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Craig’s Five Fave Studio Hardware Accessories

By Craig Anderton

Granted, it was hard to narrow it down to five. But these goodies have stood out over the past year as being essentials for my own studio, and they can contribute much to any studio makeover.

Uninterruptible Power Supply

 

I first became aware of the power of the UPS with ADATs. My ADATs used to do weird things, but stopped doing weird things after I bought a UPS. My friends with ADATs who didn’t have a UPS experienced weird things. Anecdotal evidence? Sure. But the first time a UPS keeps your project alive when some idiot drunk driver slams into a power pole and you lose your electricity, or you live where lightning is a frequent visitor, you’ll be glad you paid attention to this article and got a UPS. Just make sure you find one with sufficient power for your super-duper multi-core wonder box (and your monitor)—a lot of UPS devices in office supply stores are for little old ladies who use Pentium 4 computers only on Sundays to cruise the internet for recipes.

Pauly Superscreen Pop Filter

(Photo courtesy Las Vegas Pro Audio)

Yes, it’s expensive. Yes, it’s worth it. I do a lot of narration and close-mic my vocals Continue reading “Craig’s Five Fave Studio Hardware Accessories”

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Do you have too many song ideas? The Matrix View can help.

by Dan Gonzalez

Do you suffer from having too many musical ideas than you know what to do with? The Matrix View is great way to throw all of your riffs, licks, and leads into one place to mess around with song arrangements and structures.

How does it work?

The Matrix View operates under SONAR’s second audio engine. It’s the same audio engine that allows you to preview and play loops from the Media Browser. This non-linear playback engine is what is utilized during your performances in the Matrix View. All you really have to do to get started is drag audio from SONAR into the Matrix. It will populate a cell and then automatically route to the audio tracks you have set in the Track View. Click on the cell and then you can jump around the interface triggering different musical ideas. When you have multiple cells in one column you can trigger an entire column as well.

Try out the Martix View for free – Download the SONAR X3 Producer Free Trial

Where do I begin?

Grab some of your ideas – if they are loops then you have even more flexibility when changing tempos. If you want some great loops to work with then be sure to pick up these free loops that Craig Anderton supplied for us during Guitar Month. Continue reading “Do you have too many song ideas? The Matrix View can help.”

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When To Break The "Rules" Of Digital Mixing

Recently I was asked to create a song for a new short film that will be making the rounds on this year’s film festival circuit.  I got the creative brief [I had to write for a specific subject in the film] and got to work writing and recording everything myself in SONAR X3. Thankfully, SONAR X3 has pretty much everything you need to make a radio-ready track in the box; even if you are a #hack-of-all-trades like me. 😉  It was requested that this song have some grit to it, as well as some acoustic-oriented authenticity, so I grabbed my 5-Year Old’s harp out of his toy chest, my acoustic guitar, and got to work.  The only outboard gear used on this track were a Tascam UH-7000, an AT4033a mic, my Les Paul DC and Carlos Robelli bass.  I also played Dimension Pro organ through a controller.

THERE ARE NO MIXING RULES (KIND OF)

After writing the song on an acoustic and then tracking everything, it was time to mix.  I love mixing in the digital world because there really are no rules in terms of creativity.  Once you understand the basics of frequencies and how to put tracks together properly, you can really get creative with the Continue reading “When To Break The "Rules" Of Digital Mixing”

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Joerg Kohring: Former Guitarist of Lifehouse Finding Success with SONAR and a Solo Music Career

We recently got a chance to sit down with Joerg Kohring who is an LA-based singer/songwriter/producer working out of Los Angeles.  Originally from Germany, Joerg found his current musical path originally playing guitar in the award winning band Lifehouse.  Since then, he has found success with his own LA-based band Orbit Monkey as well as his production work with other artists.  Orbit Monkey’s debut record “Are We Alive” came out in 2011 and the band gained many fans from the recordings.  Since then, the band recently released a follow-up EP titled “Born to be Kings” and has released another single/video titled “On Fire” which was recorded and produced completely in SONAR X3.

Continue reading “Joerg Kohring: Former Guitarist of Lifehouse Finding Success with SONAR and a Solo Music Career”

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SONAR X3 Clinic by Craig Anderton – Berklee Online

In case you missed the Berklee Online Webinar with Craig Anderton (March 31st, 2014) – here is the video in it’s entirety! Craig outlines some of his favorite topics including:

  • The MIDI advantage for songwriting
  • Using loops for both songwriting and EDM
  • Speeding up workflow to prevent “inspiration atrophy” (effects chains, track templates, browser techniques, etc.)
  • Creating your own mixer architecture
  • Using “spot” timing correction to tighten timing without destroying feel
  • How to make amp sims sound great (e.g. effects chains)
  • Mastering in SONAR

Learn more about SONAR X3

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Free SONAR X3 Clinic by Berklee Online [March 31st 2014]

Innovative Music Production Techniques with Cakewalk SONAR X3

When: Monday, March 31 at 4:00pm ET
Length: 30 minutes

Next Monday, join Berklee Online for an in-depth online clinic with Craig Anderton, a renowned music technologist and producer, and Chief Magic Officer for Gibson Brands.

Learn how to create, edit, master, and more using SONAR X3 Producer.

 

Topics for this Open House will include:

  • The MIDI advantage for songwriting
  • Using loops for both songwriting and EDM
  • Speeding up workflow to prevent “inspiration atrophy” (effects chains, track templates, browser techniques, etc.)
  • Creating your own mixer architecture
  • Using “spot” timing correction to tighten timing without destroying feel
  • How to make amp sims sound great (e.g. effects chains)
  • Mastering in SONAR

Sign-up here

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Cakewalk Integrates with Gibson Brands at Musikmesse Frankfurt 2014

Musikmesse 2014 brought a lot of things together for Cakewalk in the grander picture under the Gibson Brands family.  For the first time, Gibson Pro Audio brought together its family of TASCAM, KRK, Stanton, Onkyo, Cerwin-Vega and Cakewalk at a major trade show – and it was pretty fantastic to say the least.  All brands were representing their latest and greatest products to an international group of industry professionals, music creators, musicians and producers from all over the world.  Besides the Pro Audio space which covered close to 6,000 square feet, Gibson also had its instrument space on the lower level which sprawled across an even greater area; so there was no shortage of Gibson at Musikmesse this year.

If two spectacular booths are not enough, why not throw in an eye catching/death defying stunt show outside in front of the all the halls?  Introducing: The Gibson Motodrome: a 16 meter diameter pitted-cylinder-wall where vintage motorcycles and a speed-racer circa 1928 whizzed around avoiding what would seem to be an inevitable crash.  The only logical thing to do after getting this contraption going onsite was to have a visit from Rudolf Schenker who is the guitar player for Germany’s own The Scorpions. Continue reading “Cakewalk Integrates with Gibson Brands at Musikmesse Frankfurt 2014”

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Flat Response Amps vs. Conventional Guitar Amps

Many guitar players are discovering the advantages of the FRFR (Full Range, Flat Response) guitar amp compared to conventional amps. This isn’t to diss the traditional guitar amp; it’s great, and has its uses. But the FRFR option has some compelling advantages.

A guitar amp does more than make soft signals loud. The cabinet is basically a filter; open-back cabinets reduce bass, closed-back types give more bass, and the high-frequency response starts rolling off at around 5kHz. Also, the preamp and power amp affect the sound dramatically—or Spinal Tap would never have praised the virtues of turning up an amp to eleven.

Guitar amps are wonderful not because they’re precision devices like studio monitors, but because they’re about character. Adding a pedalboard and some cool effects creates a setup that has served us well for decades.

However, conventional guitar amps are generally limited to a particular “signature” sound. Plugging your guitar into a different amp or direct into a PA mixer gives a different sound. Tube amps have their own magic, but also, some drawbacks: Tubes get “soft” over time, wear out, and can become microphonic.

An FRFR amplification system is like a PA or studio monitoring system—clean and accurate. You get your “sound” before it hits the FRFR amp, either through a quality multieffects with amp/cab simulation, or a laptop running amp sim software. This means you’ll get the same sound whether you plug into an FRFR system, PA, or recording setup because your tone isn’t dependent on the specific way an amp colors your sound.

Read the full article by Craig Anderton

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Making the Gibson EB 5-String Bass Expansion Pack

What goes into creating a comprehensive expansion pack? It’s not as easy as it might seem…

If only I’d known what I was getting into…

When I first played the EB 5-String Bass, I loved the sound and wanted to sample it for my own use. In the process, I created a Dimension Pro instrument and made it available for free to the Cakewalk community as a “thank you” for all the support you’ve given SONAR.

But also in the process, I found out the EB uses a unique Tuned Coil Tap technology for the two pickups, yielding a total of eight distinct sounds. I found them all useful, so of course I wanted to sample those before the loaner bass went back.

And that’s how the new Gibson EB-5 String Bass Expansion Pack started. If you’re interested in what goes into creating a Dimension Pro instrument…read on Continue reading “Making the Gibson EB 5-String Bass Expansion Pack”

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February is Bass Month at Cakewalk

Bass Month

Welcome to Bass Month
In January we brought you Guitar Month and introduced a brand new, one-of-a-kind Bass Guitar Instrument for Dimension Pro that samples 5 different variations of a real Gibson EB-5 (courtesy of Gibson’s Chief Magic Officer, Craig Anderton). The response was tremendous so we decided to make February Bass Month.

In honor of bass month, we’ll be bringing you tips and tricks on recording and playing bass. And it won’t just be the electric bass, as we’ll feature tips for all types of bass instruments including synths.

We kick off the month with a tip from Dan Gonzalez, who shows you how to easily record your bass parts on any instrument and convert it to a virtual bass instrument using the new ARA integration.

Read more