ebowglow's Reviews

Fantastic strings for bass!

I absolutely love the way these string sound and play on my Sterling bass. They seem to last quite a while. I haven't found another set of strings that sound better (IMHO).

Great strings!

I have used these strings for years on my telecaster. The always sound good and are very playable.

Protools 9

PT is the de facto standard among studios. Yes, PT is very rich in cool and useful features. Yes, with version 9 Avid has finally un-crippled Pro Tools so that it works with any interface and unlocks features previously available only to users of their dedicated-hardware TDM version (of course these features and the ability to work with any interface have generally been available in competitors' products).

But the sad truth is that the big studios that use Pro Tools use it on Mac-based systems with tens of thousands of dollars worth of specialized TDM hardware, and they have service contracts with technicians who keep it configured and running smoothly.

As a PC user running PT9 on native hardware, I have found Pro Tools to be extremely buggy. I installed PT clean on a new PC, and followed the (several pages of) hardware guidelines for setting up the box so that PT would be happy. I am using a new Avid interface. The virtual instruments I use are limited to either Pro Tools Instrument Expansion (PTIE) and Native Instruments Komplete (the latter of which never hangs or crashes under other hosts). Nonetheless, I have experienced frequent crashes and hangs. In particular, I can reliably expect that when I close PT down and try to restart it I get a message the "Pro Tools did not close properly and your system will need to be restarted." Likewise, Pro Tools intermittently fails to recognize my licenses for PTIE's Structure, and will crash if I open up too many virtual instrument tracks. Users who have invested in a 64-bit system should be aware that PT9 is a 32-bit product, by the way. If you just want to learn Pro Tools, then getting PT9 for the PC is an OK choice. But if you really want to use it you may have to get a Mac (I can't absolutely vouch for this, but on the DUC message board I do not see Mac users complaining about these things the same way PC users do).

Behringers ultrapatch Pro PX3000! The TRS version! ( unlike the px2000)

The Behringer Ultrapatch Pro PX3000 1/4" TRS patch bay! The 48-point PX3000 features top-side switches to toggle between Normal, Half-Normal, and Through modes for convenience. It's all metal! Its pretty nifty if you use 1/4" TRS cables to patch into your mixer. I've had myPX3000 patch bay for over 5 years and have had not had one issue out of it! I've had 2 AP bays that crapped out. I've never taken it out of my rack or studio. But it seems pretty tough (all metal casing).

Inexpensive Audio snake.

I was pretty excited to get a good deal on this bundle of wire! The SEISMIC AUDIO 12 Channel 25' XLR Snake Cable with 1/4" connectors. There are a couple of things you should know before buying! First of all It's plastic. I mean EVERYTHING is plastic with the exception of the Nickel xlr's and housing (bottom & sides are metal). And the cabling to the XLR is pretty thin. I had serious doubts. I plugged it in and everything was fully functional. It even sounds good! No hiss or signal degradation. I have had this for about 2 years and do at least 20 hours a week of recording with it. That being said, I think its okay for studio or indoor use. But there's no way in H*ll this would stand up to touring rigs or high traffic areas! I could have spent more and got a "higher quality" snake. But I've delt with Seismic Audio customer service dept. and they were always great (send extra parts for free). It works pretty well (especially for the price) but you might consider other cables as well.

Portable sampler!

The Boss Dr Sample 202 was supposedly designed for loops and DJ's on a budget. It's a big brick of plastic! It offers four low quality sample rates, from 31 to about 4 kHz, providing 20 to 260 seconds of sample time via built-in microphone, Mic or Line inputs. Each Pad to which you assign your samples can have user-selectable sampling rates in order to maximize sample time. It has six built-in effects including Pitch Shift, Filter 1 & 2, Time Stretch, Delay, and Ring Modulation.All really fun to play with! An innovative BPM function calculates the BPM from the sample length for easy loop/BPM syncing. The sampler can be battery powered, and originally came with lots of sampled loops and one-shots to get you going.

This was always a fun and easy to use sampler! I once even sampled one of our friends talking in their sleep with it! I loved that it was portable and easy to use. You can still find them on Ebay every now and then but dont count on much sample storage (even with the hard to find 5v SD card). I really liked that you could run any audio into it via RCA connections and use the filters and such. Fun to have around if you can find it for cheap! Not a bad little sampler at the time it was issued.

So much good music has came through these boards!

the Mackie Analog 8 bus series was found in almost any studio that was serious about getting quality without taking out mortgage. This is a very reliable console ( with the exception of a few have ribbon cable issues in early production runs). I still use mine for recording and love it. Now I'm not saying its a Neve console or anything... but it does a great job at a fraction of the cost.

tascams FW 1082 is very easy to use and souds great!

The TASCAM FW-1082 Audio/MIDI Interface and Control Surface from TASCAM and Frontier Design Group not only provides tons of audio and MIDI I/O to small studios, but offers a control surface with moving-faders for a previously unheard-of price. The FW-1082 features 10 inputs, including four balanced XLR mic inputs with phantom power. Two MIDI inputs and outputs are also included, plus S/PDIF digital I/O. Eight channel strips each feature a 60mm touch-sensitive moving fader and select/solo/mute buttons, and a moving master fader is also provided. The FW-1082 includes Cubase LE 96kHz/48-track recording software. The FW-1082 is a great choice for small studios, whether someone is just starting out or if they're upgrading their equipment. Its four microphone inputs, two with analog insert jacks, have phantom power for professional condenser microphones.

Four additional line inputs and a S/PDIF stereo input add up to 10 inputs simultaneously, each at 96kHz/24-bit audio resolution. Two MIDI inputs and outputs are provided for 32 channels of MIDI synth playback or control. The control surface has nine 60mm touch-sensitive moving faders for silky-smooth control over channel level, pan or aux settings. Four encoders are also available for mix control, as well as transport and jog/shuttle controls. Stereo monitoring is included, and the FW-1082 even mixes signals internally for stand-alone use.

The FW-1082 includes Cubase LE professional 48-track, 96kHz recording and mixing software. It works well with Steinberg Cubase and Nuendo, Apple Logic, Apple Final Cut Pro, Soundtrack Pro and Motion, Cakewalk Sonar, MOTU Digital Performer. It also works as a HUI control surface and MIDI interface for Digidesign Pro Tools.

Nice set of inexpensive mics.

I wasn't sure about this set of MXL550/551 when i first got it. But I admit they have grown on me. They're pretty good at micing acoustic guitars, cellos, and violins. And I've even used them on vocals a couple of times. They seem to sound great on female vocals ( IMO). You can usually find these guys pretty cheap. Give 'em a go!

Great reliable mic!

I have several of Shure's SM57. They're always reliable and you can record almost anything with them. A must have for any studio!

Great kick drum and bass mic!

I have used this Shure Beta 52a mic for kick drums and bass guitar! It has a really good frequency range and decent spl rating. Great MIc!

16 bit (CD quality) 8 i/o or epco cable. Its from the early 90s but I still use them alot! Sounds pretty good actually!

ADAT is a professional format, and while it has been replaced by the computer-based digital audio workstation[, it is still used by some in the recording industry. It is also still in use for scientific work, and to drive laser light shows. ADAT tapes are still available through some pro audio retailers with products from Maxell, EMTEC (formerly the tape division of BASF). HHB who used to supply them, now no longer have stock. ADAT HD24 Although it is a tape based format, the term ADAT now refers to its successor, the Alesis ADAT HD24, which features hard disk recording rather than the traditional tape-based ADAT. Many still use the ADAT as a simple I/O (in/out) for transfer of analog to digital signals.

"ADAT" is also currently used as an abbreviation for the ADAT Lightpipe protocol, which transfers 8 tracks in a single fiber optic cable. The ADAT cable standard is no longer strictly tied to ADAT tape machines, and is now utilized by analog-to-digital converters, input cards for digital audio workstations, effects machines, etc. One of the original benefits of utilizing ADAT versus S/PDIF or AES3 was that a single cable could carry up to eight channels of audio.

Big sound from the flat tuned near field monitors!

Very hefty flat tuned near field monitors. The bass port is on the front and there are several cable connecting options (XLR,RCA, 1/4TRS balanced inputs). These are "active " monitors and sound terrific! I've read in some reviews about ear fatigue and such but i cant help wonder if it was they're volume? These guys can get pretty loud! As always you should listen and try to "learn" your monitors. The Event TR8's have an 8" driver and a 35Hz-20kHz frequency response. If you can find them give them a listen. I think you'll like them.

Great monitors!

I really like these monitors and have used them extensively! And its true that you will hear things in your mix that you may have never noticed before. I will say that you wont hear lots of low end. Frequency response is 55hz - 20khz. And its a small 5" driver which isn't going to have that low down and dirty club bass. Word? But they are excellent and like they say.. if your mix sound good on these it will sound good anywhere. I really like them! Try them out if you get a chance!

Fantastic compressor for very little $$.

The Alesis Nanocompressor is a great signal processing unit. It has a TRS jack for a Sidechain. It's extremely easy to use and can give you some great results reguardless if its used for bass, drums, vocals, or even guitars. They're pretty inexpensive these days and well worth the money!

18 bit small reverb unit.

I really, really, like this effects unit. It's small, easy to use, and sounds pretty darn good! About three of these will go into one rack space. Its a very straight forward and usable unit. I've had mine for at least 15 years and its still going strong! It's great with an effects send on a sound board!

Great amp for synths or electronic drum kits!

I've mainly used this amp for synthesizers. It can get VERY loud! It has up to 4 inputs and has Low,mid, and treble EQ. Its great for practice and even live shows. I believe there's and optional cabinet out there so it can be ran as a stereo set ( possibly remember reading somewhere) so correct me if I'm wrong. But it has been a solid amp.

A great practice or even studio amp!

I've had the Roland Cube 30 for a couple of years now and I really like it. It has a few effects built in if you need to use them and also a cabinet simulator. I've played other amps with simulators before and was less than impressed. But I really think Roland has done a decent job! Some of the Sims are like a Vox ac30 sound, one even sounds a bit like a Blackstar over driven amp. The clean channel is pretty quiet. I will say that the more you crank this little guy up the better it sounds (maybe Im going deaf haha). It also has a head phones line which may keep the cops out of your yard a bit longer.

This is my current and favorite bass.

This bass has a nice active Humbucker and sounds terrific. If you've ever played one then you know the sound that has been played on many famous albums over the last few decades. It's pretty lightweight and very playable. I'm mainly a guitar guy and never really given much thought to playing bass until i got one of these. It's just a great bass guitar.

Awesome synth module.

I love everything about this module; the patches, the way banks are stored. The only issues is that is has tiny button which make it a bit hard to program.