Darkside Blog

Mike, Dan, and Britton from Gearwire Crosstalk, share some drum mixing techniques with the help of Mike and Britton’s talented ears. They discuss drum gating, EQ, compressor, reverb and a few tips and tricks to make drum pop out in the mix. This video covers a rock song but the techniques can be applied to any genre. A walkthrough of Cakewalk’s Dimension Pro software instrument along with two free expansion packs rounds out the program.

more information at www.gearwire.com

admin DAW, Information, Midi, Music, Production Tools, Software, Studio, Video Cakewalk, compression, dimension pro, drums, eq, gate, grearwire, mixing, reverb, roland, Software, sonar, techniques, tips, tricks

The new SONAR V-Studio 100 by Cakewalk is taking portable music production to another level. When used with computer you get a 24/96k audio interface with high-quality mic preamps and a DAW controller. Without your computer you get an 8×6 digital mixer an SD recorder to play back beats at your gig or to record those inspiring moments on the road or at home when you don’t feel like firing up your computer. Plus it comes with the VS Production Pack of effects and instruments for Mac and Windows.

To prove a point, Cakewalk took the V-Studio 100 to Sha Money’s One Stop Shop Conference in Phoenix, AZ and put it to work. With all the up and coming MCs and producers in attendance, Cakewalk figured One Stop Shop was the best place to test this product out with the Hip Hop community. To paraphrase one of the original gangstas “If we can make it there, we’ll make it anywhere.”

Cakewalk’s resident producer Lil Shamrock recorded a beat on the spot and then threw down the gauntlet, challenging the MCs in attendance to come up and record their rhymes on the fly while the beat was playing back from the V-Studio 100’s SD card.

Watch the video below to check out the finalists, then cast your vote and let Cakewalk know who’s got it.   The winner is going to receive a copy of SONAR Producer or Rapture. It’s up to you!

This contest will run through Monday July 6, 2009.

SEE MORE ABOUT THE CONTEST

admin Controllers, DAW, Information, Midi, Music, News & Events, Production Tools, Studio Cakewalk, compose, console, DAW, dimension pro, engineering, film, hardware, Hip-Hop, instruments, Mac mastering, Midi, mix, mixer, mixing, Music, pc, plug-in, producer, Producers, production, r conference, r USB, rapture, recording, roland, sequencer, Software, sonar, sonar 8, SONAR V-Studio 100, SONAR V-Studio 700, sound, Studio, synth, synthesizer, tou, Video

With a computer

Take control of your music production using the SONAR V-Studio 100 as a high-quality audio and MIDI interface and DAW controller. Connect to a Mac or Windows and use your favorite software such as SONAR, Logic, and so on, or the included SONAR VS digital audio workstation (Windows Only). Take your music to the next level with the VS Production Pack–a powerful collection of effects and instruments for Mac and Windows.

Away from your computer

Record directly to SONAR V-Studio 100’s SD-card wherever or whenever inspiration strikes–without the need to boot up your computer. Take the VS-100 to your live gigs and use its digital mixer, reverb, compression, and EQ to mix vocals and other instruments. Use its SD recorder to play backing tracks that you produced on your computer. Even record a mix of your set directly to the SD-card. Then transfer your recorded audio to your computer for additional editing and tracking. When you’re done, upload it to the internet, burn CDs, and more.

Specifications

• Use with any DAW through Mackie Control
• 100 mm motorized, touch-sensitive fader
• 5 rotary encoders, 11 buttons, and transport control
• Advanced control of SONAR through Active Controller Technology
• Dynamic LCD display
• Programmable footswitch
• Ideal for mixing small bands, solo musicians, DJs, home studios
• 8 input, 6 output plus headphones
• 4 types of reverb
• 8 in + mix/6 out
• 24-bit/96 kHz quality
• Two XLR Mic Preamps with phantom power and input sensitivity
• Two ¼” TRS inputs
• Hi-Z ¼” Guitar Input
• USB 2.0
• MAC/PC compatible with ASIO, WDM, WASAPI and Core Audio support
• Works with SONAR, Ableton Live, Cubase, and more
• 6 channels of EQ with LCD plot
• 6 channels of Compression with threshold and compression meter
• Meter & FX Display on LCD
• Record away from your computer
• 2 channel wave recording and playback
• Capture rehearsals and live performances or play along to backing tracks
• Play backing tracks and record your mix simultaneously
• Easily transfer audio to and from any computer via USB
• Built-in metronome
• Dedicated WAV playback volume control
• Phenomenal suite of 4 effects and 6 instruments for Mac and Windows
• VX-64 Vocal Strip
• Native Instruments Guitar Rig 3 LE
• Boost 11 Peak Limiter
• Channel Tools
• Dimension LE
• Rapture LE
• Studio Instruments Bass
• Studio Instruments Drums
• Studio Instruments Electric Piano
• Studio Instruments Strings
• Record, edit, mix and share your songs
• 64 audio and unlimited MIDI tracks
• 5 included virtual instruments and genuine Roland® sounds
• Create backing tracks easily with new Loop Explorer and included content
• 12 studio-quality FX including Reverb, Delay, and more
• Mix like a pro using Console view
• Share your music on CD or web

Retail Price: Approximately $699.00 (will update when price released).

Visit the Website: Click Here

admin News & Events, Production Tools, Studio Add new tag, Cakewalk, cakewalk vs-100, DAW, logic, roland, sonar, vs-100

I recently did some major updates on my music production computer which included finally biting the bullet and installing all of the Microsoft Critical System updates which I have been neglecting for over  a year now. I wanted to get my system ready before I install my Cakewalk Sonar 8.3.1 Producer Edition Updates that were recently released. Anyway, after installing SP3 I ran into a life or death situation, well not really but you know what I mean!

The infamous Windows XP Boot Cycle. You can imagine how upset I was!!! Every time I hit the Windows Logo during the boot of my system, it would reboot and there was nothing I could do about it. I tried everything after spending some time researching online. I spent over an hour with technical support with my computer manufacturer and still no luck. Eventually, I tried unplugging all USB and FireWire devices and “wah lah” I narrowed the search. It was a driver issue…

To fix this issue, I went into the Device Manager and deleted all USB drivers and rebooted the system. Then I plugging in my USB keyboard and mouse and Windows reinstalled the drivers. This did remedy my issue (you may have a different issue altogether). I have successfully installed all my Sonar updates and my system is back to normal again, thankfully! I hope this helps anyone else that runs into this issue! Have a great night…

Some links I wanted to share as well:

• Pre Service Pack 3 Hotfix: Click Here
• Service Pack 3 Network Adiminstrator Download: Click Here
• Cakewalk Sonar 8.3.1 Updates: Click Here

Note: Now please take caution here, it is important to install the hotfix which I gave above before installing SP3.

admin Computer Service 8.3.1, Cakewalk, hotfix, Microsoft, service pack 3, sonar, sp3, updates

If you’ve downloaded SONAR 8.3 recently, then you should download the latest 8.3.1 version [Click Here]. This brand new update addresses a few minor issues created in SONAR 8.3.

If you haven’t already downloaded SONAR 8.3, please download the free 8.3.1 update which includes both the 8.3 and the 8.3.1 patches. Not only does this update ensure that you have the latest and greatest version of SONAR, but also features additional new content for Dimension Pro and classic Roland drum kits for Session Drummer 2, new features and enhanced performance.

More Information: Click Here

admin Software 8.3.1, Cakewalk, fixes, patches, sonar, updates

This is a brief description on how to use the step sequencer and Sonar 7 Producer Edition. I took some screenshots and gave you a step-by-step breakdown on how to use the step sequencer. I also provide a video at the end of this description see you can physically see what I’m doing. If you have any questions or comments please feel free to contact me or post a comment and I will get back to you. I’ll also be putting more videos and tutorials up shortly. I hope you find this post useful and come to find that step sequencer is a very powerful tool at your fingertips!

1. Click insert

2. Select Soft Synth

3. Select Session Drummer

4. Load Synth Rack to access Session Drummer Module

5. Select a program / drum kit

6. View Step Sequencer

7. Step Sequencer Window Loads

8. Program a Pattern

9. Pattern in track view is stretchable to any length

View Video: Click Here (allow time for video to load)

admin Software Cakewalk, DAW, Music, sequencer, Software, sonar, step