For those that are a fan of Propellerheads Reason software, you might be interested that I recently read a post on Computer Music blog. They say that
something is coming and that it really will be a major launch (ie, not just another posh ReFill)
I always look forwards to releases from these guys, they’re very innovative and more than many other companies I’ve owned softare from, they write stable, and very solid code. They say May 9th is a likely candidate for the release date, because it coincides with the Producers Conference. Full blog post can be found here
http://www.computermusic.co.uk/page/computermusic?entry=something_big_on_the_way
I finally got around to installing the sound interface I’ve had kicking around for so long, this was mostly driven by my need to DI my Telecaster, combined with a recent update to Guitar Rig. First impressions of the Presonus Firestudio are great, but there’s enough articles and reviews out there, so there’s no need to regurgitate them all here. So this evening I’ll be trying out the DI functionality, and sometime next week (due mostly to XLR lead fail issues) I’ll be trying out the mic pre’s on the interface to see if they’re all they’ve been hyped up to be.
Presonus Firestudio Project
I’ve just finished reading this book, and I have to say, it’s not full of groundbreaking industry secrets which is very refreshing, but perhaps the best thing about the book is it’s use of visual imagary to help the reader understand the sound-stage that you’re mixing within. The text itself is full of really useful day-to-day information, full of mixing common-sense. Things like why certain parts are placed in the mix in a particular way, how to keep an ear on your audience, and still take into account the client and their mix wishes for the end product.
Much of what makes this so great is the fact that it’s almost a complete source useful studio mixing & production information, that would be really useful on any studio bookshelf as a reference, it has a clear methodological approach to the subject, and presents all of the informational clearly and concisely, it’s clear that David has a great deal of experience in the music production and engineering field.
I’d give this book 4.5 stars out of 5 losing only half a star because some parts get a little repetitive; especially the section about homework for listening to the relative volume levels for each part in the future, but that’s a subjective thing I guess, in some cases I feel a chart or two more might have been able to cut down on some of this.
Top book, for both beginners, home producers, and intermediate non-professional sound engineers. I doubt that any practicing pro’s would get a huge amount from this as a lot of it would be picked up from working daily in a studio with other professionals. For me, this book was worth every penny!!
[amazonshowcase_0135454d85b5d62b0b1b7f629e7cba79]
I’ve spent the last week or so practicing my subtone technique, and I must say that it’s coming along quite nicely so far, with substantial quantities of Lee Konitz, Stan Getz and Paul Desmond on the iPod and Hi-Fi (is that term even relevant any more??) I’m getting plenty of inspiration. I’ve gotta say though, my technique is a far cry from that of the aforementioned greats, I wonder how long it’ll be before I can get this technique down sufficiently to pull it off in public? Hey, back to the practice we go 
Any other subtone listening recommendations are warmly welcomed