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With all these deals & freebies, especially sample packs - Where do you store them?


aidan o driscoll

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3 hours ago, Magic Russ said:

For me, the problem is not so much space as much as it is organization.   Trying to find the best loops and one shots can be a challenge.   I really should check out some of the sample grouping tools.

 

Then when it comes to instrument libraries there are too many cases where I am not sure if something is worth saving. 

I have a whole bunch of loops I've collected over the years.  I never use them because it just takes too much time to go through them all to figure out what I like. So they usually sit in a backup drive.  I would love a good organizer tool.  The only one I found that seemed decent is Apple only.  Or was Apple only.  The reviews on the Windows ones were never very good. 

ProTools Workspace makes auditioning loops somewhat easier.  Plus if you import through the workspace and they are Apple/Rex/Acid loops, Elastic Audio is enabled on them, making it easier to change tempo, keys, etc...  If I could get them a little better organized, I might actually use them.  

 

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@Dzilizzi   As I said on page one .. I will say it again. Where organisation of loops and samples is concerned go try LOOPCLOUD. It has a free 30 day trial and the app / plugins that come with it work on even if you dont opt for a sub.

The loopcloud app optionally indexes all your sample packs that you may have on your local harddrive. The apps filtering system I find is great and works seamlessly with  your local  samples + your  purchased loopcloud samples + your  purchased loopmasters  samples  ( latter  2 in the  cloud   ).

  The loopcloud app is also an online 8 track DAW that works with your DAW via plugins. So if you have a project going in CW with tracks in already from vsts etc but want a sample loop for one of the tracks, load up the loopcloud vst, switch over to loopcloud app and start loading samples live audition from the cloud to play along with your project until you find THE sample that suits your project. At that point you can drag / drop it into CW track.

If you opt for a sub .. each month you mount up points to buy individual samples or packs .. most samples are pretty much 1 point.  The other thing you also have with a sub is that in each 24 hour period you can download up to 25 FREE samples ( depends on plan you pick ) .. literally every day. Thats alot of samples.

I cannot stress the ease of this, the organising features and tbh the creativity it brings to the table. I dont think you will ever need to buy a sample pack elsewhere ever again. AND if you do buy anything from  Loopmasters  website ( who own loopcloud ) .. it automatically appears in your loopcloud app, so you dont have to download these purchases either.

Edited by aidan o driscoll
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I have so many virtual instruments, I won't buy another loop library again.  I just don't have the control with them.  I think I looked at Loopcloud, but I didn't want to sign up with them to be able to use their organizer.  Isn't the organizer online, even if your loops aren't?  I'll look at it again, but there was something about it I didn't like. 

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10 minutes ago, Dzilizzi said:

I have so many virtual instruments, I won't buy another loop library again.  I just don't have the control with them.  I think I looked at Loopcloud, but I didn't want to sign up with them to be able to use their organizer.  Isn't the organizer online, even if your loops aren't?  I'll look at it again, but there was something about it I didn't like. 

The organiser as you call it is the Loopcloud app thats installed on your computer, but its much more than an organiser. It is also an online 8 track DAW where you can mix/match and audition samples together before committing to purchase if they are not free. You also can chop, pitch shift, effect and stretch samples there all before dragging and dropping to CW. The app with the loopcloud VST inside CW also takes the tempo of the project you are running in CW.

It gives you access to all the samples at loopmasters which you can buy individually or as packs ( paid for by points that you get if you run with a monthly sub ). HOWEVER you have 30 days trial FREE. After that do not pay another dime and just keep the Loopcloud app and vsts installed which as I said will work away with the large amount of free content you get left  in the cloud while you do the 30 day trial. You also get a few hundred free points during your 30 day trial to "buy" some samples.

You really have to try the app, the vsts and the integration with Cakewalk to get the idea properly. As i also said the app indexes your local samples on your harddrive as an option, up to you.

Edited by aidan o driscoll
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I actually don't use CW.  I mostly use either ProTools or Cubase.  I used to use Sonar all the time, but picked up Cubase when Cakewalk was going out of business as a crossgrade (they did a very nice sale for Sonar users)  😉

If it can just be downloaded, I will check it out.  I just don't want to be stuck paying for something I don't want. 

Thanks! 

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And @Dzilizzi .. it may seem Im drifting away from this threads topic I started with but in fact its part of the solution which I sort of now have answered for myself via my cheering on of Loopcloud :D

No need to clutter your local drive with samples in fact, use the cloud storage and features of Loopcloud as a solution in that regard so to speak. I took out the 10 quid a month sub because I could see all that plus alot more as described above. 

What I didnt realise also was any past or new sample packs you might have bought or for free if you had an account with Loopmasters will auto appear in your loopcloud library tab, and the point here is YOU DO NOT need to download these packs, just use them from your cloud account when you need them.

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2 minutes ago, Dzilizzi said:

I actually don't use CW.  I mostly use either ProTools or Cubase.  I used to use Sonar all the time, but picked up Cubase when Cakewalk was going out of business as a crossgrade (they did a very nice sale for Sonar users)  😉

If it can just be downloaded, I will check it out.  I just don't want to be stuck paying for something I don't want. 

Thanks! 

The plugins and app will work in any DAW via regular vsts.

 

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Just now, Dzilizzi said:

Great solution as long as they don't go out of business!   

Indeed .. but loopmasters have been around for as long as I remember. There is nothing to stop you from downloading all your samples either. In the loopcloud app just go to your cloud library and right click on the folders of your sample libraries there, in the drop menu is download samples to your puter.

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7 minutes ago, Dzilizzi said:

Unfortunately, ProTools is AAX.  😝  Otherwise, I probably wouldn't use anything else.  

It also has AAX plugin version. The loopcloud app installs as a standalone program. The VSTs / AAX plugins are the bridge connecting your DAW to the loopcloud app which in turn is connected to the cloud

Edited by aidan o driscoll
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4 hours ago, ZincT said:

That's interesting Aidan as I have (at last!) been trying out Loopcloud based on your recommendation. I was expecting something like ADSR Sample Manager which I have been using up until now but Loopcloud comes with other plugins for DAW integration which look interesting. I still need to use it more to see whether it's going to replace ADSR SM but so far so good. I'm also tempted by one of their subs.

@ZincT Have you tried the built in 8 track yet, auditioning samples together to build a track .. Chop & Slice them, effect them, pitch shift etc while picking up the tempo from CW. Then drag drop to CW. Really nice. This vid from that Beatport remix competition I entered last night really shows this in action:

 

Edited by aidan o driscoll
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4 minutes ago, aidan o driscoll said:

@ZincT Have you tried the built in 8 track yet, auditioning samples together to build a track .. Chop & Slice them, effect them, pitch shift etc while picking up the tempo from CW. Then drag drop to CW. Really nice. This vid from that Beatport remix competition I entered last night really shows this in action:

 

On my to-do list! It is now anyway :)

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I am more of a midi and VST instrument combined with real instruments person than a loop person. I always have difficulty finding a loop that fits what I'm doing. If I want a beat, I'll chuck a bunch of midi patterns from the drum vst as a start and then change them around a bit or create something new in midi. I guess these are loops but midi loops. I don't use audio loops at all, probably missing out on something. I manually write bass lines and input keyboard and guitar through playing in or writing on the piano roll.

I've become quite strict about what stays on my hard drive. I will try out stuff and if I don't like it, it's gone. I usually try it out on my laptop where I download it and it won't even make it's way on to my offline DAW if I don't like it.

Great sounds are the best asset. You are better off having one great sounding piano or synth etc rather than 20 that sound awful. One set of decent plugins that you like the gui, sound and like to use, rather than thousands which you struggle to understand and will never use. Generally, you get what you pay for, with some exceptions.

To be honest, I don't really know how to use audio loops to make music. I would like to use them but it just doesn't seem to work for me. I have a few of them but they just end up as hard drive filler.

 

 

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15 hours ago, aidan o driscoll said:

The amount of space taken up by sample packs on my system harddrives is immense.
So where do you guys store your samples and sample packs at this stage? On your system drive, a second sample only drive in a system OR on a USB Drive?

 

Like Larry said,  get a 5 TB External HD for $89.00 ~~~>   HERE

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