hi1mham's Reviews

Ear Training

Has been super helpful for me, now I know how much I actually suck at hearing tonal differences and compression. Hoping it helps me grow!

Vox YES! Layering NO!

the AT2020 has a higher self-noise at 20dBA, but also just sounds a ton better out of the box than many other microphones in its price range without a massive amount of EQing needed. That being said... because of the self noise, Im not in love with using this on anything other than Vocals or acoustic guitar. But boy does it do a great job on Vox and Acoustic Guitar. Anything that doesnt need a ton of processing or layering Yes, stereo pairs and getting crazy with layers, not this guys wheelhouse, you start to hear it humping itself.

For what it is this is one of the best value oriented best sounding Vox mics out there. A must have in any bedroom mic locker.

Backpack Hero

Working out of a hotel or want to be a weirdo on an airplane? Now you can and have some semblance of control over your DAW. Thanks Akai!

No Frills

Its sturdy, responsive, semi-weighted. I prefer fully weighted but as a pull out under my desk this thing is easy to use, works with every DAW and is light and low profile while feeling sturdy.

Dope

An improvement from 9 across the board, from better interface, to transient based warp markers for drag and drop sample chops. My already fast Ableton workflow just got faster.

Massive is as small or as massive as you want it to be

Massive is as small or as massive as you want it to be

TBD

Just purchased will follow up with full fledged review in a week or two

Wow

Convolution Sampled SSL 4K and SSL 5K in one package. The options are unlimited

Amazing Feel. No Frills.

By far my favorite MIDI controller I've ever owned. Fully weighted keys, the feel is incredible. Unfortunately it's hiding in the closet right now as it's a bit too big for my small 1br apartment. Cons: It is huge and bulky, and its midi mapping can be wonky, but I personally dont really need function mapping on my keys Id rather have that on pads or computer keyboard.

The Noisy Cricket

This thing is tiny. One of the first mics I ever purchased. Medium diaphragm gives it a TLM 103ish feel on a budget. Like it alot and now that I pulled it out again Im thinking about playing with it today!

Hidden Gem after Tube Swap

Have always wanted an Avalon VT737 SP pre in my gear lineup for VOX. Well, this is a pretty awesome alternative if you are on a budget after a couple new old stock tube swaps. I have a JJE in Channel 1 and a Mullard in Channel 2, allows me to get a couple fun new flavors for about $450 in total spend versus 3k with the Avalon.

Cheap and Durable

I use 2 of these to handle all of my studio power switching needs. Thats 16 different devices I can power on or off from my fingertips when Im at the desk... so much power!

Its a Grot Box... Why Pay More?

There are more expensive "studio jewlery" brands of grot boxes. But why pay a premium to hear a lowest common denominator speaker that is intentionally trying to make your stuff sound like garbage?

Bland

Bought these after replacing my old BX5a's, at the time I was convinced I needed some Yamaha NS10s to accredit myself as a "real" producer, yet ofcourse didnt have the budget.

Ultimately, too much time spent searching on gearslutz.com boards led me to believe these HS50's had a "setting" that mimicked the frequency response of the NS10 (nevermind that they are ported speakers and inherently entirely different). Long story short, through multiple studio moves and being in a smaller home studio, these have continued to be my mains, mainly due being worried about low frequency sound bleed bugging my neighbors.

These speakers are bland for better or worse. I know that I have to scoop some of my high mid before bounce because i have to drive it really hard to feel the same sparkle you would get in headphones.

great space saver

Pros: Makes working in my bullshit apartment environment a possibility. It looks decent and is great for small spaces unlike the other portable isolation booths I've tried.

Cons: Your mic sounds like its in a foam ball... because it is.

cool keyboard for space constraints

Being the impulsive shopper I am, I purchased this online after getting all juiced up on how cool it looks and for the most part it fits the bill for what I need.

Context: Im a guy downsizing from an 88 Key fully weighted CME UFE Classic that I loved. I needed a keyboard that was professional quality that would slide away into an under table drawer I built based on my new apartments space constraints.

Styles I Do: West Coast Hip-Hop, Funk, Bounce, Boom-Bap, Dance, Trap

Pros: For Semi-Weighted, I do kinda like the synth action. its fun and bouncy but still feels semi substantial. The onboard mapping is cool (however I hardly ever use my midi controllers for this. The keyboard is sexy looking.

Cons: Feels a bit plasticy and light. The pads are thin and not pillowy.