|
AES 2007 Top Picks
Yes my friends, lazy summer days have gone and fall has arrived, and we all know what that means. October is AES month, and this year’s show in New York had a ton of cool new products and surprises for Pro Tools users. In this week’s corner I will run through some of my top picks for the fall season (gift idea’s anyone?) and share with you some of the highlights from AES 2007.
What’s new from Digidesign
In case you hadn’t noticed, Digidesign really pulled out all the stops this fall, making some huge product announcements including: Pro Tools 7.4, the new Command 24 control surface, ICON D-Control ES, MediaStation PT 2.7, and their new guitar amp modeling software Eleven.
Pro Tools 7.4 - elastic time anyone?
It has finally arrived, well almost. Showcased at this year’s AES and hopefully shipping very soon, Pro Tools 7.4 promises some of the coolest new features yet. While of course as soon as I get my hands on a copy we will dig right into to the new workflow here at the corner, but I thought I would give you a taste of things to come.
Elastic audio, or “elastic time,” is by far the standout feature of this release. Any users familiar with DAWs like Abelton Live will be very excited to see Pro Tool’s new time stretching capabilities, allowing you to work with sample based audio much like MIDI and tick based elements. The days of worrying about syncing your existing audio recordings or loops with midi sequenced virtual instruments are over as Pro Tools new elastic time feature makes changing tempo or groove of audio tracks simple, even on the fly. Because extreme time compression/expansion often introduces nasty little artifacts, 7.4 gives you the ability to select from a wide range of high quality stretching algorithms on a track by track basis, so you can ensure optimum stretching of a variety of different audio sources. The stretching engine also gives you the ability to quickly preview loops “in context,” synced to the tempo of your song, making loop browsing a whole lot easier. Oh and by the way, elastic audio will totally transform the way you quantize and groove conform audio using tools like beat detective. Stay tuned for in depth tutorials on using elastic audio in Pro Tools.
Pro Tools 7.4 Post
Pro Tools HD post users will be happy know that an updated version of MediaStation PT will be released, plus support for unrendered avid sequence playback with the new Video Satellite option. In addition, Pro Tools LE user’s will now be able to take advantage of Avid video directly in the timeline with direct support for the Avid Mojo SDI.
Vista Support (Finally!)
And last but not least, for all you windows fan boys out there, 7.4 will finally bring Vista support to Pro Tools (still at 32 bit of course). So for those of you waiting to buy a new PC without having to downgrade to windows XP, the wait is finally over. Also of note in 7.4 is improved rewire support, including support for incoming midi data from programs like Reason.
New PT Control Surfaces
Many end users aren’t aware of the major role Digidesign plays in cutting edge large-format work surface design. Anyone who has used one will tell you, the ICON line offers the best tactile integration of any DAW worksurface hands down. Now HD users have a couple more options when it comes to Pro Tool control. The ICON D-Control ES features a sleek new color scheme with improved legibility (I was never really a fan of the powder blue to tell you the truth), basically it the same thing as the original D-Command it just looks a whole lot cooler and is easier to read. Also shown at AES was the new C-24, a 24-fader replacement for Digi’s aging Control-24 surface. The C-24 will fill the price gap void between the higher end ICON surfaces and entry level Command-8 (although probably more around the higher end of the price gap) and features 16 updated mic pres, a 5.1 monitoring sections and an external power supply.
Eleven, Pro Tools guitar amp Heaven?
So before you do anything, go grab a free pre-release demo of Digidesign’s new guitar amp modeling plug-in at digidesign.com and check this thing out for yourself (note: you will need an ilok account). Although technically not part of Digi’s official AES releases, Eleven popped up on Digidesign’s website site last week and I just had to check out the free demo. Using “tone-cloning” technology, Eleven promises to emulate some of the finest classic guitar amplifiers right inside of Pro Tools or Venue, and if you are an HD user, Eleven will work as a TDM plug-in so you don’t have to worry about RTAS latency when tracking guitars.
The demo installer includes the TDM, RTAS and Audio Suite versions of the plug and you will need an ilok to register the free 30-day demo. From what I have heard so far, I am very impressed with Eleven’s tone and playability, as well as its stripped-down no non-sense layout. The only thing I noticed about Eleven was that unlike its clever spinal tap reference, the knobs don’t actually go to eleven. Either way, I am definitely looking forward to the full version.
Other Notable AES Picks
IK Multimedia’s ARC – Finally an easy solution to your troubled room
IK has announced their new groundbreaking acoustic room correction plug-in that promises to help automatically tune and time align your monitoring system. The idea is that you simply slap ARC on your mixbus, set up the included calibration mic and let the plug-in do the rest. ARC will sweep the room, creating custom EQ curves to help treat room modes and time align your monitors to improve phase distortion and reduce smearing. Unlike other room calibration solutions, ARC MultiEQ allows you to measure multiple positions in your mix space, averaging out the treatment curve over a wider sweet spot. ARC will ship supporting all the major plug-in formats including RTAS, so users of multiple DAW’s should have no problem switching between applications and maintaining playback consistency. While it is unlikely that ARC will completely replace traditional acoustic treatment methods it is definitely a step in the right direction. Because I am always looking for ways to improve the sound of my mixes and monitoring system without rebuilding my studio, I will certainly be first in line to check out this new plug from IK and report back to you with the details.
FXpansion BFD2
Unless you have been living under a rock the last few years, you probably know that BFD is the acoustic drum sampler to plug-in to beat. Previewed at AES and hopefully shipping before the end of the ’07, BFD 2 takes all the things you love about BFD and adds all the stuff you always wished it could do. Featuring a brand new, completely re-recorded 55 gig sample library, BFD2 now includes a built in mixing environment complete with insert and send FX, analog modeled EQ’s, compressors, reverbs, and more. Fans of Digidesign’s strike will enjoy the new groove-editing environment, which allows you to search, re-map and create your own grooves and songs inside of BFD. The plug-in also features a new, easier to use controller-mapping interface allowing you to take better advantage of a wide variety of MIDI controllers and electronic kits.
In closing
While it is always very exciting to check out all the new gear, it is a little anti climatic when much of it hasn’t actually shipped yet. So stay tuned as this stuff starts rolling out onto the shelves. As soon as I get my hands on the gear I will be sure to report back here first thing. I hope everyone had a great time at the show, I can only imagine what exciting new products Januaries NAMM show brings us.
Pro Tools Tidbits:
- Waves announced the release of GTR 3, featuring all new amp models and stomp effets. The update is free to all users covered under WUP (waves update plan)
- IK Multimedia released Samplemoog, a sample based Moog virtual instrument.
- Izoptope has released RX, a cutting edge sound restoration suite.
If you have a Pro Tools related question that you would like me to take a shot at answering or have any feedback, please send it to brian@audioMIDI.com. I will do my best to select the questions that seem to stump the most people.
As always, stay tuned to the audioMIDI.com eNews for the latest reviews and new product info.
| 
