mettelus

This reminded me to follow up with a patch issue I was having with LABS.  LABS will load but most of the patches will not, and the culprit is an error in the coding of "junction bypass" they are using. I just sent them the below message and will see what happens. A few vendors do the "drive jump" directory alteration on junctions, but only a couple have mucked it up (Unify and Corel).

"I have a directory junction from "C:\Program Files\VstPlugins" to "F:\VstPlugins" and most of my LABS patches do not work. I just checked a few *.unify files and the file path is listed as "F:\Program Files\VstPlugins" which does NOT exist. I can replace the LABS in patches, but since the error occurs on load, the rest of the patch is default. There is an error in coding the "bypass" on junctions here (not sure why you would want to do that anyway TBH).  The help associated with this is of no use since LABS is visible to Unify and usable, but the patches are not (a few work, but the rest do not)."

@Grem I need to backpedal about the neck being drilled. The S-style kit does not have a manual, but the Wilkinson kit does and you need to drill that neck. I would recommend shooting StewMac an email and ask them about that specifically. If that does require drilling you are going to need to be sure that neck is square and clamped when marking and/or drilling. That step would fall outside the "beginner" kit in my opinion... but (good thing), there are no "WTF" reviews about that.

That fret file video that made me laugh is below. The reason being is fret files are not cheap (nut slotting files are worse... why I just knock the nut off and shave the back down with sandpaper) and StewMac sells them both. They even sell a triangular one, but you can get the same at a hardware store for a fraction of the price (or even run a grinder down the corners of a normal triangular file to take the teeth off those edges).

I just verified this issue. CbB will open as a Region FX, but does not allow the drag/drop capability back into a track like it should (stop icon hovers when dragged into CbB). The tutorial video above uses Cubase (I do not have that installed), but I also verified that it does work within Studio One (there you need to ALT-drag an effect onto a track to open it in ARA mode).

Short answer about ARA is that the audio is essentially passed freely between an FX and the DAW, which enables "look ahead" on audio as well as the passing of edits and information back and forth during use.

2 hours ago, kennywtelejazz said:

Things such as taking a plank of wood and turning it into a guitar body or neck , routing out cavities for parts , doing a fret job , and a few other things that involve specialized knowledge , tools and experience are out of my wheelhouse .

This is the reason that the kits fall into the "fun" category, since they focus on what an average person would do to customize one rather than build a guitar from scratch. The only drilling required was for the small screws for pickup rings, face plastic and tuner alignment (back of the head mounts)... a small piece of tape on the drill bit is an easy depth guide. The frets in mine were actually done well, but you might need a sanding block (I would assume these are all simple radius, not compound, but cannot say for sure), straight edge (a metal yardstick from a crafting store is great for this), and the patience to crown them after (StewMac has videos for everything... a (funny) practical one is using a triangular file with no teeth on the corners for crowning... funny because crowning files are not cheap and have no real use outside of fretwork). I am pretty sure the bolt-on necks are pre-drilled, so you have no choice but to mate surfaces and match the holes.

There is a manual for each kit on its product page, so that would be something to check out before buying. Kenny's shortlist (except no need to strip finish because there isn't one to remove) is what these kits focus on. If you are a person who likes to customize, these are perfect playgrounds, since they are spec'd to fit any mods/hardware you would want after the fact.

@Grem, that was me with this thread.  One thing with StewMac is that if anything in the kit is messed up, they will replace for free (some folks posted they got kit pieces with bad finish and they were replaced). Some of kit parts are generic, so you may end up wanting to swap them (I never did replace the pots in mine although I bought another set). My kit had very tight tolerances on the neck socket, but in reality the ability to adjust the bridge is important... I lowered the nut by knocking it off and sanding down the backside (FAR easier to do that, than try to slot a fret nut).

Quick edit: I put the tools needed at the bottom of that post, it is not that bad really.

2 hours ago, User 905133 said:

If that's the case, it would seem to be institutionalized stealing of intellectual property being done by people in the AI industry.

Even without the "AI" part, this has been ongoing for years. The example I use most often is Google Translate, where they let people improve the software for free, but Google owns the software... people who made their living from translation get impacted. Safeguarding intellectual property is something I caution people on often, since the ones who like to brag about what they know end up giving IP to people who will either outright steal it or weaponize it back at them.

4 minutes ago, LittleStudios said:

How does Humble Bundle work?

It is a charity website basically. Purchases must meet the minimum dollar values to hit the target products specified (usually 3 tiers to choose from). The price listed is often a little higher, but you can adjust that to the minimum required for what you want. During checkout you can change adjust the charity distributions, or even the charities that are being contributed too.

22 minutes ago, Technostica said:

I have the free version of Convology but wasn't tempted by XT Complete.
Anyone here digging it?
I'm just not much of an IR person.

I got that with the X5 Suite but got very little use out of it (other than the 5GB download that it was). There are free IRs and IR loaders out and about, and I primarily Melda or HELIX these days.

Depending on how detailed you want to get with IR tweaking, the free IR loaders typically only load one IR file, but even they are useful for authenticity when recording directly into the computer. A couple good sets are God's Cab (MESA, there are a few others on that page), and Acoustic IRs (especially if recording off a piezo pickup). DAW recording is quirky in that the goal it to record as little environment as possible, but then insert one back during the post-production.

I forget now if the Core 0 display reflects system usage or not. Even if it doesn't, so much software is scripted for single core (all computers have a Core 0), so the processing available on that core will always be lower (a chunk of it is being used by the system). Background processes would also be good to check, but Noel could give a definitive answer here.

6 hours ago, Eusebio Rufian-Zilbermann said:

I'm not saying it's a bad deal, but just be aware of what you are getting, 2 versions behind in most cases, and get ready to be reminded frequently that there is a newer version available.

This is true for just about everything HB sells. Bear in mind that purchases are going to charity, so most manufactures are using it to get people into onboard/upgrade paths. For someone onboarding this would be a very nice option, and upgrades are not as enticing as they were a decade ago.

I am pretty sure the "Suite" was where the Convology XT (full version) landed as well. My last Samplitude was the X5 Suite, which was more to get SpectraLayers Pro 7 (the suite was the same price as SLP 7 upgrade at that time).

Edited: kitekrazy actually read the product description! 😁

10 hours ago, MarcL said:

I don't think so! You gain almost nothing if you have RX9 Advanced and RX10 Standard (it is also my situation).

Edit: I had checked the differences of RX10 Advanced vs. RX9 Advanced and they are all included in RX10 Standard. Thus they want us to pay $199 for nothing! Very odd!

The other things that strikes me is the timing of these back-to-back offers. The 5.2 offer was just 5.1 +Guitar Rig 6 (they are separated because GR 6 is an NI Access registration), and this one is 5.2 + RX10 Advanced. Their loyalty page has bothered me for years now, but with Firefox I couldn't see the prices without adding them to cart (they have always had Firefox issues though too).

Quick, semi-related sanity check for myself... the A-300 doesn't ship with a power transformer, correct? I was setting things back up a couple weeks ago and thought I had lost it, but think it may have come only with the USB cable (buss powered). I wanted to check quick, since if it did come with power connection (I "think" that was optional), then I did lose it.

8 hours ago, Brian Walton said:

They have so many that are named pretty close together happens to me all the time.  In fact I did a double pruchase of one of the EQs becuase of this recently not realizing it was one I already had.  Granted it was really cheap.

This caught me off guard; did you buy from Melda directly? Melda is one of the very few companies that alerts you that you already own something you are trying to add to your cart (if logged in and buying from them). I am not sure if that has changed with them though? Every other company seems fine and dandy to sell you 20 copies of the same thing.

12 hours ago, rsinger said:

I don't remember off the top of my head. Are you using the right input? There are two midi inputs IIRC.

^^ Try this. The main input (A-PRO 1) is only the keys, the other input (A-PRO 2) is the controller functionality.

On 3/10/2023 at 5:55 AM, Grem said:

Is that the one with the carpet on it?

LOL, yes. I think it was Tom years ago who asked me if it was "fuzzy" and my first thought was the sound. I had to chuckle after I got it, but that was a brilliant idea to keep it from showing wear over the years. I actually got a pop in/out caster set for it years ago... worked great for concrete floors, but 75 lbs is a bit much to cart around with tubes exposed. Luckily it has a 25/50/100% power switch on the back; even on 25% I rarely take it above 2. It is a bit much for a studio scenario, but I promised myself I wasn't going to turn it into a piece of furniture.

I happened to catch a documentary on WWII encryption techniques, and heard "2500 valves" so had to go watch that part onward. The Lorenz cipher (Enigma successor) could create massive messages with better encryption, and the British counter was the Colossus Mark 2 which used a 2500 valve computer to systematically decrypt them in a few hours. Just made me think that is a lot of money for today, since valves are less and less common and... well, 2500 of them! I actually had a coworker who inherited a stash of valves from her father and I told her to get those appraised, since they alone could be worth a small fortune.

From there it shifted into something even more simple and interesting. The Japanese were so good with breaking codes that the US Marines chose a simple, yet effective solution. The Navajo language is incredibly difficult to learn if not learned as a child, so they used "Navajo Code Talkers" to transmit messages with rudimentary replacement of words. Instantaneous communications and effective, so effective that the Japanese were intent to kidnap one but never did (they even had their own bodyguard details). I never even knew about the Code Talkers before, but that creativity is impressive.

I had to check "combo amp" on GC to right myself for the ages. They only have four 100W (two are 1x12s) an one 150W in there, all pricey.  The Mark VII is 90W, so didn't come out in the search. That said, the Carvin XV-212 I got years ago would be $1832 in today's dollars, so maybe I am just getting old enough now to see youngsters get plowed by inflation . Tube amps tend to be heavy anyway, so mine is more a house fixture now since I refuse to move it anymore.

Simple orchestration that builds up to the landing would be the simplest... BUT... it never shows it touch down, lol. With my sick sense of humor I would extend the video 10 seconds with black footage and insert and explosion clip on the end Then everyone will be searching to find the explosion footage.

Scroll down on this page to the "Cakewalk by BandLab is free. Get the award-winning DAW now." section. IIRC, you need to install the extras via the BandLab Assistant (the right/black button). Install and run that, and you can get the extras that come with CbB. Once installed, you can also safely uninstall the BandLab Assistant if desired since it is no longer required to update CbB (but used to be).

Melodyne is a separate program, so you need to install that separately. It is a product of Celemony (where it is registered/upgraded) not Cakewalk, but Cakewalk can make use of its ARA functionality/features.

Yikes, that is a bit nutty, but on par with recent Gibson involvements. It does make me appreciate that I decided on a tube amp for my first purchase years ago. These days anything comparable is 4x as much. You could almost get a HELIX FLOOR and Kemper Profiler for that cost (but still need a cab).

Eight years later and I still haven't consolidated this post from the old forums, unfortunely you have to hit refresh a few times to open old posts/links from there. Another aspect that comes to mind is to shut off "Automatic Network Discovery" since that pings every 3-4 seconds and you don't want your PC trying to connect to everything it can find anyway. Any "automatic" function on a PC needs to be looked at if you want to keep latency down.

I might have missed this being mentioned already, but repeatable glitches like that are very common to plugins that have a DEMO mode (or a "free" variant of a paid plugin). Does anything in your master FX chain fall into that category? I agree this seems more a rogue plugin issue than a system issue. Another thing to be mindful of is plugins that have look-ahead associated with them and that there is enough buffer to accommodate that.

^^ Be very careful about using loopbacks. Input echo on the loopback track can cause a positive (and sometimes destructive) feedback loop on you. Unless you set a monitor path separate from the loopback path internal to the interface, you are recording everything being played, so the above advice is a much better method. If you are recording to a backing track from the internet, it is easiest to loopback that first (so you have a pre-recorded track), then record your guitar and vocals as you would normally (with no loopback being used at all). Some interfaces allow for complex routings, but working in 2 steps is often easier and safer.