What I've learned so far on gearslutz.com

[DonPedro]

I ran across this board only a couple of weeks ago while gearhunting. I have mostly been busy with a different kind of gear, namely film gear, for the last 8 years or so. But a man must know his destiny, all these years playing my instruments had to lead to the building of a project studio.

This is a truly great forum. I feel right at home. Tons of good advice, and different opinions to work from. Some very experienced users, generous with their knowledge.

To sum up what I've learned so far:

Everything Rupert Neve has blessed with his Midas touch is better than most of the rest.

But SSL is great too.

1073 is a safe choice. (it should be if at that price)

If you can't afford Neve, you will have to hunt for cheaper variants, even solder them together yourself!

Convertors are important.

Avalons are well built but clean and boring.

Plugins are just that. Not preamps, not analog equipment, but plugins. Use them, but do not think you do not need the extremely expensive gear as well for that fat sound you really want.

There IS NO "right solution" when it comes to gear choice and use, but there is a lot of wrong solutions.

And it ain't worth a thing if you ain't got that swing :-)


The force is strong within me....

[theblue1]

I seem to sense a hint of tongue in cheek in your post, and I got a chuckle out of it.

I think this is perhaps the most important of your lessons:

"There IS NO 'right solution' when it comes to gear choice and use, but there is a lot of wrong solutions."

And, to it, I would add: Every once in a while, the wrong solution is the right solution, and knowing when can be the difference between craft and art...

[GPl]

Originally Posted by theblue1

I seem to sense a hint of tongue in cheek in your post, and I got a chuckle out of it.

I think this is perhaps the most important of your lessons:

"There IS NO 'right solution' when it comes to gear choice and use, but there is a lot of wrong solutions."

And, to it, I would add: Every once in a while, the wrong solution is the right solution, and knowing when can be the difference between craft and art...

and pure irish luck!

[DonPedro]

Originally Posted by theblue1

I seem to sense a hint of tongue in cheek in your post, and I got a chuckle out of it.

I think this is perhaps the most important of your lessons:

"There IS NO 'right solution' when it comes to gear choice and use, but there is a lot of wrong solutions."

And, to it, I would add: Every once in a while, the wrong solution is the right solution, and knowing when can be the difference between craft and art...

thumbsup Tongue in cheek is my middle name :-)

[warhead]

I just wanna know how damn cold is it in Iceland right about now?

(oh and welcome to GS)

War

[Playback]

Oh where Oh where did you get the Idea that people on this forum.
Love NEVE!

[T_R_S]

What I've learned so far on gearslutz.com

There are a lot of people who spend more time here than they do in the studio.

[Oldone]

Remember, Neve spelled backwards is Even which is what your debt will be in 5 years after you buy one.

[raal]

and SSL spelled backwards is LSS: Lots of Sick Slutz that don't care if they ever break even.

[max cooper]

Originally Posted by Oldone

Remember, Neve spelled backwards is Even which is what your debt will be in 5 years after you buy one.

That's why I like API so much. (Although Phat, Inexpensive)

[Frequency]

Don Pedro, that's a brilliant observation!

Haha.

Loved this post.

I've also noticed some people seem to lack a sense of humour and take themselves - and gear - way too seriously. It's like a church sometimes.

However, I have a great time reading posts here and I've learned a lot.
It's the best audio forum on the web, no doubt.

Have a great day, everyone!

[u b k]

Originally Posted by DonPedro

To sum up what I've learned so far:

speaking of summing up, your list somehow overlooks the 100% agreed upon truth that analog summing is vastly superior to itb.

do not be fooled by that whole "great song / great room" distraction, those people are clearly gear deficient and attempt to compensate by bringing such abstractions as "taste and "acoustical science" into the discussion. as a scientician myself, i can assure you that no room in the world can polish a bad preamp.


gregoire
del ubik

[C.Lambrechts]

Kind words and I'm sure Jules will apreciate them.I know I do... , as well as the other moderators here.

A forum is made by it's members .... the amount of valuable info is put on it by it's members ... the overall vibe is created by it's members ..... I think it's safe to say Gearslutz can be pretty proud of it's members ...

[DC11]

I've learned to UTFSF. Some people are really adament about that.

Other then that, I've learned more then I can list I started coming here after Tapeop forum went down, and I can't belive I never came here before. This place rules.

[Jules]

Is this a trap?

[DrDeltaM]

Originally Posted by Jules

Is this a trap?

If it's a basstrap, it's all fine no?

[Drumsound]

Originally Posted by DonPedro

There IS NO "right solution" when it comes to gear choice and use, but there is a lot of wrong solutions.

And it ain't worth a thing if you ain't got that swing :-)

This sir is the crux of the biscuit.

[BradD]

I've learned many things, but predominantly, I've realized that I'm poor.

[shaddai]

The main thing I've learned: I've got a lot more to learn!

But the cool thing is is that people don't talk down to you when you have questions or aren't familiar with a piece of gear. Can't remember what thread it was, or even what it was about, but it was a total shocker to see a guy from Capitol (Sony? Atlantic?) in Paris answering questions for a guy who had a basement project studio in the U.S....and he treated him like a complete equal at that. This doesn't happen in most communities that I know of. You don't see Donald Trump giving advice to a small town real estate agent do you?

Anyway, definitely one of the grand resources on the net for learning about recording gear....and people in the field. I'll be sticking around/lurking for quite a while I'm sure.

Todd

[2leod]

Originally Posted by BradD

I've learned many things, but predominantly, I've realized that I'm poor.

There is a bright side - at least y'all ain't po'...


Other folks be poor...



We's PO' !



Dirt po'...



Tha's what ah'm talkin' 'bout....

[proxy]

Truly great site! I've learned so much in the last few months I've been here, and I've received crucial and *detailed* feedback to specific questions related to, what else, spending what's left of my dough on top notch gear! But you know, with the guidence of the regulars here, I have to say - it's been worth every penny.

The knowledge and experience that dwells here is insanity! Thanks all.

- proxy

[Playback]

I found this somewhere on Slutz Ken had it.
He has quite the list

[brendondp]

I've learned that for every great, truly original or experientially-based thought or post - the ones where decades of wisdom accrued from real-world experience are succinctly summarized by a few carefully chosen sentences - there are at least one-hundred other guys who just have to post a counter-argument simply because they believe having an opinion makes a difference.

And that my gear-lust always exceeds my expenditure by a factor of at least 10.

Cheers,

bdp

[DonPedro]

In Iceland, 8 degrees Celsius, and possible nightfrost. In Dubai, where I am now on a job, 44 degrees Celsius in the shadow, and no nightfrost.

[bunnerabb]

I've learned that I already have a pretty good grip on what I'm doing, what I want from a mix, and how to get it there.

I've learned some neat tips and tricks.

I've learned that a lot of those tips ands tricks aren't applicable if you can't afford stuff that's predominantly, much like Merceds Benz SEC's and Malibu beachfront homes - designed to promote civil unrest as much as quality results.

I've learned, actually, had the notion reinforced - that I should always follow my instincts and my ears, Über alles.

I've learned that a good preamp is more important than a great mic.

I've learned the importance of a good clock.

I've learned that I'm not the only person recording stuff who would much rather do it to a tape deck.

I've learned that there is a sense of camaraderie in the production community that supersedes personal politics and less important matters amongst it's denizens, and that is the mark of a true craft.

I've learned to try and ask better questions.

I've learned that I have a lot less interest in being with the "in crowd" or gaining acceptance than I do in espressing my views, honestly.

I've learned that the common passions shared by those who dedicate themselves to technical artistry in music are probably the most important piece in the kit.

[gwailoh]

Originally Posted by u b i k

speaking of summing up, your list somehow overlooks the 100% agreed upon truth that analog summing is vastly superior to itb.

It's very important IMO for everyone summing ITB to study Paul Frindle's extraordinarily helpful technical comments posted throughout this thread over on PSW. Paul makes it clear that there are specific technical reasons for the bad experiences some people have had with ITB summing, and very simple, specific ways to avoid them. I know that the Slutty mantra is Buy More Stuff, but for those contemplating an expensive external summing purchase, I strongly recommend digesting Paul F's posts before coming to a decision.

Here's Paul's summary: "It is not a summing issue at all (the one thing digits CAN do is add up almost perfectly). It's an illegal output problem caused by the fact that there are no meters that display actual SIGNAL in your whole mixing environment - you simply never see it happening.

So - go back and get your fav test mix back up on your W/S, re-mix the whole thing making sure that at every place in all chains (including between all plug-ins) never gets bigger than -6dBr. Make sure your final output after any limiting etc also never peaks beyond -6dBr. Now do the comparison between this ITB mix and a similar OTB mix. You might have a big surprise."

His simple advice: "The simplest practical advice right now (with the kit you are currently compelled to use - and if your paymasters will let you) is to think of sample value levels in the green section of the meter as always legitimate (i.e. repeatable at destination). Those in the yellow area (-6dBr and -3dBr) are most probably ok, but caution should be taken as they're definitely big enough and may just cause reconstruction errors if clipped or intentionally distorted in the digital domain or digitally recorded from an artificial source. Levels between -3dBr and 0dBr are dangerous and those that actually reach the red light are almost certainly broken signals and are very likely to degrade in various ways at the destination DAC - in both your's and the end user's!! And above all - don't assume that any meter anywhere within the system indicates a legitimate signal by dint of it not hitting a red light."

Hope this helps!

[Oldone]

Originally Posted by gwailoh

Slutty mantra

I like the sound of that.

[raal]

Originally Posted by gwailoh

It's very important IMO for everyone summing ITB to study Paul Frindle's extraordinarily helpful technical comments posted throughout this thread over on PSW.

thank you gwailoh. so if i understand correctly, if you stay at or below -6dB on individual channels and mix bus, you're pretty safe and the mix should open up -- when one goes OTB, it's simpler to avoid these problems because when going 'back in', bordeline 'illegal' signals are likely to happen only once? and to summarize, trying to achieve 'competitive mixes' in the end is pretty much a bad thing, whether outside or ITB, if the final media is to be digital?

wow...

[FMNYC]

Originally Posted by u b i k

speaking of summing up, your list somehow overlooks the 100% agreed upon truth that analog summing is vastly superior to itb.

do not be fooled by that whole "great song / great room" distraction, those people are clearly gear deficient and attempt to compensate by bringing such abstractions as "taste and "acoustical science" into the discussion. as a scientician myself, i can assure you that no room in the world can polish a bad preamp.


gregoire
del ubik

thumbsup thumbsup thumbsup

i've learned that i am royally screwed.
for the rest of my life i will be lusting and spending all my "extra" money on gear and i will NEVER be satisfied.

so so screwed.


FM

FM is grateful for his iron lung.

[Billster]

Originally Posted by T_R_S

What I've learned so far on gearslutz.com

There are a lot of people who spend more time here than they do in the studio.

That´s what I keep wondering about : what do these people do for a living ? I mean do they get paid by Jules ?!

Bill