Explanation of bus - analog work flow

[girvan]

Hi,
OK - eating humble pie right now - mmm. I am simply confused about certain aspects of recording. I have been recording with a computer for some time and played live for years. I have never recorded with 4tracks as a kid like a lot of folks here have and therefore I am missing some basic experience.

Honestly I am thinking about buying an old tape 4 track and using it for a while simply to experience that way of doing things and to learn by it.

My 3 questions are these.

#1. Is a bus similar to an aux send where the bus is simply another output from the console? On the bus you could insert a verb and then send (ie..) all the bgvox thru that one instance of the verb?

#2. With that said then - on a Mackie 8 bus console (for example) do you have a maximum of 8 sends into your DAW/Deck at any one given time? So you mic a kit and a bass/git for bed tracks (10 on kit, 2 for bass and 2 on gits) and have to water it down to 8 tracks? I'm confused at these large consoles with so few busses. Am I missing a big point here...probably - Epiphany anyone?

#3. In the pro scale studios running SSL and ProTools with tons of outboard gear - is the is the general workflow like this: Please correct me if I'm wrong -They track through the SSL or Neve (or whatever) inserting comps and using EQ to get a good sound going in (using mic placement instead of EQ when possible). This records onto a tape machine (or HD system). They then bounce tracks into ProTools HD and edit the audio files then route that back from the HD thru the SSL to mix and add outboard FX and finally the mixdown is printed to minidisc or back into HD. I'm just trying to understand the workflow.

#4. Thank you for your patience and the sharing of years of experience.

Scott.

 

[Track Rat]

Your guesses are pretty close. The busses can be used for lots of routing possibilities as the Auxes can. You mentioned a Mackie 8 buss specificly, the 8 busses are NOT the only way to get to a multitrack, and in my humble opinion, a bad way to do it. Each individual channel will have a direct out and something called an INSERT that can be used to get an individual signal out of the console. The busses would be used to sum more than one channel into a "sub group" to send somewhere. If I wanted to send just one channel, I wouldn't want it to go through the extra electronics on its way to tape (or data storage unit of choice). The direct channel out would be the weapon of choice. Aux sends are generally used for effects sends or for making monitor mixes. For example, if you have 3 or more Aux sends and 3 headphone amps, you could make 3 or more custom headphone mixes so everyone can have "more ME". AUxes can be pre Fader/EQ (meaning EQ or fader adjustments have NO affect on what is assignmed to that Aux send, just the trim pot at the top of the channel) or post (in which case it does).
On you last question, in Pro studios, they may do exactly as you guessed, recording to some medium, transfering to ProTools or some other software multitrack editor/mixing program, mangle it in any way they want and route it all back out to an analog (or digital) console for mixing. That's the way I do it at my place (NOT on an SSL!! ). Or they may mix "In The Box" and use the software mixing for its automation/repeatability.

 

[travelin travis]

girvan, an aux is a bus but is'nt counted as one in a 8 buss console. in reality, each additional aux adds a buss if you use it that way.

a mixer is a good thing to have around and a 4track is alot more fun, imo, than pc.

 

[mshilarious]

Some very general differences between aux sends and busses/subgroups:

Auxes aren't assignable, they have their own pot and may be pre/post fader, or switchable. Subs are normally assignable with a button, and postfader with the send level controlled by the channel fader.

Most small format boards don't have a master fader for an aux channel, just a pot. Subs normally have a master fader.

Auxes will have a dedicated return channel, at least for some of the aux sends intended for effects. Subs don't normally have dedicated returns, so if you wanted that you would need to use a regular input channel.

 

[girvan]

Great, thanks for the quick replies. I have a Mackie 1604 VLZ Pro and I use it to track through my MOTU 2408. With the 8 direct outs the Mackie/MOTU combination works well. I appreciate that info - it clears up those questions in my mind.

As far as working in the DAW (currently CEP with an upgrade to Sonar soon) - I would then use busses to send channels to an exact FX assigment without the need to have multiple instances of that effect? The level sent to the bus affects it's mix placement - what about panning. Does the bus have control over the panning. ie if I send an acoustic guitar and an organ thru a bus with a nice verb on it does the channel strip level/pan/eq get nulled by the bus or is it preserved? I would just try it but I'm at work.

Thanks
Scott

 

[xstatic]

Typically "busses" use better electronics than aux sends as well. Aux sends however allow a discrete mix to be made whereas busses only allow one discrete mix throughout the main outs and the busses (since all of them rely on channel fader positions for their signal. Busses are normally panable.