X-53mph

...but that's the point of my original post... sometimes the CD version is mastered badly and I like to remaster it for my own listening pleasure. Do you ever feel the need to remaster CD versions of songs?

Interesting article. I do think that we are now so spoilt for mixing apps that you don't need to even open cakewalk. I do my remastering in Ozone's stand alone Oxygen 9 app. You can easily do A/B comparisons, and, if the entire album has been mastered with a similar heavy hand, you can apply your tweaks album-wide.

Just wondering if anyone else apart from me uses their vast array of mixing and mastering programs to remaster their cd collection? I recently remastered The Preston School of Industry (Pavement member's solo project) because the CD was so tiring on the ears. Someone had tried to get maximum loadness in the the mastering stage and the end result was harsh harsh HARSH on the ears. I've managed to sweeten it up and make the whole album a joy to listen to on my Cowon M2. Jim O'Rourke albums are other offenders. What about the rest of you guys?

Replying to my own thread here - I found a really elegant work around. I came across a video on YouTube about using a VSThost and Virtual Audio Cable to clean up the background sound on AudioTechnica AT2020 mics. I'll post the link to the video for anyone who is interested (word of warning, it's long and boring, but ultimately fruitful). The advantage of using the VST host is that I can set up a custom made effects chain with Izotope and ERA tools to gate, filter, clean, and compress the signal so that my mic sounds like a pro podcaster mic, even if it is a cardioid condenser mic, and best of all, I don't have to buy any third party Ai app (which will harvest all my data) or custom made mic. I'm going to try out this method in the classroom to see if it works well in the field, but for now, this might have just saved me a hundred bucks or so.

As I'm teaching, I need to be on a laptop to share lessons and didactic material. A mobile phone really isn't a good option for that. But thanks anyway. Has anyone used the Jabra headset?

Yes, the at2020+ does too. It's actually really nice for monitoring. The biggest downside is that the at2020 picks up all room noises as it was really designed for music.

Yeah, I was thinking of going that route. I might invest in some Bluetooth noise cancelling call centre headphones for ease of use. When I'm teaching from home, I have time to set up my mic with a full size stand, but on the move, I sometimes barely have desk space to put the mic on. I never take my mixer with me as that would just be extra weight and extra faff.

Thanks for that. I've got a Audio Technica at2020+ usb mic, which is great... it's just a hassle having to set it up in a hurry. I often just use some USB Creative Labs headphones because they're quick to plug in, but the ambient noise gets overwhelming at times. It's actually really annoying that Google Meet doesn't allow you to monitor the feed from your microphone like zoom does, so you often cannot hear how noisy it gets. It might surprise some of you that, as a teacher, I'm not always sat at a desk. I'm often jumping from classroom to classroom and then going on line to teach, so I'm always lugging a backpack around with laptop and headphones that have to be set up in a flash, so as few technical things to set up as possible, the better. Thanks for all the tips guys.

I know this is more of a music production board, but I was wondering if anyone knew of any Noise Cancellation apps that work in Google Meet or Zoom that cancel background voices which will work better than the integrated apps. I have to teach lessons in an open office environment and sometimes the noise from other teachers gets amplified by the Meet noise cancellation tab. I've done my own research and found Krisp and Iris Clarity...however, I'm not happy about the idea of giving over all my personal data to these apps, or paying the monthly fee (I'm a teacher...I don't earn much). As a musician I have a shed load of apps from noise cancellation in music (Izotope, ERA Voice changer etc..) but I don't know if I can get these to work in Google Meet or Zoom realtime. Any help would, as always, be appreciated. Cheers

I'm not seeing a discount. Is there a coupon code?

Hi guys, I was checking out the new Sonar website (looking for status updates), and I noticed all the social media links to Instagram, YouTube, Twitter (that needs updating 😂), so I thought I'd check some of them out to see what was new. 😳 They haven't been updated in years. Guys! Guys! GUYS! You really need to sort out your social media. Either get rid of the links (because they are useless) or get someone to update them on a regular basis. Otherwise, the perception is that Sonar is a zombie product. If you want to seriously give the impression that Sonar is still in the game, update those socials, or just delete the accounts and delete the links. Un-updated socials are a liability. That's all. Over and out.

? Farewell from Ugritone ? It's with a heavy heart and a sense of profound nostalgia that we announce the end of an era: Ugritone, the sonic bastion of raw, unfiltered Metal, is closing its doors. From 2017 to 2024, we've lived, breathed, and bled Metal, striving to push the boundaries of what could be achieved in the underground music scene. But the time has come to share this sad piece of news with our dedicated community. The harsh realities of life and the unforgiving nature of the free market have finally caught up with us. Despite our unwavering passion and relentless drive, the stark truth is that we've faced burnout after burnout, stretching ourselves thin, and simply lacking the resources to make the necessary moves to bring this project up to the speed it deserves. The industry demands more than we can currently give, and it's either all or nothing. We refuse to deliver a half-hearted effort. We will not settle for a 20% AI/automation-powered compromise. The essence of Ugritone has always been about genuine, unadulterated creativity, and we can't continue unless we can fully honor that spirit. To our fans, collaborators, and everyone who has been a part of this journey, we want to express our deepest gratitude. Thank you for embracing our wild ideas, for your relentless support, and for allowing us to reflect our passion within the Metal world. Your enthusiasm and dedication have meant everything to us. As we bow out, know that Ugritone's legacy will live on in the riffs, the beats, and the raw energy we've shared. Here's to the memories, the music, and the Metal. Keep it loud. Keep it real. Forever in Metal, Ugritone As we prepare to close this chapter, we're embarking on a Farewell Sale that will run until the end of the year. This is your last chance to grab a piece of Ugritone history. Here are some of our top digital products: Drum samplers - starting from $5 MIDI Packs - Starting From $2 Impulse Responses - $2 Other Plugins - Starting from $5 This is our way of saying thank you for your undying support. You've been the backbone of Ugritone, and we want to give back to you one last time. So, dig in, grab your favorite pieces, and let’s make this final encore one to remember. www.ugritone.com

@57Gregy Thanks for pointing that out to me. I've never used that function in CbB before. I have to say though, playing around with it this morning, it's not exactly user friendly.

I like your use of relevant. Perhaps what we should be asking is, is Cakewalk relevant in the modern music market? Don't get me wrong, I have loved using Cakewalk over the years and made some music on it that I'm really proud of....but I'm part of the disappearing market for Cakewalk....the question for Cakewalk should be, how do they cater for the next generation of music makers? If, at one time, the aim of DAWs was to compete with the likes of Pro Tools for market dominance...well, I'd say those days are coming to a close. The music industry may no longer be made up of studios sharing projects across the world. The battle of the DAWs seems to have become a battle to keep existing client bases and to squeeze those existing customers for pennies by offering small changes and alterations over long stretched out periods of time. CbB has been doing this for free over the last few years (all praise to them) but it isn't a good business model. So whatever the future of Cakewalk is, it needs to address the question....how can it capture the upcoming music makers, and not just rely on the existing (and soon to be no-longer existing) users. That's the hard mathematics of it. Then again. Maybe Noel just wants to retire and get out of the game. Who knows?

I know that your post is partly tongue in cheek, but I think what you're proposing is actually quite healthy. I recently took a step back from social media and the internet in general, and I feel the benefits. Since deleting my Twitter(X), YouTube, Facebook etc.. I've found myself playing the guitar more. I'm also engaging with my family more...which is not always such a good thing As for GAS - I've started selling stuff on Ebay that has been collecting dust in my gear collection waiting for the day it might be used, and with the money from that, I'm buying gear (not plugins) that I actually want. Bought myself a travel guitar for the summer and headphone amp. In fact, I haven't opened a DAW in months, which feels really liberating. Instead, I'm playing the guitar every day.