To quote Steve Jobs’ favorite songwriter: “The times they are a changing…”

If anyone is working on hardware upgrades and has any wisdom or warnings, please let us know. This will affect a lot of long time Pro Tools setups in smaller studios for sure.
–Damon

Damon here. I am very pleased to let you know that I have begun a new teaching position at Western Carolina University in their Commercial and Electronic Music program. I am teaching classes in audio editing, sequencing and advanced midi applications as well as directing the Technology Ensemble. Our recording studio, including a digital SSL console and world class microphone closet, is really first rate–you can check it out in an article here– and exists in combination with the broadcast production rooms in the Center for Applied Technology.

Our degree program is a bachelor of music, which includes training in music theory, listening (aural) skills, composition, orchestration and applied music (instrument or voice lessons). The program director is Dr. Bruce Frazier, and we maintain around 55 students in the program at any given time.

Look for more from me and my new students here at The Studio Files in the upcoming weeks. One quick story that I can share is about Brandon Chapman, who graduated from Western Carolina last spring. He is the trumpet playing talent behind the new, very affordable, sample library from Embertone called Chapman Trumpet. It’s been getting a little bit of buzz on VI-Control and is worth checking out.

More soon! Keep making it happen.

–Damon
The Studio Files

http://www.sontronics.com/interview_flood.htm

Damon
The Studio Files Team

They are giving away a great little plugin called Little Radiator, which is an emulation of an Altec 1566A tube mic preamp. You can use this link to get your unique code and then spread the word however you like:

https://www.soundtoys.com/sxsw2012/&rc=397-4308-815

–Damon
The Studio FIles

Now, Zenph has already released several re-performed solo piano recordings (Rachmaninoff, Glenn Gould, Art Tatum, Oscar Peterson, to name a few), but this time the goal was also to recreate collaborative performances with cello and voice. Zuill Bailey (cello) and Isabel Bayrakdarian (soprano) were engaged in turn to perform (with the “Ghost” of composer Manuel de Falla at the keyboard!) the Siete Canciónes Populares Españolas. The album is called Spanish Masters and is available for purchase directly from Zenph.

Our role (my company, Dal Segno Media) was just to do video documentation for this one. Manifold Studios, as I am sure some of you know, is a brilliant facility. There has been a great thread on gearslutz in which Michael Tiemann, Manifold’s “creator” has documented the process of design and construction. We also had a chance to sit down with Michael while we aere there and I want to post that interview soon. Thanks for tuning in!

Damon
The Studio FIles
Dal Segno Media

Thanks a heap to our youtube buddy sprayking for the heads up!

…that every home and project studio should consider during upgrades.

In its unassuming black box, the Sparrow doesn’t look like much (although, to be honest, I really like the look of the box).  The front panel has a power button, 2 TRS analog inputs, and a knob for selecting sample rate.  The back of the unit has SPDIF (BNC, although the BNC>RCA adapter is included) and AES out, and a jack for the wall-wart connector.  It also has a red button for engaging 176.4 and 192 kHz sample rates.

The specs posted on the BLA website are very impressive.

Dynamic range, Converter: 120dB
Dynamic range, Analog: 33dB
SNR: -110dB
Slew rate, Analog: approx 6000v/us, depending upon input signal strength
Max analog input before digital clipping: +10dBu
Min analog input necessary for digital output: -20dBu
Inputs: Balanced, TRS
Outputs: SPDIF, AES-EBU
Sampling rates: 44.1kHz-192kHz
Bit rate: 24 bit

However, everyone knows the specs only tell us so much.  Time to test it out.  For comparison, I used my stock Digidesign 003R line inputs.  The Sparrow was connected via the SPDIF input of the 003R with a high end cable.

I started with a fairly simple test – I hooked up the analog outputs of an inexpensive drum machine into the analog inputs of the Sparrow, and then the 003R, playing the same 4-bar loop into each (and recording into Pro Tools at 88.2).  The results were surprising.  For starters, the Sparrow was significantly louder (more than 2 dB).  Of course, our ears are often drawn to louder sources, so I gain matched the two files.  Upon gain matching, I listened to each a few times, alternating back and forth with the Solo button in the mixer.

The Sparrow is much better than the stock 003R converters in a number of ways.  Most notably, spectral differences were present in many areas.  The above-6k area of the Sparrow was more present, but was not harsh or fatiguing in any way.  I’m anxious to put a vocalist through the Sparrow – I expect an excellent top end (“air”) to the vocals without sibilance problems.  More to come on this in later posts. The low mid range (200-400 Hz area) was also much better in the Sparrow.  Subjective terms don’t really help describe things on the internet, but “tighter” is an appropriate word here.  The 003R sounded slightly hyped in this frequency area (leading to a slightly “muddy” sound in comparison).  Finally, the bass end of the spectrum (below 100 Hz) seemed extended and much more filled out.  The kick drum had a larger presence around 60 Hz.

The transient response of the Sparrow was also seemingly more accurate.  

Of course, we would love to hear from any of you who are using the Sparrow, or any thoughts about other A/D converters that make it happen for you.

–Connor

Part 1: Transferring DAWs, project setup, initial leveling (for headroom), routing, naming, and general organization. (And a little on the Lead Vocal)

This song was delievered to me as a Logic Studio 8 project file.  While I do use and like Logic, I much prefer to mix in Pro Tools.  Therefore, I exported all the tracks out of Logic (and there were a LOT of them :).  If you need tips on how to get audio out of your DAW and into another, check out THIS article as well as THIS article.  Remember to export in the original sample rate and bit depth.

So now I was left with about 100 tracks (wow!) of 88.2/24 audio.  Time to import into Pro Tools.  Pro Tools HD Native will only support the playback of 96 voices at 88.2 kHz, so I quickly scanned the project for redundant tracks or similar parts that I could combine, made new tracks, right-clicked and chose “Hide and Make Inactive” on the unecessary tracks (don’t delete them!!), and got my count under 96.  (Note: I’ll address it later, but this consolidation process continued throughout the mix.)

Once that was done crunching, I just hit play and listened through the song 2-3 times.  This is a really important step in the mixing process – listen to the song in its raw form and begin to build your mental vision of where things need to go.  Personally, I keep a notebook on my desk and jot down notes as I listen (noting important parts, ideas for effects, things I think are unecessary, arrangement ideas, etc…).

So here’s where we are at:

Why do this?  Well, especially with a 90+ track project, if you want ANY chance of not slamming/clipping the mix bus, you need to get your levels under control at the start of the project.  Mix with plenty of headroom – always!  As you’ll see in later pictures, even after trimming everything down, the peaks of my song hit as high as -4 dBFS (I usually feel better if they are down around -6 dBFS).

OK – headroom is set – now it’s time to do some organizing.  I usually loop the song while I do this to continue to get a mental picture of where the song needs to go.  I start by moving tracks around, grouping them by instrument  (so in my case, I put the rhythm section stuff all the way to one side of the mix, vocals nearer to the middle, synths off to the other side… whatever works for you is fine – just get a system and stick with it).  In the process, I also renamed a lot of tracks.  Choose relevant names!  Additionally, I am an avid user of the scribble strip at the bottom of the mix window.  I like to jot notes about what the track has on it.  Personally, I’m not a fan of color-coding tracks – I’ve just never worked it into my workflow – so I use a combination of consistent organization and scribble strips to remember where everything is.

This is also when I setup some summing busses, aux tracks for effects, and my master bus.  Again – these are mostly personal workflow choices, so feel free to try these out, but there’s more than one way to do it.  I like to route all my tracks into an aux track that becomes my mix bus.  From there, I can print versions of the song right in the project file.  This master bus track along with my main aux track effect returns (typical reverbs and delays) goes in the center of my mix window.

If you do choose to go with this master bus approach:  one way or another (whether it’s through individual tracks or through sub busses) be sure to route all of your audio tracks through that master bus. Failure to do so initially could cause big headaches later (for balance, headroom, levels, automation…).

Now we’re ready to actually get going and mix.

I started with the lead vocal (aka the most important part of any pop song).  Simple rule: The lead vocal needs to be heard. Period.  In a context like this (pop/rock/etc.), the best way to get there is a recipe of compression, EQ, and time-based effects (reverb/delay).  I usually like to start with compression – because this addresses both volume and tonal issues (depending on which compressor/plug-in you choose).  One of my go-to compressors in-the-box (ITB) is the Bomb Factory Purple MC77.  In a very non-scientific way, I like this compressor because it can squash a vocal a-la-1176-style, but the MC77 seems to preserve the silky-smooth high end of a vocal better.  Now – be careful with these fast FET compressors -  without the right settings for the right song/style, you’ll end up hammering your vocal into oblivion.  The slowest attack time on this guy is less than 1 millisecond (ranges from 20 – 800 microseconds)

Long story short, after MC77 compression, I split the lead vocal into three tracks based on the organization of the song and how I wanted to lay out effects.  I patched the vocal tracks through my Vintech 473 (to drive the input stage pretty hot and add a tiny bit of high shelf EQ) on inserts.  Then, as you’ll see in the picture below, I printed the vocal track.  After copying over the reverb/delay automation data, I hid and deactivated the original tracks (leaving me with one, already compressed and EQ’d vocal track).  While the vocal definitely sounds compressed, I believe it’s at an appropriate level of compression for this song.  Compare the uneven waveforms of the original three tracks to the well-leveled bounce track.

To some, this may seem crazy (deciding on your vocal level, “sound”, and compression immediately when starting a mix).  In many cases, it would be.  But here, it will do a lot of good for my organization and the mix.  From the get go, my vocal level is set.  If I want it to be better heard, I need to turn other things DOWN, which is excellent for your headroom.  Also, my analog gear (the Vintech) is now free to use on other tracks.  Obviously if 2 hours into the mix, I realize that I need an adjustment, I can re-activate the tracks and rebounce… but hopefully I won’t have to.  “Going for the sound” and making decisions will help your ears know what is good/bad.  Making mistakes here is all part of the development process.  I’ll be clear – I don’t mean to suggest that everyone should be doing this in every project – rather, in this project it worked well and I think it’s a valuable learning and workflow tool that others should try out.

OK – lead vocal is good – time to go to drums and bass… in part 2!

Questions about anything mixing/PT related?  Post in the comments here or send me an email.

Connor

The Studio Files

Today I’d like to explore the benchmark performance of Pro Tools 9 (specifically Native HD – although since it’s still all native, it should be a fairly valid test of non-Native HD systems as well).  For me, the performance has been excellent and robust with few exceptions.

For the record, this is the computer I am using to test:

• Mac Pro (2008), 8-core 3.2 GHz, 16GB Ram
• Snow Leopard 10.6.6 (combo updater)
• Pro Tools 9.0.1
• UAD2 (PCIe) and Duende Mini (FW400) peripherals
• Separate internal SATA drives for OS, audio, and sample libraries
• Updated drivers on plug-ins
• Pro Tools Native PCIe card connected to an Avid HD I/O 16×16 analog

I chose to use a project file that was fairly processor-intensive when I was still on Pro Tools 8.  This is an 88.2/24 session, with 56 tracks.  One thing to note is that in Pro Tool’s Setup>Playback Engine menu, I do recommend selecting one less processing core than you have available (so in this test, since I have an 8-core, I choose “7 processors”).  This frees up one processor for OS and other processing and makes things run much better.  There is a lot of automation of volume faders, sends, and plug-in parameters. 

Plug-ins are running natively, on the UAD2, and on the Duende – here are the specific counts:

• 93 Native Plug-ins (including 5 of Avid’s “Eleven” amp sim, 2 convolution reverbs, 4 instances of Auto Tune, and 37 Waves SSL plug-ins including 3 stereo bus compressors)
• 9 Duende plug-ins
• 8 UAD2 plug-ins
• 1 Instance of Avid’s “Mini Grand”
• 1 Instance of Kontakt (running 3 instruments in total)

While I’ve seen/used sessions that are larger with more plug-ins, I feel confident that this is fairly close to a universally “large mix” for most home and project studio owners.  I also did have the (Short) Delay Compensation Engine running.

I set the buffer to 64 samples (which on the Avid hardware means unbelievably low latency for a Native system) and started playback – the whole song was OK.  From there, I started adding plug-in instances during playback to “jog” the system.  I had 1 or 2 momentary hiccups here, but nothing serious (no crashes etc. – I’ll talk about problems later on).  I also made new audio tracks and recorded 4 at a time in (more than I’d usually do simultaneously for post-mix overdubs) with no problems.

Below is a screenshot (of as much of the mixer as I could fit on a screen!) of a very intense part of the song with lots of automation going and the most tracks playing back simultaneously.  As you can see, we are just above 60% on CPU usage.

Pro Tools HD Native performance @ 64 Sample Buffer

 To be honest, I would rarely ever go to 64 samples during a mix – and with Low Latency Mode available for recording tracks, I could stay at a higher buffer regardless.  The purpose of this test was simple to push things to the extreme to see how they would fall.  Overall, I can’t ask much more out of this Native DAW – it performs extremely well.

Things that make HD Native have errors (as you’ll notice, they are all when playback is engaged):

• While inserting native plug-ins during intense playback has been fine thus far, I have gotten 1-2 buffer errors when inserting Duende and UAD2 plug-ins at that time.  Granted this has only happened with low (64/128) buffer settings and not at higher buffers as of yet.
• If the song is playing back and you add numerous new audio/aux tracks, I’ve seen a buffer error.
• The only time I’ve gotten PT HD Native to completely crash (close the program) is when, while in a processor-intensive song spot, inserting a plug-in and immediately saving (ctrl+s) while the plug-in is loading.  Pro Tools doesn’t like that, especially at low buffer settings.

In summary – just stop playback before making major changes, and everything will remain happy.  Pro Tools 9 seems more efficient than Pro Tools 8 in terms of handling computer resources.  It has been very stable with few errors and crashes.

Having problems with your system’s Pro Tools 9 performance?  Let me know about your system here and we’ll make it work!

Connor

The Studio Files

Most of the time, if you are experiencing a “it used to work and all of a sudden it doesn’t!” situation with Pro Tools, this is the fix.  These files are a reference for Pro Tools to see your most recent setup choices and preferences (among other things).  By deleting them, you are forcing Pro Tools to start from scratch on those prefs (basically setting it back to Default).

On the Mac side, you can just download this program and call it a day - Pro Tools Preferences and Database Helper. 

There are similar programs out there, both on the Mac and Windows side of things, but that is my favorite.  Also, you can easily delete these files manually.

On Windows:

• C:\Documents and Settings\”User Folder”\Application Data\Digidesign (folder)
• C:\Program Files\Common Files\Digidesign\DAE\DAE Prefs (folder)

Delete the bolded folders, empty the recycle bin.

On Macs

• Users > “Your Name” > Library > Preferences
• In here, you’ll see com.digidesign.protoolsLE.plist (or something similar), Digisetup.OSX, and two folders: DAE Prefs and Pro Tools Preferences
• Delete them and empty the trash

And now you know how to trash your Pro Tools prefs and databases!

Connor

The Studio Files

Get the DEET out – we’ve got a bug.

I found this bug yesterday… I haven’t gotten a response back from Avid on a patch to fix it, but I have confirmed that other people are having the same problem.  Luckily, I’ve also figured out a workaround.  I’ve confirmed this bug on Apple Snow Leopard OSX 10.6.6 with Core Audio, but apparently it’s happening across all versions.  I’m not sure on Windows XP or Windows 7 based systems, but I’ll update this post if I get more information. 

So, the bug:

• Have a session of Pro Tools open playing through your Avid hardware (or other non-onboard sound card)
• Close Pro Tools
• Open up a Core Audio application (i.e. iTunes, Quicktime, etc.) and play some songs
• Close the CoreAudio application and make sure Digi CoreAudio Manager has quit as well.
• Reopen Pro Tools session
• BUG = Pro Tools will not recognize your hardware, other than the CoreAudio aggregate device…

Bah.

As of now, my fix is to trash your databases and preferences (a restart usually won’t do it).  I haven’t confirmed this happening across all systems, but I have seen it happening with TDM, HD Native, and native setups.

I’ll keep you posted!

Update: I’ve opened up an ASC call/email thread with Avid Tech Support.  No solution yet, but they are working on it.  Additionally, (not worth a whole post, so I’ll talk about it here) anyone having a problem with the release knob on the Bomb Factory MC77 plug-in (where it doesn’t recall correctly when you open a session, even though the GUI looks correct) – they are looking into this too.

Update 2 (The Fix):  Problem solved.  Apparently this problem is attributed to some corrupt preference files that don’t go away when you normally trash preferences.  The way to fix it is to make a new administrative user (System Preferences > Accounts > Add a new user).  It worked great for me – just make sure you give that user Read/Write permissions on all your hard drives.  Regarding the MC77 release knob problem, this is a known bug that they are working on.  Let’s hope they fix it soon – it’s a pain!

Connor

The Studio Files

The Vintech 473 offers 4 channels of Neve 1073-like preamp with shelving EQ in a 2 space rackmount unit.  It uses an external power supply (sold seperately) which can power up to 6 channels of Vintech preamps.

In Use:

Right after I got the unit, I got a chance to use it in a tracking session.

The external power supply has a good side and a bad side.  The good side is that the 473 stays fairly cool (temperature) even when running all 4 channels all day.  You can also power a few different units with one power supply.  The bad side is that its external and at this time, I can’t find a rackmount adapter for it.  It isn’t really a big deal, but carrying around extra cables and trying to find a case for it can be a tiny hump for the traveling engineer/producer.  I also wish it could power 8 channels (so I wouldn’t have to buy another if I get another 473…).  That all being said, I feel confident saying that I think the benefits outweigh the negatives.

First up, I used it on drums (specifically inside kick mic, snare drum top, and LR overheads).  The output attenuation pot was really nice to have on drums.  I could drive the preamp gain a little hotter (to get a taste of the transistor crunch), but could lower the output to prevent clipping the A/D. This was especially good on the close mics.  The shelving EQ was very convenient, and sounded great to boot.  I ended up dialing in a bit of 12k for the overheads, a bit of 60Hz for the kick, and adding some 3k to the snare.  A quick note – the unit is very easy to use.  That may seems like an odd comment, but it made the workflow very smooth.  The knobs are large, easy to grab, and are clearly labeled; the switches are large and take some effort to push (- a good thing!); things like this make me happy. 

I thought the preamps (and EQ) sounded fantastic.  The transients of the kick and snare sounded great (especially with the extra gain I gave to the input stage).  It worked well on overheads too.  Usually I prefer a tube preamp on overheads (due to the distortion qualities, transient response, etc…) but I thought the very-slightly overdriven 473 sounded great in this application.

Next I used the unit to track guitars.  I used two amps, mic’ing each off axis, one with an SM57 (with the transformer taken out) and the other with a FatHead II (stock tranny).   I ended up dialing 40-50 dB of gain and had no noise problems.  The 57 was plenty bright, but the ribbon would need some EQ.  A quick flick of the EQ switch, and I dialed in a fairly substantial boost at 3k.  It brought the track up to an appropriate level of brightness in the high end without becoming harsh.  While the 473 doesn’t have the EQ capabilities of the single channel strips from Vintech (or the original Neve’s for that matter), I find the shelves to be very convenient and great sounding.

After guitars, I used it on vocals (U87ai -> Vintech).  We actually started with the 87 through a UA 6176, and while that is another great unit (with tons of sonic options), we ended up liking the Vintech better on this particular application.  The Vintech had no tube color, which is what the song/singer was dictating.  The preamp performed just as how I would expect a 1073-like pre: very well.  I would feel comfortable using this as an everyday vocal preamp.  There are a lot of sonic options packed into this unit – the ability to drive the input hot and pull down the output, the EQ, etc…

A quick note in the middle here – the input impedance switch is another nice tool to have.  Switching from 300 up to 1200 Ohms did about what you’d expect (slightly more gain, slightly more present high frequencies).  Again, this is another sonic option the engineer has at his/her fingertips.  Convenience (as well as excellent quality) is really a theme on this unit.

For the pro studio, this is a great sounding unit at a great price.  4 channels of Neve preamps for around $3000 is a steal.  For the home or project studio, the 473 is a excellent choice for high quality front-end.  The preamps sound great, have plenty of (clean) gain for any mic, and the shelving EQ is excellent for tracking.  Additionally, the Hi-Z inputs on the front are great for tracking guitars, and the line inputs (and EQ) can give a great new color to in-the-box tracks.

// end of old review – start of new review

Well, it’s one year later, and I can say I’m just as thrilled with the unit.  I’ve done far less tracking this year as mixing, and the Vintech has shined.

The unit has held up well to my many travels.  I usually suit it up in a rack case and haul it all over the place.  I will still say that the external power supply is a bit of a hassle.  While I appreciate it’s merits in keeping the 473 cool and the power away from the audio, it is still hard to lug around in a separate box.  But – the hassle is worth it – the sound is awesome.

In mixing, I have it normalled out of my converters (to the line inputs) for inserts.  I use it on drums occasionally, but typically I throw my lead vocals and sometimes acoustic guitars through it.  Just driving a vocal through the line stage and adding a little EQ can bring it to the next level (anyone with a Neve console will probably tell you the exact same thing).  While the preamp sections are invaluable, it’s hard to ignore the awesomeness of having this unit for mixing.

As in my Avid Pro Tools Native HD+ HD I/O 16×16 analog review, let’s do the final breakdown:

Pros of the Vintech 473

• Amazing, amazing sound
• Great versatility for both tracking and mixing
• Rugged design, has held up well through travels
• Large pots and switches, makes dialing in settings in a heated session easy
• External power supply keeps heat and power away from your audio

Cons of the Vintech 473

• External power supply is an extra thing to haul around if you are often mobile
• Price – although for me, this was the best sound/price matchup of all the Neve clones, it is still pricey.  This could be a limiting factor for some studios

Overall, I’m very happy with the unit after the first year… here’s to many more!

Connor

The Studio Files

Pro Tools Compatibility

Whether you are having problems on Windows XP, Windows 7, Leopard, Snow Leopard… with Pro Tools 7, Pro Tools 8, or Pro Tools 9 – this is where you need to look to find out whether your computer/OS/plug-ins/software are compatible.

The Review:  Short version – In my experience, Pro Tools HD Native is the perfect stepping stone between high end LE systems and HD TDM systems.  So far in use, it has shown itself to be incredibly powerful and robust – with excellent converters and super low latency to boot.  Highly recommended!

The Review: (more important) Long version -

Let’s start with the basics – system details and installation.

I am running this setup on an 8-core 3.2 Ghz Mac Pro (2008-2009).  I also run a Duende mini via Firewire and a UAD PCIe card (I was anxious to see how PT HD Native would cope with these plug-in processing peripherals).  Installation was really simple – installed the PCIe Native HD card first, connected the Avid HD I/O interface via the provided mini Digilink cable, and booted up the computer (interface off at this point).  From there, I registered and activated my products on Avid.com.  That got me right to the license for Pro Tools 9 (no need to install 8.5 first) - which I transferred to my iLok via iLok.com.  (Incidentally, if anyone has questions on the install/activation process, just let me know and I can help) I downloaded the massive PT 9.0.1 HD installer (good job on the d/l speeds Avid – only took ~18 minutes).  From there, it was as simple as installing, restarting, and launching Pro Tools.

After verifying that my HD I/O was factory-calibrated correctly (which it was) and running tones through all of my newly-soldered patchbay connections to check continuity and normals, it was time to push Pro Tools Native HD to the max and see how it responded.

EDIT: Head over to the new review post HERE where I do a more controlled benchmarking test of Pro Tools 9′s performance.  Right here, I was sold on the power and features of HD Native, especially since I was at one of the lowest buffer settings for a huge mix.  While it probably wouldn’t work at a or post house or studio requiring bigger counts (as those situations could require far more computer resources, much larger I/O, ability to track larger numbers during mixdown, etc.), from a small to mid-sized music studio’s perspective, this is the holy grail.

All the features you’d expect to see in Pro Tools HD are there – for me, it’s all about the Automation!  I did a few test sessions with crazy automation just to make sure things were working correctly (which they were).

The system responds quickly – just like a normal Native system.  So far it seems extremely stable – not one crash yet – but I’ll update this post in the next month to confirm.

The section everyone looks for: the CONS of Pro Tools Native HD.

Well, this is a hard section to write at this point because I am extremely satisfied so far.  Without installation problems, bugs, workflow impedances, or performance issues… I can’t complain about much.  I think the price may still be a limiting factor for some studios.  Dealer advertised price of this bundle (Native HD + Avid HD I/O 16×16 analog) is around $8,000.  However, as with most expensive gear, it’s likely you can negotiate with your dealer for a lower price.  Additionally, Avid is offering generous trade-in deals from LE systems (i.e. a 002 or 003R trade-in will get you $1000 off the price of admission).

Of course – you don’t have to get the 16×16 analog (most expensive model).  Avid also sells the 8x8x8, the 16×16 digital, as well as the OMNI (which is probably very attractive to most project studios looking to move to HD Native).

Another option is to go with the Native PCIe card with a different company’s converters.  Lynx converters sound great and are moderately priced in comparison.  One thing to note is that with non-Avid interfaces, the latency of your system will be slightly higher (the new Avid interfaces are faaaassssttttttt).

That all being said, you get what you pay for.  Pro Tools HD Native, while not free, is an excellent professional-level system beaming with power and features.

The boring stuff to remember:

A few days before my system came in, I spent time upgrading and verifying my computer software.  Previously, I was running Leopard (10.5.2 I think…).  Why so outdated??  Because – my workflow involves getting my computer to a setup that works without bugs, and then leaving it alone, not updating anything (barring emerging problems) until I make a major system upgrade.

I started with a Snow Leopard install via disc, and then proceeded with the combo updater to 10.6.6 (Sidenote: As boring as RTFM statements are… every PT user should check out Avid’s website for compatibility.  They list very detailed specs about both hardware and software, showing you what pieces they’ve officially tested and qualified).  From there, I checked the compatibility of all my plug-ins and wirtual instruments… downloaded compatible versions… blah blah blah.  My point is: take the time to do your homework and install compatible plug-ins/VIs.  I’ve already seen a lot of performance issues on other user’s systems originating from incompatible software.  As long as you follow the hardware and software guidelines set forth by Avid, you’ll be fine (which is why they go through the trouble of qualifying as many systems as they do).

// In sum – I am very happy with the performance and features of Pro Tools HD Native 9.  I believe the future of much studio recording lies in the hands of these types of Native Systems.  While (for the foreseeable future) there is still a significant need for HD TDM-like DSP systems, I would put my money on more Native systems (i.e. Apogee’s symphony, PT HD Native, etc.) gaining ground in the next 5-10 years.

Questions about HD Native, Pro Tools 9, or anything else related??  Ask here or send me an email.

Connor

TheStudioFiles.com