Studio Configuration???

Hey guys!

I am thinking about trading in my pro tools mpowered and buying sonar 6 producer edition. I was wondering how I could configure my studio to be able to record and then mix on an external board using sonar? What would I need to buy and how would I need to set it all up to be able to mix on an external board to where it will show up in sonar? I basically want a control surface for sonar with as many faders for mixing as possible. What board is good for this? Any info would be great! Thanks!

Seth

Hey Frank thanx for the quick reply!

I currently have pro tools mpowered and an m-audio firewire 1814 interface. i record full bands and need at least 8 mic preamps. I have a 16 channel peavey mixer that i run the mics into then from there to my interface and into pro toos. I have always mixed with a mouse, and want to mix with a mixer and get my hands on it. I know that i can do that with the m-audio project mix interface that is out, i just wanted to see if i had any other options as far as getting my hands on some knobs when mixing. But the project mix only has about 8 faders, and if my song has 24 tracks, then how can i mix all of them. im sure there is a button or switch on the project mix interface to be able to toggle through different tracks? I just know that in commercial studios they are mixing with a board and not always a mouse, and i want to know how to hook up my studio so i can do that. i am an audio student in college, but haven't gotten that far yet. any more info would be greatly appreciated? Thanks again!!!

Seth

ORIGINAL: sethbrand_12

Hey Frank thanx for the quick reply!

I currently have pro tools mpowered and an m-audio firewire 1814 interface. i record full bands and need at least 8 mic preamps. I have a 16 channel peavey mixer that i run the mics into then from there to my interface and into pro toos. I have always mixed with a mouse, and want to mix with a mixer and get my hands on it. I know that i can do that with the m-audio project mix interface that is out, i just wanted to see if i had any other options as far as getting my hands on some knobs when mixing. But the project mix only has about 8 faders, and if my song has 24 tracks, then how can i mix all of them. im sure there is a button or switch on the project mix interface to be able to toggle through different tracks? I just know that in commercial studios they are mixing with a board and not always a mouse, and i want to know how to hook up my studio so i can do that. i am an audio student in college, but haven't gotten that far yet. any more info would be greatly appreciated? Thanks again!!!

Seth

I would not assume what commercial studios do, or that it's the best way to do things. Many commercial studios are full of "old guys" that have many reasons doing things the way they do. I think a lot of it have to do with "looking" like they can do something no one else can do and has nothing to do with making a good recording or mix. Many studios keep their old mixers just for looks and don't even use them for anything other then headphone mixes but it appears to be the centerpiece of the studio. Some of the old expensive ones have decent mic preamps in them and can be good for that.

As you might guess I'm not a fan of control surfaces, the only one I use is the Frontier Design Tranzport, and I like to think of it as a remote control, I don't use it during mixing only during tracking.

In a modern studio there is not a one to one relationship between hardware (controls, I/O ect) and tracks in a project. For example you can do unlimited tracks with only one input if you are overdubing. Same way with controls, you could have one set of controls and use that for any channels buy selecting the channel.

If you want a control surface I would keep it separated from the audio interface, just get a control surface that is midi or USB with no audio connections. That way if you need to replace (or upgrade) one you don't have to throw out the other. You can also pick better quality converters that way and unlike control surfaces those do affect the quality of the recording. There are not many big control surfaces on the market and all are overpriced. Mackie and Tascam are about it for the big ones. Even those may not be supported forever, so they my end up being useless in the future. You will spend many hours trying to figure out what they can and can't do and fixing problems... I'm trying to tell you it's not worth it.

When you move a knob on a channel that is "armed for automation" in your software all it does is cause the software to make a bunch of nodes on an envelope and move them, that's it. Unlike using the mouse in Track View you are flying blind in most cases so there is a VERY good chance you will need to back up and try it again. This is a level of frustration an engineer does not need in the studio. When you make the adjustment with the mouse in Track View you can quickly get it perfect the first time and be done with it. Better yet you can see the wavform so you know exactly where to make the nodes and just the number it takes to get the job done, so any future adjustments are easy. With a control surface you end up with a huge number of nodes that make adjustments almost impossible.

The things I spend the big hardware money on are the front and back end of the system. A good selection of good micrphones, the best preamps I can afford, the best sound card (or converters) I can afford, the best monitoring system I can afford. Those are the things that make a difference in the sound quality of the tracks and your ability to hear what you are doing at mix time.

Spend the money you would spend on a control surface to buy two of the largest and fastest LCD monitors you can find, that's your board.

To each his own I suppose. You have to decide what works best for your situation and what is cost effective.

Mackie Control & 2 Extenders <pic>

Necessary? No.

But I hate working without 'em.

Whoa... hope that's not the way I'm comin' across midiroom. Not my intention at all.

Just sayin' I like 'em enough to spend money on 'em.