PreSonus Blog

Monthly Archives: October 2013


Get a Jump on the Learning with Rational Acoustics, Baton Rouge 10/24

Some of our fine friends from Rational Acoustics are coming down to Baton Rouge for PreSonuSphere, and they’re arriving a few days early. It’s good that they’ll have a little extra time to see the sights and sniff the smells, but the lead-up time to #PreSonuSphere isn’t all sensory indulgence. These guys are up to something, and you’re invited to take part. And if you choose to take part, we’ll get you into PreSonuSphere for FREE. What the heck. 

While we may be known for our hospitality down thisaway, fact is the Rational Acoustics team are no strangers to conviviality. On Oct. 24, they’ll make an effort to top our no-longer-so-secret Jambalaya recipe—by serving y’all up a steaming-hot kettle of garlic & cumin-seasoned knowledge.

Specifically, this is an opportunity for you to learn all about Smaart v.7 Di straight from the guys who invented it—horse’s mouth and whatnot. Smaart V.7 DI is a simplified, streamlined, two-channel version of the standard Smaart v.7 analysis software—the ideal bridge between the limited features in the VSL Wizards, and the full-blown V.7 program. This eight-hour intensive course will teach you all there is to know about Smaart v.7 Di from software installation to Spectrum & Transfer Function Measurements.

Here’s the official course overview, taken from this PDF, which contains more details.

“The Smaart v.7 Di Training Class covers the fundamentals of using Smaart v.7 Di to make basic RTA, Spectrograph and Transfer Function measurements. Special attention is paid throughout the course to the subject of how to make valid and useful measurements, as opposed to simply making cool squiggly lines appear on the screen. This course focuses on providing the attendee with a functional knowledge of how Smaart v.7 Di operates as a tool and demonstrates techniques and processes for utilizing Smaart v.7 Di in essential system engineering tasks. Both classroom lecture and lab formats are utilized as well as in-class measurements via a signal distribution system to distribute the instructor’s stereo measurement signals to the entire class.”

So, since you’re going to be in town for PreSonuSphere anyhow, you really ought to come out to this thing.

Whens/wheres/good-to-knows:

  • Oct 24, 2013—9 a.m. to around 5 p.m. Class breaks at 10:15 a.m., noon, and 3:15 p.m.
  • 7249 Florida Blvd. Suite A, Baton Rouge, La. 70806
  • Bring your laptop and thinking cap.
  • If you sign up for this class, and purchase a license of Smaart v.7 Di at checkout, you will receive roughly a 30 % discount on the license ($195).  Each license contains two installations, which can be installed on two different machines, mac or PC.
  • ŒClass registration is available either via the online class registration form in the 

    ˆtraining s€ection of the Rational Acoustics website, or by contacting …Rational †Acoustics directly: +1-860-928-7828

 

PreSonus LIVE from WFX 2013 is now up on YouTube

Why You Should Make Every Effort to Come to #PreSonuSphere

[This just in from Joe Gilder of Home Studio Corner]

Why You Should Make Every Effort to Come to PreSonuSphere (and why I love PreSonus so much)

One word: jambalaya. Seriously.

I was working as a Sales Engineer for Sweetwater Sound. I was kind of a new guy, still learning the ropes, trying to figure out how to effectively sell music and recording gear to people over the phone. And then there was the training… lots and LOTS of training. Twice a week we would come to work an hour and a half early to be trained by one of our many manufacturers on the awesomeness of their latest products.

Some training sessions were awesome. Some made me long for a better place. PreSonus sessions were the former.

See, not only did PreSonus create cool, innovative, problem-solving products. They also cooked jambalaya for us. They would ship this big, huge silver pot from Baton Rouge all the way to Fort Wayne, Indiana, so they could cook ME a jambalaya lunch. I was hooked from the first bite.

See, I’m a Mississippi boy at heart. And these guys know how to win a guy over.

Food. Really, really good food. So I say to myself, “Joe, if these guys make gear as well as they cook, you’ve got to check ‘em out.”

Sure ‘nuff, their gear rocks.

Fast forward several years, and I’m now running the popular home recording website HomeStudioCorner.com, where I help thousands of people get better recordings out of their home studios…and I still have a big crush on PreSonus. I own almost one of everything they make, and I’ve even transitioned to using their DAW, Studio One for all my studio projects. I literally haven’t opened Pro Tools in a looooooong time.

And that’s the topic of my presentation at PreSonuSphere this year. I’ll be teaching a class on “Making the Switch,” where I will be sharing about my transition to Studio One, why and how I did it.

Also, I will be eating a lot of food, particularly jambalaya. But you already knew that, didn’t you?

See you there,

Joe Gilder
Home Studio Corner

Click here to register for PreSonuSphere!

Incredible, Over the Top Giveaway from our Friends at Audix!

Check out this incredible prize package from our friends at Audix! You could win a StudioLive 16.4.2AI, a MONSTER drum set from Pacific and Sabian, and an 8-Piece Custom Mic package. It’s worth nearly ten grand! Click the image below to enter, and make sure you do so before November 31, 2013.

Here’s all the news on the giveaway, straight from Audix themselves:

OVER THE TOP GIVEAWAY!

Audix 8-Piece Custom Mic Package, May Internal Mounting System, Pacific Drums, DW Hardware, Presonus Digital Mixer, & Sabian Cymbals. Total value $9878!

  1. Audix mics—MSRP $3875
  2. Sabian Cymbals—MSRP $1295
  3. Pacific Drum Set—MSRP $2209
  4. PreSonus StudioLive 16.4.2AI Mixer—MSRP $2499,
  5. Audix Customized 8-piece Microphone Package includes:
  • One D6 Silver kick drum mic with internal May Monorail mounting system
  • One i5 Silver dynamic mic for snare
  • Three D4  dynamic mics for floor and rack toms with internal May mounting system
  • One ADX51 pre-polarized condenser mic for high hat
  • Two SCX25A large diaphragm condensers for overheads

Total Value—$9878

StudioLive™ 16.4.2AI
16x4x2 Active Integration Digital Mixer

Features:

  • Dual Fat Channel signal processing on all 16 input channels and all buses, with 4-band semi-parametric EQ, compressor, gate, limiter, and more—all with A/B comparison
  • Tightly integrated software library includes PreSonus Studio One® Artist 2.6 DAW with StudioLive scene compatibility, Capture™2.1 live-recording software with Virtual Soundcheck mode, and Virtual StudioLive™-AI mixer-control software with Smaart Measurement Technology™, plus free StudioLive Remote-AI iPad® app and QMix™-AI iPhone®/iPod touch® aux mix app for wireless remote control.
  • 16 dedicated mix buses for easy configuration: 4 subgroups, 6 analog auxiliary buses, 4 internal FX buses, and stereo main mix with mono sum
  • 32-in/18-out FireWire s800 recording interface (24-bit, 44.1 and 48 kHz)
  • Dedicated Ethernet port and USB 2.0 port for included Wi-Fi LAN adapter for direct networking – no computer required!

PDP Concept Series™ CB5 5-piece All-Birch Drumset
with DW 3000 Series Hardware and Pedals:

•   9×12” rack tom, 12×14” floor tom, 5.5×14” matching snare drum, 16×20” bass drum

Features:

  • All Birch Shell
  • STM (Suspension Tom Mount)
  • Cherry to Black Fade Lacquer Finish
  • True-Pitch™ Tuning System
  • MAG Throw-Off
  • F.A.S.T. (Fundamentally-Accurate-Sized Toms)
  • Graduated Counter Hoops
  • Remo Heads

 DW 3000 Series Hardware Pack includes:

  • 3000 Single Pedal
  • 3500 Hi-Hat Stand
  • 3700 Straight/Boom Cymbal Stand (3)
  • 3300 Snare Stand
  • 3100 Throne

Sabian AAX Series pack includes: 

  • 14” AAX Stage Hats
  • 16” AAX Stage Crash
  • 20” AAX Stage Ride

The AAX Series from Sabian is a game changer! AAX are the first B20 Bronze cymbals designed and manufactured using completely modern lathing and hammering techniques. The result? Increased brightness, cut and musicality – for the widest dynamic range ever achieved. And suddenly, the bright, explosive tone of AA cymbals are present even at low volume.

Rules: Giveaway is open world-wide. The winner must reside in a country where the participating companies have distribution. Contest ends November 30, 2013 at midnight PST. Winner will be notified by email and have 48 hours to claim their prize, otherwise another name will be chosen. Valid ID required.

PreSonus LIVE airs today: LIVE Tech Support From the Warehouse! #ForkLiftSphere

PreSonus LIVE airs today!

ForkLiftSphere! Get LIVE tech support from the PreSonus Warehouse!
2 p.m. CST / 3 p.m. EST / Noon PST / 20:00 UK / 21:00 EU

http://presonus.com/videos/presonuslive

Learn from the team captains of the PreSonus know-it-all squad! Justin Spence and Gary Hasenbeck will put their audio cred on the line as they answer your tech support requests LIVE! Hit us up in the chat room and ask whatever questions you want. We’ll choose the best ones and answer them right on command from our glorious warehouse. No steel-toed boots required.

 

Photos from ExpoMusic in Brazil

This just in from Augusto of Quanta Music in Brazil! They just wrapped up the ExpoMusic show there. Augusto reports that it was a “total success!”

ExpoMusic is the largest music fair in Latin America; manufacturers and artists from all over the world arrive to show off their latest and greatest for five days! We’re glad to be a part of it, of course—big thanks are due to Quanta for making it all happen.

#PreSonuSphere Presenter: Martin Atkins!

MARTIN ATKINS
Presenting in the Hartley Vey Workshop Theatre on Friday, Oct 25 at 3:30 p.m.

Prepare for the Worst…and Other Cheerful Insights from Industry Legend Martin Atkins

Martin Atkins’ three decades in the music business spans genres, borders and industries. Having experience in nearly every aspect of record production and promotion has given him a unique perspective not only on where the music industry is currently, but where it’s going in the future. And basically things are grim unless you embrace new promotion, distribution, and monetization methods. This presentation is less a commercial for Nimbit than it is a blueprint for prospering in a new world.

Atkins has been a member of Public Image Ltd. and Ministry, and has collaborated with Nine Inch Nails. His distinguished speaking resume includes: SXSW, Warped Tour, CMJ, New Music Seminar, Unconvention, NAMM, By:Larm, Dfest, USC, Drexel, , Full Sail, Weiden + Kennedy, Chicago Cultural Center and many more. We’re all glad he can now add PreSonuSphere to this prestigious list.

For more on Martin’s experience with PreSonus, check out his PreSonus Artist bio here.

Click here to register for PreSonuSphere!

Learn how StereoSpread and Banmier Generate Unique Synth Tones in Studio One

I thought you should know about a great seminar coming up at the EMErgence: Electronic Music Experience. The event is a joint effort by LEAF and the Bob Moog Foundation, and takes place on October 22-24 in Asheville, NC, and includes hands-on activities, workshops and lectures from local, professional electronic musicians and producers. James from STEREOSPREAD is collaborating with Caden of Banmier on a presentation called “Junkyard Beats: Creating Music with Found Sounds.” More info can be found at theleaf.org.
“The process of taking junkyard sounds and evolving them into synth sounds is a process I developed when I was in the 9th grade and have continued to develop,” Caden says. “Much of my music features sounds that began their life as breaking glass and banging pressure vessels, but you

would never know it because it just sounds like some kind or organic synth sound. When I first started experimenting in electronic music, I did not have the money or resources to purchase synthesizers, but I understood that the basics of most synthesis involved creating a waveform using oscillators and then modulating it. I set out going to junk yards and recording breaking or bashing things together for my “donor” waveforms. I spent a lot of time at the junk yard attracting a lot of attention and curious onlookers—people who mainly just wanted to know what the hell I was doing!”

“Using Sample One, I zoom in on an interesting looking section of my recording and loop it, creating a buzz. Then I tune the sample by tweaking the tune knob, measuring the results with a tuner. Once the sample is in tune, I add effects and adjust the ADSR to tailor the sound. The results can be quite surprising and wonderful. Best of all it’s a totally custom sound that is the result of a really fun creative process.”

James shares a bit about his workflow in Studio One as well:

“Working in Studio One has enabled me to create better than before, I can literally take a single word of Sara’s vocal track—and create a pad using Sample One from the same sound, or even create a bass! We’ve done this on so many of our songs it’s actually pretty funny; sometimes people are like ‘how did you get that low bass sub-it’s so clean!’  They never realize or even believe me when I say it’s based around Sara’s vocal. Same with some of our drums, I’ve literally taken the sound of our dogs barking. compressed them in pitch/tempo then thrown into Sample One and created hits which to use as kicks, snares, etc.”

If you want to get your hands a little rusty, and learn how to turn a radiator into a cello, then this seminar is for you!

James is a member of STEREOSPREAD and has produced and remixed for many projects including Haap,  Ask You in Gray, Ilima and The Sexbots, Ummagma, Thy Fearful Symmetry, Diffuzion, Venn Diagram, Jadugara, King George VIII, and Between the Now.

Banmier is the creative project of Waynesville, NC, where he currently lives and operates a home studio. Caden has played drum set, marching snare, hand drums and auxiliary percussion in many music settings including symphonic band, marching band, as well as several metal and funk groups. Caden’s venture into electronic music was brought about by the need to express musical thoughts that were more complex and melodic than drum beats.


You can hear some of Banmier and Stereospread’s sonic trickery in the collaboration embedded below!

 

Announcing the Winners of the “Why StudioLive” Video Contest!

The “Why StudioLive” video contest was a smashing success. And that’s all because of you.

We received many qualified submissions—over eighty in total—and the process of viewing, judging, and choosing winners took a long time. You guys all did such a good job that the original idea of rewarding only two of the videos was not only impossible, but seemed a little unfair considering the quality of the material we received.
So, we are instead giving away four big prizes, adding a StudioLive 16.4.2AI or ADL 700, and Eris E8 monitors to the existing offering of a StudioLive 32.4.2AI and Sceptre S8 monitors.
These winners have already been e-mailed information regarding their winning status and instructions for claiming their prize. If you are listed below and didn’t get that e-mail, check your spam folder!
The winners are: 
 
GRAND PRIZE WINNER receives a StudioLive 32.4.2.AI:
Jerry W: “Why We Need This Mixer”

Second place winner receives his choice of a StudioLive 16.4.2AI  or  ADL 700:
Aaron S.: “Give me StudioLive or Give Me Death”

Third place winner receives a pair of Sceptre S8s:
Marco L.:  “Rule Your Gig”

Fourth place winner receives a pair of  Eris E8s:
Chris B.’s “Why StudioLive”

Congratulations to the above—but that’s not all!
 
We also have an additional twelve entrants, who will also be e-mailed soon, who will receive their choice from the following software:

Furthermore, everyone who entered gets a PreSonus T-shirt. 

Your hard work and support of PreSonus means a great deal to us. Check in with us again here at the blog and on Facebook for more coverage of the video contest in the coming week—as well as more info on future contests—and thanks again for making this one such a huge success.

SL Remote, QMix, and AB1818VSL Remote updates now available

Updated versions of SL Remote, QMix, and AB1818VSL Remote, all compatible with iOS 7, are now available for free in the Apple App store. Have fun and happy mixing!