Are you thinking about running Pro Tools for the first time? Or are you a Pro Tools user and thinking about buying a new machine? If so, you need to be aware that there are recommended computer systems that have been officially tested and approved by Avid. As always, Audio Support are on hand to guide you through the compatibility jungle in which people often get tangled and confused.
Pick one of the links below and things will start becoming clearer. If they don’t, just give us a call!
Audio Support tutor David Lintern has completed a 500 mile walk to raise money for 2 charities: Soundmix and the John Muir Trust. You can support his work by donating here.
We often get asked how to go about releasing music. In the past, getting signed or starting your own label was pretty much the only way to get your name out there and put your tunes in front of potential buyers. Not anymore! An internet connection and a small investment of your time (plus a little bit of money up front in some cases) are all you need to get the ball rolling. Let’s explore a few of the options…
Rebeat – at it’s most basic level, this is simply a bit of computer software that simplifies the process of getting your tracks on as many online stores as possible. We’re talking iTunes, Spotify, 7digital, Amazon MP3, Beatport, Napster, eMusic and more! Rebeat will take a cut of any sales you make (currently 15%), but compared to the time you’ll save having to manually get your tracks on all those stores, you’ll probably find it’s worth the price.
AWAL.com – are you an Artist Without A Label (AWAL)? No money to invest up front? No problem! Here we have similar big name stores to Rebeat, but no software to download and pay for, and no initial fees. Hooray! (They do take a cut of any sales you make, but that’s hard to avoid anywhere these days). Throw in some handy marketing/promotion packages, and you’ve got an all-round offering that’s worth exploring.
Bandcamp.com – again, another slightly different beast, this time adding the option of selling physical CDs and vinyl alongside your MP3 downloads. There’s also the added bonus of a free website for promotion of your music. Another tempting prospect, so have a dig around and see if it tickles your fancy.
A lovely job the other day in Ealing Broadway with a very creative client (great paintings everywhere!) setting up a bunch of shiny new toys – Logic 9, Macbook Pro, Motu 828 soundcard and a super phat Waldorf synth. Fairly issue free, just getting all the boxes talking to each other politely, which worked well.
A tiny gremlin to do with the latest issue of the Mac OS (snow beastie, meooow!) meant that the very final trick in the box wasn’t quite sorted…but a 9 out of 10 isn’t that bad, and it’s definitely not the first time that the constantly changing Mac OS has left 3rd party drivers out in the cold!
It’s a good lesson to wait just a few months after a new version of Mac OS comes out, until all the other music kit manufacturers have time to update their drivers, before investing in an expensive item. When you are choosing an item before purchase, it is worth checking they have a driver and firmware on their website, for your OS.
Despite this slight frustration, client can now record midi, audio and even hear whats going on through the speakers, none of which was happening before. Always a pleasure this work, helping creative people through the sometimes boring techy stuff to get on with the really enjoyable bit of making that killer track.
Back in October 2009 Audio Support did some work helping trance DJ/producer Sophie Sugar set up her new studio equipment. We also helped sort out some technical issues with her podcast production.
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We’re pleased to report that Sophie has had an amazing year and has recently been dubbed ’The First Lady of Trance’ by Armin Van Buuren and ’The UK’s Foremost Female Trance Producer’ by DJ Mag.
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She gets our full support for her bid to make it in to the prestigious DJ Mag Top 100 list 2010.
Have a watch of this video tutorial if you need to put any Wave (.wav) files on an iPod or any MP3 player, or maybe send them to people via email. Converting to MP3 first is the way to do it. Enjoy!
Yesterday was a lovely day helping a young chap in Putney, SW London start his music production career. We covered the usual topics that make a full day of tuition ideal for Cubase beginners…
Last week I found myself in the studio of an international RnB DJ. He was a completely new user of Ableton Live, and had previously done lots of edits and mash-ups in Logic. We quickly got into the swing of things Read the rest of this entry »
