PreSonus Blog

Sonic Sense Pro Audio First Look at the Sceptre S8 CoActual Monitors

Sonic Sense Pro Audio just posted this first-look (first-listen?) video of the Sceptre S8 CoActual monitors. They compared the Sceptre S8 ($749, each) to the much more expensive Genelec 8050A ($2195, each) and the Adam A7x ($699, each) monitors. All monitors involved in the shootout were cautiously miked and measured, and detailed frequency response and phase charts are presented for each.

Sonic Sense is very thorough, which I suppose makes for the “Sense” part of “Sonic Sense.”

Click through to the Sonic Sense blog post here to get their full review, but in the meantime here’s a snippet:
“As promised, the sound quality truly does stand up well beside high-end monitors that have become “household” names in the studio world including ADAM, Genelec, JBL, and Neumann.”

 

HeatRox Entertainment Lands a Track on the Disney Channel’s “Austin & Ally”

[This just in from the always-a-gem-producer Lisa Simmons of HeatRox Entertainment. HeatRox recently had a great score, landing their new song “Living in the Moment” in a recent episode of the Disney Channel’s Austin & Ally.]
Hey Ryan!
How are you? Hope you are having a great week! We are so excited for the new Austin & Ally episode, “Sports and Sprains.” We used the PreSonus Eureka on this song. Funny story: The tracks recorded with the Eureka were intended to be for the pre-demo only… but they sounded so good that many of the background vocals recorded on the Eureka wound up in the final mix! The final song was recorded with the Ross Lynch at one of Disney’s recording studios.

We co-wrote and co-produced “Living in the Moment” with an amazing team of writers and producers: myself, (Lisa Simmons) Francisco (Flinst0ne/ Stone), Christian Salyer, Styliztik Jones, and J Scott G. We had so much fun!  On Disney’s promo you can hear the instrumental in the background, but the full song will be performed by the actor himself on the upcoming episode.
Over the weekend, “Sports & Sprains” charted at number seven on iTunes as one of the top children’s shows!
Best Regards,
Lisa & Stone

Tremendous Giveaway in August 2013 from American Musical Supply!

The kind folks at American Musical Supply just announced their incredible PreSonus giveaway, including a whopper of a $5,129 prize package that includes:

It’s easy to enter, just click here and fill out their form! This is an incredible chance to get a whole lotta stuff with minimal effort, which is always a popular proposition.

 

Scott Szeryk’s “Celtic Rainbow,” Live at the Aeolian Hall

[This just in from Scott Szeryk!]

Hey PreSonus, I hope all is going well!!  We have just released out latest live video “Celtic Rainbow,” all recorded at the Aeolian Hall, in London Canada, June 8, 2012. on Studio One and the StudioLive 24.4.2.
Here is some insight as to how we recorded our show, “Live at the Aeolian Hall.”

We multi-tracked the entire show via the Studio Live 24.4.2 into Capture.  Great care was taken on ensure that the instrument sources all sounded top notch (drums, bass, guitar, keys) and appropriate mics and DIs were used to capture the sounds of the instruments.

Drum mics were as follows:

  • AKG D112—kick
  • Shure SM 57s—snare top and bottom
  • Shure KSM 32’s—toms
  • Shure KSM 137—hi-hat and ride
  • AKG 414s—overheads

For post-production (mixing and mastering) we used Studio One, and things were kept pretty simple as the performances and sounds were good at the source.  I’m not a “fix it in the mix” type of engineer, so the sounds have to be great to begin with. Also we didn’t use any drum samples whatsoever. The drums sounded great and basic EQing (cut some of the boxey mids) and slight compression (just a hint, 2:1 with slow attack to keep the bass response) were used on the drums, and that’s it. Guitars were plugged straight into the Fractal AXE FX2, bass and keys ran DI.  The XMAX preamps on the StudioLive are so good that it helped the mix come together pretty quick!

Guitar Manifesto can be purchased by clicking here.

Studio One Courses and Methods from MusicEd.PreSonus.com

Studio One Courses and Methods from MusicEd.PreSonus.com

There’s nothing short of a wealth of resources online for learning about Studio OneJohn Mlynczak recently compiled this great list of online educational resources from Lynda.Com, Groove3, Berklee School of Music, and more. It’s also available on MusicEd.PreSonus.Com, but we thought the whole PreSonus community should be aware of ’em as well.

There’s some great  info here that is available in many platforms, including books, videos, and entire online courses. These include options for every user, regardless of your level of experience with Studio One. Maybe you’re a seasoned producer who’s looking to dig deep? Perhaps you recently upgraded Studio One and want to learn more about the new features you’ve gotten access to?  Maybe you’re just starting out? No matter your level of experience with Studio One, there’s valuable information in here for you!

Courses


Up and Running with Studio One® (lynda.com)

Studio One Version 2 Explained (Groove3.com)

Studio One Version 2 Advanced (Groove3.com)

Studio One 101: Songwriters and Musicians Toolbox(macProVideo.com)

Studio One 102: Producers and Engineers Toolbox (macProVideo.com)

Studio One 103: Advanced MIDI Toolbox (macProVideo.com)

Studio One 104: Mixing and Mastering Toolbox (macProVideo.com)

Free PreSonus® Video Tutorials (Obedia.com)

Recording and Producing in the Home Studio (Berklee Online)

 

Churches Praise PreSonus StudioLive

The StudioLive family of digital mixers have become a sonic solution for houses of worship around the globe. We recently compiled this great series of testimonials from live sound engineers who rely on the StudioLive for their events. Thanks much to everyone who had a hand in this!

For more on the StudioLive solution, click here.

Social Media for Musicians Vol.1: Facebook

So, you want your band on Facebook! Social media has allowed bands to find new fans (and vice versa) like nobody’s business. After all, social media is nothing more than good old-fashioned word-of-mouth, spiced up with a dash of globo-digital instantaneousness and searchability. With 1.06 Billion users, there’s gotta be somebody on there who’s going to like your band. And most importantly of all, Facebook appeals to the human need for soapboxes by making it single-click easy for your fans to tell their friends all about how great your band is.

There’s a lot to go over here. Since you’re reading this, I’ll assume you’re online, and since you’re online, you may already know how to set up a Facebook page. For those who like to skip ahead:

  1. Facebook Page Setup
  2. Facebook Store Setup
  3. Best Practices for bands on Facebook
  4. Adding Friends
  5. Dos and Don’ts

Facebook Page Setup:

It’s easy to set up and totally worth the trouble. Note that Facebook layout changes from time to time, so if you’re reading this a few years after publication, the navigation may have changed a bit.

1. From your home page, click “Pages” on the far left.

 

2. Click on “Add a Page.” (Alternatively, you can skip the above by navigating straight to https://www.facebook.com/pages/create/, if you’re feeling keyboardy.)

 

 

3. Click on “Artist, Band, or Public Figure. Choose Category “Musician/Band.”



 

Fill out the details in the next few dialogue boxes. These are pretty self-explanatory:


Congrats! You’ll be taken to your brand new Facebook page. It looks pretty empty, but it won’t that way for long.

Populate your page with “About” info including your band lineup and a description of your sound. This process isn’t all that different from filling out a personal profile, which you must have done at least once already, since that’s required to get into Facebook and create a page. So we’ll skip that. Worth noting is that Facebook is picky when it comes to the dimensions of your images—so here’s a handy guide for sizing them appropriately.

 

Nimbit Store Setup

Next up? Add your Nimbit store to your page so you can sell music directly from Facebook. This process is covered in detail in the handy video below. You can get the ball rolling on setting up your Nimbit store on Facebook by clicking this link. 

 

Adding Friends

So, you’ve got your store up and running. Be sure to invite friends to Like your new page by clicking on “See All” in the top right of the “Invite Friends” section.

From there, you’ll get a much better interface for inviting folks to like your page.  Choose the folks you think would like your band and click “Submit”.

So, now what? Let’s look at some of the best practices for making the most of your presence on Facebook.

Frame of mind:


Think twice, post once.  The best way for your Facebook page to serve you is to have it serve your fans first. So, with every element you add or change to your page, consider the fan’s perspective.  Here’s some quick questions to get you in the mindset.

What sort of folks are interested in your band? And, by extension, what sort of content do they like? If your band is highly visual, with lots of lights/costumes/dancing girls, etc., then maybe video is going to be more important to your Facebook presence than text and images. If your band is of the hardcore DIY-touring mindset, post shots of the band crammed into the van, and of the crazy restaurants you will inevitably find out there. (I recommend Bolton’s Spicy Chicken and Fish in Nashville, BTW)

What do you want to have happen? Are you looking to sell music online first and foremost? Or do you just want to get word out about your shows? Consider these things when prioritizing content on your Facebook page. If online music sales are more your bag, make sure that the Nimbit store is front-and-center and easy for your visitors to find.

Best Practices—Dos and Don’ts.


Do:

Create Events for your shows, usually. Before doing so, watch for redundant events set up by the venue holding the shows. Having multiple events on Facebook set up for the same show dilutes the messaging and increases the chance that fewer people will be aware of your upcoming performance. Participation in Facebook marketing can vary wildly from venue to venue, so once you’re booked, check in with the booker to see what the venue’s policy is. If they have already set up an event for your show, get the link and share it to your audience and personal friends. Ask to be made an admin of the venue’s event. The worst they can do is say “no.” Post links to your music in the event, as well as on the venue’s Facebook page, so fans of the venue can get turned on to your sound before the show. Post reminders of the show 3 days before you take the stage, as well as on the day of the show itself. Link to the Facebook Event in your post(s).

Invite friends to like/share your page, but be judicious about it. Don’t spam everyone on your whole friend list, take the time to figure out which people might be actually interested in your music. Few grandmas are into Toxic Holocaust, so fan request accordingly. Likes are important for booking, as venues will take a quick glance at your like count, which implies that more folks will pay to come and see you play.

Give away some music! You don’t have to give it all away, of course, but who doesn’t love a freebie? One of the best way to reward your fans and show your appreciation is via Nimbit’s Promo Tool. Getting your fans to download a freebie is a great foot-in-the-door to an album sale. Among other things, Nimbit’s Promo Tool allows for:

  • Share a free download, automatically followed up with a discount on your full album at a specified time
  • Offer a discount on an item, then reward fans who purchase with a thank you message and a free bonus
  • Set start and end times for limited-time-only promos (A window of opportunity is a great motivator)

For more on Nimbit’s Promo Tool, click here. It also works on Twitter—more on that in the next blog post in this series.

Ask questions. People LOOOOVE A soapbox. Most of your fans probably don’t share your privilege of gracing a stage with a PA and a bunch of loud amps. So, give them a little digital slice. Ask who else they liked at the last show, what cover song they want to hear next time, or something similar. Let them know their opinion counts.

Measure and respond in kind. Facebook insights makes it REAL easy to see what posts of yours are performing the best. Take particular note of the “Virality” statistic in Facebook Insights. You can sort this content by value, like an Excel spreadsheet. Check in here once a week or so by clicking on “See All” on your page’s “Insights” panel.

Find out what content was shared the most, as that’s what is getting your band the most exposure to friends of friends. This is your barometer—post more content in a similar vein. Second most important number here is how many comments a particular post has received, as indicated by “Talking About This.”

Respond promptly. Check in to answer fan inquiries once per day, and make sure everyone gets at least one “Like,” or better yet – a response.

Make everyone in the band a page admin. This allows you to divide and conquer, so the bulk of the online marketing efforts don’t just fall on one person. Give each person in the band a couple days out of the week to keep up on social goings-on. Admin settings can be found under the “Edit Page” menu on the top right.

From there, you can assign who is in charge of what, like posting new content, moderating comments, etc. Careful, don’t make anyone in the band that you don’t completely trust a Manager, as they can do things like revoke your access—or delete the page entirely!

Post photos from the road/practice space/backstage. Fans LOVE this stuff. They love access, even digital, to spaces and places they are not allowed into. You get access to green rooms, you get to hang with other bands, etc. Bring your fans in on it. Instagram is also great for this—more on that later.

Now for what NOT to do: 

Don’t:

  • Over-do it. A band that’s too noisy and posts a lot of non-news is more likely to get unliked on Facebook, which pretty much defeats the purpose of the whole “Marketing your band online” idea.
  • Argue. If someone tells you your band sucks on Facebook, you can take it. Trust me, if you’ve ever been booed or heckled, you can take it—and your fans may well come to your defense. Don’t feed the trolls, it only gets worse. Consider a policy of not deleting inflammatory posts (unless they’re REALLY bad) as this can just egg jerks on to post negative stuff more frequently, turning your great Facebook presence into a moderation nightmare.
  • Set up a personal profile for your band, like first name: “Jack”, Middle Name, “and”, last name “the Badgers”. This is a common mistake. Set up your band with a Page  as described above. In setting up your brand as a person, you run into several pitfalls:
    • A maximum of 5,000 friends
    • No opportunities for Facebook advertising, short of small promoted posts
    • There’s always the chance that Facebook will find out your profile is not for a person and remove the account entirely! Profiles, distinct from Pages, are for people only.
  • Set up a Group as your main Facebook presence. Fan groups are OK, but setting up a group for your main band presence on Facebook is less than ideal, as you’ll lose out on advertising opportunities and app functionality like the Nimbit store.


Next up? Twitter!


Enter to Win a StudioLive 32.4.2AI in the “Why StudioLive” Video Contest!

Our recent “Why I Switched to Studio One” video contest was such a smashing success that we decided to kick it up a notch.

So, here’s your contest. Prime directive? Extrapolate! The whole human race deserves to know why you chose the StudioLive mixer out of the billions and billions of mixers available in our little blue corner of the galaxy. The best video, as chosen by PreSonus galactic overlords, will receive the flagship mixer of our next generation, the StudioLive 32.4.2AI—a $3,999 value. 

So, again, we want videos. Billions and billions of videos! This contest shares much in common with the last contest, but with the following upgrades:

  • No online voting this time. PreSonus will choose the winning video. Last time we got a lot of fraudulent votes that we traced to an IP address in a pirate sector of Zeta Centauri.
  • The second-place winner will receive a pair of Sceptre S8 monitors, a $1,999 value.
  • Non-English submissions are welcome, but must include English subtitles to qualify for entry.
  • Please keep your videos around 1:30, 2:00 maximum. Videos even one picosecond over 2:00 will not be considered for entry.

Here’s the rest of the guidelines.

Create a video detailing why you chose the StudioLive mixer over the universe of mixers available.

  • Be specific about why you chose the StudioLive. Discuss your favorite most-used features.
  • Be mindful of the YouTube generation’s attention span. Keep it around 1:30.
  • Upload the video to YouTube, and make sure it’s set to be publicly viewable.
  • Submit your link at Facebook.com/PreSonus, using the VIDEO CONTEST application viewable under our cover photo. All fields are required. Submit by October 1, 2013 to qualify.
  • That’s it! You’re entered!

Here’s what we’re NOT in search of:

  • Nudity, profanity, violence, or any content that YouTube would remove your video over.
  • Videos that are too long. Keep it around 1:30, please.
  • “I like Studio One, AND NOW HERE’S MY BAND CHECK US OUT WE’LL BE PLAYING AT THE HOQIUAM SENIOR CENTER ON SATURDAY.” Stay on-topic.
  • If you use music in the video, it must be your own. No cover songs.
  • Film school projects/Oscar Contenders. You don’t need a Director of Photography, Hair & Makeup department, or Final Cut Pro to win. But it might help.

The grand prize winner will receive a StudioLive 32.4.2AI, and a free upgrade to Studio One Professional 2.5. If you’re already running Studio One Pro 2.5, we can connect you  with the PreSonus product of your choice as long as it’s under $300 in value.

The second place winner will receive a pair of Sceptre S8 monitors.

All video content submitted becomes the property of PreSonus Audio Electronics. Winner will be announced on or around October 2, 2013

Full lawyer-appeasing legalese can be found here.

The 32.4.2AI is light years ahead of previous StudioLive consoles, offering:

  • Double the amount of onboard internal effects buses and graphic EQs
  • Six mute groups
  • User-assignable Quick Scene buttons.
  • A Wi-Fi LAN adapter–no computer required for wireless connectivity!
  • 64 times the processing power and 10,000 times the amount of RAM of the StudioLive 24.4.2.

 

#TeamPreSonus Spotlight: Paul Peters!

[We decided it best to give some recognition to our more vocal advocates—and what better way than via a blog series?]

Who are you, where are you, and what do you do? 

Paul Peters, FOH/IEM (in-ear monitor) engineer, producer, songwriter, and performer. I’m also a PreSonus artist.
How were you introduced to PreSonus?
My experience with PreSonus started in 2008, when a church in Merritt Island, FL wanted to get a small compact console for their satellite campus.  I did research and loved the PreSonus StudioLive 16.4.2. I ordered the console, installed it, and began a love affair with PreSonus that is still strong. On multiple tours over the past five years, I was contacted by the band A Day To Remember in 2009, because the IEM system they were using failed.  I suggested the PreSonus 24.4.2.  They purchased the console and flew me to Ocala, FL to tweak it out for them.  They loved it, and I was soon hired to be their FOH/IEM engineer for two tours. After tens of thousands of miles, and countless shows, the mixer is still running strong.  Because of the quality and reliability, the PreSonus StudioLive family has been the first suggestion I make to touring bands, clubs, or houses of worship.  I have also been on tour with Sick Puppies, We Came as Romans, Otherwise, and Papa Roach.
What PreSonus software/hardware do you use and for what purpose?
Personally, I own a StudioLive 16.4.2.  I use it when I play clubs or when I mix other bands.  I purchased the mixer in 2010 and have yet to have anything go wrong with it.  I have also installed PreSonus StudioLive consoles in over 10 different venues including clubs, concert halls and houses of worship.
What’s so great about PreSonus, anyhow?
The functionality of the StudioLive consoles is where it truly shines. Great sound quality, comprehensive layout and portability makes the StudioLives great for any application.  The virtual sound check is an incredible tool. The WAV files from Capture rival most pro DAWs.  My favorite feature is Universal Control’s remote iPad mixing.  It has eliminated the need to pull an audio snake for a FOH position in just about every application.  Tweaking monitors and house is completely portable, and easy.  My iPad, router and StudioLive mixer are my best friends.
What are you working on now—or next?
Recent PreSonus adventures have been the A Day To Remember IEM mix, the Heritage FOH mix, and the Ridiculous Youth Conference in Panama City Beach.  I’m sure my next gig is right around the corner.
Where can our readers learn more about you online?

Royal Teeth on the StudioLive Complete Solution

Louisiana’s own Royal Teeth recently had an incredible trip on the road this summer, and they brought their StudioLive with them… as well as some video cameras, iPhones, and positive attitudes.

Upon choosing the StudioLive, Royal Teeth didn’t just end up hauling a mixer around. The StudioLive provided Royal Teeth with a complete solution for all of their touring needs, including:

• Live mixing of their shows
• Multi-track recording of shows along the entire tour, via Capture 2
• Mixing and publication of live show recordings via Studio One 2.5
• Room analysis and tuning using StudioLive’s integrated Smaart Wizards
• Onstage personal monitoring via QMix
• Remote iPad mixing via StudioLive Remote
• Fan acquisition via Nimbit’s FanCheck.In.

ALL of these technologies are included with the StudioLive mixers. For more on the StudioLive series, visit:

https://www.presonus.com/products/StudioLive-24.4.2

Here’s a whole slew of six videos featuring Royal Teeth’s experience on the road with their StudioLive, its Smaart integration, QMix, and Nimbit. Big thanks to Royal Teeth for their support of the PreSonus brand; glad to have you kind folks on board!