bitflipper

I've always been skeptical about what a headphone amplifier could really do for fidelity. When not in the studio, I do my pleasure listening on a high-quality media player driving high-quality headphones, and it's always been pretty good. However, sometimes when listening on my highest-impedance (300 ohm) cans there'd be some discernible distortion if I turned it up too loud. So I took a chance and bought a well-reviewed portable amplifier, wondering if I'd just spent too much money on yet another soon-forgotten gadget. Fortunately, I didn't. Holy crap, these cans sound great now! At least, on well-recorded material that is - mediocre recordings still sound mediocre. Funny how that works.

Short answer: yes, you can. Minor downsides: - your projects will take a little longer to load - they won't load properly at all unless that external drive is connected - file organization will be a little less tidy - existing projects that reference Iris will have to be edited to reflect the new location

Oh, my, that IS remote. Be prepared - you will absolutely draw crowds there. You'll be tallest person on the island and the only one with hair on your face and arms. Having been in exactly that situation (being in a place where they've never seen a white person up close before) several times, here's a tip: take a bag of candy with you to hand out to the throngs of children that will look upon you like you're a rock star from Mars.

What? Sixty-somethings still playing music. And doing it well. Who knew such a thing was possible? It's almost as if experience makes you better at stuff. Oustanding cover!

Where is Supang? The Philippines is my second home, and I've traveled all over those islands, but haven't heard of Supang. Whether in the north or the south, November-April will let you sample every weather variation that country offers. Well, there are only two: wet and dry. Both hot. But in November you might get lucky and experience a typhoon.

Truth is, the audience hardly ever notices. A friend from a past band had this advice: if you make a mistake, immediately repeat it and call it jazz.

Um, that's 'cause you are old, my friend. Same kid, couple years and a Pearl endorsement later...

? Ever notice how the guy who needs a van the most - the drummer - always squeezes his kit into a Toyota?

In every previous band, I've served as bandleader. I provided the van, lights and PA, called rehearsals, picked material, created arrangements, made up set lists, made posters, interfaced with agents, signed the contracts, cashed the checks, sang lead on 60-70% of the songs. I never took any extra pay for those duties and made it clear that off-stage everyone had an equal say in everything. I enforced the band policies we'd all agreed upon: no alcohol on stage, no girlfriends at rehearsals, no Elvis impersonations. I just don't have the energy or ambition to do all that stuff anymore.

You'd think that in a band of over-50s there'd be no infighting, bickering, power struggles and out-of-control egos. Turns out, maturity just seems to be especially elusive among musicians. Time to fire up Cakewalk again. Superior Drummer will never refuse to play a song it doesn't like, complain about not getting the respect it's entitled to, nor criticize Trillian for not playing in the pocket. Kontakt won't mind if its only duty is a tambourine part, won't insist that its talents are wasted unless it's the focus of the song. All of the vocalists (me, me and me) will know the frickin' words, know their frickin' place in the mix and know better than to demand more reverb. Of course, I'll still be rehearsing with my new band on Sunday...

99% of the time, freeze the synth. Simpler, easier and more easily un-doable. If you find that there's some compelling reason to have a separate audio track (and there are legitimate reasons for doing so), just insert a new audio track and click-drag the frozen track down to it. Of course, this only works for single instances; if you want to combine two or more synths or create a stem submix, then you'll have to bounce. Otherwise, freeze.

So how, exactly, does being part of a massive conspiracy work? Do you get, like, annual hush payments or just periodic death threats? Are there meetings and secret handshakes? Of course, we know you can't answer these questions, so don't bother.

Yes, I have seen that on at least three occasions I can recall. Once it was a defective power supply. Once it was dust-clogged fans. The third time it was defective capacitors on the motherboard (if anyone remembers the Dell fake-cap episode some years ago). So yup, it's hardware. First step: open your computer and give it a thorough cleaning, especially the power supply and CPU fans.

Too bad you had to mortgage your home and sell a kidney to pay for it all...oh, wait, you don't live in my country. Enjoy your mobility!

I hear ya, Craig. That's why I work at home and never leave the house.

Don't let it put you off coming back to Seattle. Worst case scenario: you get to witness the Big One, have stories to tell back home - where your house is still standing.

They're great listening headphones, but a bit bass-hyped for mixing. The semi-open DT 880 is flatter for about the same price. Also in the same price bracket are the AKG K702's, which are even more natural in the low end. Which is not to say you can't mix with headphones that exaggerate bass. You just have to keep that factor in mind while you're mixing, so that you don't end up with bass-light mixes. Truth is you can actually learn how to make translatable mixes on any speakers over time.

I don't mix on headphones, and agree it's not ideal. But then I have the luxury of having nice speakers and a treated room. Plus I'm in a detached garage so I can make as much racket as I like at any time of day or night. Mixing on headphones might be some peoples' only option, though. If they live with or near other people who might not be thrilled by a 3:00 AM mixing session. Or they're mixing in a bad acoustical environment. Or they have kids that never stfu.

Movie idea: man hits his head, wakes up in an alternate reality where nobody remembers lava lamps. Hilarity ensues, as in the absence of lava lamps Pink Floyd never became popular, nor did party drugs, and we went straight to disco.

Someone scored my car door in the parking garage last week. Now I'll have to get it excoriated at the body shop.

Earthquake woke me up this morning. Only a 4.6, but the epicenter was very close so the whole house was shaking. I just went back to sleep. Painkillers at bedtime will do that for you.

It's actually about current versus voltage rather than power (which mostly comes down to the speakers' efficiency rather than their impedance). You should have no problem driving 250 ohms with your Focusrite. Just don't expect crazy high volume. Which of course you don't want for mixing and editing anyway. You'll only have an issue if you decide to use those cans with a portable battery-powered device that can't deliver the necessary voltage to sustain high fidelity at higher volumes. Have a look at the Sennheiser HD-558, which sound-wise is nearly identical to the HD600 but half the price and (IIRC) 50 ohms.

It is particularly unsettling when they last more than a few seconds. In the last big one, I stood in my driveway watching waves undulating through the concrete for about 30 seconds while my whole house swayed. This even though the epicenter was 90 miles away and 2 miles down. The next one up here in the Pacific Northwest will likely be a subduction quake similar to the one that hit Anchorage in 1964. That one had a magnitude of 9.2, lasted four full minutes, tossed huge container ships onto the shore and pretty much leveled the city. The only buildings left undamaged were log cabins, so next time you're in Alaska try to keep one in sight at all times.