[Protux-devel] Re: Protux based studio

[Luciano Giordana]

First of all, sorry by the delay in this reply, David

somehow, the mails from the list is not coming to me, although I can send. I
saw you messages in the archives. Im checking what is going on

so, the reply:

well, it depends on the state of protux. For now, it can handle just half-duplex
recording, which means, you can record in a time, and playback in another time.
It also has support for just one dsp device. 

For a full studio you would require this :

1 soundcard / dsp card with at least 4 ins and 4 outs (midiman has great cards
and 100% linux compatible)

1 mixer . I recommend Mackie always. They have brains there, and the XLR preamp 
for mix
are just amazing. A minimum mixer would have 4 balanced ins with canoon 
jackets, 4 
ins for hi-level signals (such CD players, and so on) and 4 outs. This mixer
should have a phantom power system too (because of the mic, the next point)


1 good Mic . Use condenser mic, not directional (they are better for stage, not 
studio)
and should work with phantom power. AKG provide good mics but I prefer 
seinheiser

Lots of good cables. Make them your self. Avoid reconnections and "extensions". 
user
the short cable you can. The shorter the cables, the lower the noise


A good valve compressor. If your soundcard works with 20 bits or 24 it is not 
that needed
but if you work with 16 bits, you will need this, or you will get many 
distortions
on the input.
Put the compressor in the mixer as a send/return system

Good ear-phones

A good computer. Avoid big Monitor screen, because they interfere very much 
on the audio signals. Prefer LCD monitors.
The computer should have at least 20Gb of HD, 128 of RAM (the more, the better)
a 600Mhz CPU and good installation (Ground-cable, Stabilizer, AC filter, and so
on).

Good speaker with a amplifier oriented to audio production. Yamaha has
good cheap audio-monitor-systems. Plug the monitor system at he sound-card
outputs. If you soundcard has many outputs, use another mixer as a monitor 
mixer.


For the software, you will need Linux and Protux , of course.

A good place to build the studio. Use a room for the capturing room
and another, acousticly isolated to the computer/mixer/compressor stuff.

A good isolation is a matter of doctor-grade in the univesities. But I got
a good one here at home by doing this

I built a not-square rom, put a material called "sonex" here in brazil that
is little pieces of sponge-similar fabric, in 3 walls. The 4th wall I covered 
with wood. The walls has 3 layers. the 1 and 3 (the outer layers) are made of
wood, carpet, and rubber, in THIS SEQUENCE, for outside to inside. The 2nd 
layer is a 
10cm layer of AIR  (thats exactly what you read)

I can play a acoust guitar inside this room withou beign heard outside. It 
worls fine

For the production, remember :

DO NOT record anything with effects (such reverb, chorus). Apply them in 
the post production

Avoid recording many things at a time. You loose control of the production.
Only in big studios, with independent isolated rooms it can be done safely.


Well this is it. I hope it helped a lot. 

Remember. Photo-camers, before 1970s, was a photographer's exclusive thing.
Now everybody take good pictures with a $5 camera. This is the "banalization" 
process
of the tecnology. Audio Studios are coming into the same phenomenon.
The thing is not the tecnology anymore, but it is WHAT YOU PRODUCE with this.

So get inspired, and show your creativity to the world :-)