Pro Tools HD Native Now Available from AVID

Am I a fan of all of AVID's restrictions and BS they make you work around with their LE systems? Not really what-so-ever.   Do I think it's the best DAW out their for Mixing & Recording... No doubt.

Nothing works like Pro Tools, it's seamless and beyond efficient for applying a speedy work flow to any project.  Pro Tools just works, bottom line, regardless of all the hardware restrictions. (They are only trying to protect their product from piracy. Can you blame them?) Pro Tools LE with the Music Production bundle was a pretty hefty beast of a DAW and you could do quite a bit with it but, it still lacked some very important features that were available with Pro Tools HD.  IE: Automatic Delay Compensation, 5.1 Feature, High Channel Counts, 192khz Resolution, Synchronization, Multiple Solo Modes, etc.  These limitations made working with LE a trying process at times and their is no doubt I've opened up and used Cocko's Reaper more than a couple times when I was just fed up with Pro Tool's limitations.  Still, I always ended up using Pro Tools in the end.  I honestly just can't change my DAW, I love the work flow I've created inside of Pro Tools way too much.  Maybe one day but, for now I'm a dedicated Pro Tools user and very excited about the new Native HD Systems that were just released.

With the release of Pro Tools HD Native, Pro Tools has changed the DAW game.  It's not even really "native" though, it still requires a PCIe card from AVID.  So the whole name is a little misleading.  They should have just called it, Pro Tools HD That Costs Less.  I guess it is kind of native, since it does take some advantage of your computers processing power unlike previous HD Systems.  However, I feel that to call a system "native" it needs to only use the power from the computers processor.  IE: Logic, Ableton, etc.  Now you can have all the benefits of a Pro Tools HD System (Minus TDM Plug-ins) at a price that's actually affordable though.  Who could really ever afford an actual HD system on a home budget anyways.  I don't know about you but I can think of about 100 other things I'd buy with 10 grand as opposed to some of Digi's other PT HD Systems.  Don't start thinking that Pro Tools HD Native will be "cheap" it's not trust me, it' retails for $3,500 without AVID's new Omni or HD Interfaces.  You can score a decent deal by picking up the Native HD System bundled with one of AVID's new Omni interfaces (8x8) for just under $6,000.  Compared to an HD 1 system you're saving a fairly big chunk of cash while still having the great quality, features & plug-ins that HD is known for.

Let's talk about who this system is for first because, it requires a few things which put it beyond the reach of some users.  In order to run the new Pro Tools HD Native system you need to have at least one of AVID's HD Interfaces.  Whether it's their new HD line of interfaces or an older 192/96 I/0 you still need one of these to run the HD Native system.  The HD Native system supports up to 4 interfaces.  Like I said before it doesn't have support for TDM Plug-ins but does support RTAS/AudioSuite Plug-ins.  You also need to have a computer with at least one open PCIe slot (Laptop Users Check this Out, you can get the PCIe power too)  AVID also recommends at least 2 gigs of ram and either Windows 7 or Mac OSX 10.6.4.

I suppose it's time for the specs now... Pro Tools HD Native features up to 64 channels of simultaneous I/O.  More than you'll likely ever fill.  Maximum number of audio tracks allowed varies depending on what sample rate your session is set to.  Since most of the new age kids are making their sessions all stereo (please stop doing this, there is nothing wrong with a mono kick) I'll list the stereo specs, these audio track counts are doubled for mono tracks.  @ 48kHz you can have up to 96 Stereo Audio Tracks, @ 96kHz you can have up to 48 Stereo Audio Tracks, and @ 192kHz you can have up to 18 Stereo Audio Tracks.  As I said before if you're using mono tracks these audio track counts are doubled.  There are other caps on numbers of instruments tracks, midi tracks, aux tracks, VCA tracks, & master tracks but they are such high counts most of you wouldn't be affected by these limitations.  If you still want to see them check out the specs page over at AVID.  Yes it does still require one of AVID's "native" PCIe cards and cannot just run off of your computer's host processor.  Beyond that, it's loaded with all the goodies and features of previous HD Systems, Including all the plug-ins and instruments!

Is this a truly "native" system? No, far from it in fact.  It still will cost you a nice chunk of cheese to set up a new Pro Tools HD Native system from AVID but, this is the most professional and highest quality format of Digital Audio Workstation available at an affordable price.  You can't expect it to be cheap, you're paying for quality and if you've ever used a Pro Tools HD system you know it's worth every cent.  The great thing is they've made this HD system affordable enough for serious home studio enthusiasts & producers.  I've included a few links below to AVID's website so you can do some digging of your own.  They haven't really made that much information available yet.  I'm sure we will all learn more as the days go by and the product begins to sell though, I'll keep you all posted on any updates related to this release, including the general consensus on it over at GearSlutz.

Pro Tools HD Native Overview

Pro Tools HD Native Features

Pro Tools HD Native Specifications 

Pro Tools HD Native Bundled Plug-ins

Best,

Nick

Solid State Logic's Duende: EQ Compression Gate Expander Tutorials

If you're not familiar with Solid State Logic... get familiar right now. They are hands down one of the most sought after brands in the audio industry and continue to evolve as the market advances into the digital realm and beyond. Solid State Logic's consoles and gear can be found in studio's at Capitol Records, Dr. Dre's house, Sasha's project studio and Timbaland's tour bus. Not to mention the rest of SSL's history scattered about the planet in some of the most legendary studios known to man's ear. The sonic character, quality, unique features, and intuitive use of Solid State Logic's gear make it the obvious choice for professionals looking for that special touch on their production & mixes.

Solid State Logic has done some interesting things over the past few years to bring the legendary sound and quality of their products to a new market. A market fraught with creativity and independence, this would be where you would input your own name ______ ________. Because, chances are, if you're reading this blog you're precisely the person SSL has marketed their latest line of gear to. Gear like their X-Rack which allows users to custom build a small analog 500 series rack outfitted with any combination of SSL's dynamic processing and input modules. This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what SSL manufactures that one could consider affordable. Cheap... No. The legendary sound you've heard on countless hit records since you've exited the womb... Yes! Obviously it's not "cheap" you're paying for quality, that quality is just now more affordable and more available to the public than ever before.

The Duende is mainly why we're here though. Solid State Logic released the first version of Duende in 2006, it's built on the same technology available in SSL's "C" Series Digital Console. Basically, it's a box with an SSL DSP engine that hosts SSL Plug-Ins for your DAW.  It's a baby SSL that lives in a box and connects to your computer, turning your laptop into a mult-core resource eating beast! The Duende comes available in a small FireWire desktop box and also a rack sized PCIe version for you HD users. Most of you will most likely benefit from the Duende Mini. Especially laptop users considering Duende lightens the CPU load when you're using the SSL Plug-ins specific to it.

I almost forgot to mention latency... Sloppy.  Let's say you have some outboard gear, for this example since we're in SSL land we will assume you have two SSL Super Analogue EQ's in a Mynx rack.  Now, assume you'd like to process the Moog synth line you just recorded into Pro Tools.  Before you do that though you slap a plug-in compressor on the synth track inside of Pro Tools.  So you've got the synth recorded into pro tools (at as high of quality possible cause you're a geek) Being processed by the plug-in compressor and you're ready to route it out to your interface so that you can run it through the SSL outboard EQ to sculpt the low end and bring out that high end analog noise post compression.  After some tweaking you decide that it's now sounding nice and you're ready to record it back into Pro Tools.  You record it back into PT, play it back with the rest of your mix and you will notice your synth track is now delayed and playing behind everything else.  You're now thinking... WTF???

This is because of the delay introduced by the plug-in compressor on the original recorded synth track.  It can only work so quickly to process the audio and spit it back out.  By the time it does this and the track is sent out to be processed and recorded back to PT it is behind the other tracks in PT.  This isn't really a problem in Logic and other DAW's because most have automatic delay compensation.  Pro Tools LE does not though and you have to either adjust the timing by hand and move the recorded waveform back in time or find out the delay time and then add digi's delay compensation plug-in (I will do a tutorial on this process very soon)  Now hopefully you see why this is a problem and can be quite a pain in the ass.  Not all plug-ins create delay but most native ones do and you can check in Pro Tools by "apple" clicking on the digital scribble strip in Pro Tool's Mix Window (see picture).   The Duende however introduces no latency whatsoever!  Case & Point: Solid State Logic's Duende DSP powered plug-ins mean no delay compensation hassles!  Now you're most certainly wondering why you're here since I've yet to show you any tutorials. Stop wondering, just one more paragraph and you'll be on your way to audio knowledge heaven.

Solid State Logic has created a series of tutorials for Duende that cover everything from basic EQ knowledge to more advanced techniques like parallel compression. While these tutorials are specific to the plug-ins available with Duende, they also have a ton of information packed into them that is useful to anyone searching for audio processing knowledge. A compressor is a compressor weather it's the stock Logic Studio Compressor or an SSL Compressor. Same goes for EQ's and other plug-ins as well.  The following little bit of info comes from some of the greatest minds in the audio industry and is certainly more than worth your time.  If you've got a Duende then it's just like a double whammy as you'll be trained in the recording arts (EQ, Compression, ETC.) and get a product specific tutorial for use with your software!  Sorry to spit so much promotional SSL jargon at you but it's all honestly how I personally feel.  The main goal of this blog is to spread awareness regarding quality gear, SSL is quality gear and I felt I needed to respectfully give the brand the attention that it deserves.  Now, without further a do; I give you Solid State Logic's Duende Tutorials!

Duende Tutorial 1: Compression & Limiting

Duende Tutorial 2: Using the Gate/Expander Section

Duende Tutorial 3: Basic EQ

Duende Tutorial 4: Using the Duende Channel Side Chain

Duende Tutorial 5: Duende Bus Compressor

Duende Tutorial 6: Advanced EQ

Duende Tutorial 7: Parallel Compression

Native Instruments Traktor's 12! Traktor Pro's EFX Now Available in Your DAW!

I'm a Traktor Gate whore.  In fact I've used and abused her so many times during live sets I was beginning to wonder if our relationship was ever going to turn into something more.  Well with the introduction of Native Instruments Traktor's 12 this relationship does indeed now have the beautiful potential to blossom into something much more serious.  Native Insturments just released Traktor's 12, you can purchase it as a stand alone plug-in for your DAW by itself for $79.00 and it also comes bundled with Native Instruments Komplete 7.  Traktor's 12 basically took 12 of the most popular effects used in Traktor and turned them into DAW plug-ings for use inside of their free Guitar Rig 4 Player.  Wondering how to get those crazy DJ style breakdown efx into your production.  Wonder no more, Traktor's 12 is here for you with some of the most well known DJ style efx bundled into a nice package that can run right inside of any DAW.

The effects that come with Traktor's 12 are as follows: Traktor Delay, Traktor Reverb, Digital LoFi, Mullholland Drive, Ring Modulator, Format Filter, Peak Filter, Beatmasher, GATER!!!, Reverse Grain, Transpose Stretch, Beat Slicer.  Traktor's 12 also has 120 multi-effect rack presets from standard presets perfect for basic processing and remix tools to complex and dense crazy nuts madness preset effects. Since Traktor's 12 runs in the free Guitar Rig 4 Player, the Guitar Rig Factory Selection of 22 tools and effects also comes included.

As you can see nothing is different about the effects we all know and love, they still feature the same 4 knob control that Traktor features and look identical minus some color changes.  I wasn't able to find any info about how these actually sound, quality wise inside of your DAW but I am on the hunt.  I just asked on GearSlutz for a little review of Traktor's 12 from a guy who just got Komplete 7 so hopefully I'll have more to share with you all once he gets back to me.  There is however a few sound examples on Native's website and the efx don't seem to sound half bad, very digital without any "true" character or feeling at all but what can you expect.  If they are anything like the on board effects in Traktor Pro be careful because it is very easy to over do it with these, hopefully this next sentence sums that warning up for you.  Long story short, the efx can be very unique, but, if you push them to hard this uniqueness turns to sound poo, bottom line.  And although while in your studio you won't be in a live situation it's just a good thing to keep in mind so you don't feel discouraged when you are going crazy hard to the walls and end up with sound poo.  The Traktor Pro Gate will always sound dope though, just don't over do the "noise" knob.

Beyond that there isn't too much to say about Traktor's 12.  It's just a bunch of DJ effects from Traktor that now work inside of your DAW for use with productions.  No more bouncing stems from your productions out and loading them into Traktor to re-record them using Traktor's efx.  They can now all be neatly stored in your DAW's Plugin Menu, for more information on Traktor's 12 visit Native Instruments Website.

Here's a quick little video showing what the efx in Traktor's 12 can do:

Sound Design Profile for Inception Feat: Sound Designer Richard King, Mixers: Lora Hirschberg & Gary Rizzo

"Inception" Sound for Film Profile from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.
A Producer/Engineer/DJ friend of mine by the name of Craig Williams sent me a link to watch a video last night.  He didn't tell me what it was, he only mentioned that it was a really neat video and I should take a look.  When I opened it, I was immediately intrigued after reading the title.  I still haven't seen Inception but I know it had a multi-million dollar budget behind it which translates to dope sound design!  This is a little video showing you how they created, manipulated, recorded, placed all the sounds that make up the film.  It's extremely interesting and if you like film or audio this video is right up your alley.  It's extremely revealing and you get an idea for the amount of work put in by these engineers to help make some of your favorite movies truly amazing. Check it out!

Who Says Distortion Can't Be Beautiful! knøx - mummy (original mix) Mastered @ ZeSoundSuite

I've got a really great track I had the pleasure of working on for you guys today.  When I first heard it I was beyond stoked to get cracking on it because it possessed quite a unique and diverse sonic character.  Unfortunately it took me a bit to get it as I was swamped with other ongoing projects.  When I finally sat down to work and gave the song a few listens I immediately thought and focused on three things.  First and foremost make that kick as mau5 like as possible.  Say what you want about the mau5 his kick is perfect! (Thanks in part to the SSL Stereo Bus Compressor)  Secondly, I knew I had to push the low to mid range pretty hard to bring out the grit that was such a prevalent sound in the track.  Finally I had to sculpt and bump the highs up just enough to bring out all the grimy noise whilst still keeping the epic progressive synth leads in check.  I also added quite a bit of character and extra noise with the URS Saturation plug-in and Digidesign's Reel Tape Saturation plug-in @ 15ips.  Long story short I made the adjustments I saw fitting; EQ, Compression, M/S Processing and preapred the track for limiting.  I knew this had to be loud to sound good, it's just one of those songs that without a lot of amplitude would loose a lot of it's meaning and purpose.  I pushed the L316 hard to the paint and made some final release time adjustments to keep the harmonics relatively in tact.  The result is what you're about to hear, all in all it came out great and still has a lot of the original dynamics despite it's loudness.  The kick is beautiful, the  low-mid range grit grabs your soul and the highs are perfectly balanced keeping the progressive synths bright and comfortable while showcasing just enough of the added noise to bring the whole track together.  Give it a listen, it's beyond a sonic experience!
knøx - mummy (original mix) by knøx

The Only Software EQ You'll Ever Need: DMG Audio EQuality EQ

So I am most certainly a fan and avid user of the Sonnox Oxford EQ plug-in.  Maybe I got sucked in by the hype... who knows, all I know is that I just discovered the God EQ.  I was doing some stumbling over at the GearSlutz Forum (The place I learn basically everything) when I noticed more than a few engineers were hyping a plug-in I'd never heard of as if it were Higgs Boson.  They were specifically saying that it made their Sonnox Oxford EQ sound like garbage.

I admit at first I thought... nooo, what??? That's my baby... no... it can't suck.  Needless to say I had to download the demo of this EQuality EQ from DMG Audio they were all speaking so highly of.  That way I could A/B it and the Oxford side by side to settle this battle.  I loaded up two identical tracks one with Oxford & the other with EQuality.  Before I even made any adjusts what so ever with both eq's flat, just having EQuality on and in the signal path made it's track sound better. (nice, even slight low end bump mainly, right around 70-130hz)  This might bother some, but if you're working with bass driven material this little bit of initial character will do wonders to your music.  I was immediately intrigued so I started tweaking each and it wasn't even a contest.  EQuality is far superior and much clearer the the Oxford EQ and a lot of other EQ's I've ever used for that matter. It maintains a level of clarity that I've never heard, and Sonnox can't match, while still adding a tad bit of it's own character to your material.  There is a feature that allows you the ability to switch digital processing options.  Basically meaning this EQ can be as a precise and clear mastering tool and also act as a sonically rich warm character driven analog EQ.   The GUI is understated, pleasant and quite functional when you're in the mix with it.  Some large multi-band EQ's can look quite daunting and almost scary when they're first opened.

EQuality doesn't scare you, instead she greets you with her warmth and supple bosom.  I can't show you how much better it is, you'll have to see for yourself.  Download a demo copy of EQuality from DMG Audio's website and put it up against your favorite EQ.  See how things turn out, you just might have a new special lady in the plug-in menu.  I haven't had the time to fully investigate this beast but I will, you can count on that. I think I'll even do a EQ Tutorial/EQuality Tutorial video to go with a more detailed review.  There is a host of features that will come in quite handy whether your mixing, recording, or mastering so I think this would be a useful video tutorial for the production/engineering world.  I'll get to know this EQ and get back to all of you with a full review and rundown of EQuality.  A full license of EQuality Retails for: $149.00 and is available at DMG Audio's Website.

If You Don't Know, Now You Know... Black Lion Audio 003R Modification

There's no doubt there is quite a price gap between Pro Tools LE & Pro Tools HD. There's also no doubt you have access to far greater sonic potential using HD but, affording a true Pro Tools HD TDM based system can be quite costly. While Pro Tools LE doesn't have TDM capabilities it is still quite capable of recording, mixing down & mastering a professional sounding album if you have the right tools. That's where the Black Lion Audio 003R Mod comes in. This blog is for my bedroom audio geeks, the people in their rooms grinding hard... Black Lion Audio modded the 003R for all you so you don't have to spend 10 grand on an HD System... Get yourself a modded 003R from Black Lion Audio and the world will have absolutely no idea you don't have some big bad mean and nasty HD system sitting in your room. I could spend a few paragraphs documenting posts from GearSlutz and Info from Black Lion or I could just copy and paste this statement from Matt Newport the owner of Black Lion Audio.

"We have a customer in Milwaukee that did some tracking for a major label R&B release. The label paired him with a multi-million dollar facility in Reno, Nevada to handle mix-down. When the mix-down studio guys heard the tracks, they were so impressed that they asked our customer about his recording setup. He told them what he was using but they refused to believe him. The owner of the studio actually flew to Milwaukee just to see our customer's setup: one of our Signature Series 003R's and two of our Auteur preamps. He was furious when he saw it, because he said it sounded as good as his million dollar system yet it cost so much less. I think that says a lot about not only the state of our industry, but also about what we're doing as a company. The large amount of expense required to operate a large facility like that is becoming less and less feasible."

I think that pretty much sums up the reason why I started this blog all in one short paragraph from someone who has no idea this place even exists. Major studios can't afford to keep their doors open anymore. Especially, when it's evident YOU or I with a little practice, training & some Black Lion gear can scare the living crap out of a guy who owns a multi-million dollar studio. You can have the same sound the pro's do all from the comfort of your home and in the end, not subject your productions to the ideals of someone else who pays a lot of money for you to have that same sound in a professional studio. If you record anything, anything at all into your Pro Tools LE setup (or any native DAW for that matter) there is no doubt in my mind that a Modded 003R from Black Lion Audio has to be your next purchase. Mine will be, this is no joke and I can't wait! Imagine recording your analog synths into Pro Tools and actually getting a nice digital audio representation of it. That would be nice. (day dreaming....) I haven't heard of an m-box or a standard 003 doing that yet. Fact is the digi hardware is crap... even the HD stuff... (I just said that) Let Black Lion Audio give your work the sonic touch you thought was a $100,000,000 record contract away! Be sure to read all of the 003R upgrade page at Black Lion, they do a fantastic job of explaining all the stock elements of the 003R and how they improve them. It's a good learning experience for those not familiar with a 003R as well as an excellent promotional tool for their fantastic product. Support companies like Black Lion Audio, companies that genuinely care about their product and their customers!

Black Lion Audio on the Web:

Website

Facebook

Sound on Sound's Tutorial Archive

If you don't know what Sound on Sound is, find out now... Sound on Sound Good, now you know SOS is a bitching publication offering intelligent reads for professionals and amateurs in the sound industry. Now, trip on this. SOS has archived all of their tutorials on the internet for free! You need a subscription to read the latest tutorials online but, all of the old ones are available and they will keep you plenty busy while waiting for the new articles. If you see something you have to read right away, get a subscription, you'll be glad you did. I personally go buy mine at a newsstand every month. I'm still not sure why, I waste a ton of money but, I like going out to buy my sound nerd magazines every month. Anyways, here is the link to SOS's Techniques Section. There is tons of tutorials on everything audio, as well as archived tutorials on all of the leading DAW's including; Pro Tools, Ableton, Digital Performer, Logic, Cubase, Sonar & Reason. Search SOS a bit, there is tons of articles on everything for the audiophile. Enjoy!