The New Site for Audio Professionals

Cascade Microphones is now shipping the new FAT HEAD II LIVE/STUDIO microphone. The FHII L/S is fitted with a robust 5-micron symmetrical ribbon. The heavier ribbon is perfect for the hostile environment outside the studio, yet the frequency response is virtually the same as it is in the studio version FHII, so now you can have a dual purpose ribbon microphone.

Welcome to a confusing world of what to buy!  Yes!  It's I/O time again.  So what do you buy?  It seems that we have our standard choices of what digi seems to like, but that's ok because they have chosen pretty well. Digidesign 192 Of course we have digi hardware.  The cool thing about digi 192's is that you have a lot of choice.  Don't bother with the 96 or 96i.  They just aren't any where near as flexible and the fidelity is that much different.  Digi describes the options as this: 50 possible inputs and outputs Supports up to 16 simultaneous channels of high-definition I/O Extremely flexible analog and digital I/O Card option bay for analog or digital I/O expansion with 192 AD, 192 DA, or 192 Digital cards World-class 24-bit/192 kHz A/D and D/A conversion Comes with a wide range of digital I/O, including 8 channels of AES/EBU I/O, 8 channels of TDIF I/O, 16 channels of ADAT I/O, and 2 additional

May his legend live on not tarnished by any ill accusations. May his legacy be that of pride and love for a truly born talent. May we all take a moment and thank him for working 45 of his 50 years to make us smile. When I was a kid I loved listening to Michael's music.  I had my glove, fedora, black shoes, white shirt and white socks.  I used to just sit in my room with my record player and listen to Thriller all the time.  There is a magic to his music.  If any one else sang Billy Jean it would not have worked.  If Frank Sinatra himself sang The Girl is Mine with Paul McCartney it would not have been the same.  I grew up knowing what a hit song was because of him.  I don't care what your favorite style of music is or what you think your into.  Michael has sung to most everyone around the world and was a star during the begining of the world becoming a very small place.  I will always be gratefull for his contribution to this industry and my life.

I recently walked into a well-respected music store in Los Angeles and could not believe what I found. The magic of a new guitar has never gone unappreciated by me. The feeling of walking into a room a brand new showroom of gear is one of the greatest thrills for me in the world…until recently. Was it my hearing? Am I getting old? (I’m not…not yet anyway) What was the explanation for the unplayability and lack of tonal response from guitars and amps alike? “It’s all in your fingers!” people will say. “You didn’t have it set up right!”, others will argue. The reality is, there is some very uninspiring craftsmanship and designs being cranked out in this “Made in China” atmosphere. Let’s talk vintage for a second. Vintage instruments are loved and adored for their construction, playability, and tone. So let’s go back, all the way, to the (dare I say) 1990’s. I would argue it is one of the best decades of design, value, and craftsmanship that the guitarist has ever seen. The current stable of axes and amps cannot go head to head, which is why there are reissues (never as good) of some 90’s designed guitars and amps. While there are exceptions to the rule (the Marshall 900’s could be debated) the argument stands up.

Well lets see.  Pro Tools has come a long way and we love it.  It's easy to use and is practicly a word processor for audio.  Lord knows every major studio that has spent any money has spent some serious cash on an HD rig.  So why would you even think about wanting to use another program if Pro Tools is the obvious standard? Welcome to Logic.  Logic has a couple of features that make production and transfer easier than even using a Pro Tools session from place to place.  Why?  Compatability is the key.  Every rig has different plugins and abilities.  Software synths are another issue.  Studio's rarely have these because people have tastes and opinions and they rarely ever lign up.  So how do you deal with this issue?  What is the one thing that every daw can deal with?  Audio is the answer.  Logic has the ability to let you make all of the soft synth tracks you want (within CPU limits) through a method called freezing.  With this you don't have the limits of Pro Tools' RTAS engine.  You can create a synth and add plugins and hit freeze.  Job well done.  Big deal right?  It really is because now after you've created your masterpiece you can use a fuction in Logic that allows you to bounce down all of your tracks to individual tracks in one fell swoop.  To reach this function click on file and ...