DAW vs other Workflow. Frustrated with computers...

M

mariosapm

New member
Don't get me wrong. I get along with computers very well. But it seems that I always have problems working with DAWs and plugins. They give enormous potential but somehow I spend most of my time troubleshooting my DAW, hardware and plugins, and I don't have enough energy left to work on my music. I am not a pro by the way. But I don't have too much free time, and I hate spending it trying to be a sound and computer engineer all the time.

I was just wondering if other people had these same sentiments. Sometimes I wonder if working with a simple cassette 4 track and a drum machine would yield better results than what I achieve using Cubase.

On the otherhand there must be a reason why all-in-one compact studios are kind of extinct except for TASCAM. People must not share my troubles I guess. Or simply I might have been unlucky?
 
mariosapm said:
Don't get me wrong. I get along with computers very well. But it seems that I always have problems working with DAWs and plugins. They give enormous potential but somehow I spend most of my time troubleshooting my DAW, hardware and plugins, and I don't have enough energy left to work on my music. I am not a pro by the way. But I don't have too much free time, and I hate spending it trying to be a sound and computer engineer all the time.

I was just wondering if other people had these same sentiments. Sometimes I wonder if working with a simple cassette 4 track and a drum machine would yield better results than what I achieve using Cubase.

On the otherhand there must be a reason why all-in-one compact studios are kind of extinct except for TASCAM. People must not share my troubles I guess. Or simply I might have been unlucky?
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I feel your pain, I am a old school guy, I simply like turning knobs and working with outboard gear. I have been playing around with a DAW to determine if I want to go that route but not sure yet. I have a DP-32 that I am still learning how to use. I really enjoy mixing everything on a console. I guess it's easier and you have more options on a DAW but I still enjoy the old way. Welcome to the board.
 
Thanks for the welcome. Hopefully I will find some help to make up my mind about a workflow that will actually keep me happy writing music.
 
Maybe you need to look at a different DAW. Once you have one set up there should be no 'troubleshooting' involved.
You have to learn how to do things with a stand-alone recorder too, so there there is always a workflow pattern to establish.
Turning an actual knob or pushing a slider with your fingers, or turning a knob or pushing a slider with your mouse - using your fingers is not all that different.
 
Well, I went from a FOSTEX reel-to-reel 8 track, to a TASCAM 2488 to REAPER (DAW). I would never look back. I think the whole "I need to turn real knobs" thing is a little weird. This isn't live sound. You're not sitting there twiddling knobs all through a tune, most of the time. I don't miss "turning real knobs" at all. It actually sounds like a weird fetish if you ask me. :D

The options, possibilities, sound quality, etc......of a DAW are irreplaceable to me. I'd have to spend over $10,000 to get anywhere near the amount of FREE plug-ins alone, let alone the un-limited amount of tracks, being able to UN-DO something that didn't work, I can go on and on.

It's a shame you're having so many problems working with a DAW, but that's not a common thing. I'm sure that, with very few exceptions, most people find DAW's easy to work with, once they get their work flow down.

I'm not saying I never had problems, or even nightmares, working with a DAW. But that was always a problem with my computer, never the DAW itself.
 
RAMI said:
Well, I went from a FOSTEX reel-to-reel 8 track, to a TASCAM 2488 to REAPER (DAW). I would never look back. I think the whole "I need to turn real knobs" thing is a little weird. This isn't live sound. You're not sitting there twiddling knobs all through a tune, most of the time. I don't miss "turning real knobs" at all. It actually sounds like a weird fetish if you ask me. :D

LOL, I am leaning towards Reaper, I have been playing around with it but am still lost. I am very comfortable with computers so thats not the issue. I would like to do mixdown and mastering on a DAW. as to a weird fetish it's not knobs!:eek:
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Cubase has a reputation for being difficult to learn, to connect hardware, and to become productive. I know, I gave it that reputation. :D Stick with it, though. Spend the time reading and experimenting. Once you get past the steep learning curve and get Cubase set up and working, then you can concentrate on the creative side. It really is worth the effort.

Cubase and other DAWs are very capable programs and are full of features to cover all aspects of recording. You probably won't use everything and that makes it difficult to get up to speed. You have to filter out the features you won't use. Start with a throw-away song (or CD, like me!!) and teach yourself how to get over each hurdle as they come. Once you get a complete song (or CD, I'm real slow), you pretty much are an expert. It isn't easy and it doesn't happen overnight. There's just so much to learn. Don't expect it to be plug n play.

HTH,
 
I just started this home recording thing 2 months ago. I am using cubase as well. It has proved frustrating to take 2 hours to work out a stupid bug, something like I didn't have a check box checked. Or one thing that drove me absolutely nuts for a week was the 'snap to' button. I thought you could only select things on the beat. Anyways, I've been watching youtube videos, both tutorials on cubase, and just people making songs/ beats on cubase. It's helped a lot, and I can happily say that I have gotten over the hump. Not that I have any idea what I'm doing now, but everything is working and I am recording what I want to record.

Like Chili said, stick with it, learn to ignore all the stuff you aren't using yet. You'll get there.
 
mjbphotos said:
You have to learn how to do things with a stand-alone recorder too, so there there is always a workflow pattern to establish.
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This is the important thing to remember. People describe "DAW" problems or "Computer" problems as if it's unique to that way of working. Every method of recording will have it's frustrating learning curve. There would be just as many complaints if the internet was around during the days of no computers for recording. The only difference is that the threads would be about "Aligning tapes", "Cleaning heads" "I made a bad pucnh-in, is there any way to un-do it" (and the answer to that one would be no), "I can't figure out all the knobs on my huge 24-channel board".

Everything has a learning curve and the frustrations that go along with it. Otherwise, everyone would be able to make great recordings without any effort.
 
Atkron205 said:
RAMI said:
Well, I went from a FOSTEX reel-to-reel 8 track, to a TASCAM 2488 to REAPER (DAW). I would never look back. I think the whole "I need to turn real knobs" thing is a little weird. This isn't live sound. You're not sitting there twiddling knobs all through a tune, most of the time. I don't miss "turning real knobs" at all. It actually sounds like a weird fetish if you ask me. :D

LOL, I am leaning towards Reaper, I have been playing around with it but am still lost. I am very comfortable with computers so thats not the issue. I would like to do mixdown and mastering on a DAW. as to a weird fetish it's not knobs!:eek:
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I'm going to recommend a couple of books to you and to other people in your situation. They are Home Recording for Beginners and REAPER POWER! The Comprehensive Guide. Both by Geoffrey Francis. They both come with DVD's. I believe they will be a tremendous help to you. Because REAPER is open source and basically free, it is not given the attention of the others. However it is every bit as good and every bit as powerful as it's high-priced brethren. I believe that with these books and the accompanying CD's you could significantly decrease the amount of time it will take you to learn recording with a DAW. Good luck!
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Who you talking to, X? Your quote above is a little screwed up. It includes something I said and something someone else said. I certainly don't need either of those books, so I'm assuming you were talking to someone else?
 
RAMI said:
Who you talking to, X? Your quote above is a little screwed up. It includes something I said and something someone else said. I certainly don't need either of those books, so I'm assuming you were talking to someone else?
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LOL! No I wasn't talking to you. You're proof-positive that REAPER in the right hands is definitely a good DAW. I think I must've got some malware in my browser. I'm about to investigate. It was meant for Atkron205. Had a glitch there of some sort.
 
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RAMI said:
Well, I went from a FOSTEX reel-to-reel 8 track, to a TASCAM 2488 to REAPER (DAW). I would never look back. I think the whole "I need to turn real knobs" thing is a little weird. This isn't live sound. You're not sitting there twiddling knobs all through a tune, most of the time. I don't miss "turning real knobs" at all. It actually sounds like a weird fetish if you ask me. :D

The options, possibilities, sound quality, etc......of a DAW are irreplaceable to me. I'd have to spend over $10,000 to get anywhere near the amount of FREE plug-ins alone, let alone the un-limited amount of tracks, being able to UN-DO something that didn't work, I can go on and on.

It's a shame you're having so many problems working with a DAW, but that's not a common thing. I'm sure that, with very few exceptions, most people find DAW's easy to work with, once they get their work flow down.

I'm not saying I never had problems, or even nightmares, working with a DAW. But that was always a problem with my computer, never the DAW itself.
Click to expand...

I followed a similar path to RAMI and feel exactly the same way as he does. The recording world really opened up completely once I ditched my standalone machine - and I was a real holdout. You learn a lot along the way, however.

If Cubase is driving you nuts, maybe try something else. Reaper isn't particularly difficult, but I wonder if you're struggling because you don't understand how recording works or if you don't understand how Cubase works - if that's the case, a change of DAW isn't going to help.

And there are plenty here who swear by Cubase.
 
XploZiveToyz said:
LOL! No I wasn't talking to you. You're proof-positive that REAPER in the right hands is definitely a good DAW. I think I must've got some malware in my browser. I'm about to investigate. It was meant for Atkron205. Had a glitch there of some sort.
Click to expand...

Thanks X, I am looking up the Reaper book now, going to get it for sure. Thanks for the help!:thumbs up:
 
Armistice said:
I followed a similar path to RAMI and feel exactly the same way as he does. The recording world really opened up completely once I ditched my standalone machine - and I was a real holdout.
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Man, was I ever a hold-out, to the point of being stubborn. In fact, my transition took a few steps before it was complete.

I went from doing everything on the 2488.....

...to recording into the 2488, but reluctantly taking individual tracks into my computer to compress and EQ them (which was stupid) before bringing them back into the 2488 to mix.....

...to recording into the 2488, but mixing in my computer.....

...to finally buying an interface (off Jimmy) and doing everything in the computer.

And each of those "transition" steps lasted about a year. I don't know what I was so scared of. Now, it's a no-brainer.
 
Keep in mind that actual buggy behavior - glitches, crashes, and some hardware problems - is one thing. Not checking an option because you don't know where to look for it is a completely other thing.

The Ghost that I used to mix on had 64 solo buttons, and not all of them lit up all time. If even a single one got bumped at some point I could be chasing my tail for hours!

Either fix your computer or RTFM for your DAW.
 
Last week, after 5 weeks or so of cubase running perfectly, when recording the track would be going along fine then just stop picking up. The time bar would keep moving like it was recording, and I could still hear myself through the headphones, but nothing would get recorded anymore. It would happen at random times. I searched for a solution, found where someone said to uncheck the box for "ASIO-Guard". I did that and things started working perfectly again. That was basically all my time for that day I had to spend on recording, and nothing got recorded. I, as well don't have much time to spend on this hobby.
 
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