Yoozer

Better yet - you can suck at an instrument and still rock at arrangements and composition, because what you write down / click in is music theory, not instrument proficiency. The reason piano works better is because it's the chosen interface for a controller, and because the (relatively) wide keyboard spans ranges of several instruments - which means you don't have to switch to jump from violin to cello and you can do both with a sampling library. The "interface" of a guitar differs from a piano - notes are not spread out (the idea of "tabs" for keyboard is rather pointless, anyone with an alternative system of notation still has to beat the existing one in conciseness and expression - and they had centuries to debug and append that standard, so you might as well just give up), the note range is not as big, notes do not automatically stop playing (muting is not the default), and all that. This makes you approach arrangements differently by default. It's good to have the knowledge of both (and more) since what is trivial for a computer can be impossible for a human being and vice-versa. Get those lessons and keep up your guitar playing and study (contemporary) composition and arrangement. It's all knowledge, and you won't be worse off because of it. It'd really help if you'd use a sensible topictitle, ask what you want to ask directly (and explain later) .

Why wouldn't it be? Checklist: - does it play nicely with your soundcard, MIDI interface and/or USB controller? Do the drivers work, will the application recognize your hardware? - does it run the plugins you want to use/need? - do you enjoy the way the user interface works? If these answers are yes then you've answered your question.

I'll do so too - don't use a font that sucks . Your assumptions are your biggest problem. A computer in its most basic role does not do anything but act as a digital tape recorder with several miles of tape, it does not (have to) generate anything, and if it's robotic you only have yourself to blame. You don't. The Richter scale is a waveform. It's a single file that, when displayed on screen, looks like that, and when played through your soundcard, sounds like - well, whatever it is. It's the movement of a speaker over time - so if you see a slow wobble, that's what your speaker's supposed to do. The height of the waveform is its volume. If you zoom in and see peaks and dips, the distance between the peak top and the dip bottom is the frequency (pitch). How it looks - a smooth wave or a scratchy drawing - is what it sounds like (timbre). Will you ever do anything with this theory? Not necessarily. Some programs allow you to drag and drop wavefiles in a track directly. If however you are playing with software instruments for most of the time, here's what happens: - you play a key on the keyboard - the key sends a signal that note F3 is being played to the MIDI output - there's a cable from the output to a MIDI interface on your computer - your MIDI interface tells the software (the "sequencer" or "host") - "hey, note F3 is being played!". It does not matter which device - if it's a synthesizer or a digital piano, it just tells the note. MIDI is to audio like sheet music is to a CD - one tells you what to play but not how it sounds, the other tells you what it sounds like but not what you should play. - the host tells the plugin "hey, do something with this" - the plugin reacts and does something. This could be playing back a digital recording (the wavefile) of the F3 note of a piano, or to play a recording of a sound effect, or to calculate a waveform in realtime based on a mathematical formula. - the actual sound of the plugin is sent back to the host - the host sends the sound to your soundcard, which translates it to an electrical signal (voltage) - the soundcard is hooked up to the speakers, and they get the voltage - and move accordingly. Since all you are playing is an instruction, not the actual sound, you can record these instructions and play them back. You can also change the information in those instructions - common modifications are transposing it, or altering the timing. If you play jazzy, a process called quantization snaps back every note that's off the grid to 8th, 16th or 32nd notes. Quantization is what makes a piece of music sound mechanic, but if you play good enough you don't need it (you might want to use it for a techno bassdrum, though). The second method is to record the sound coming out of a keyboard, and in that case, you can't really "fix" anything afterwards anymore. (exceptions apply). In this function a computer is a dumb tape recorder and nothing more. Let's destroy the second assumption about the wallet and the need for a crack: Cubase 4 Essential: http://steinberg.net/1591+M52087573ab0.html Ableton Live LE: http://www.ableton.com/live-le Sonar Home Studio: http://www.cakewalk.com/Products/HomeStudio/default.asp Reaper: http://reaper.fm/ Tracktion 3 Project Edition: http://www.mackie.com/products/tracktion3/ FL Studio Fruity Edition: http://www.flstudio.com/documents/what.html Energy XT 2: http://www.energy-xt.com/ All of this is cheap (making music has never been cheaper) - if it's still expensive to you, get a job or save up for it. Even the required hardware (MIDI interface, soundcard, etc.) can be really cheap. Try the demo versions of as many of the programs in the list here, and see if they are better suited to making music.

Easiest way: - connect 1 USB MIDI interface to your laptop running Reason - connect 1 USB MIDI interface to your desktop running Live - connect 1 MIDI cable from the desktop MIDI out to the laptop MIDI in - tell Ableton to send MIDI to that MIDI output - tell Reason to receive MIDI from that MIDI input. Alternatively: http://www.fx-max.com/fxt/

Whatever you do, don't just start connecting wires - shit blows up/melts. Another option would be to take a usable, accurate EQ and to filter everything away phones filter away, too, then use a compressor to retain intelligibility.

Not that many soundcards are PCI-Express, and the one I know that is is expensive (RME Multiface II). Why not go the Firewire route? From what I've heard FW has better support on the Mac anyway. Avoid the Mackie Satellite though.

and the quality of the ASIO drivers. Do not use the on-board soundcard, get yourself something decent.

Random act of kindness: http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/nov05/articles/emupatchmix.htm Was a lot of help when I was messing around with the 1212m. Just configure it the right way and you'll never have to look at it again.

That term is generally used for DJ-style applications where you either use timecode vinyl or just throw a bunch of mp3s in a list. The term you need is "DAW" (digital audio workstation) or sequencer. You'll get as many as there are programs and all of 'm will be equally useful (namely, not ). It's indeed personal. Good. Get the trial versions of Sonar, Reaper and Ableton Live, too (Cubase doesn't have one). Focus on making a piece of music and spend a week or two with just one single application; trying to use them all at the same time is trying to drive a Ferrari and an Aston Martin all by yourself. If the piece of software seems to work against you or makes it horribly difficult to do anything basic and you've studied the help/tutorials, give up and move on to the next.

There are some weird bits in there, but it's very well liked - all the more because the price has dropped sharply with the release of 8 (it used to cost twice at that), plus if you want to just practice without the sequencer, there's MainStage which doesn't distract from just playing. Snappleman's comments and my retort and his counter-retort (no doubt followed by questioning of sexual preference, notation that one creates a vacuum, and a nonsensical statement involving plankton ) show also something interesting: - it's not the stack of gear that allows you do to your stuff - whatever someone else thinks of how you work, it doesn't matter - the result is what counts Also, here's stuff for the room: http://www.realtraps.com/products.htm http://www.studiotips.com/ for DIY (provided that you can do this, have access to the right materials - none of that cheap pointy foam or egg cartons nonsense) You mention you sing, so it's probably worth it to designate part of the studio as a vocal booth or use something portable like this: http://www.seelectronics.com/rf.html When you want to record vocals, make sure you set it up in such a way that you never have to worry about the recording - harddrives are big enough that you can leave it running for a day and still not fill it up. The idea that you don't have to nervously run to the computer to check if everything's alright and then run back for a take takes a load off your shoulder, since you're doing everything by yourself. It's why they keep everything running in studios too, and a booth has another psychological advantage - you don't feel "exposed" as a singer, so you're not as nervous. It's easy to cut out the bad bits. The pop filter - well, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pop_filter explains it all, really, and it's indeed cheap to make your own. It's just that the ones you buy can be mounted easier (but not necessarily better). Also, I've got a subscription (eSub) to http://www.soundonsound.com/ . It's got tons of useful articles - also about recording techniques, treating/improving amateur studios, tutorials for Logic (and Cubase, Live, etc.) - it's not as focused on the electronic stuff as Computer Music is, so it might be of use for you. The eSub doesn't cost a ton to ship in paper and it's searchable.

There's only a single reason to go the Mac route, and that's the software you run. Logic is Mac-only, FL is PC only, using the Mac as a Windows box - not good. Actually, duplicating your casual usage setup would be nice - it can already make a big difference if you have a separate system. Both that PC and the Mac will be old hat in 4 years - the monitors and a good controller keyboard will outlast it. Invest a little extra so you get quiet parts; the only noise a computer's permitted to make is that which comes out of the speakers.

Keep wasting your time on complaints while the rest of the people make music . oh, rite, pattern bullshit. You mean like this: or this: or this! which has this! did i mention what a piece of professional studio equipment this was that costed more than an apartment in Manhattan? god yes that was fun the board software thinks I shouldn't post more than 4 images so this softens the blow of the 5-foot titanium spiked cock of pwnage you were scheduled to get

This is why FL would drive me absolutely nuts - the shitload of screens . Very impressive! Maybe - before any webservers get absolutely raped - put this stuff in a torrent?

http://www.midisolutions.com/prodqmr.htm or combined with the laptop: http://www.zzounds.com/item--THKMIMMS22 (secondhand, won't work standalone) or new: http://www.zzounds.com/item--MTUMICROLITE (won't work standalone) or secondhand: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QpDDkP1Xquc Yes, it's huge, but it'll do the job standalone and they aren't expensive anymore, secondhand. Both Kawai (MAV-8 I think) and Roland (A-880) have these interfaces and it's probably not that easy to program them, but once you've done that anything can go to anything. I would not recommend the daisy-chaining route; it's a stopgap measure and things get a lot easier when you don't have to disable channels on the synths themselves because the 16 MIDI ones are getting too crowded.

I'm pretty sure it's just cranking this to 11.

It's a catchall for computer, harddiskrecorder, workstation, tape machine or the brains of 30 Chinese teenagers in your basement who you force to memorize numbers.

how is remmix formed how judge say yes The basic waveform stuff has been covered here, too: http://www.vimeo.com/1309545 I'd rather like a video that starts by tearing into misconceptions, explaining that it's not remixing but making music, and that remixing has to do with the approach, but not with the job itself. That MIDI is not audio. That you can't "upload" sounds to synthesizers the way you think you can (e.g. completely on different types of synths). That you choose a synthesizer for a certain task, but not for a genre. Using a controller with knobs to control a synth on-screen. The minimum ingredients of a setup (sequencer / recording apparatus / monitoring / control / sound generation). That the choices for these are determined by budget and needs. How to easily publish music - how to turn a .wav file into an mp3 and where to upload it. That's already enough material to cover for 2, 3 videos - easily. If you're going to use any application, make sure it's got buttons that you can spot the position of a mile away. Zoom in judiciously, animate button actions.

Since almost all attempts of mine to search for the original set of SPC files has failed (all I can find is Jurassic Park 2), I'm glad that I still have this: http://www.theheartcore.com/zip/jpsnesost.zip which has all tracks as mp3 files. Eventually all of 'm should be remixed/rearranged and released as a single album. Good call about the room size - of course the SNES's sample memory isn't that big so it has to do with a roomier reverb included in the sample rather than my wide hall one. I'll see I can make it work.

Improved version, hot from the presses: http://www.theheartcore.com/music/night_vision_batteries_2.mp3 I don't think this one captures the claustrophobia as well, but it's shorter and has more focus, and the volume's up to snuff. The hiatus from the first might've been due to the rhythm fading in - I've used a highpass filter and the wavefile shows peaks before you can really hear 'm. I've cut it at a more reasonable point now.

First in a series. http://www.theheartcore.com/music/night_vision_batteries.mp3 Known issues: - transition to synth strings can be sort of jarring - more of a rearrangement than a remix - may need normalizing/mastering compression - no EQing done yet

From the NI Battery manual: Why Randomization is Not the Answer Many sequencers provide timing randomization options to help give a more human-sounding track. Randomization is great if you want to simulate the effect of a drummer who’s had too many beers; however, for a great groove, shift timings the way a drummer would. Human drummers add variations in a mostly non-random way—often subconsciously, so these changes tap directly into the source of the drummer’s “feel.” Drummers often hit some drums slightly ahead of, or behind, the beat to give certain effects. For example, jazz drummers tend to hit a ride cymbal’s bell a bit ahead of the beat to “push” a song. Rock drummers frequently hit the snare behind the beat (listen to any Led Zeppelin album) to give a “big” sound. Of course, the sound isn’t really bigger; but our brain interprets slight delays as indicating a big space, since we know that in a big space, sound travels a while through the air before it reaches us. A sequencer or drum machine’s track shift (or track offset) function, which can move a track back and forth in increments of single clock pulses, is your first line of defense against mechanical grooves. Keep the kick drum on the beat as a reference, and use track shifting to change the timing of the snare, toms, and percussion by a few milliseconds. Here are some other track timing tricks. • For techno, dance, and acid jazz tunes try moving any double-time percussion parts (shaker, tambourine, etc.) a little bit ahead of the beat to give a “faster” feel. • Sometimes it works well to shift individual notes rather than an entire track. With tom fills, delay each subsequent note of the fill a bit more (e.g., the first note of the fill is on the beat, the second note approximately 2ms after the beat, the third note 4-5ms after the beat, the fourth note 6-8ms after the beat, and so on until the last note ends up about 20ms behind the beat). This can make a tom fill sound gigantic. • If two percussion sounds often hit on the same beat in a rhythm pattern, try sliding one part ahead or behind the beat by a small amount (a few ms) to keep the parts from interfering with each other. • If some drums fight with melodic parts (e.g., the kick drum and bass mosh together), slightly advance the part you want to emphasize in the mix. It will grab the ear’s attention just before the beat, therefore bringing more attention to itself. • Hitting a crash cymbal a bit ahead of the beat makes it really stand out. Moving it behind the beat meshes it more with the track. Why Quantization is Not the Answer either Remember, machines don’t kill music, people do—and quantization is one of the main weapons. Although quantization has its place, it’s a very artificial process because no drummer plays with crystal-controlled precision. Fortunately, sequencers usually let you quantize by a certain percentage (usually called “quantize strength” or “intensity”). In other words, 100% quantization moves a note exactly to the nearest beat, but 50% quantization moves it halfway closer to the beat. Try quantizing the kick to 100% and all other drum tracks to somewhere between 50% and 80%. The result is a track that sounds rhythmically correct, but retains most of a performance’s “feel.”

Ars Technica people now think you can't afford pants .

uh, it has my nickname in the filename, it has my nickname in the id3 tag, and i'm hosting it on my own website, plus using someone else's track to give you a gift would be so far beyond lame of me that it'd come back at the other end of the universe, ripping holes in space and time and making fluorescent parachute pants cool again but do give some suggestions for what you wanted to hear, this was a fun little assignment.

A keyboard and the piano roll are related in the sense that one's put in front of you horizontally and the other's the same thing, only vertical. The piano roll offers you a method of editing. When you want to transpose notes, you can select these and drag 'm up. Without it, you'd have to play everything again. You can play chords (can't do this with a mouse) and you can turn 2 knobs at the same time.

I think I could've made it meaner if I would've thrown some BIOOOOOTCH and WHUUT WHUUUT from Lil Jon in there However, Denver's song was already pretty saccharine, so it's kind of hard to make it not cute. Thanks for the kudos btw, it was a 20 minute job.