A
acoustictones
New member
Greetings all. Well, my studio is pretty much up and running Feel free to view some new photo's at www.AcousticTones.com and goto the links at the bottom of the page). I still have a
few things that I would like to get (i.e.: A new keyboard, a few more mics, etc.), but we're pretty much good to go. So hear are a few very short reports of what I think of some of my new purchases:
M-Audio BX8 Monitors: Now these were the biggest surprise. I'm pretty picky about monitors and I really thought that I would be checking these out, returning them, and going back to get the Mackies 624's. Well, they're not going anywhere. for the money, less than $500, these are a complete surprise. I would recommend them to anyone that is looking at the mackies,
but are really trying to save a few dollars. I also love how much sound shaping ability these have. The rear panel has a number of settings to help you tune these specifically to your room. A very nice product for the money.
M-Audio Tampa PreAmp, Compressor, and A/D Converter: I don't have a lot to say about these that Mike hasn't already said. for the money, WOW!!! The PreAmp section is good, but it's the addition of the compressor that really makes these an incredible value for the dollar. Be sure to read Mikes review at Page 1 of review ( http://www.mixcritique.com/gear1.htm ) and Page 2 of
Mikes review ( http://www.mixcritique.com/gear2.htm ). And hear is an opinion from someone over at DPSWorld:
"Well for what it's worth and to anyone who's interested here's my opinion of the M-Audio Tampa Preamp:
Got it home hooked it up and first impressions - underwhelmed. I thought it wasn't that great an improvement on the DPS pres and digi compressor (both of which are great make no mistake for anyone reading who hasn't yet bought a DPS).
However........it gets under your skin, because the more I tracked vocals and experimented with the compressor, the more I became seduced. I did loads of A B ing between the DPS and the Tampa pre and compression (and I mean loads!) And for vocals (not done acoustic guitar yet) it seems to give them a little more "air" and sparkle and they DEFINITELY sit better in a mix
without any tweaking - now that for me is praise indeed. They really punch through, and having all that gain available is really nice. Also it looks good in the rack, nice VU's, the digi out is high quality too. It's the kind of unit that once you have it, you'd really feel you'd miss it if it wasn't there anymore. So it gets my thumbs up. In fact I'm rerecording a bunch of vocals again so I can put them through it. (well they needed to be redone but now they'll sound even better!) Thanks to Mike for his phone help and emails on the unit. I'd call more people on the board (I will...you have been warned....) but its just a bit expensive from London.
David "
ART DPSII 2 Channel Mic PreAmp w/digital outputs: This was another surprise. I would say that the pres are any better than what is already stock on the DPS24 but due to it's many presets it does give me a lot of different "COLORS" to choose from. And for less than $300 I love having these options. I also makes for a great direct box for acoustic guitars. This has been my favorite use for this product. For the money everything else seems to sound quite good, but I really like tracking my acoustic through this and the bass and vocals through my Tampa's.
Sonar 3 Producers Edition: Love it!!! I have had nothin' but stability since Sonar 1. And I must admit that I am just lovin' all of the new included plug-ins, new user interface, and more that Sonar 3 has. This is hands down the best $179 I have ever spent (Well, as far as my studio needs are concerned).
MOTU 828mkII: Love it!!! It is the perfect product to sync the DPS24 to my sequencer (SONAR). My set up between the 2 are as follows: MIDI sync between the two, ADAT in/out to swap multiple tracks at a time, and a stereo S/PDIF connection for monitoring everything in my sequencer through my DPS24 and
then through my BX8 monitors. This baby has plenty of flexibility for what I'm doing and a lot more to spare. And for under $700...It's the ticket!
Shure KSM27: Not a lot to say here. I'll let my actions speak for what I think of these less than $300 mics...My actions: After buying one, and tracking several session with it, I went out and bought another. I just couldn't see buying any other mic for more money after hearing how great my results were from these babies.
SONY VAIO desktop PCV-RZ14G Digital Studio PC: This is a P4 2.53 GHz system running on Windows XP. I have been running SONAR on a COMPAQ, a DELL, a SONY laptop, and now this. Hands down this is the best running "MEDIA" computer I
have ever used. The DELL was great for my business, but very mediocre for any of my video and/audio applications. Lovin' the SONY.
Original Lava Lamp: The original is still the best!!!
As you may have noticed, prices were a major factor to me. And all of these reviews are based on final purchases. I have gone through a ton of product since the 4th of July weekend. And what I have listed here are all of my end results. Everything else has been returned. I purchased a ton of product, tried it out, and returned it to keep what I felt was the best for the money. The only thing that I haven't returned is a Frontier DAKOTA sound
card (But it is for sale at $200 plus shipping if anyone is interested). I have been very happy with it as well, but had to replace it with the MOTU due to my inability to access the back of my computer for any re-patching. But the card was referred to me by Brad Lyon's and it truly is another great product.
I hope something here helps someone. Happy tracking to one and all.
--
DJ
AcousticTones Recording Studio
www.AcousticTones.com
davidbreck@msn.com
few things that I would like to get (i.e.: A new keyboard, a few more mics, etc.), but we're pretty much good to go. So hear are a few very short reports of what I think of some of my new purchases:
M-Audio BX8 Monitors: Now these were the biggest surprise. I'm pretty picky about monitors and I really thought that I would be checking these out, returning them, and going back to get the Mackies 624's. Well, they're not going anywhere. for the money, less than $500, these are a complete surprise. I would recommend them to anyone that is looking at the mackies,
but are really trying to save a few dollars. I also love how much sound shaping ability these have. The rear panel has a number of settings to help you tune these specifically to your room. A very nice product for the money.
M-Audio Tampa PreAmp, Compressor, and A/D Converter: I don't have a lot to say about these that Mike hasn't already said. for the money, WOW!!! The PreAmp section is good, but it's the addition of the compressor that really makes these an incredible value for the dollar. Be sure to read Mikes review at Page 1 of review ( http://www.mixcritique.com/gear1.htm ) and Page 2 of
Mikes review ( http://www.mixcritique.com/gear2.htm ). And hear is an opinion from someone over at DPSWorld:
"Well for what it's worth and to anyone who's interested here's my opinion of the M-Audio Tampa Preamp:
Got it home hooked it up and first impressions - underwhelmed. I thought it wasn't that great an improvement on the DPS pres and digi compressor (both of which are great make no mistake for anyone reading who hasn't yet bought a DPS).
However........it gets under your skin, because the more I tracked vocals and experimented with the compressor, the more I became seduced. I did loads of A B ing between the DPS and the Tampa pre and compression (and I mean loads!) And for vocals (not done acoustic guitar yet) it seems to give them a little more "air" and sparkle and they DEFINITELY sit better in a mix
without any tweaking - now that for me is praise indeed. They really punch through, and having all that gain available is really nice. Also it looks good in the rack, nice VU's, the digi out is high quality too. It's the kind of unit that once you have it, you'd really feel you'd miss it if it wasn't there anymore. So it gets my thumbs up. In fact I'm rerecording a bunch of vocals again so I can put them through it. (well they needed to be redone but now they'll sound even better!) Thanks to Mike for his phone help and emails on the unit. I'd call more people on the board (I will...you have been warned....) but its just a bit expensive from London.
David "
ART DPSII 2 Channel Mic PreAmp w/digital outputs: This was another surprise. I would say that the pres are any better than what is already stock on the DPS24 but due to it's many presets it does give me a lot of different "COLORS" to choose from. And for less than $300 I love having these options. I also makes for a great direct box for acoustic guitars. This has been my favorite use for this product. For the money everything else seems to sound quite good, but I really like tracking my acoustic through this and the bass and vocals through my Tampa's.
Sonar 3 Producers Edition: Love it!!! I have had nothin' but stability since Sonar 1. And I must admit that I am just lovin' all of the new included plug-ins, new user interface, and more that Sonar 3 has. This is hands down the best $179 I have ever spent (Well, as far as my studio needs are concerned).
MOTU 828mkII: Love it!!! It is the perfect product to sync the DPS24 to my sequencer (SONAR). My set up between the 2 are as follows: MIDI sync between the two, ADAT in/out to swap multiple tracks at a time, and a stereo S/PDIF connection for monitoring everything in my sequencer through my DPS24 and
then through my BX8 monitors. This baby has plenty of flexibility for what I'm doing and a lot more to spare. And for under $700...It's the ticket!
Shure KSM27: Not a lot to say here. I'll let my actions speak for what I think of these less than $300 mics...My actions: After buying one, and tracking several session with it, I went out and bought another. I just couldn't see buying any other mic for more money after hearing how great my results were from these babies.
SONY VAIO desktop PCV-RZ14G Digital Studio PC: This is a P4 2.53 GHz system running on Windows XP. I have been running SONAR on a COMPAQ, a DELL, a SONY laptop, and now this. Hands down this is the best running "MEDIA" computer I
have ever used. The DELL was great for my business, but very mediocre for any of my video and/audio applications. Lovin' the SONY.
Original Lava Lamp: The original is still the best!!!
As you may have noticed, prices were a major factor to me. And all of these reviews are based on final purchases. I have gone through a ton of product since the 4th of July weekend. And what I have listed here are all of my end results. Everything else has been returned. I purchased a ton of product, tried it out, and returned it to keep what I felt was the best for the money. The only thing that I haven't returned is a Frontier DAKOTA sound
card (But it is for sale at $200 plus shipping if anyone is interested). I have been very happy with it as well, but had to replace it with the MOTU due to my inability to access the back of my computer for any re-patching. But the card was referred to me by Brad Lyon's and it truly is another great product.
I hope something here helps someone. Happy tracking to one and all.
--
DJ
AcousticTones Recording Studio
www.AcousticTones.com
davidbreck@msn.com
