AndyB01

I listened to both (original first). The tempo of the first really does showcase your piano chops but I definitely prefer the rolling tempo of the second - sounds a little more expressive too in terms of light and shade.

Impressive stuff either way, you have great talent and use it well. 🙂

Andy

I have a Scan laptop (it's just a re-badged Clevo under the hood). I've had quite a few issues with it - overheating being the main one and random shutdowns for no good reason. It's an i7 7700 running 32Gb RAM with twin SSDs - about five years old.

Getting a new thermal pad fitted and a thorough professional clean has helped - but not eliminated - the random shutdowns and even after five years, I still have no idea what causes them. It was RTB after a few weeks and came back to me as 'no fault found'.

All in all, they seem to use decent components but mine also has a pretty noisy fan - I work almost exclusively on cans so not much of an issue in my case but would no doubt drive some others insane.

Their desktops may be better, personally I wouldn't use them again based on my experience both from a product and after sales point of view.

Andy

I saw the video and commented, I thought it was harmless and certainly not clickbait.

I get the points some of you are making - @bitflipper is spot on as usual - all I know is that without Mike's help on Bandlab I'd still be floundering hopelessly in the dark.

Andy

Drums are really good (love the toms), the tempo changes mess with my head - in a good way - and who knew Wookiees could sing so beautifully?

Definitely no threat to life here 😁

Great stuff

Andy

37 minutes ago, Bruno de Souza Lino said:

But how does it compare against the EHX POG?

Absolutely no idea, never heard of EHX POG or used it I'm afraid.

I doubt it's either as good or as versatile as the POG, which costs 3x as much. However that view is based on a quick Google and no more.

Andy

I saw this post and knew I had to listen to it immediately - through my decent headphones, Boy was I not disappointed - the choir (and Mrs D1968) all sound fabulous - wonderful arrangement and instrumentation too; really lets the voices shine.

Hairs on the back of the neck stuff and puts a big smile on my face.

Loved it

Andy

Superb work - timing, phrasing and touch is really excellent.

Adagio Cantabile is one of my favourite pieces and you did a really fabulous job on both.

😍

Andy

Unfortunately @Byron Dickens  is right - it may be a harsh observation but it's true. Nothing you can do post recording is ever going to improve what is fundamentally not fit for purpose.

At the budget end you will find a Behringer or T.Bone mic that will be perfectly adequate, all the way up to brands like Rode, Audio Technica, Shure and Austrian Audio at the Prosumer end.

However, even this needs a dedicated audio interface, you cannot get by with on-board audio. Something like a Focusrite Scarlett Solo or 2i2 from Focusrite are good places to start.

HtH

Andy

It's a USB mic - not designed for recording with a DAW - fine for podcasts and such like but not music production.

You need an XLR mic through a dedicated audio interface using ASIO drivers. There are plenty of recommendations on the gear forum for microphones and interfaces to suit all budgets.

eBay and Marketplace also a great source if you're prepared to consider used.

Andy

My son uses Ableton but he has a really old version. It's offering me the code as I am eligible so I am wondering if I can find a way to buy it for him to use - it's one hell of a saving!

I'm not too sure about this requirement to have a registered version of Live Lite as he doesn't use that. 

I'll have to read the small print.

5 hours ago, Bad Penguin said:

For those who are doing the upgrade from EZK1, do we gain access to any "new" midi files when installing EZK2 and its core library?

You do get some new grooves by default in EzK2 and you also keep access to those you had in EzK1 - see screen cap

Hmm very dark and I would say very creative - I think you nailed the theme you were going for. The drums sound wrong but also kind of right given the inspiration - as though they're being 'suppressed' - maybe that was intentional (or not); either way this was a compelling listen.

Good work

Andy

After a quick run through I am very much not disappointed - functionally all the innovations you expect to see from  from EzD and EzB are there, but the new feature that really caught my attention was the ability to add or remove individual notes to or from chords - I have lost count of the number of times I have wanted to do this - so this is a great feature I think. 

Looks really good so I am looking forward to getting down to business with this when I have more time.

A (very) small part of me kind of misses the pure simplicity of the EZK1 interface (I felt the same about EzDrummer), but I really don't miss that non-scalable GUI - amen to a full screen!

Andy

Finally all done - had a very quick play - looks amazing 😍😍😍

Andy

Installing... 10.2 GBs worth! 

I asked ChatGPT to 'write' a song recently - I gave it a brief 'back story' and it produced a couple of verses, chorus and outro. Lots of cliches, a couple of questionable rhymes but I've probably written worse. 🤣

The initial chord progression however was not so impressive, basically a simple C, Am, F and G. So I asked it to add some seventh, diminished and augmented chords. It did - and whilst some of these worked - some were fairly dissonant and not something I'd have used.

Overall I was fairly impressed, not only with what was produced but the speed at which it produced it.

Do I feel threatened by AI - not really - the initial bubble will burst once the hype fades, there will no doubt be a degree of push back before it finds its niche.

It'll certainly be interesting to see how things progress from here.

I'll probably busk my way through it and eventually succumb to a YouTube tutorial when I inevitably get stuck. My problem is time - I literally have none to spare at the moment. Work and life is just full on so music is a rare indulgence. I'll get back to it eventually.

I'm with you on the Toontrack vids.

Andy

So tomorrow is the big day we've all been waiting for (well OK, not all of us).

Is this going to become a thing - like #StarWarsDay or #EdBallsDay (you probably have to be a Brit to understand the last one). 🤣

Suitable suggestions for hashtags welcome...

Here's mine:

#AboutFreakinTimeDay

Andy

5 hours ago, jack c. said:

a fine job.jack c

I agree entirely - very well done

Andy

I Know What I Like - Genesis

Me? I'm just a lawn mower, you can tell me by the way I WALK!

Great work - faultless playing - loved it

Andy

Nice work Keith - great nostalgia trip.

Green Shield Stamps - how were they ever a thing?

I shudder to think what the glue was made of you had to lick to stick them in the book. Something long since banned and found to be a carcinogen no doubt. 😂

Andy

I really loved this - top notch writing, performance and production - you had me from the opening riff.

One really minor crit if I'm allowed - I'd have loved a hard stop ending instead of a fade.

Terrific work.

Andy

18 hours ago, mark skinner said:

I did have a little trouble with the quick L/R sweeping in the main vocal lines. (with headphones on) It probably isn't very noticeable listening thru monitors though. Are the main vocals double tracked with different panning or did you use an automated sweep ?

Hmm I hear this on headphones too - it's a little distracting but still another great song - nice simple arrangement and beautifully sung as always.

Yes those old Dim Pro instruments can still hold their own. I still use them from time to time.

Andy

Lovely guitar sound, really nice. I wholeheartedly agree with the sentiment. 😂

Andy