Producing With Pro Tools

Folks -

I ran across this helpful tool kit on Digidesign’s web site today… its a 3MB download called the Tech Support Folder. It contains a bunch of really helpful stuff if you’re having problems with your computer and Pro Tools, or if you’re looking to get Pro Tools and want to know if your computer is compatible.

First, there’s the PC Wizard, which analyzes your PC and produces a description of the components in your Windows computer. You can then compare your PC info with Digidesign’s compatible computer requirements.

Second, there’s the Tech Support Utility, which can help you solve a bunch of common Pro Tools tech support issues, such as error messages and problems with computer performance, plug-ins, I/O, etc.

Third, there’s the Troubleshooting Sessions folder, which contains a bunch of sessions that can help you troubleshoot any Pro Tools interface.

Finally, there’s the FAQ and Troubleshooting Guide, which is a 31 page with chapters on compatibility, support, performance considerations, hard drives, interfaces, installing and launching Pro Tools, operational errors, and what I use most… Appendix B, which has a list of common DAE Errors and What They Mean. YEAH!

Click here to go to the Tech Support Folder on Digidesign’s Site

This is a helpful bunch of tools… check them out!

df

NAMM – the winter wonderland of music gear. I’ve been going to NAMM for 5 years now and I must say that this year’s show was the most uneventful yet, in terms of being blown away by new gear offerings. However, there was one shining exception to the last sentence… Spectrasonic’s new Omnisphere synth module. That thing blew me away. I watched the demo 3 times. I was at the Spectrasonics booth so much that I ended up on their Omnisphere promo video several times. Check out that video here.

I also interviewed Diego Stocco, one of the developers for Omnisphere as well as a friend of mine from NAMM years past. I’ll post my interview with him and his demo of Omnisphere in a separate post here as soon as the video gets edited.

While at NAMM, I filmed interviews with several of my favorite manufacturers… and had some of their reps talk about their new gear.

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By the way, the background music to this video is a new song from my band… visit us on Myspace by clicking here.

Hi Folks! Hope you’re enjoying the new year so far.

I’m about to enjoy it even more than I already have been. I’ll be in Anaheim for the annual NAMM show this coming weekend. If you’re going to the show and want to meet up, email me at dfranz@berkleemusic.com and we’ll try to work it out. I should be there all day on Friday and Saturday.

If you don’t know what NAMM is, check out www.namm.org. NAMM is the National Association of Music Merchants and the show consists of every musical gear manufacturer showing off their wares. Its like a giant toy store for musicians. Plus, tons of famous artists make appearances there to hype the products that they endorse. And there are parties. But, mostly its about the gear… tons and tons of the latest coolest gadgets, instruments, and anything else music-related.

I’ll post some more blog updates after the show about the cool new gear I saw.

Just wanted to let everyone know that the new Berkleemusic.com online semester starts today, Jan 7th. You can still sign up for classes. I’ll be teaching sections of three different courses:

1. ‘Producing with Pro Tools’ - a class based on my new book (Producing in the Home Studio with Pro Tools, 3rd Edition) where we focus on recording, editing, and MIDI production techniques, for novices to intermediate Pro Tools users. Here, we do many real-world projects using Pro Tools for music creation and creative editing using audio and MIDI.

2. ‘Recording and Producing in the Home Studio’ - a class where you start with a demo song (your own or a clients) and over 12 weeks we take that song and produce it… in pre-production, we examine the song structure, lyrics, etc and rework anything that should be reworked… in the production phase, we re-record the tracks… and in the post-production phase, we edit, mix, and master the song. By the 12th week, we will have taken your demo and turned it into a fully produced and mastered recording.

3. ‘Pro Tools 101′ - the Pro Tools beginners class, designed by Digidesign. A guided start to learning the basics.

Get the most out of your studio equipment and new holiday toys. Go to www.berkleemusic.com to check out these courses and sign up to join me in class.

I saw this today and had to post the link… this dude, Alex Lelievre, is writing an app that enables you to control playback of Pro Tools with your iPhone. I don’t know enough about the technology to tell if it’ll work that well and I personally doubt the projected $150 price tag will stick, but it looks way cool if it does work. And if it works well, I’m definitely buying it… oh wait, I need the iPhone first. HEY SANTA! HOOK IT UP!

This app will be in beta next week… check out more info about it by clicking HERE

So many people have complained about how Pro Tools requires you to use an interface with the software. Well, that still is the case, but the Mbox2 Micro makes it a lot less bulky to carry one with you.

Throw this in your pocket with your iLok key. Take your laptop with Pro Tools LE anywhere. Edit drums on the plane or mix on your roofdeck while looking at the stars. This is smallest interface I’ve seen… so minimal it only has an 1/8 inch jack on it for headphones and a volume wheel. No inputs on this thing. When I get one, I’ll post another update. (It’ll be out mid-November.)

One of the best uses of home studio equipment that I’ve heard and seen recently is on YouTube in the “Shred” videos. Maybe a little outside the realm of this blog, but this certainly is creative music production if I’ve ever heard/seen it.

Essentially, the Shred videos are overdubbed guitar solos and other instruments that a guy (StSanders) synced up to a live video performance of a major artist (Clapton, Santana, Iron Maiden, etc.) The guitar solos match up with the videos so well and are absolutely hysterical, mainly because they’re so well put together (or not). Other instruments come in and out as they’re shown on the video…and those parts are equally hilarious.

Its ‘music geek’ stuff and your musician friends will probably laugh their heads off. However, non-musicians probably won’t appreciate it very much.

Here’s the Clapton Shreds video. Search for other Shred videos on YouTube’s site. I HIGHLY recommend the Santana shreds video as well!

OK, Pro Tools 7.4 is just around the corner… looking like November release…and I’ll tell ya it’s got some cool new features for sure. Elastic Time. Nice. It’s pretty slick. And from what I could tell on the AES showroom floor, it sounds pretty good too.

Elastic Time is several time compression/expansion algorithms that enable real-time elasticity of audio regions. You can change the tempo and timing of any audio file… but that’s not new, except that you can do it in real-time now. You can audition audio files from Digibase and have them playback in sync with the session before importing them. When you do import them, they automatically conform to the session tempo.

But the coolest part is that you can apply quantization to the audio files VERY easily and you can use Warp track view and Warp markers to really mess up the timing/tempo of the audio files.

The Identify Beat command and Beat Detective will have MUCH less use now. Pro Tools has brought some of the best features of Ableton Live in and gave them their own Digi spin. I think it’ll be really powerful. I can’t wait to use it.

My friend’s brother works at SE Electronics here in Boston and recently let me try out a bunch of their microphones in my studio… and I like what I hear. My favorite of the bunch is the Gemini II, a two-tube condenser. This thing is HUGE… and yes, it’s got not one but two tubes! Once those tubes get warmed up, they provide a nice glow, which is cool for low-lit recording sessions. Aside from its glow, the mic has a great presence. The Gemini is not as warm as you might think a dual-tube mic would be, but the clarity of its mid and upper range still make it an excellent mic for just about any sensitive application. I’ve used it on lead vocals and acoustic guitars on several different projects and it really helps those tracks cut through the mix with minimal EQing after the fact.

I’m also a fan of their R1 ribbon mic. This is a great ribbon mic for less than half of what you’d pay for a Royer 121. I’ve mainly used it while recording a Vox guitar amp and it definitely adds needed warmth to jangly, high-end-heavy electric guitar tracks.

I did also try a few of their other mics… and although they were good mics, they weren’t as unique and didn’t impress me like the Gemini II and R1. Plus, I could only really afford these two mics. And yes, I did actually buy them after testing them out.

Wanna try an SE Electronics mic? Go to their web site and ask to borrow one. Seriously. Why not?

http://www.seelectronics.com/whatsnew.html

They also make the Reflexion filter… pretty cool device for reducing room ambience around a mic. If you’re recording in a bedroom, office, or otherwise not sound-treated room, you might consider this device to help eliminate a crappy room sound.

Note: My purpose here isn’t to hype SE Electronics, but rather to show you some alternative mics that have a lower price point than some of the industry standard mics, but still sound amazing and have a unique look… two qualities that will impress your clients.
Has anyone else used these mics? What do you think about them? Let’s talk mics…

I’ve been using a ton of instrument plug-ins lately… and I feel like I have an addiction to them. I want to get all the ones that are available for Pro Tools. I’ve been very impressed with the stuff that Digidesign has put out under it’s A.I.R. division, including Xpand!, Hybrid, Velvet, Strike, and Structure. If you don’t have any of these, definitely get your hands on Xpand! It’s free and its really got some great sounds. There’s also a free version of Structure. Granted, Structure Free is pretty limited, but you’ll get a taste at least. If you’re an electric piano, Rhodes, or Wurli player, I highly recommend the Velvet plug. There’s something about that instrument that every time I play it, something cool comes out… either a new song idea, or a new part to the song I’m working on.

Digidesign is offering a boxed set of their A.I.R. virtual instruments - click here to check it out

What are you favorite instruments and why? One of my personal favs these days is Access Indigo. Although its been around for a while, its so robust, easy to use, and has so many cool presets that its hard to beat as my first call synth. For the music I make with my band, the arpeggiator on that plug-in rules. And, I CANNOT WAIT until Spectrasonics finally gets the Intel Mac updates for Atmosphere and Trilogy. I want to use those natively in Pro Tools without the VST wrapper. I’ve heard they’re close to releasing them. Go to http://www.spectrasonics.net/updates/index.php to check.

Talk to me about your favorite instrument plugs…