Starise

I think Blackhole is very similar to Valhalla Shimmer. I sometimes use Shimmer in small amounts for orchestra classical music. You could duplicate similar to the spring using timed plates in many reverbs. Unless your are making ambient music I doubt many would use those deep lush settings. But for 20 something quid...if I wanted it this would be a good deal.

If your computer is taking a serious hit, then a few considerations that would possibly help would be defragmenting older HDD drives. Having sample based synth libraries on a second drive. Adjusting playback buffers in your interface, removing unnecessary programs, especially virus software that has a check in/scan routine. If the scan kicks in while recording it can cause issues. More recent computers are less prone to becoming overloaded, but not impervious to it. Win 7 is no longer supported. Cakewalk dropped support for it too. If playing back midi recordings coupled to synths, you may freeze the tracks into audio and save valuable cpu. Audio interface and drivers are also often an issue. Asio has historically been the most reliable drivers for Cakewalk even though Cakewalk has invested considerable time in making sure WASAPI drivers can be used. The most recent update to Cakewalk includes some work with WASAPI. To get into working with synths the AIR synthproducts are inexpensive,capable and sound pretty good including Xpand2! Awhile back I bought some of the AIR synths and kept getting a scan lock in my vst folder for Xpand2. I downloaded it but never bought it, so to avoid the scan error I bought it finally. I was surprised by what it is capable of. AIR synths were originally made for Pro Tools by a 3rd party. They branched out and now sell those as vst to anyone. Xpand2 works similar to some other synth "shells" that allow you to load up multiple synths in one instance. Kontakt will do similar but is much more complex allowing you to use independent midi channels to trigger different sounds within that "shell". The benefit to Kontakt is it can load 3rd party written for it. A company called Plugin Guru has a new invention out called UNIFY that is a shell which allows you to load any synth from any vendor. Kind of unique in that respect. Comes with some interesting synths already loaded. UNIFY is really a lot more than just a shell. Sampletank 4 is a shell for IK sounds.

Larry this would have probably been very offensive to me and I think that response is over the top. I appreciate all who post here. Posting music can be a tricky thing on forums in general. I don't put up as much of my music anymore, but still frequent a few songs forums. One in particular is about as "clickish" as it gets. The people who hang around are made into mods lol. There should only be rules to benefit the entire group. A few forums have in their info on posting that you should listen to at least three songs from other people who posted and only post one song every so often. This isn't necessarily a slight. Simply a way to make sure that someone else's hard work isn't literally pushed to the bottom of the list because someone else posted 10 songs and no one else has any visibility on the page. Makes sense to me. Listening to other's songs was always so very difficult for me, not because I didn't like much of the music, but because the only time I had to do it was during my limited time slot to make my own music and I have a tough time sitting still I know that sounds kinda selfish and I guess it is. I admit it's really a shame some forums feel the need to make a rule requiring that we listen to one another's music. They shouldn't need to do that. FWIW I still make a point to do it no matter how inconvenient it is when I post my music because it's just the right thing to do and a reasonable expectation on a songs forum. I have learned so much and have been exposed to so much amazing talent here on the Cakewalk forum, so I'm glad I made the time. I haven't been over to the songs forum lately, but "if" you haven't been listening intently and making comments on others music, then you can't reasonably expect anyone else to listen to your stuff because the process is give and take. JMOP.

I do the same thing...try to flesh out an idea in one evening or maybe two at most. I should have something to work with by then. The idea at the time isn't to "go fast" just to get the ideas down even if things are a little shaky in the mix. I was up till midnight last night..don't laugh, I'm up at 5am.....I layed down maybe 10 tracks. I find a tempo and throw a drum midi in that has a groove I like for my idea chained to BFD3. The drums suck as a fit but they will get me there in keeping things together and having a decent vibe to it. Enough to move ahead. I figure I can go back and edit the drum midi when the idea(s) are down. I usually play in both an audio and a matching midi track for the beginning idea. To get ideas flowing I might copy that midi to another track and pick another complimentary instrument or arpeggio. For lower parts thin the midi data down or use the midi filters in Cakewalk to make space for the different parts using the same midi...you won't ever be out of time that way. If the midi is a simple melody, you can usually play a complimentary part to it. In the past I ran into trouble in trying to make things so complex, big mixes, everything begins to step on everything else. I still like complex, but most music begins with basic ingredients. You don't need to write the entire thing out. Everything doesn't need to be a solo. People don't buy recordings because they are complex. If I'm only recording audio, I'll have a melody in my mind or maybe even just an underpinning to something else. IOW something to play over...that often works well too. The funny thing is I might only take a few evenings to get the ideas down but the mix can take a Loooooong time to complete before I'm even almost content with it. I listen back to a lot of crap I made, but it was all a learning experience and fun.

I like the Indiginus libraries as well for the kind of thing I do. Haven't bought an acoustic library yet because I feel guilty having guitars hanging all over my walls :0 I just wanted to add one more source to look into. Kontakt Hub has a lot to offer and you could buy several of their libraries for less than one library from a few of the others. I listened to several of the demos and was quite impressed, especially given the prices..........not sure if it's what you're looking for specifically. Here's the link- KONTAKT HUB GUITARS

I remember playing Sampletank years ago when it first came out on a laptop. A lot has changed since then. It looks as if ST4 still allows a lot of flexibility to put different instruments (samples) on the keybed where you want them, panning, etc. All of the stuff you would have done with a hardware rack setup way back when. I don't believe Kontakt lets you record samples either. Kontakt will let you drop in samples. I don't necessarily associate the romplers of old with the more modern romplers. They have come a long way and many of them sound quite good. I think it's a great all rounder'. Sampletank max is loaded with probably more sounds than most will ever use. For anyone who fancies a way out of Kontakt land ST is a consideration. The main downside is there are no 3rd party libs so far as I know. In the end it has everything to do with the mix and what you're trying to bring out. In some cases a small library is just fine. I will say I'm not particularly confident in ST if I were leaning on it for large projects that had a deadline. This doesn't have much to do with the libraries or their quality. I would want to run it through more paces and be assured there would be no further issues. Studios can't afford to have things hanging up in the middle of a job...and I don't enjoy the frustration when it happens during a session. I am only marginally confident I won't have any more issues if I push lots of instruments into the ST4 shell. The jury is still out on that one.

For the record.......this problem happened using the older ST build on several other DAWs, so this isn't an isolated Cakewalk thing.

I have had similar issues with a few VSTi that use the mod wheel for volume and/or swells. When I record the track I also record the volume via the mod wheel. When I come back to play the track it doesn't read the mod wheel. The only way I can make it work is by moving the mod wheel at the beginning of the track. If I don't do this, it won't see the control and I won't have volume. Also works if I take the mod wheel cc# out of the track, although then I no longer have the volume or swell control.

I got this from a local motivational person who holds get away groups (for a fee) to sit around and talk about all of this stuff. She isn't a musician type, but is a creative type. Once designed costumes for theatrical work...this might be coming from a decidedly female approach if there is such a thing on this subject. I attended one of her groups and I was the only man there. Felt really out of place. She sends out these group emails....mail chimp or similar. That's where I got that list from. Motivation and creativity are two different things. I have motive to create but have been in a slump lately. A lot of that is simply lack of time. I'm making music all the time, just haven't been "creating" music. It's difficult to tell someone to "get better" when they're sick or to "get motivated" when they just aren't feeling it or to "get creative". One thing this person said that made a little sense was not to hold such a high standard to your creativity. It's the process that is fulfilling even if not much seems to be coming from it....so I sat down last evening and started something. Had no idea where it was going. Still don't. It sounds like something that could be something and that made me feel good. My standards are such that I'm not happy with the end result of 3/4 of what I've done. I like the process and then work to an end result. Don't look at me for an example here. I just do what I do. If you don't start you will never start If you don't begin you will never finish. If you begin don't forget where you were. Take notes if you have to. I am not a notes taker. For me, If I can't come back to it at least two or three times a week to work on it, then the project eventually ends up in the pile forgotten. I simply hate projects that drag out over months and really can't endure that. I'll just go to another idea rather than torture myself over something that isn't happening. It's in continuing the process that I think keeps me going. One mediocre idea might have taught you something you can use for a better idea later.

I like the "upbeat" feel to this. Pizzcato, well.............I think I found it!

40 gig I would buy this. 400 gig? I would rather let man eating spiders eat my nipples or attend a 3rd grade English class or wear ballet tights.....that's a little extreme I guess. I would like to know if it's really 400gb. I don't think Kontakt 12 is that large.

In memory of Mr. Peanut , who would want nothing more than to see us all eat peanut butter. We may celebrate peanut butter day early this year. I think. And maybe introduce becan into this too!! Since becan was brought up by someone..Wibbles.. seemed like the appropriate thing to do!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Maybe a tune or two in memourum of Mr. Peanut himself!

I know Ed. Most of the nuts we have left have been hanging around a long time. It's tough to see one go. I don't see much of the nuts closest to me, but I know they're there still hanging around in the shadows. Sometimes we only miss what we don't have......was that deep? Enjoy your nuts while you still can. This in a nutshell, is how I feel.

I think this is a common thing for Mr. Peanut. I try not to think of where it comes from ?

I see your point. For the longest time I recorded at 24/48. I still do. I usually export at 16/44.1> high resolution mp3 for anything that goes on the web. This was only because my interface at the time was locked to that as the highest sample rate I could record. If the final product is going to use mp3 compression, then for me the real question is, Is there any advantage to down sampling a file that will eventually wind up as an mp3? Many who export don't bother with the in between wav file and instead simply export directly to mp3. A higher rez mp3 at 256 is better than a low rez 128 mp3. It probably all hair on a knats back from that perspective. I could be wrong, but I think using higher resolution compression makes more difference than down conversion of samples. That information and a cup of coffee will get you........................a cup of coffee

Very interesting article. It's amazing to me how they managed to find 5 "expert listeners". No one in my world can turn the thing under their nose off long enough to listen.

I don't wash my car. They infer he's a bum who doesn't care. I mean, they are right about that but.........

I should have worn my wellies today. It's getting really deep in here.

I had a mental evaluation and they said I was guitarded.

Great minds think alike. I don't care what they say, I like Soundiron. I don't think they have said anything, but if they did........I like those guys.

Get it HERE.

LOL. Those chicks look like piranhas with wigs. ?