credit_agro wrote:
God, im abit confused now. Im not really 100% sure about what I meant by some of the questions I asked.
In the past I have usually made some sound through a software synth using midi. I used to have quite a few midi tracks so to ease processor load I would record the midi effectively making it into an audio track and disabling the midi track.
I was thinking of doing this with the hardware setup. Just record all my sounds from a virus or whatever into the computer or some other type of recording device. I may then end up with 18 tracks of audio, with abelton I had the ability to to then timestretch audio, move around parts and all that. I would like this ability with hardware basically. I want to be able to do the equalisation with hardware et cetera then but I could work with a proper controller for software.
reading through this post would confuse anybody mate !!
midi/hardware is easy !!!!
this is how i do it, you need a midi sequencer in your computer (i prefer cubase) you need a midi interface, connect all your hardware up with midi cables.
connect the audio outs on your gear to seperate channels on your mixing desk.
the next bit is where things can be done in different ways, depending on what soundcard or mixer/interface you have, it all depends how many audio inputs it has.
the more inputs you have, the more you can keep your sounds seperate as you send them into your computer to be recorded, but its not totally necessary to keep them all seperate. i get my levels right at the start, by making sure all the velocities, note lengths etc. of the midi patterns i'm sending to my gear are right, in otherwords i'm effectively doing my arrangements and editing in the midi domain, i'm controlling what the synths do in midi, so that when i record the sounds back into my computer, the tune is already written, everything is at the right level and doing what i want it to do.
i have an analogue desk with 8 subgroups and an 8 in soundcard. sometimes i subgroup the sounds on the mixer into 8 important groups, like Kickdrum / Bass / percussion L / percussion R / texturalsounds L / textural sounds R / effects L / effects R, so that if i need to do any tweaks later i still have the option to say lower the bass against the rest of the mix etc.
infact usually i dont even bother to do this, i usually just make sure everything is right and record it down to two tracks and thats it !!
what i'm saying is i dont mess around with audio tracks to arrange my tunes, i do the arranging / automation etc. in the midi sequencer.
honestly its so much easier to do it this way, than to mess around with audio tracks, because you've got total control over absolutley everything in the midi domain, if just one bass note in the whole tune is a bit loud, you can turn in down individually without affecting anything else.
in other words i dont record any audio whatsoever till everything is sorted. (in a way it is like when you render in ableton.)
i think that because so many people start off on ableton these days, they 'think' in audio rather than midi, because ableton is great for arranging in audio, but poor with midi, cubase is luxury in comparison for midi arranging.
i hope that hasnt confused you even more.
