• Software
  • Harrison Mixbus 3.0-2872 interim release (updated) (p.5)
2015/12/15 09:15:09
patm300e
Just curious, it looks like MixBus is another DAW.  What does this do that Sonar does not do (When do you use this instead of Sonar and vice versa)?
 
2015/12/15 09:51:33
bapu
patm300e
Just curious, it looks like MixBus is another DAW.  What does this do that Sonar does not do (When do you use this instead of Sonar and vice versa)?
 


If you look at as a pure mixing tool it has that Harrison sound. It's got a mojo that SONAR does not. Maybe one could achieve the sound bin SONAR with lot of work, but exports your somewhat mixed stems into MB3 and hear them transform before your ears (before even applying any FX).
 
Or use it as mastering stage by taking your pre-mastered mix from SONAR into MB3.
 
MB3 will never replace SONAR (for me) nor will it always me final mix or master stage but when it is it's because it adds that something I'm looking for.
 
I love it as an addon to SONAR. But I can see how it might not be for everyone.
2015/12/15 10:45:00
clintmartin
bapu
patm300e
Just curious, it looks like MixBus is another DAW.  What does this do that Sonar does not do (When do you use this instead of Sonar and vice versa)?
 


If you look at as a pure mixing tool it has that Harrison sound. It's got a mojo that SONAR does not. Maybe one could achieve the sound bin SONAR with lot of work, but exports your somewhat mixed stems into MB3 and hear them transform before your ears (before even applying any FX).
 
Or use it as mastering stage by taking your pre-mastered mix from SONAR into MB3.
 
MB3 will never replace SONAR (for me) nor will it always me final mix or master stage but when it is it's because it adds that something I'm looking for.
 
I love it as an addon to SONAR. But I can see how it might not be for everyone.


agreed.
2015/12/15 22:19:57
Richard Cranium
Well I finally took the plunge and purchased and installed. Waves plugins worked fine, then I loaded up Ozone 7 Advanced, and that was all she wrote, it loaded fine, then I double clicked to bring up the UI, it came up, and that was it, you couldn't do a thing except the 3 fingered dance - Task Manager - end task. But that's not all, a reboot was required as it seemingly wouldn't let go of audio and midi, so you couldn't use any other DAW/audio app until rebooted. Next move was Apps and Features - Mixbus 3 - uninstall.
 
Then I remembered the latest interim release, I had only installed the one I downloaded after purchase, so I reinstalled with that fire Mixbus up again, then Ozone 7 Advanced worked fine. Haven't tried all my plugins of course, that would take quite some time, but out of those I have tried, apart from the false start with O7A, the only one that has given any trouble is EZKeys, as Clint Martin has mentioned.
 
Another issue I found after installation, and this could be coincidence, but I don't really believe in coincidences, and I'm fairly sure it's not. But after installing and then crashing, my PC, which up until this very day would boot and shutdown like clockwork, I mean you could set your watch by it, on boot up it would display the Windows 10 logo thing, and the little spinning dots would complete 3 half cycles, then the login screen would appear. Then on load the desktop and all it's icons would just be there. Now, after installing Mixbus and crashing etc, start up times are longer, the spinning dots still do their dance, but where before it would switch to the login screen, it now repeats the spinning dots dance, only on the second time round they aren't smooth, but jerky, then it will go to the login screen, but when the desktop loads, all the icons are blank and appear one by one as apposed to being there instantly. Mixbus is the only thing that has changed, and as I said, up until now it has been like clockwork. (Lucky I did a full disk backup before installing)
 
As to the fabled Mixbus sound, well it hasn't hit me yet, but it is still early days, I'll have to do a bit of reading up, but I messed around with the channel compressors and EQ's and saturation etc, and if it is there it isn't anything that just slaps you in the face and says 'here I am', but as I said, early days.
 
Overall I would have to say it isn't the most stable DAW going, and when it crashes it crashes good, for me anyway, requiring a reboot 4 out of the 5 times it crashed. In the 18 months I have had this PC build running I pretty much haven't had any many if any crashes, and certainly nothing requiring a reboot. I also think that Mixbus as it stands now is not ready for 'Prime Time' especially as it is pitched as a fully fledged DAW, in which case it seems it is fairly incompetent as it stands with all the issues it has with stuff that is pretty basic in most other DAW's. Perhaps if you just use it for mixing/summing/ finalizing the project you will bypass all or most of it's shortcomings and bugs, but I think if you go into it as a fully fledged DAW as it is being pitched, you are in for a rude awakening. (From my research before purchase, I was aware of this, and had no intention of using it as a DAW as such, but just for it's sound, which still alludes me, and for mixing and the final stages)
 
I will keep plugging away at it, reading up, watching vid's and see how it goes a bit further down the track, but if I had my time over now, I'd give it a miss.
2015/12/15 22:34:02
clintmartin
It's certainly not for everybody. I hope we were fair and accurate with our short little reviews. I have said before that it can't really be compared with a full mature daw like Sonar or Cubase or whatever. I think it's analog console sound is just perfect for what I'm trying to do, but I do my heavy lifting in Sonar.
I think most of it's short comings are in it's new features like the midi and vsti instruments. I'm not sure what could be causing your start up times to change. I haven't noticed that here, but I'm still on Win 7. I can't seem to get Sonar to work with Win 10. Mixbus worked fine, but Sonar didn't.
The other thing that they are trying to do, which is unique I think. They are trying to build a platform for Linux, Apple and PC. That may be the main culprit with the Mixbus 3 issues.
2015/12/15 22:47:35
Richard Cranium
clintmartin
It's certainly not for everybody. I hope we were fair and accurate with our short little reviews. I have said before that it can't really be compared with a full mature daw like Sonar or Cubase or whatever. I think it's analog console sound is just perfect for what I'm trying to do, but I do my heavy lifting in Sonar.
I think most of it's short comings are in it's new features like the midi and vsti instruments. I'm not sure what could be causing your start up times to change. I haven't noticed that here, but I'm still on Win 7. I can't seem to get Sonar to work with Win 10. Mixbus worked fine, but Sonar didn't.
The other thing that they are trying to do, which is unique I think. They are trying to build a platform for Linux, Apple and PC. That may be the main culprit with the Mixbus 3 issues.




Oh no, I feel everyone has been more than fair, and honest with what has been said, and I was well prepared for the worst. I am not giving up just yet, I have some learning to do, and more messing around to be had, and with the latest interim release it has been much better, only crash on it so far is with EZKeys, and I was prepared for that after your previous comments, and thankfully no reboot was required. As long as the crashes don't come to often and don't require a reboot, I'll keep plugging away.
 
I'm going to spend some time with it and see if my ears 'acclimatize' to it, then switch over to Studio One and see if I notice the difference. It might be one of those things that until you actually hear, become aware of what it is you are looking fro, listening for, you have trouble, but once you do, you see it, hear it forever more.
 
It's all good.
2015/12/15 22:56:13
clintmartin
Cool. FWIW I've read people claim that after awhile it seems to perform better. I guess we'll see if you notice a difference. I hear a huge difference in my bass, and in my guitar tones. It just seems to have a nice warm analog sound...which isn't always a good thing, but sometimes it's exactly what I want.
2015/12/18 18:20:13
Richard Cranium
Well whatever was causing the booting thing has passed , back to being able to set your watch by it. But the last I used Mixbus, it crashed on closing, requiring a reboot to be able to continue with any audio stuff. Not really one for crashing and rebooting, I think I'll sit it out until the next release then have another look.
 
[Edit] oh and TH3 and BIAS FX Pro seem to crash it as well . . . VST support is not the best, and that is seemingly a fairly basic thing that most other DAW's don't have an issue with. But I guess it will improve with time, and only time will tell.
2015/12/19 11:33:58
Rimshot
How do you handle audio tuning in HMB?
If you are using it to track audio, can Melodyne be used? I now HMB does not have ARRA support.
Or, do most of you export all your song stems and import into HMB to mix?
If you then find you have to go back and edit audit or an instrument, you go back and then export stems again to get it into HMB? I assume that is how some use this.
 
Or, are you using it for just a stereo mix?
2015/12/19 13:51:21
ampfixer
I do most everything in Sonar and then shift tracks into HMB to produce a final stereo wav file. I've not even thought about using VST's in it and limit myself to using the channel tools provided for EQ, compression and limiting. I find vocals and acoustic guitar really shine in HMB and I'm working on a folk project right now. Very happy with it.
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