially true in sports and theater where the transmitters must be buried within costumes or padding or simply duct-taped to some inaccessible body part or appendage. And for some reason, certain athletes and actors are unreasonably touchy about constant groping under their clothing for battery changes by audio personnel. The SM-SHAQUE solves all of that.”
The Lectrosonics SM-SHAQUE will be available on April 1 of some unspecified year. MSRP is $229. Void where prohibited by law. And a happy April 1st to all…
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ONE EFFECTIVE SOLUTION FOR DEALING WITH PROBLEMATIC ARTISTS
See below for larger version
BY GEORGE PETERSEN
To me, one of the great mysteries of studio production is the whole idea of artists who hire the finest engineers, only to look over their shoulder and start grabbing knobs and telling the engineer how to mix. In the old days, when large analog consoles were formidable symbols of complexity—i.e., “what do all those knobs do?”—artists were for the most part in awe of the mystical black magic nature of the process. Those were perhaps the good old days, when artists did their performance and producers and engineers did the production end.
Now, especially with the affordability of —and ubiquitous nature of—Pro Tools and other DAWs, every artist is suddenly an expert on mixing/EQ’ing/mastering/etc. And often the worst offenders are band members who always feel their instrument should be the loudest —or at least far more present—in the mix. These are the same types who on playbacks, listen to an absolutely perfect take, but somehow can sense that one of the 1/128th note in a guitar run is slightly anticipated, thus making the entire take unusable—even though no one else in the control room can perceive this horrible atrocity.
Lately, the Internet has been awash with “flowcharts”—essentially step-by-step instructions for solving various problems, so I figured I join in the fray and do one of my own, this one focused on dealing with troublesome artists who insist on being present during the mix. And while it’s slated toward performers, it could just as easily be applied to label A&R reps, management types, ad agency types, or the drummer’s girlfriend/boyfriend—essentially any “creative” souls who insist on meddling in the production process.
TRUTH SOMETIMES, IS STRANGER THAN FICTION
And while there’s a bit of satire/sarcasm here, there a whole lot of truth as well. I was once working on an album (sorry but the title/artist name of this gem is somehow deleted from my discography) where the performer wanted to add some percussion to a track. So far, so good and we suggested we bring in percussionist extraordinaire Pete Escovedo, who we had worked with in the past, always with amazing results. Pete is not only a pro player of the highest caliber, but whenever we did a session with him, we’d ask him how he’d interpret the part, and he always had great ideas, he was easy to work with and one of the nicest persons you’d ever meet. The last thing we wanted to do with Pete was to simply have him play some conga or cabasa chart.
Anyway, Pete drops by the studio, has a quick listen to the tune, and then on the first take, proceeds to lay down a brilliant performance—perfectly executed and exactly what we wanted. We had him come into the control room for a playback, and it was just spot-on. This was back in the analog recording days—where tracks were limited—in fact the project only had two tracks available for the stereo percussion part. But that didn’t seem to be an issue here—we had an awesome take and were ready to wrap it up. That is, until the artist’s girlfriend wondered whether we could get a better take, and suggested Pete do it again. We explained that this would mean wiping the existing track, which already was an “11″ on the proverbial “10″ scale. But she was adamant, and—despite our pleadings—convinced the boyfriend/artist that another take was a good idea. Pete was really nice about it and said “sure, no problem,” and proceeded to lay down another take, which was amazing, although I actually liked the first take better. Finally, the girlfriend approves of the new take, and while helping Pete load his gear into his car, I apologized to Pete, who actually thought the whole thing was funny.
After Pete had left, I asked the girlfriend what she thought was wrong with the first take. She said it was nothing really, but she was bankrolling the project and was bummed about having to pay him for an entire session after he had nailed the part in 10 minutes on a single take, so she wanted him to do it again! At that point I considered strangling her—or at least covering her in honey and tying her to an anthill—but then the studio wouldn’t have been paid for the session, so I took the Pete Escovedo attitude and just laughed it off.
And with this in mind, I proudly present my recording studio production flow chart for dealing with artists during the mix session.
POSTSCRIPT
For more about Pete Escovedo—a wonderful painter in addition to being a great musician—visit his web site at www.peteescovedo.com.
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YAMAHA BOWS AFFORDABLE, NEW LINE OF LARGE CAPACITY MIXERS FEATURING ONBOARD RUPERT NEVE PROCESSING, NUENDO RECORDING AND IPAD REMOTE CONTROL.
BY GEORGE PETERSEN
Today at ProLight+Sound/Musikmesse in Frankfurt, Yamaha Commercial Audio launched its stunning new CL (Centralogic™) Series of digital live consoles.
All are Dante network-based with remote I/O for a faster, more responsive operations. These 72/64/48 mono input consoles are differentiated only by frame size and input capability, and feature 24 mix buses, 8 matrix buses, plus stereo and mono outputs, 16 DCAs and onboard Rupert Neve-designed signal processing. The powerful small-footprint design was developed specifically for sound reinforcement applications such as performing arts venues, theaters, houses of worship, touring, and remote broadcast, with a high output bus count that’s perfect for live broadcast and monitor applications.
The Yamaha CL5 mix capacity is 72 mono + 8 stereo inputs (64 channels through Dante and 8 local), with 34 faders (16 on the left, 8 Centralogic, and 8 right plus stereo and mono masters). The CL5 also includes built-in output metering. The CL3 is a 64 mono input system, with 8 stereo inputs, and 26 faders (16 left, 8 Centralogic center, plus masters). The CL1 console is a 48-mono + 8 stereo inputs, and 16 faders plus two master faders (8 left and 8 Centralogic center, plus masters). All models feature 16 DCAs, channel encoders and support 48kHz and 44.1kHz sampling rates. An optional meter bridge is available for the CL3 and CL1 consoles. The CL5 and CL3 feature a built-in shelf for an iPad, and the CL1 has a shelf for an iPod.
CENTRAL CONTROL
All CL consoles has a top panel center section with a comprehensive selected channel section, a new 16-bit color LED backlit touchscreen, four User-Defined Knobs, 2-track USB recorder/player section, and more. also standard are sixteen 31-band GEQs, an 8U effects rack and a new 8U Premium Rack including Rupert Neve Designs Portico 5043 Compressor and Portico 5033 EQ as well as new Yamaha VCM compressors and EQs. Rupert Neve, who approved the 5033 and 5043 in the Premium Rack during its initial evaluation, called it ‘very sweet sounding’ and ‘indistinguishable from its hardware equivalent’.
Additional console features include simultaneous CL Editor/StageMix connection, multi-track recording via Dante Virtual Soundcard software, and File Converter Software for CL, PM5D, M7CL and LS9 consoles. A new recording software from Steinberg dubbed “Nuendo Live”, optimized for live recording and playback transport, will also be bundled with the console. CL Editor for Mac and PC as well as StageMix for iPad will be available for the series free of charge.
The new 32x24 Rio3224-D Stagebox
INPUTS, OUTPUTS
Up to eight external Rio (Remote I/O) boxes can be used for a total of 256 channels via the Dante digital network. The 5U rack space Rio3224-D includes 32 remote controlled mic/line inputs, 16 line outputs, and four AES-3 outs. The 3U Rio1608-D includes 16 remote controlled mic/line inputs and eight line outputs. Dante network I/O can easily be set up and patched utilizing familiar paradigms within the console user interface, with no external software required for network operations.
The fader sections of all CL consoles features new self-lit key tops, channel name and color bar visible in sunlight, new fader caps and a smoother drive circuit. The Centralogic section also features Undo and Preview keys for Scene Memory, fader bank select, and 16 user defined keys.
The CL console’s back panel consists of dual Dante ports, 3 MY card slots, work clock I/O, MIDI I/O, AES/EBU digital out, 8 Analog Omni ins/outs, 5-in/5-out GPI, and an external PW800W PSU connection.
Check out this video demo I shot of the CL5. Note: it’s nearly 12 minutes long, but goes into a lot of detail about the power of this mixer and its features. It’s definitely worth watching if you’re serious about understanding the CL5.
I WANT ONE!
Targeted MSRP for the Yamaha CL5, CL3, and CL1 is $27,499, $21,999 and $14,999, respectively. The Rio3224-D has a targeted MSRP of $8,499 and the Rio1608-D has a targeted MSRP of $4,799. The optional meter bridge for the CL3 and CL1 has a targeted MSRP $1,199. The flagship CL5 and Rio3224-D will be available in late Spring 2012, and the CL3, CL1, and Rio1608-D will be available in late summer 2012.
Stateside, you can see Yamaha’s CL consoles at the NAB show in Las Vegas, April 16-19, in booth C2239. Or for more info, visit Yamaha online.
______________________________ Interested in creating great audio for video/film?
Check out George Petersen’s current and archived articles from HDVideoPro/CineSoundPro magazine.
Wanna read more? CLICK HERE FOR MORE BLOG POSTINGS!
The artifact’s rear panel has no manufacturer’s name, no serial number or country of origin. As you can see in the picture above, the identification of the monitor out channels is different (clearer in final version) and the artifact has hand-punched pop rivets holding the XLRs, MIDI jacks and RCA S/PDIF ports onto the rear panel—a definite indication of a prototype version. Also note the additional air ventilation holes in the production version—right above the XLR mic inputs. (CLICK ON PHOTO FOR LARGER VIEW) 
(CLICK ON CHART TO VIEW HIGH-RES VERSION)
