Beeps: Just read your last long post. Well said. Just remember, this stuff will always be subjective once you get the blatant issues out of the way. It's ok to be you and do what you feel is best. This is why we have mixes from people that sound so different. It's good you want grit in your mixes. However, the idea should be to try and get things clear first...then add the grit. And once you get a handle on everything, you might even add the grit destructively to your mixes...which is ok too as long as you know how to handle it. Like I said...crawl before you run brother.
 
This low end mud you're referring to on drums and guitars....you have to know where the mud is. Just high passing can sometimes hurt you as it can take out the GOOD stuff too if you're not careful. You need to first determine if there is mud and then find out where it is. Most times with samples, you can high pass selectively and then pull out some of the other nasty stuff if need be. But it's always different and depends on the kit you use. Personally, I think this layering thing is where the problem may be.
 
Try working with one good drum kit, 2 rhythm guitars and a lead guitar. Go for less is more and see what you can do there. See man, the key with layering is...you MUST gear the instruments to be orchestration pieces. Meaning, if you use 4-6 guitars, they all have to be eq'd differently to support each other and they can't be clones. They must be physically played or all you do is add to the mayhem of noise...in a bad way. I say keep it simple and lets learn how to deal with this stuff and do some "sound identifying". This will be much easier with less instrumentation. Once you learn what constitutes a good, solid sound, then you play with the orchestration pieces.
 
For example, an old song here...but check out Creed's "Overcome" when you get a minute. What I like about that song is how controlled the low end is as well as how the guitars are layered and it has a really good drum sound. When the middle of the song comes about and there are just two guitars, you hear how much the layering has made a difference. I hate that middle section guitar tone. It's so thin, raspy and uggh...but man, when the others hit in the chorus, it sounds amazing and full. So the key with layers is you have to be able to eq each part to make a difference for the better.
 
You also want to use a totally different sound too so it adds to the layer. Again, no cloning. As soon as you clone parts, you're out of the layer mode because it's the same exact part being played unless you time adjust it or move it a few ticks etc. Even there, the layered effect is much more dominant when you physically play the parts as opposed to cloning.
 
With your drums, you can get away with layering and hybridding. BUT...like the guitars, try to stay away from that for right now. Let's get a good mix up in its infant stage so we can check it out further and see what you're getting out of the gate. With drums, I like to layer when I hear something in a drum instrument that is a one trick pony. Meaning, some kick drums just have this awesome thud to them. No matter what you do, you can't get the right beater attack out of them...so heck, you just add another that DOES have some beater attack, and you mix the two together. Same with snares. You may get a snare that has a big sound, but it just doesn't crack hard enough nor does it have enough sustain. So you add in a pic snare or something with a bit of "ting" and resonance to the big snare, and you're golden.
 
A note on cymbals: Remember that they are percussive instruments...they should never dominate. Our ears gravitate towards bass and high end at times. Thus, you sometimes have a lot of bass in a mix or excessive highs while stripping out mids because we think we are cleaning up the mix. The mids make it big and have body...as long as we don't over-do it and congest the mix with mids.
 
But cymbals should just be heard enough to where you never question "did I hear that?" as long as they don't dominate. Hats will always be the loudest of the cymbal family, but you have to be careful there because the last thing you want is tssssss tssssss tsssss all over the song. The most important part to remember about cymbals, is the opposite of what we do with bass. I'll explain...
 
There are times when you may need more high end in the cymbals. When that's the case, you always pull down the fader when increasing any high end. You have to determine whether or not to raise the fader, lower the fader, raise the high end or lower the high end. This is as difficult as raising the low on a bass, or removing some low end and just dropping the bass fader. Most times, the best choice is to lower the eq you are questioning and raise the fader because little things like that (which can become big annoying things if you're not careful) can actually be fixed via mastering if they aren't too jacked up.
 
You made a mention about your faders nearly being all the way up or something? Before I mix something, I zero everything out to off and start instrument at a time. When I do this, my instrument levels start out at about -10 dB peak per instrument and my faders are usually under unity/0/center position. If you find you are way low when you are at unity (in the center of the fader) you probably need more level from the drum sampler output. Anything I record audio wise goes in at -6 dB peak so I'm usually in good shape there. But if you are seeing low levels, you probably need to make adjustments in your drum program.
 
For drums I like to use a little template that sort of makes me do what a live soundman would do. For example, I create this little project one time that has 8 kick hits, 8 snare hits, etc until all the drums are done. Then I play the entire kit. When I know what drum module I am going to use for a project, I create it in this little project and then set up all the levels in the drum program as well as fader levels and gains, pans etc. When this is done, I save the drum template for that drum module. So when I go back into the real project that needs drums, I bring that drum instrument template in, and I have a good starting point. Once you do this one time for each module, you can just bring the drum modules of your choice into ANY project and you're already in good shape with only subtle tweaks to make.
 
Anyway, keep some of this in mind and know that I'm really proud of you for taking this as far as you have. It only gets better from here brother. And nothing you've done should ever be considered "Stupid". We all learn every day. We try things....that's the fun of it...trial and error. I'm all about that. I can't even tell you what some of the theory in recording is called. If you put me up against a new Full Sail grad and we get quizzed on terms, I lose hands down. I'm talking obliterated. LOL! If you put me up against that person in a mix situation, I'm either right with them or teach them something about being in the field for the years I've been at it...so trial and error is great. We just have to make sure we truly learn from the trial as well as the error. :) I'll be looking for more stuff from you. Got the pm also...thanks man.
 
-Danny
 

Just a quick note in regards to the monitoring/soundroom stuff before I check out the new posts that showed up while I was writing my little novella there (lol... giving you a run for your money Danny).
 
Some of you know and some don't... I pretty much have zero dollars to work with right now. Actually less than zero and unlike in the old days I can't get creative with acquiring/building stuff on my own. Wish I did and could but unfortunately I'm a broke ass cripple. I'm working on that stuff but for now I'm stuck with what I've managed to scrape together so far for my "studio". If I could do some garbage scores of lumber and do off jobs to acquire some cash for insulation and other materials then I would totally be doing some DIY sound treatment. My monitors are decent (made sure I got good ones) but the room is what it is for now and I gotta make sure I don't get booted out of this place.
 
So I use my monitors to check what I've done in the phones. I bring all my other speakers into the room and check it out on them. I listen to stuff on the different sets of earbuds and headphones I collected over the years. I drag the mix into other rooms and check them out there. Stuff like that.
 
If I could afford ARC or even just one of those fancy mics they use to test soundrooms in then I'd be a little better off (for the latter I'd use bitflippers handy guide for setting up a master EQ for room correction). None of that is gonna happen for a while. The one and only thing that I may be able to look forward to to somewhat help me get my listening situation a little more under control is the Focusrite VRM box. I've been eyeballing that freaking thing for almost a year now and I WILL pull the trigger on it eventually if I can scrounge up the paltry amount they are asking. I know that is certainly no replacement for the stuff you guys are talking about but in my situation you gotta get creative about these things. Actually my monitoring situation is FAR better than it used to be when I first started doing this years ago. I was engineering in basically a hallway (going the wrong way) through my stereo system. I still managed to produce an album that my target audience told me sounded amazing... like TOO nice for that crowd. So really... these kids aren't that picky but I am and I'd like to give them something nicer than the average basement demo.
 
That will be where my first return on investment will come. Crusty metalheads, punks and general lunatics buying what I put out or getting me to clean up their demos and live recordings. Well that and putting together my guitar lessons.
 
So although I am striving for perfection and will never EVER give up working toward something better for now I just need to make sure all the instruments are audible and I'm better than the "competition" as far as quality... and the competition is basically that guy in the band who scored a demo copy of PT or some such and managed to get the stuff recorded.
 
This is the beginning and I absolutely HATE that I'm stuck in the position I am in but I know if I do not allow the sucktitude of my situation get the better of me I will persevere through these rather dark times.
 
That is why this forum and all you guys have been such an enormously positive entity to my existence. Really... it's all I got right now so through the knowledge and encouragement I get on threads like this it keeps me going and really, f*ck the lack of gear, space or sanity... knowledge is power and people have done far more with far less. This is a test and if I can't accomplish what I want with what I have then I truly have nothing. I don't think that is the case though and this was merely my first real attempt with what I've learned. The mistakes are clear to me now and the potential solutions are plentiful... thanks to you guys. All that other fancy stuff would be nice and when it does come I'll blow the roof off sh*t but these are my meager beginnings and the challenges will only serve to make me far better and more creative when I do finally get my chance to shine.
 
Hopeful blatherings? Pipe dreams? Meandering delusions? You betcha... but damned if my fantasies over the years haven't produced some really special stuff. I don't see how this will be any different.
 
Cheers and really... this is how important you guys and all your help and dare I say friendship is to me. Just so you know.

Danny Danzi
Beeps: Just read your last long post. Well said. Just remember, this stuff will always be subjective once you get the blatant issues out of the way. It's ok to be you and do what you feel is best. This is why we have mixes from people that sound so different. It's good you want grit in your mixes. However, the idea should be to try and get things clear first...then add the grit. And once you get a handle on everything, you might even add the grit destructively to your mixes...which is ok too as long as you know how to handle it. Like I said...crawl before you run brother.
 
This low end mud you're referring to on drums and guitars....you have to know where the mud is. Just high passing can sometimes hurt you as it can take out the GOOD stuff too if you're not careful. You need to first determine if there is mud and then find out where it is. Most times with samples, you can high pass selectively and then pull out some of the other nasty stuff if need be. But it's always different and depends on the kit you use. Personally, I think this layering thing is where the problem may be.
 
Try working with one good drum kit, 2 rhythm guitars and a lead guitar. Go for less is more and see what you can do there. See man, the key with layering is...you MUST gear the instruments to be orchestration pieces. Meaning, if you use 4-6 guitars, they all have to be eq'd differently to support each other and they can't be clones. They must be physically played or all you do is add to the mayhem of noise...in a bad way. I say keep it simple and lets learn how to deal with this stuff and do some "sound identifying". This will be much easier with less instrumentation. Once you learn what constitutes a good, solid sound, then you play with the orchestration pieces.
 
For example, an old song here...but check out Creed's "Overcome" when you get a minute. What I like about that song is how controlled the low end is as well as how the guitars are layered and it has a really good drum sound. When the middle of the song comes about and there are just two guitars, you hear how much the layering has made a difference. I hate that middle section guitar tone. It's so thin, raspy and uggh...but man, when the others hit in the chorus, it sounds amazing and full. So the key with layers is you have to be able to eq each part to make a difference for the better.
 
You also want to use a totally different sound too so it adds to the layer. Again, no cloning. As soon as you clone parts, you're out of the layer mode because it's the same exact part being played unless you time adjust it or move it a few ticks etc. Even there, the layered effect is much more dominant when you physically play the parts as opposed to cloning.
 
With your drums, you can get away with layering and hybridding. BUT...like the guitars, try to stay away from that for right now. Let's get a good mix up in its infant stage so we can check it out further and see what you're getting out of the gate. With drums, I like to layer when I hear something in a drum instrument that is a one trick pony. Meaning, some kick drums just have this awesome thud to them. No matter what you do, you can't get the right beater attack out of them...so heck, you just add another that DOES have some beater attack, and you mix the two together. Same with snares. You may get a snare that has a big sound, but it just doesn't crack hard enough nor does it have enough sustain. So you add in a pic snare or something with a bit of "ting" and resonance to the big snare, and you're golden.
 
A note on cymbals: Remember that they are percussive instruments...they should never dominate. Our ears gravitate towards bass and high end at times. Thus, you sometimes have a lot of bass in a mix or excessive highs while stripping out mids because we think we are cleaning up the mix. The mids make it big and have body...as long as we don't over-do it and congest the mix with mids.
 
But cymbals should just be heard enough to where you never question "did I hear that?" as long as they don't dominate. Hats will always be the loudest of the cymbal family, but you have to be careful there because the last thing you want is tssssss tssssss tsssss all over the song. The most important part to remember about cymbals, is the opposite of what we do with bass. I'll explain...
 
There are times when you may need more high end in the cymbals. When that's the case, you always pull down the fader when increasing any high end. You have to determine whether or not to raise the fader, lower the fader, raise the high end or lower the high end. This is as difficult as raising the low on a bass, or removing some low end and just dropping the bass fader. Most times, the best choice is to lower the eq you are questioning and raise the fader because little things like that (which can become big annoying things if you're not careful) can actually be fixed via mastering if they aren't too jacked up.
 
You made a mention about your faders nearly being all the way up or something? Before I mix something, I zero everything out to off and start instrument at a time. When I do this, my instrument levels start out at about -10 dB peak per instrument and my faders are usually under unity/0/center position. If you find you are way low when you are at unity (in the center of the fader) you probably need more level from the drum sampler output. Anything I record audio wise goes in at -6 dB peak so I'm usually in good shape there. But if you are seeing low levels, you probably need to make adjustments in your drum program.
 
For drums I like to use a little template that sort of makes me do what a live soundman would do. For example, I create this little project one time that has 8 kick hits, 8 snare hits, etc until all the drums are done. Then I play the entire kit. When I know what drum module I am going to use for a project, I create it in this little project and then set up all the levels in the drum program as well as fader levels and gains, pans etc. When this is done, I save the drum template for that drum module. So when I go back into the real project that needs drums, I bring that drum instrument template in, and I have a good starting point. Once you do this one time for each module, you can just bring the drum modules of your choice into ANY project and you're already in good shape with only subtle tweaks to make.
 
Anyway, keep some of this in mind and know that I'm really proud of you for taking this as far as you have. It only gets better from here brother. And nothing you've done should ever be considered "Stupid". We all learn every day. We try things....that's the fun of it...trial and error. I'm all about that. I can't even tell you what some of the theory in recording is called. If you put me up against a new Full Sail grad and we get quizzed on terms, I lose hands down. I'm talking obliterated. LOL! If you put me up against that person in a mix situation, I'm either right with them or teach them something about being in the field for the years I've been at it...so trial and error is great. We just have to make sure we truly learn from the trial as well as the error. :) I'll be looking for more stuff from you. Got the pm also...thanks man.
 
-Danny
 

I've only read the first quarter of this Danny but I just wanted quickly say this is PERFECT and exactly what I was looking for. You have already confirmed a whole pile of stuff that had been eating at my brain and I am glad that I wasn't just spinning my own wheels.
 
This track will get one more go through to do things I stated but you are right that it is time to move on and make sense form the START of the recording. This was mess before it got out of the gate and I know that now and suspected it back then. There is already a new tune in the works but I just have to wait for my finger to heal because I have been spending too much time in front of the computer and not enough time playing. I wore off a chunk of my finger writing one of my slippery rhythms. lol
 
Anyway... I'm just gonna keep reading everything that's been said here and stop posting epic rants because I think I've got it now (well the beginnings of it all).
 
Definitely baby steps. I'll do you proud man. You'll see.
 
Also I will definitely be trying to put together some more of that other stuff as I've cracked the codes to the remaining diatonics and have some(hopefully) helpful additions to what I have already sent you. It will take some time to put together though. Cheers and thanks again.

sven450This was me for far too long!  Decent pair of monitors, wee bit of treatment and ARC, and I have done away with that particular brand of pain.

Haha I knew someone else could attest to this! I used to have this big tree on my way to work, Sven...it became a habit to try and hit this sucker with a CD as my source of enjoyment since the mix I worked on the night before for 6 hours sounded so bad. I needed SOME sort of entertainment so I didn't hang myself. LOL!!! One day I actually decided to stop to see how many CD's I had flung into that tree because it had never occurred to me that I was actually littering. I picked up nearly 30 of them....28 if I'm not mistaken and one of them looked like it may have stuck in the tree at one some point. LOL!!
 
Same for me at my house studio....good monitors, sub and ARC. I have so much stuff in my man cave I don't really need any treatment. It's like a little music store in there loaded with stuff....so it absorbs sound quite well. Super thick acoustic ceiling tiles and my room was built wall within a wall for soundproofing, thick blinds on the windows almost like cardboard...so it's definitely helpful. It's cool though because the stuff I do on my studio sounds like it should at home.
 
But for sure....I don't miss the days of being frustrated. I think recording frustration was the most challenging thing I've ever had happen to me other than learning to sing. Both have been equally challenging for me over the years, that's for sure. So I can definitely relate!
 
-Danny

Beepster

Danny Danzi
Beeps: Just read your last long post. Well said. Just remember, this stuff will always be subjective once you get the blatant issues out of the way. It's ok to be you and do what you feel is best. This is why we have mixes from people that sound so different. It's good you want grit in your mixes. However, the idea should be to try and get things clear first...then add the grit. And once you get a handle on everything, you might even add the grit destructively to your mixes...which is ok too as long as you know how to handle it. Like I said...crawl before you run brother.
 
This low end mud you're referring to on drums and guitars....you have to know where the mud is. Just high passing can sometimes hurt you as it can take out the GOOD stuff too if you're not careful. You need to first determine if there is mud and then find out where it is. Most times with samples, you can high pass selectively and then pull out some of the other nasty stuff if need be. But it's always different and depends on the kit you use. Personally, I think this layering thing is where the problem may be.
 
Try working with one good drum kit, 2 rhythm guitars and a lead guitar. Go for less is more and see what you can do there. See man, the key with layering is...you MUST gear the instruments to be orchestration pieces. Meaning, if you use 4-6 guitars, they all have to be eq'd differently to support each other and they can't be clones. They must be physically played or all you do is add to the mayhem of noise...in a bad way. I say keep it simple and lets learn how to deal with this stuff and do some "sound identifying". This will be much easier with less instrumentation. Once you learn what constitutes a good, solid sound, then you play with the orchestration pieces.
 
For example, an old song here...but check out Creed's "Overcome" when you get a minute. What I like about that song is how controlled the low end is as well as how the guitars are layered and it has a really good drum sound. When the middle of the song comes about and there are just two guitars, you hear how much the layering has made a difference. I hate that middle section guitar tone. It's so thin, raspy and uggh...but man, when the others hit in the chorus, it sounds amazing and full. So the key with layers is you have to be able to eq each part to make a difference for the better.
 
You also want to use a totally different sound too so it adds to the layer. Again, no cloning. As soon as you clone parts, you're out of the layer mode because it's the same exact part being played unless you time adjust it or move it a few ticks etc. Even there, the layered effect is much more dominant when you physically play the parts as opposed to cloning.
 
With your drums, you can get away with layering and hybridding. BUT...like the guitars, try to stay away from that for right now. Let's get a good mix up in its infant stage so we can check it out further and see what you're getting out of the gate. With drums, I like to layer when I hear something in a drum instrument that is a one trick pony. Meaning, some kick drums just have this awesome thud to them. No matter what you do, you can't get the right beater attack out of them...so heck, you just add another that DOES have some beater attack, and you mix the two together. Same with snares. You may get a snare that has a big sound, but it just doesn't crack hard enough nor does it have enough sustain. So you add in a pic snare or something with a bit of "ting" and resonance to the big snare, and you're golden.
 
A note on cymbals: Remember that they are percussive instruments...they should never dominate. Our ears gravitate towards bass and high end at times. Thus, you sometimes have a lot of bass in a mix or excessive highs while stripping out mids because we think we are cleaning up the mix. The mids make it big and have body...as long as we don't over-do it and congest the mix with mids.
 
But cymbals should just be heard enough to where you never question "did I hear that?" as long as they don't dominate. Hats will always be the loudest of the cymbal family, but you have to be careful there because the last thing you want is tssssss tssssss tsssss all over the song. The most important part to remember about cymbals, is the opposite of what we do with bass. I'll explain...
 
There are times when you may need more high end in the cymbals. When that's the case, you always pull down the fader when increasing any high end. You have to determine whether or not to raise the fader, lower the fader, raise the high end or lower the high end. This is as difficult as raising the low on a bass, or removing some low end and just dropping the bass fader. Most times, the best choice is to lower the eq you are questioning and raise the fader because little things like that (which can become big annoying things if you're not careful) can actually be fixed via mastering if they aren't too jacked up.
 
You made a mention about your faders nearly being all the way up or something? Before I mix something, I zero everything out to off and start instrument at a time. When I do this, my instrument levels start out at about -10 dB peak per instrument and my faders are usually under unity/0/center position. If you find you are way low when you are at unity (in the center of the fader) you probably need more level from the drum sampler output. Anything I record audio wise goes in at -6 dB peak so I'm usually in good shape there. But if you are seeing low levels, you probably need to make adjustments in your drum program.
 
For drums I like to use a little template that sort of makes me do what a live soundman would do. For example, I create this little project one time that has 8 kick hits, 8 snare hits, etc until all the drums are done. Then I play the entire kit. When I know what drum module I am going to use for a project, I create it in this little project and then set up all the levels in the drum program as well as fader levels and gains, pans etc. When this is done, I save the drum template for that drum module. So when I go back into the real project that needs drums, I bring that drum instrument template in, and I have a good starting point. Once you do this one time for each module, you can just bring the drum modules of your choice into ANY project and you're already in good shape with only subtle tweaks to make.
 
Anyway, keep some of this in mind and know that I'm really proud of you for taking this as far as you have. It only gets better from here brother. And nothing you've done should ever be considered "Stupid". We all learn every day. We try things....that's the fun of it...trial and error. I'm all about that. I can't even tell you what some of the theory in recording is called. If you put me up against a new Full Sail grad and we get quizzed on terms, I lose hands down. I'm talking obliterated. LOL! If you put me up against that person in a mix situation, I'm either right with them or teach them something about being in the field for the years I've been at it...so trial and error is great. We just have to make sure we truly learn from the trial as well as the error. :) I'll be looking for more stuff from you. Got the pm also...thanks man.
 
-Danny
 

I've only read the first quarter of this Danny but I just wanted quickly say this is PERFECT and exactly what I was looking for. You have already confirmed a whole pile of stuff that had been eating at my brain and I am glad that I wasn't just spinning my own wheels.
 
This track will get one more go through to do things I stated but you are right that it is time to move on and make sense form the START of the recording. This was mess before it got out of the gate and I know that now and suspected it back then. There is already a new tune in the works but I just have to wait for my finger to heal because I have been spending too much time in front of the computer and not enough time playing. I wore off a chunk of my finger writing one of my slippery rhythms. lol
 
Anyway... I'm just gonna keep reading everything that's been said here and stop posting epic rants because I think I've got it now (well the beginnings of it all).
 
Definitely baby steps. I'll do you proud man. You'll see.
 
Also I will definitely be trying to put together some more of that other stuff as I've cracked the codes to the remaining diatonics and have some(hopefully) helpful additions to what I have already sent you. It will take some time to put together though. Cheers and thanks again.

Way to go Beeps...not a doubt in my mind. Yeah I knew about the money thing...which I'm really sorry to hear once again. Unfortunately, some of this stuff is money based that helps with the end result. Who knows, maybe ole Obi will see this and send you a Christmas present behind the scenes. Wishful thinking I know. :) Yeah, I should probably shut up too as I've went pretty nuts with novels as well. Then again, that's what this is for brother. We're using Sonar, we're talking shop, we're helping each other and were bonding as friends. Those that want to read will read, those that don't will just move on. :) I'm gonna go grab a power nap...long night ahead. Catch up with you (and everyone else!) soon. This has been a blast of a thread for me....glad you started it beeps. And thanks for the theory stuff. :)
 
-Danny

Right on, Danny. Sleep well and thanks again. It has indeed been an epic thread and most helpful.
 
Sorry for any eyestrain or tension headaches caused to the rest of our fine forum members. lol
 
Cheers. ;-)

You have to keep a constant eye out for VRM Boxes on sale Beeps...I've seen them reduced a few times. Someone posted that they were on sale for $50 recently but when I clicked on the link the offer was over...too bad I couldn't have given you a heads up on that one in time! Ah well, no doubt somewhere will have them on sale again sometime. I've got one and it makes a real difference if you're in a mainly-headphones situation like me (when they renovated my apartment they appear to have taken all of the insulation out of the walls or something - cheap ass cowboys my landlord works with). Obviously nothing's going to be a substitute for a treated room, but hey I've heard some people say a set of good cans and a VRM box is better than good monitors in a problem room. For me, the best thing about them is being able to hear my mix in a number of different situations at the click of a mouse.

@sharke... Yeah, I just took a look yesterday briefly and saw them reduced to $80 on Amazon so I know when the time is right I'll be able to score one for a good price. I'm pretty over extended from the last move and have to be EXTREMELY careful with cash now that winter is here (because of my... er... limitations it is impossible to get to the food stores and whatnot that have the good deals). I have a lot of stuff to sort out and need to readjust my budget and life in general to get to a safe zone again. Then, when the stars are aligned and the food chest is full I'll strike like a slow moving cobra.
 
As I said I know it's by no means a substitution for a proper room but that could be years away so any little bit helps. Even if I did have a proper room ain't nothin' wrong with having extra perspectives on a mix. I also very much like the idea of having all those different virtual environments and systems without having to a) drag different systems into the room and/or b) having to drag the mix around to other rooms/settings... the latter being next to impossible at this point.
 
I just kind of wish that they had those VRM included interfaces out before I snagged the Scarlett. Then again I'm pretty happy with the Scarlett and I'm sure that technology is still going to improve. Maybe they'll have a newer model or updated software by the time I get around to buying one. Seems like they could really expand on the VST portion of the VRM if they wanted to. I'd also kind of like to be able to use it VIA a midi connection at more than 48khz but I'm actually starting to consider using 48k anyway unless I start finding it lacking and of course there is always the VRMs SPDIF option which fortunately the Scarlett has as well... as does my Echo Layla.
 
Cheers, buddy. Sorry to here they ganked your insulation. I'm pretty pissed about the utter lack of soundproofing here in my new place... especially considering how noisy this place gets.
 
Whoda thunk the crazy metalhead soundguy would be the quietest person in the building. I'd type up a "lol" for that but seriously... I'm losing sleep. :-/

Well that was longer than intended. Whoops.
 
That'll get a lol...
 
lol
 

Hey I'm the same...I love loud music but in a building where sound travels I just couldn't annoy anyone with it. I feel extremely conscious of how much of my noise my neighbors can hear, and when other people in the building crank their tunes late on weeknights it bugs the hell out of me. So I use headphones 95% of the time, gotta keep the levels down though because of potential ear damage!

It's weird - I've written before about how the VRM box doesn't sound anything like you're listening on monitors, but recently I fired it up again after a month of not using it and it totally sounded like the speakers were in front of me. It kind of caught me unawares. Definitely a useful mixing tool.