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Tech Tips

inSync Tech Tips cover over 3,800 music and audio topics spanning 15 years of technological development. Look here to find answers to your tech questions, cool tips and tools for making music, and more.

Computer Tech Tips

Apr 26 2012, 12:00 AM

Cool Site: PedalboardPlanner.com

We're not associated with this site, but we use it all the time: PedalboardPlanner.com. It's an interactive site that allows you to choose a Pedaltrain pedalboard, then load on and position images of pedals so you can make sure everything will fit, to try out layouts for pedals, to visualize... Read more »
Apr 25 2012, 12:00 AM

TC Electronic TonePrint Editor

Q: I watched the Sweetwater Minute where Mitch Gallagher was making custom TonePrints for the TC Electronic pedals with Tore from TC. I want to make my own TonePrints. Where can I get the software they were using? A: The TonePrint software is not available to end users. It was developed for... Read more »
Apr 19 2012, 12:00 AM

Apogee & Windows Compatability

Q: I have an Apogee interface that I use with my Mac, but I want to do some work in a friend's studio who uses Windows. Is there any way to use my Apogees with Windows? A: All Apogee Firewire and USB interfaces support Mac only; some also support iOS connection to iPad or iPhone. Older Apogee... Read more »
Apr 4 2012, 12:00 AM

All USB Ports Are Not Created Equal

While it would seem logical to assume that all of the USB ports on a device are identical, this is not always the case, particularly where bus power is concerned. In some cases a bus-powered device may function fine on one of a device's USB ports but not on another. If you have trouble with a... Read more »
Mar 27 2012, 12:00 AM

Q Series & iPad

Did you know that the Alesis Q-series MIDI keyboard controllers can work with the iPad 2? All you need is the Apple Camera Kit, which allows class-compliant USB devices such as the Alesis Q-series, to connect to the iPad 2 and to function as if they were connected to a laptop or desktop computer.
Mar 26 2012, 12:00 AM

BFD Hits 64 Bit

FXpansion has announced that as of version 2.3, BFD is now fully 64-bit compatible under Windows 7 and Mac OS X 10.5.8 or higher. This allows you to assemble larger kits that require more memory. Note that this update requires Windows 7 or OS X 10.5.8 or later. It is not compatble with Windows... Read more »
Mar 20 2012, 12:00 AM

Lynx Thunderbolt Drivers

Lynx has announced drivers that allow their AES16e, AES16e-SRC, and AES16e-50 professional audio cards to work with upcoming Thunderbolt expansion chassis. The new Lynx driver has been fully tested with the Sonnet Echo Express PCIe 2.0 Thunderbolt Expansion Chassis and Magma's ExpressBox 3T... Read more »
Mar 19 2012, 12:00 AM

Dual Symphony Phone Mixes

Q: Can you send different mixes to the two headphone outputs on the Apogee Symphony I/O? A: Yes, the two headphone outputs on the front of the Symphony are completely independent. You can send different mixes to them using the included Maestro control software and you can control their volume... Read more »
Mar 9 2012, 12:00 AM

A-to-D Converter versus Audio Interface

Q: I see products that are advertised as converters and some advertised as interfaces. I'm not sure I can see much difference. Can you help? A: It depends on how much of a purist you are and how literal you want to be. We think of it this way: In literal terms, a converter is designed to either... Read more »
Mar 7 2012, 12:00 AM

Apogee One and Maestro?

Q: Do I have to run the Maestro software with Apogee's One audio interface, or can it work directly with my DAW? A: Either way. You can use One with Maestro for low-latency monitoring and software control over all of the interface's features. Or, if latency isn't an issue or you can run the... Read more »
Feb 27 2012, 12:00 AM

Cool Tool: PageFlip Cicada

Put your feet to work navigating your digital documents! The PageFlip Cicada is a bluetooth pedal for desktop, laptop, and tablet computers. The dual pedal design allows you to page up and down — perfect for turning pages on sheet music or lyrics on your computer or tablet. Five pedal... Read more »
Feb 23 2012, 12:00 AM

Dual Outputs with Fireface UCX?

Q: Is there a way to send the same stereo signal to two pairs of outputs on the RME Fireface UCX at the same time? I need to route the same signal to monitors and to a hardware recorder. A: Yes, there are a few ways to do this. One easy way is to use the TotalMix control software/console that... Read more »
Feb 14 2012, 12:00 AM

Novation Automap Uninstall

If you find that you must uninstall Novation's Automap software from your computer for some reason (we're not sure why you would), here's a handy tip: go to the Automap preferences/utility and uncheck all of the plug-ins that you had "wrapped" for use in Automap. This will remove the special... Read more »
Jan 11 2012, 12:00 AM

PT and Snow Leopard?

Q: I work for the music technology department at a university, and we are planning to upgrade to Pro Tools 10. However, my school's IT department can't get our studios and music labs updated to Lion (Mac OS X 10.7) until next summer. Is Pro Tools 10 compatible with Snow Leopard (Mac OS X 10.6)?... Read more »
Dec 29 2011, 12:00 AM

Cool Tool: The Crane Standard

The Crane Standard adjustable laptop stand from Crane is ideal for home, studio, and DJ use! This low-profile stand holds your laptop securely, and provides space for an external hard drive, a controller, an interface, or whatever you need with your computer. It's adjustable and portable and... Read more »
Dec 27 2011, 12:00 AM

PreSonus AudioBox VSL Chaining?

Q: Can I chain together more than one PreSonus AudioBox VSL interface from my computer? A: No, PreSonus AudioBox VSL USB interfaces can't daisy chain together. If you need to daisy chain interfaces together for more connectivity, you might want to look at the PreSonus FireStudio interfaces... Read more »
Dec 21 2011, 12:00 AM

DVD Resolution

Q: I want to create a DVD of some video that was shot of my band. What resolution does the video need to be? A: The "standard" video on DVDs in the United States is 720 x 480. The sample rate for linear PCM audio should be 48kHz and the resolution can be either 16 or 24 bits.
Dec 20 2011, 12:00 AM

UBK-1 Headroom

Q: The KuSh Audio UBK-1 plug-in doesn't have an input level control, it has a Headroom control. How does this work? A: Setting this control is very important for optimizing the operation of the plug-in. The Headroom control is used to adjust the operating level of the signal that is feeding all... Read more »
Dec 19 2011, 12:00 AM

UBK-1 Bypass

The KuSh Audio UBK-1 is a very powerful saturation and dynamics processor with three sections: Saturation, Compression, and Density. You can bypass each section independently by clicking on its VU meter.
Dec 15 2011, 12:00 AM

Sonnox 64-bit and Lion Compatibility

Sonnox has released native 64-bit-compatible versons of their plug-ins, which also feature updated graphic interfaces. All of the latest versions of the Sonnox plug-ins are also now compatible with Mac OS X 10.7 (Lion).

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