Soundcraft M12

First up is the M12, the largest desk in the Soundcraft M series. Twelve mono inputs, four stereo inputs, and four stereo returns.

Looking at the raw specs, this is a nice sized mixer for small churches, smaller home/project studios, and anything that might need less than 16/32 channels.

S/PDIF I/O is available on all the M12 which makes this desk very studio friendly. The pres are low noise, low distortion, and also include RF rejection inside of them. Souncraft also boasts “great sounding British EQs,” which is something we see on just about every mixer on the market (including the Behringer line of mixers). I’m sure the EQs sound good regardless of where they come from. The EQs are three-band and, also included, is a HPF (at 100Hz) on all the mono channels.

The M12 has four available aux sends making outboard effects processors possible to include while also giving you the option for a couple (or more) monitor mixes.

100mm fader throw means you’ll have precise control over each individual channel. Direct outputs (pre or post-fader) are available on all mono channels which makes this board extremely viable for recording. Mute/PFL controls are present, as well as metering on every channel and the master bus.

The M12 isn’t lacking much (it’s even rackmountable), but it is missing a couple of things.

• No onboard FX. For me, this wouldn’t be a big deal. I prefer to use outboard processors anyhow. However, for someone running sound at a church or smaller venue, this could be a problem and could prompt a potential buyer to walk on by. While external effects are great, most consumer level engineers don’t have the budget for outboard effects and don’t want to deal with hooking up and running separate reverbs, delays, etc. Obviously for recording onboard effects aren’t typically used, so this mainly confronts people buying an M12 for live sound purposes.
• No groups. In my opinion, this is not a viable desk for larger sized clubs, bars, or churches. Mixing drums, vocals, horns, to a group keeps you from having too much gear and is also flat out convenient. Again, most entry/mid level engineers probably aren’t worried about mixing to subgroups, but your more experience engineers will worry about that.

Allen & Heath MizWizard WZ3 12:2

I’m a bit of an Allen & Heath fanboy. I’ve used the MixWizard enough to know I like it, and I drool weekly over their Xone DJ mixers. So how does the WZ3 12:2 stack up against the M12?

Eight mono channels and two stereo channels are available. The 12:2 has a four-band EQ (as opposed to the M12′s three) as well as a HPF on all the mono channels. The 12:2 also has mute switches and metering on the individual channels and the master bus, just like the M12. However, the 12:2 has two additional auxes compared to the M12 – six in total making it a little more live friendly. The 12:2 also has 100mm faders.

Where the MixWizard separates itself from the M12 is the onboard effects and computer friendly editing option that’s available with it. The MixWizard can talk to your laptop via MIDI making the effects tweaking a little more customizable. Once again, the 12:2 lends itself slightly more to live applications than the M12.

Conclusion

Both desks are plenty capable for studio or live settings. They’re both made from companies with solid reputations for sound quality and build quality. However, the major deciding factor for most people is price. The WZ3 12:2 sells for around $900 while the M12 sells for around $850 – once again proving that you pay for the Allen & Heath name. It’s not much of a price difference, but to most people $50 is enough to make a decision for them.

My personal opinion is go with the M12 for recording and the WZ3 12:2 for live applications. That being said, both mixers are solid and would do well in either application.

One of the questions we posed on the AASG Google Wave group was this: Would you, at any time in your production workflow, normalize your audio? The response to the question was good and definitely varied. Andrew decided to weigh in on the subject via this post, so read it and feel free to comment. If you comment with your email, I may just send you a Wave invite!

Regarding the question of when to normalize audio I’d like to put that in perspective with regards to my work-flow.

When I do the final down-mix of a project (mostly in the domain of classical music, jazz or avantgarde), with material at the final sample rate and a dither plug-in in the last slot of the master bus (to reduce to 16 bit for CD-A), I check the peak levels of the loudest passages to make sure they stay below -0.2 dBFS.

You need some headroom when you plan to possibly trans-code the audio, e.g. to an mp3, as peaks can crop up and you definitely don’t want to go above 0 dBFS.

If you plan on sending the file to someone for mastering, or if you are bouncing a file that is to be placed in a compilation of material from other projects, it is useful to preserve headroom in the range of 3 to 6 dB–without clipping the material! Bounce to 24 bit fixed or 32 bit float and don’t maximize levels before you know where this piece of music will fit in.

If I see that there are occasional (and few!) peaks that would either create overs or force me to lower the overall level there are two choices: manually and musically lower the level of the clipping passages (I’ll pick up the topic of “automated gain riding” in a followup) or insert a brick-wall limiter in the processing chain (before the dithering plug-in).

So, when do I personally normalize?

If I have a file that was rendered with some headroom and want to hand it on I normalize it (to -0.2 dBFS) before reducing the bit depth and transcoding it. If I want to send off a small group of similar files I’ll do the same, normalizing all audio to the same level, so that the recipient has an easier job. And that’s about it :-)

So Ultrabeat is a monster of a plugin, but there are a few simple tricks to using that save a lot of time and make the plugin really flexible for something that comes bundled with a DAW.

Setting up a multichannel version of Ultrabeat allows you to group your samples and play them out of ultrabeat into different aux tracks.  I chose to have kicks come out of the main track, snares out of another aux, toms a second aux and cymbals out of a third. Basically I can put different compressors and EQ’s on the kicks than I do on the snares.  Then I can tweak the hi-end of the cymbals and gate the toms – all on separate channels.  Pretty cool, right?  Check out the video!

The Short Answer: Dither is low-level (as in quiet) noise that gets added to a signal to aid in the conversion of “bit-depths.”  Basically you only NEED dither when you’re going from one bit-depth to another. For example you’ll want to include dither when going from 24-bit to 16-bit.

One important note: You do NOT need to add dither when only converting sample rates – like 48 kHz to 44.1kHz sample rate.

One important tip: You’ll get better results if you do sample rate conversions of mixes second-to-last and then bit-depth conversions last.

The Longer Answer: Dithering is a procress by which you can increases the theoretical potential dynamic range of an audio system.  A 16-bit file has potentially about 96dB of potential dynamic range (bit depth * 6). Through more math and physics than I want to get into (because it still confuses me at times) dithering can increase that potential dynamic range significantly – by making resolution clearer in the quieter range of sounds. It basically helps the reduce the distortion inherent in bit-depth reduction – think of the sounds you get when you put a bit-crusher on a track.

(I’ll try to add more to this later, but it’s going to take some delving into my old school notes and a bit of book reading.)

Blue Cat is also offering a special promotion for the rest of August. Demos of the plug-ins are available in VST, Audio Unit, and DirectX from Blue Cat’s website.

Here’s a list of new features within the updated plug-ins:

- New 3D waterfall view to monitor the evolution of the spectrum or stereo field over time.
- Drag the rulers to move the curve when zoomed (can keep measurement/selection mode and still drag the curves).
- Output automation is now disabled by default.
- Updated documentation.
- Bug Fix (PC): Cubase freezes when loading a preset using a different skin while the plugin window is open.

So even if you’re not into the whole 3D thing, it looks like Blue Cat still gave you more than one reason to upgrade your plug-ins.

Now and for the rest of August, you can buy FreqAnaylist and StereoScope Pro for $75.65 from their online store. Registered Blue Cat Audio members will recieve an additional discount, as well.

Thanks
Will

This is a problem that many DJs face, and why all hardware mixers have gain knobs!

Let’s review how a track usually goes:

• A track is crafted. Parts are written, drums are programmed, etc etc.
• During the mix, individual tracks will usually be compressed and, depending on the mix, you might see some group compression (like drums in a parallel compression scheme), and maybe even some buss compression on the master channel.
• After the track is mixed, it’ll need to be mastered. Hopefully the track is being sent to a qualified mastering engineer (like Sanjay or I). From there, the mastering process takes place. The engineer will take the final, mixed, stereo track and use frequency-specific compression as well as limiting among other things (EQ, other processors like the Oxford Inflator).
• Keep in mind that mastering processes are different depending on the medium. Most notably, mastering engineers will have somewhat different processes for mastering to vinyl and to CD/digital.

When you record a mix inside of a DAW, the reason the tracks all sound different in terms of volume is because every mastering engineer does things slightly differently. Also, when downloading tracks offline (especially from mp3 blogs), you’ll likely get a mix of vinyl rips and CD/digital copies. Lets take a look at two different waveforms.

This waveform is from a 12″ that I recently recorded into Audacity thru my Mbox:

Notice how, even thought it’s limited, it’s more of a sausage waveform. Now how do you think it’d sound if mixed into the next waveform which is a digital release I bought from Beatport:

Yeah. The first waveform is going to sound imposibly quiet when compared next to the second. So how do you fix this when recording a mix? I usually end up placing a limiter on the master channel to even everything out if I’m mixing inside Live 7. If I’m mixing on my CD decks with my mixer, then I use the gain knob.

Remember: you DO have gain control inside Ableton Live. Just double-click your audio clip and bring the gain up/down as you see fit:

Subsequently, if you’re sequencing a mix in the Arrangement view, there’s always automation!

Finding a MIDI controller for DJing specifically first begs to ask the question: what program do you want to DJ in?

Turntable Replacements

Programs like Traktor, Virtual DJ, and Cue are turntable replacements plain and simple. Specifically inside Traktor, you have the ability to play with four different decks. You can sync the pitch from one deck to another making beat-matching that much more easier. You’ve got your effects, EQs/filters, and looping features.

These kinds of programs are just like DAWs: you should demo out several different programs to find the one that you’re most comfortable with and then use that. I, however, really like Traktor.

If this kind of setup is your thing, look up controllers like the Numark Total Control. It’s $179 new and great for figuring out how to DJ.

Ableton Live

While DJing inside Live, you’re mostly concerned simple controls like volume faders, EQing/filtering, FX sends, and controlling the clips themselves. Therefore, a simple pad controller can work best for you in this situation.

• M-Audio Trigger Finger: $149 online. 8 knobs, 4 faders, and 16 pads.
• Akai MPD24: $169 online. 8 knobs, 6 faders, and 16 pads.
• Novation Remote Zero SL: $299 online. 16 knobs, 8 faders, tons of buttons, and two LCD screens (plus Automap).

All of the above work with Live, and, aside from that, MIDI mapping is so easy inside Live that you’ll have no problem getting started.

Remember, you should always look up your controller of choice on eBay first. I got my Remote Zero for $239 (new) instead of $299 like most retailers want. If you’re just starting out, don’t be afraid to buy your first control second-hand, either. But only buy used if you feel like you’re getting a deal.

My setup is pretty simple: Ableton Live 7 with a Remote Zero SL on a MacBook. The definition of laptop Djing!

Logic's Vanilla Compressor.

This is just a quick note that I thought would be useful.  I spent about an hour on the phone with a friend of mine who is going through the mind-bending task of mastering his own work.

Question: I’m trying to bring the level up on my mix,  but every time I get to a big level I hear this weird pumping on the track.  What’s up?

One major problem people encounter when using heavy doses of compression on a full stereo mix is the pumping that sometimes occurs.  What this often is, is the loudest part of your mix (usually something transient like snare or kick drum) triggering a slow compressor.  The transient slips by the attack un-compressed, but not before triggering the attack-hold-release pattern of the compressor.

The Result: The audio just after the transient gets attentuated so you hear LOUD KICK followed by everything else pulled way down for just a moment.

A couple of things to try in order to get around this particular kind of pumping (there are others) are all based around turning the loud trasients down before the compressor.

Sometimes simply creating a gentle dip on an EQ before the compressor and corresponding bump on an EQ after the compressor will do the trick.

Failing that, you can try multiband compressors which let you set independent attacks/releases for different frequency ranges – thus preventing a loud bass-heavy transient like a kick from triggering compression on your cymbals and vocals.

The last method I’d suggest would be going back to the mix.  This isn’t always an option due to schedules or budgets, but sometimes simply mixing the transients that are causing pumping a little lower in the mix (sometimes 1dB changes make a world of difference).

Sorry if this isn’t as comprehensive as you might like, but learning how to hear/manipulate compression is a skill that takes time to develop.  Meaning – I’m still learning about the finer points of compression too – so if I’m wrong, stupid, or incomplete, please leave a comment or send an email.  Your flames are greatly appreciated.

Okay, this might be a bit much...

Hi,
I’m a DJ and i’m thinking about starting to produce my own music. I was
thinking about using Reason 4, mainly because it has a lot of features and seems
user friendly, with the M-audio axiom 25 midi controller. Would you recommend
these? I was also wondering what kind of laptop would be good on a budget on
under roughly £500 (ed: about $738USD)? And also if I need a soundcard, what one would I be best to
buy? And if you mention any other equipment that I would be best to buy that
would be most helpful.

Thanks for your time
Craig

So like everyone else in the world, Craig has a budget. I’ll be talking about the gear, Sanjay will be covering the computer aspect. Let’s go!

Software

This is an entire post in itself! I’ll start by saying that I won’t knock Reason: it’s incredibly powerful and has great sounding virtual instruments and FX, but it has one HUGE downside: you cannot record inside Reason. Meaning, in my humble opinion, that Reason should really be used alongside a more traditional DAW. Some people use Reason solo…but you’re missing that key recording function.

So, on that note, you have a few choices for a more traditional DAW. I personally love Ableton Live. Currently in version 8, it is the best DAW for creating electronic/dance/loop-based music that I’ve ever used. It supports just about any interface you can throw at it and supports a wide-range of the most popular MIDI controllers. It comes with a series of tutorials on how to do anything you want in it. Whether it be DJing, producing, or recording, the fundamental tutorials will help you learn the program from the very first time you open the program. It’s not incredibly cheap (I spent about $415USD on the regular version of the program) but it IS very powerful. But you don’t need an external soundcard/interface to use Live! So consider this while figuring gear out. Oh, and considering your budget for computer, I’m assuming you’ll end up buying a PC. Live runs on PC and Mac, so you’re good to go.

Next on my list would be a Pro Tools 8 setup. However, on a budget, you may not be able to do this. The thing with Pro Tools is you need a Digidesign interface, which is a pain in the ass to say the least. Pro Tool’s interfaces cost upwards of $200USD+ (my Mbox 2 with student discount came out to be $315USD with taxes and shipping), but you get Pro Tools 8 LE with whatever interface you buy. Keep in mind that all M-Audio interfaces ship with Pro Tools 8 M-Powered. I’m really not too sure of the differences between LE and M-Powered, so I doubt you’ll notice the difference either. Pro Tools 8 has a WEALTH of new MIDI-based features including some great new virtual instruments. However, if you’re not used to arranging music in a traditional DAW setup (ie. you’re starting fresh in the production world without any previous knowledge), PT might be a bit much for you. Check out this video:

I would love to tell you about other DAWs like Cubase and Sonar…but I just haven’t used them long enough to form an opinion. I will tell you that Cubase is much like Pro Tools in that it’s a traditional DAW enviroment. Same with Sonar.

Bottom Line: Download the Live 8 14-day demo and try it. You’ll probably love it. Also, if you find yourself still wanting to use Reason, buy it! You can still use it in conjunction with either Live or Pro Tools. Used in this manner, it is one seriously powerful virtual instrument resource.

Interface/Soundcard

If you’re producing electronic/loop-based music, you won’t need a ton of plug-ins. I’ve seen most people using something like the M-Audio FastTrack for recording vocals, guitars, bass, or what have you. It’s USB and works on Mac or PC and has more than enough power to do what you want, especially if you’re just starting out. The FastTrack is just under $100USD, so maybe you should consider picking one up.

MIDI Controller

The Axiom’s are great. Really. They’re built well and, like most MIDI controllers, are very easy to set up inside your DAW. You may look into a 25-key Novation controller, too. Try and go to a local music shop and get your hands on both. See which one feels most comfortable, and go with it.

I personally love Novation stuff. It’s built very well and ships with its Automap feature. This means that, out of the box, most (if not all) parameters of the controller will map to paramters inside your DAW, making your MIDI mapping time pretty minimal. Again, this is personal taste and nothing more.

Bottom Line: If you’re set on an Axiom, buy it. It’ll be good to you.

Computer

So with a budget of $740, you’re going to have to compromise somewhere.  At that budget you can basically rule out desktops and Apple computers, but you can still get a decent PC laptop for your money.  You might want to checkout the Dell Inspiron Lines or an HP Laptop.  If you get a larger laptop, you won’t have much left in your budget for upgrades, but with a smaller screen size etc. you’ll have more options.

Really, it’s all a matter of preference, customer service and warranties because you can get a decently powered machine from just about any of the major brands.  For most music production scenarios, I’d say you need AT LEAST 2 Gigs of Ram, 2.16GHz Processor, and 160GB of Harddrive Space.  Those are rough requirements to run most software at a decent level.  If you’re needing more than 50 tracks in any situation, you’ll be hitting the upper limits of your system, and the only way to really get more out of it is to buy a more powerful system.

For any audio computer I’d suggest doing as little non-audio stuff as possible on it.  If you can get a computer just for audio work, that’s ideal, i.e. the computer never goes on the internet (except for downloading updates), isn’t used for word processing, powerpoint, mp3 libraries, web surfing, etc.  Basically the BEST situation would be to have a computer that does NOTHING but audio work.

Most people can’t really afford a second dedicated system, so there’s a couple of things to keep things working well.

1) I find that turning off internet connections while recording and removing all non-audio peripherals helps keep your machine running at it’s best when you’re producing music.

2) Regular maintenance and keeping virus protection software updated is KEY, as ANYTHING that sucks away at your computer’s processing power like spyware, etc, will hurt your audio-work capacity.

3) There are some great guides for “optimizing” your system for working with audio, that in my experience make a difference.  Check some out here:

Windows XP:

http://www.digitalproducer.com/2002/11_nov/features/11_04/optimize_pcaudio.htm

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/mar02/articles/pcmusician0302.asp

Windows Vista:

http://www.mydigitallife.info/2007/04/06/optimize-vista-by-disabling-unused-unneeded-or-unnecessary-windows-services/

http://www.audioforums.com/windows-vista-optimization.php

Mac OSX:

http://www.jakeludington.com/ask_jake/20050523_optimize_mac_os_x_for_audio_recording.html

Well, I hope that helps you out. If we didn’t answer your questions completely, or we missed something, definitely leave us a comment or shoot us an email at askasoundguy@gmail_dot_com

Vincent Thomas

Vincent Thomas was nice enough to answer my Twitter request for an AASG interview. I asked him a few questions and he wrote back with some pretty solid answers.

First off, who is Vincent Thomas? Check out his bio and see for yourself:

When it comes to records Vincent Thomas knows both sides. In most producers’ biographies there is a straight line from spinning records to producing records. In his case it’s different: Vincent had his hands at the production controls as well as on the turntables.

The Producer

“Shingaling” evolved from an underground club track to an international chart hit in the course of only a few weeks. For Vincent Thomas, who produced the track jointly with Jean Claude Ades, this is the final breakthrough: “Shingaling” was #1 in the German Club Charts, #1 in the Belgian dance charts, the Italian Dance & sales charts, and (even for two weeks) at the top of Beatport.com. The Original Mix of “Shingaing” was the best selling Electro House Track on Beatport.com in 2008! In the German Dance charts “Shingaling” reached #3 and #6 in the Dutch Nieuwe Top 40 singles charts. The song has been published in seven countries by different labels: Great Stuff, Ministry of Sound, Vendetta, Blanco y Negro, Ego, NEWS.

Various singles and remixes have been licensed for the following compilations: “Love Parade 2008 – Highway to Love Compilation”, “Viva Rotary Club Summer 2008″, “Pacha Ibiza 2008″, “Clubbers Guide to Ibiza 08″, “Ministry of Sound Bites Summer Club 2008″ and many, many more.

Even though chart performance is not his benchmark for success and he doesn’t adjusts his production work to that, Vincent rejoices it as a form of appreciation. Being in the charts with “Girl” and “Let It Burn” last year was a welcome confirmation.

In SWINGS, a sub-label of Great Stuff Records, Vincent had found a record company with the same philosophy as he represents himself: to create good, successful club tracks. His follow-up single “Let It Burn” featuring American singer Avalon Frost from Washington DC was also published in SWINGS, while “Shingaling” is a Great Stuff Records release.

After numerous remixes for acts like Tom Novy, Paul Harris, Jean Claude Ades, Jerome Isma-Ae, Orli & Martie on labels like Ministry of Sound, CR2, Kosmo, Swings, Ultra and Kontor, Vincent Thomas was able to definitively establish himself in the music scene.

Letting real musicians, a 15-member Cuban band, re-record an old Latin Jazz hit instead of just using a sample of the original song, was an unusual approach, Vincent admits. “Sometimes it’s better to leave the well-trodden tracks.”

The decisive factor was the support of acts such as Eric Morillo, Tiger Stripes, Deetron, Ida Engberg, Chus, Agoria and Tim Deluxe, who played “Shingaling” again and again. “That remains, even in times of the Internet, the foundation for success,” Vincent Thomas is convinced.

The DJ

“DJing has to be performance”, reckons Vincent Thomas and adds: “For me, DJing isn’t just putting on one record after the other.” Due to technical evolution the role of the DJ has changed more and more to being an entertainer and performer.

His mixing style reflects his approach towards music and production: “Diversified, but consistent with a concept.”

Combining different styles of electronic music from all over the world in order to conceive a coherent, danceable sound – that’s how Vincent describes his method of operation. House and Techno magazine “Partysan” declared his style “Electro House at it’s best!”.

That’s why Vincent doesn’t stuff his case with music from only one style but with a rich variety of records from Club House via Electro to rather tech-housy, progressive sounds. That implies not to follow an already falling trend yet to trace current sounds and having tomorrow’s sounds already in his DJ case.

For the Love Parade in Dortmund, Vincent was DJing at “Rocker und Freunde”, an after-show party presented by the renowned radio station 1LIVE and played with acts such as Fedde le Grand and Westbam. A year earlier at Love Parade in the city of Essen, he played with acts like Bad Boy Bill, Moonbootica, Lexy & K-Paul.

In the summer of 2008 the event magazine PRINZ featured Vincent as one of the best DJs in the Ruhr region.

AskASoundGuy: Which came first for you: DJing or producing? Which do you enjoy more?
Vincent Thomas: Producing is what I do and performing is what I am!

AASG: What platform do you produce on? Mac or PC? Logic or Live?
VT: I produce on a MacBookPro using Logic Pro. For dj mixes and time streching I love Abelton Live! Time Streching in Logic still sucks! ;)

AASG: What’s your workflow like when you’re creating a track?

VT: My workflow changes with every production….But first of all I work on a nice groove, a nice beat, nice drums…whatever! Tight and rocking drums/beats are essential for me to go further.

AASG: What’s in your studio right now? What gear are you dying to buy?
VT: I’m really happy with my setup right now. MacBookPro G4 2GB RAM, Korg Triton, Genelec 8040A, RME Fireface 400. ;)

AASG: When you play live, what’s your setup like?

VT: I perform with 3 Pioneers CDJ-1000 and the DJM 800! In the near future I’ll perform as a live artist using Abelton, Logic and some other creative tools.

AASG: What’s on your iPod and what songs are blowing up when you play live?

VT: I have an iPod in my iPhone but I don’t use it ;) During the week I need contrast in music. I like listening to cool and sexy pop music or urban r’nb sounds

AASG: Any new releases or big shows coming up?

VT: Be prepared for my new single and some nice edits and remixes! Visit www.vincentthomas.dj and myspace.com/djvincentthomas to be the first to know…

AASG: Any advice for new producers?

VT: Create new sounds with forward thinking ideas! Don’t copy! Create unique productions.