the idea of only using digital to control analog hardware is fkn genius, so much space saved but also prevents so many possible hardware failures. GG McDsp
Vocals could use some better automation, a little loud here and there but overall, this is a huge mix! But like Glenn said done is better than perfect.
It’s funny how some simple self imposed limitations and discipline can save us a ton of time & heartache. I limit myself on purpose so I don’t get stuck in limitless option paralysis. A lot of that is thanks to your past advice Glenn. I use what I know works and what pleases my ears. There’s a reason why our favorite and most memorable records were done when options were limited. You focus on what matters, the song, when you don’t have the option to knob twist to your heart’s content. This way if I improve a mix I’ll have learned a lesson as to what I was doing wrong instead of blaming it on a state of the art plug in.
I got this unit a few months ago, while it's a bit expensive I can definitely say it NAILS that analog sound. I spent hours on a song I had worked on, just because I was having so much fun. It has that bite that plug-ins struggle to re-create. All in all, solid unit. If you decide to buy it, - go 16 route not 8.
I feel like anyone who mixes with analog does it because of the hands-on, tactile workflow, so a dedicated controller that keeps the hands off the mouse as much as possible would be absolutely amazing. Something with a couple faders and a panel with knobs that automatically map to the plugins, total game changer.
I got my 4 track reel to reel yesterday and hope to get another down the road...my 4 track cassette recorder will be put to more use...I got more ideas then the computer to keep it simple and hope this will make me work harder to making music...More excited about recording then ever!
In the reaper plug-in pin connector change the VST3 bus size to 1. route the left and right side from channel 1. Now it only uses 1 APB channel! I own the APB 8 and use Reaper all day long with it. Works great and sounds amazing.
Glenn you can also set up a hybrid system where you use the digital workstation mainly as your multi-track recorder along with an external 16 or 24 track mixing console for that analog touch along with a few choice external effects and compressors. The great thing about a setup like this is you can use the workstation as a sub-mix and get away with fewer needed channels on the mixing console or even a smaller analog mixing console period. My original setup was a 24 track analog mixing console with a digital work station capable of recording 24 independent audio channels at 48 Khz/24 Bits simultaneously and I could also go back and record and stack more channels if needed. Eventually I downsized and went to a 16 track recording setup along with a 16 track mixing console because I realized that having the ability to sub-mix on the work station then run the final mix through the 16 track mixer was all I needed for bands I was working with and that especially held true for when I recorded by myself. I would come out of the mixer straight into a stereo tube preamp where the tubes could be ran just below saturation which warmed things up nicely and then capture the mix-down onto a second work station dedicated to mastering and the recordings were comparable to pretty much most of what I was hearing on the radio. I still have and use a 8 track digital workstation that I use and the beauty of the digital stuff is you can take it from station to station which makes it versatile. Oh, almost forgot to mention that the setup you are showing here is absolutely killing it!
You can force a plugin in Reaper to only use 1 channel by clicking the in/out button and checking for a drop-down called 'bus size.' I know this works for VST3 but I noticed your using AU, so I'm not sure this would work in this specific case, but worth a look
Yea I'd try that first too, and Reaper is stereo by default but actually can go up to like 64 channels per track (or maybe more now, it's been a while since I followed ther updates)
Regarding the Mono problem. It might be possible to force load a mono version of the APB plugins in bluecat audio (plugin wrapper). Sometimes I use the bluecat audio (plugin wrapper) in logic so I can run the Mcdsp APB stuff quickly in parallel.
I went the UAD Apollo x8p route with an audient a800 connected via lightpipe. That's 16 channels for $4300. I got an SPL Vitalizer Mk2 hardware for $900, I use it as a Cubase Hardware FX Insert as my Master Bus processor since it's got everything I need. Saturation, Low End Compression, EQ and Stereo Field. UAD plugins are expensive but I have yet to have a negative purchase. The biggest headache I have found in the software realm is figuring out routing in all the programs because nothing is intuitive. Hours of TH-cam tutorials I see in your future.
Damn Glenn! Hearing that Sticks and Stone mix just blew my mind of how fucking good you are. High quality radio shit. Keep up the content been watching since the cupping the mic days. Great to keep learning from you
The best summing box i ever heard. Just a pity i work from small attic overseeing (and overhearing...) a street full of neighbours i kinda like. Thanks for mentioning the Reaper goodness, my fave and final daw after many years of blood sweat and tears😅. McDSP has made a lasting and great impression now. Keep on rocking! 10:23
I have one of these and they’re awesome. Been using for a while now. They’re actually not expensive at all when you breakdown what you’re getting. Divide the price by 16: 16 high quality converter channels and 16 high quality analog compressors etc. That you a price of $500 for a compressor with an ad and da - which is CHEAP! Also what’s nice is the converters are 32 bit so you don’t need to dither when running through analog. Pro tip - on 24 bit converters you SHOULD have an ACTIVE DITHER on anything going out analog - weather it be to your monitors or analog gear. I love this thing and have sold all my analog gear, and purchased a couple Wesaudio eq’s so I’m fully digital controlled analog. Except for my audioscape xl305r reverb!. It makes life so much easier and more efficient. One thing I’ll note is that it doesn’t sum in the box. The summing is done in the daw. Each channel gets analog saturation- which is the only thing that is valuable from summing. A perfectly sounding passive summing mixer will null perfectly with a daw sum. Also the eq stuff is hybrid - most of the eq stuff is a normal digital plug-in but then run through a bit of analog saturation. They are not truly 100% analog eq’s.
The cool thing about reaper is you can change the pan laws so when set to stereo panning you can make the mixer track mono by turning the width knob to 0% right in the middle.
also whit the other option isn´t ? the one whit 2 sliders !!!! that option always sounded even more mono than the other to me !!!! but i don´t know if that change the signal or the chanels !!!
Option paralysis. The guy in that meme exemplifies the sheer exhaustion of going through 100 different kicks until I just settle for one. Nowadays, I set aside separate time to cull sounds so it doesn't impede actual creative spontaneity
Wow, sounds great! I love the way that analog gear and analog simulations affect the stereo image and how they saturate. Those racks also look pretty nice, very simple, that would be the kind of thing I'd want on my racks if I had the money, right next to my preamps and poultec, again if I had the money. For free analog style stuff, you can't go wrong with Variety of Sound and Analog Obsession though.
McDSP is super innovative. The proof is in the pudding and the mix sounds good. Nothing else really matters, it helped you get a great mix for less than the cost of a Neve or API console. Honestly if you want to get surgical with EQ a good plug-in eq on a channel or channels is better for that anyway.
Good video. You got good stuff on this channel. I like your mix for these songs; its a good stereo imagery without being too mono. You got good low end and panning in the sides. Polarity, Equalizers, Delays, panning, and pitch/chorus effects are the key. You can make the stereo matrix for whatever sound your trying to copy. I'd win contest after contest and mix albums like this with a desktop or laptop and the proper sound card with a good A/D. All boards are basically a computer or IC with a multi-channel sound card. Most boards put their own formula for mixing and panning.
All bouncing and rendering for any audio that has APB plug-ins on it must be done in realtime. This is because the audio has to pass through the components within the APB, and this process cannot occur in sub-realtime.
I love a mixing console, but I see why people don't have them for a whole collection of reasons; in particular if they are working in a home studio. I have taken the plunge into digital for mixing live; as much as I prefer analogue, with digital I don't have to take racks and racks of outboard. I don't use Plugins and stick to the tools that are available on my console; I do a lot of multi-band shows, so need to get the mix done fast. Even if I had 50 different compressors, I wouldn't have the time to use them. That mix sounded fricking awesome; if I was doing the kind of work you are Glenn, I would definitely consider getting the McDSP if I didn't have the room for a full size desk.
Fantastic concept and great mix but at 7K it’s a hard pass for me. Double that if, like Glenn you’re a Reaper user and need two. For that kind of money it should include some kind of dedicated control surface. If I was spending £7-14K I would be looking for a used console. YMMV. Great demo though Glenn 🤘
There is just no reason to go for any of this gear in this day and age. I subscribe to the Slate Digital plug-in suite and the Mix Rack that comes with that is equivalent to an entire decked analog studio and then some. Plenty of classic compressors, EQs, Mix bus and even mic emulators if you get their dedicated Mic to use for all the different emulations available. Plus they have an insane suite of reverbs that will make your head spin. In direct comparisons to their analog counterparts people could not tell a difference, in fact the digital version sounded better in some cases. These days, there is literally no reason to not go digital unless you are a purist and analog gear is your personal preference.
As someone who grew up mixing live bands on analog desks the main reason id want one in the studio is the control surfaces and muscle memory. But if you like mixing in the box this seems cool. Given i mix more for fun then professionally id spend my 7k on a second hand mid tier mixer and a dante interface with enough channels to do a good hybrid setup
I love the MCDSP stuff. I ran a similar setup when I ran my own studio/production lab. I ran the MCDSP Emerald Bundle, 2 SSL Duende's, and had 8 Channels of SSL that I got from Enterprise Studios when the auctioned off their entire studio, 8 channels of Trident s20's, and a SSL stereo master bus comp from a 9000 and a pair of Avalon AD series EQ's all for pennies on the dollar. I had everything I needed, enough options not to feel overwhelmed (created enough quick presets for session loads) and was able to get music sounding the way I wanted with a workflow that I could have not only be efficient but sonically close to those big production spots. While have the consoles is cool and all, the up keep is astronomical. Good outboard gear , resourcefulness with what you have, and competent skills will win the day every single time. Bute yeah.. gear porn is always great haha
Switched to a pair of NS1000-Ms recently, so it might be a bit of that speaking, but honestly that was the most honest and great sounding mixes I've ever heard of you! The APB really is an incredible piece of gear. I actually came up with a similar concept a while ago but lacked the resoruces and education to make it happen, so seeing companies like Tegeler and McDSP bridge the gap between analog and digital is really cool to see! Makes me wonder what my thesis in electronics might look like ;D
nice review, thank you, and the mix does sound great. is it true that the eq plugins for this system are in fact digital and its only the compressors that use analog circuitry?
McDsp has done some serious work there. Sounds amazing. Btw Iv’e mixed a band here in Newfoundland a good many years ago called sticks n stones. They where from Ontario i believe. Slim chance but is the lead singer’s name ron??
Not sure what you mean about reaper tracks taking two channels? You can send to 1 hardware out from track send, and reainsert. Just change your i/o options to enable everything on mono and stereo
9:42 I watch the Vinland series twice. My favorite character, Thorkell. It is interesting how behavior has not changed much. not even 200 years ago, collecting heads was a thriving business.
Nice! I didn’t realize the mcdsp’s rack unit was analog, sweet. Sounds great! Good to hear you having examples with vocals too. Also the reason people buy an analog console these days is purely for workflow. They can make a great sounding mix in a few hours. Recall can be a bitch for some, but when you have no notes that would require the mixing console recall at the end of the day it’s worth it. Also most records are still recorded with a console as many are recorded like a mix from the get go. Then it’s brought into the box for heavier handed parallel compression, extra channels for fx, automation, surgical EQ, saturation, etc. but by the time it gets to the box the sound is pretty much good to go it mixes a LOT easier. Tracking with hardware helps, but getting the levels near perfect the first time around saves a LOT of time. Along with the channel variances and using EQ and compression to get ballpark where you want it and it just gluing together. Yeah it’s worth the 40k if you are recording and mixing fulltime and have the space. if you can save 2hrs every song that adds up fast! It’ll probably pay for itself in a year. I noticed a big savings in time when mixing by just having a control surface, but the analog help a console gives is even better. That being said, i don’t think you or many people watching this channel will ever make it truly worth it. Maybe if you changed to recording full-time it would make it worth it. to the home studio person who mostly works on their own projects or has the occasional client (like me), waste of $.
Nice unit, looks really cool - but too expensive and probably overkill for most of us. Makes sense for Semi-pro and smaller budget pro studios I guess.
Sounds great. I feel like what speeds up the workflow on a console is the ability to reach out and grab your tools. This still leaves you going through plugins and adjusting with your mouse. So I don't think this would speed me up. It would give me analog sound. I would probably lean towards analog summing and stick with my protools rig. You can sum for way less than 7K. Still your mix sounded great. It is a very cool tool.
I have analog parts to my process (hobbyist level). Analog is so much faster to even just to get the sound close to the target, though if I'm sending to someone to mix, I'll send then unprocessed. The other factor might be latency. If you perform on stream, a common issue is the latency that audio processing makes the voice sound off the beat if it's too heavy (audio processing is like a tiny tape player that has both a play head and a recording head running on a small piece of tape. It adds up). I can see that console being a huge advantage for that reason alone.
Good video. And WOW! Talk about living in the best time to be able to afford quality recording equipment and make your own studio, and/or record at home for the average folk Really cool. I say ADD - attention deficit disorder. lol. No I meant ADD - Analog Recording, Digital Mixing, Digital Format. That's my favorite way to go unless your recording EDM. But McDSP is pretty badass. Like the website say - who doesn't like surround sound? That helped improve audio so much for regular people (non-rich audiophiles).I don't use surround sound conventionally, I take my surround speakers put them on top of my tower speakers, adjust the gain of the Surround speakers so they are at the same level as my towers, and I got heavy duty stereo wall of sound. Good A/V receivers let you adjust each speaker for optimal sound. Athena 5.25" AS-B1-1 two way for Surrounds, JBL Northridge Series N38II Towers, and an 8 inch JBL sub with a matching Bespoke JBL A/V receiver with dedicated outputs (lists 105 watts RMS per channel and 285 watts RMS for sub, but closer to 140 watts RMS per channel. Gotta love JBL, best system I've ever had. I buy higher end used stereo systems instead of cheap new stereo systems. (But it's new enough you do not need to worry about the capacitors needing replaced or failing like older amplifiers/receivers). When I first got it my neighbors called the police 13 times in one month for "loud stereo"! I do live in a house too. lol! And with just an 8 inch sub and it shakes the walls. lol. Me and neighbors we're cool now though. Want a punch to the gut? Non copyright music: White Bat Audio - "Shin Godzilla". Best non copyright music on TH-cam. That will test your system! Rock On!
Yea not everyone has "option paralysis" as you put it. If you know your tools, you know what to use and when to use it. Maybe when one first starts learning the software it can be a bit tricky. However saying that less options is better because it forces you to use whats there just isn't a good argument. For example I use the mix rack from Slate Digital and it takes very little time to choose what compressors, EQ and other tools to use for the track/job at hand. I have access to more options from other plugins if I so choose but i find the the Slate Mix Rack does everything I need and more just fine. Just roll with what works for you as an individual and you will be fine!
What about adding a big fat touchscreen monitor and set it at an angle on your desk in order to have hands on access to all the controls as if it was an analog console? then just use the mcdsp setup and you get a full 1:1 analog console for a fraction of the price, right?
the idea of only using digital to control analog hardware is fkn genius, so much space saved but also prevents so many possible hardware failures. GG McDsp
This guy just showed up from the late 90s
@@xx4248 ?
@@xx4248 he never owned a bassatation, obviously
What if there's a plot twist and they are actually doing everything digitally?
Then control all of it with something like the SSL UF8 and UC1 Channel strip
That example mix was KILLER.
Seriously, one of the best sounding mixes I've heard from Glenn. This sounds HUGE
@@helgijonsson3537 I third that. I've never been impressed with Glenn's drum sounds until now.
Damn! Whoever the band is, drop us a link. I’ll buy. Great job, Glenn!
Vocals could use some better automation, a little loud here and there but overall, this is a huge mix! But like Glenn said done is better than perfect.
McDSP sending you those boxes for a trial run is like giving a kid a puppy and telling them they have to give it back.
More like a child!
I miss the good old days with huge mixing consoles and giant speaker cabinets. That stuff simply LOOKED awesome.
The bass in the example mix sounded absolutely fantastic.
Done is better than perfect, because perfect doesn’t exist! Kick ass piece of equipment. Thanks Glenn 🤘
God damn, that low end is nice. It's wild how much compression is on this but somehow the mix doesn't sound tense or anxious. Well done.
My sub shook my desk! That must come from the synth, since I didn't hear that subsonic low end when he soloed the bass track.
It does sound VERY nice. I would not mind Windows support, but at some price point you get a mac to go along with the hardware.
I see you Anton Petrov's channel all the time as well. Hope you are okay buddy.
Woah never thought I’d see you commenting on this metal channel.
wtf
Chocolate RAAAAIN
@tayzonday You have fine taste in TH-cam channels, good sir. 🍻
The mix you've done with this new hybrid thing sounds outstanding !
It’s funny how some simple self imposed limitations and discipline can save us a ton of time & heartache. I limit myself on purpose so I don’t get stuck in limitless option paralysis. A lot of that is thanks to your past advice Glenn. I use what I know works and what pleases my ears. There’s a reason why our favorite and most memorable records were done when options were limited. You focus on what matters, the song, when you don’t have the option to knob twist to your heart’s content. This way if I improve a mix I’ll have learned a lesson as to what I was doing wrong instead of blaming it on a state of the art plug in.
Fuck me Glen, that mix sounds amazing!
The drums sound incredible, but when you soloed that bass on the console app, I literally yelled WOW out loud.
The drums were recorded on a Tama Starclassic bubinga kit with sE mics
"Done is better than perfect" is a mantra to live by.
Sounds BIG!!! I am actually surprised! And your mixes sound amazing too!!!
Sounded like a great mix Glenn!
Ty!
I got this unit a few months ago, while it's a bit expensive I can definitely say it NAILS that analog sound. I spent hours on a song I had worked on, just because I was having so much fun. It has that bite that plug-ins struggle to re-create. All in all, solid unit. If you decide to buy it, - go 16 route not 8.
I feel like anyone who mixes with analog does it because of the hands-on, tactile workflow, so a dedicated controller that keeps the hands off the mouse as much as possible would be absolutely amazing. Something with a couple faders and a panel with knobs that automatically map to the plugins, total game changer.
Completely amazed you worked with Sticks and Stones. I loved Vinland Saga!
It was great to work with Glenn on this project. It turned out great🤘
I got my 4 track reel to reel yesterday and hope to get another down the road...my 4 track cassette recorder will be put to more use...I got more ideas then the computer to keep it simple and hope this will make me work harder to making music...More excited about recording then ever!
I still use my Fostex R8 reel, they'll pry the controller from my cold dead hands
@@jeffseven2194 I hope my experience will be equal!
This with a DAW controller and maybe a couple plugin controllers will be a SICK setup! Best of both worlds!
In the reaper plug-in pin connector change the VST3 bus size to 1. route the left and right side from channel 1. Now it only uses 1 APB channel! I own the APB 8 and use Reaper all day long with it. Works great and sounds amazing.
Yup ... was gonna say exactly this about REAPER mono.
Also, you can save as an FX Chain for each compressor you use in mono mode and you don't have to do that setup every time
Glenn you can also set up a hybrid system where you use the digital workstation mainly as your multi-track recorder along with an external 16 or 24 track mixing console for that analog touch along with a few choice external effects and compressors. The great thing about a setup like this is you can use the workstation as a sub-mix and get away with fewer needed channels on the mixing console or even a smaller analog mixing console period. My original setup was a 24 track analog mixing console with a digital work station capable of recording 24 independent audio channels at 48 Khz/24 Bits simultaneously and I could also go back and record and stack more channels if needed. Eventually I downsized and went to a 16 track recording setup along with a 16 track mixing console because I realized that having the ability to sub-mix on the work station then run the final mix through the 16 track mixer was all I needed for bands I was working with and that especially held true for when I recorded by myself. I would come out of the mixer straight into a stereo tube preamp where the tubes could be ran just below saturation which warmed things up nicely and then capture the mix-down onto a second work station dedicated to mastering and the recordings were comparable to pretty much most of what I was hearing on the radio. I still have and use a 8 track digital workstation that I use and the beauty of the digital stuff is you can take it from station to station which makes it versatile. Oh, almost forgot to mention that the setup you are showing here is absolutely killing it!
You can force a plugin in Reaper to only use 1 channel by clicking the in/out button and checking for a drop-down called 'bus size.' I know this works for VST3 but I noticed your using AU, so I'm not sure this would work in this specific case, but worth a look
Yea I'd try that first too, and Reaper is stereo by default but actually can go up to like 64 channels per track (or maybe more now, it's been a while since I followed ther updates)
@@tommj4365it's now 128 on v7.
I have been doing this for a couple of years now and from my experience, i think less is more because it sounds more natural and musical!
Regarding the Mono problem. It might be possible to force load a mono version of the APB plugins in bluecat audio (plugin wrapper). Sometimes I use the bluecat audio (plugin wrapper) in logic so I can run the Mcdsp APB stuff quickly in parallel.
TAKE MY MONEY MCDSP! Seriously, this some very smart design and that mix of yours is slamming!
I went the UAD Apollo x8p route with an audient a800 connected via lightpipe. That's 16 channels for $4300. I got an SPL Vitalizer Mk2 hardware for $900, I use it as a Cubase Hardware FX Insert as my Master Bus processor since it's got everything I need. Saturation, Low End Compression, EQ and Stereo Field. UAD plugins are expensive but I have yet to have a negative purchase.
The biggest headache I have found in the software realm is figuring out routing in all the programs because nothing is intuitive. Hours of TH-cam tutorials I see in your future.
You are priceless in this space. That mix sounds AWESOME/PRISTINE!
Damn Glenn! Hearing that Sticks and Stone mix just blew my mind of how fucking good you are. High quality radio shit. Keep up the content been watching since the cupping the mic days. Great to keep learning from you
We do mostly electronic music but can appreciate that this mix sounded awesome! Well done!!
1:44 your take on this is spot on! Strive for excellence not perfection!
holy shit that's an incredible mix even through a smartphone speaker.
9:00, the way that mix hit!! 😳😳😳😳😳😳 The low end!! Great Job!!
I got so happy as soon as I heard the song, Vinland saga is such a good show
Full video is coming!
OMG f..kn killer mix!!!! Awesome man!!!!!
The best summing box i ever heard. Just a pity i work from small attic overseeing (and overhearing...) a street full of neighbours i kinda like. Thanks for mentioning the Reaper goodness, my fave and final daw after many years of blood sweat and tears😅. McDSP has made a lasting and great impression now. Keep on rocking! 10:23
I have one of these and they’re awesome. Been using for a while now. They’re actually not expensive at all when you breakdown what you’re getting. Divide the price by 16: 16 high quality converter channels and 16 high quality analog compressors etc. That you a price of $500 for a compressor with an ad and da - which is CHEAP! Also what’s nice is the converters are 32 bit so you don’t need to dither when running through analog. Pro tip - on 24 bit converters you SHOULD have an ACTIVE DITHER on anything going out analog - weather it be to your monitors or analog gear.
I love this thing and have sold all my analog gear, and purchased a couple Wesaudio eq’s so I’m fully digital controlled analog. Except for my audioscape xl305r reverb!. It makes life so much easier and more efficient.
One thing I’ll note is that it doesn’t sum in the box. The summing is done in the daw. Each channel gets analog saturation- which is the only thing that is valuable from summing. A perfectly sounding passive summing mixer will null perfectly with a daw sum. Also the eq stuff is hybrid - most of the eq stuff is a normal digital plug-in but then run through a bit of analog saturation. They are not truly 100% analog eq’s.
WOW!!! GLEN! SIC MIX! I like the compact POWER!
The cool thing about reaper is you can change the pan laws so when set to stereo panning you can make the mixer track mono by turning the width knob to 0% right in the middle.
also whit the other option isn´t ? the one whit 2 sliders !!!! that option always sounded even more mono than the other to me !!!! but i don´t know if that change the signal or the chanels !!!
I have been looking at these for a while now. Great presentation as usual.
"Done is better than perfect". I want that on a t-shirt!
starting at 8:26 on the track sounds amazing, ESPECIALLY the bass track. That pops out like crazy. Love it!!
Good alternative solution and this mix is absolutely sounding great.. thanks man
Damn your mix is stellar Dude
It's about time. The ADA MP1 was a digitally controlled guitar pre-amp in the 80s. Still have 2.
Dude. By far and away the best sounding mix I've heard on this channel... and for the first time.... most other channels too. Nice job
Option paralysis. The guy in that meme exemplifies the sheer exhaustion of going through 100 different kicks until I just settle for one.
Nowadays, I set aside separate time to cull sounds so it doesn't impede actual creative spontaneity
I loved when you muted the Drums on that song, it fell angelic. Can i get the steams of that track? Please?
What a helluva mix. I even heard the bass on my iPhone speakers. gleeeeeeeeeen 🤘🏼
"digital dsp doesn't have that butter" was my initial thought. Sounds incredible. Those racks combined with 24 faders controller
your mix sounds very good with McDsp i think you need this thing... next level
Wow, sounds great! I love the way that analog gear and analog simulations affect the stereo image and how they saturate. Those racks also look pretty nice, very simple, that would be the kind of thing I'd want on my racks if I had the money, right next to my preamps and poultec, again if I had the money.
For free analog style stuff, you can't go wrong with Variety of Sound and Analog Obsession though.
Sounds great and the song is pretty badass. Thanks.
McDSP is super innovative. The proof is in the pudding and the mix sounds good. Nothing else really matters, it helped you get a great mix for less than the cost of a Neve or API console. Honestly if you want to get surgical with EQ a good plug-in eq on a channel or channels is better for that anyway.
Dude, that sounds incredible.
Good video.
You got good stuff on this channel. I like your mix for these songs; its a good stereo imagery without being too mono. You got good low end and panning in the sides.
Polarity, Equalizers, Delays, panning, and pitch/chorus effects are the key. You can make the stereo matrix for whatever sound your trying to copy. I'd win contest after contest and mix albums like this with a desktop or laptop and the proper sound card with a good A/D. All boards are basically a computer or IC with a multi-channel sound card. Most boards put their own formula for mixing and panning.
That low end on the first note had me replaying the song at least five times, louder and louder 😂👌
what about export? realtime?
All bouncing and rendering for any audio that has APB plug-ins on it must be done in realtime. This is because the audio has to pass through the components within the APB, and this process cannot occur in sub-realtime.
I just love the cardboard sheet separating the two units
Oh, and the mix is just 🔥
I love a mixing console, but I see why people don't have them for a whole collection of reasons; in particular if they are working in a home studio. I have taken the plunge into digital for mixing live; as much as I prefer analogue, with digital I don't have to take racks and racks of outboard. I don't use Plugins and stick to the tools that are available on my console; I do a lot of multi-band shows, so need to get the mix done fast. Even if I had 50 different compressors, I wouldn't have the time to use them. That mix sounded fricking awesome; if I was doing the kind of work you are Glenn, I would definitely consider getting the McDSP if I didn't have the room for a full size desk.
Fantastic concept and great mix but at 7K it’s a hard pass for me. Double that if, like Glenn you’re a Reaper user and need two. For that kind of money it should include some kind of dedicated control surface. If I was spending £7-14K I would be looking for a used console. YMMV. Great demo though Glenn 🤘
There is just no reason to go for any of this gear in this day and age. I subscribe to the Slate Digital plug-in suite and the Mix Rack that comes with that is equivalent to an entire decked analog studio and then some. Plenty of classic compressors, EQs, Mix bus and even mic emulators if you get their dedicated Mic to use for all the different emulations available. Plus they have an insane suite of reverbs that will make your head spin. In direct comparisons to their analog counterparts people could not tell a difference, in fact the digital version sounded better in some cases. These days, there is literally no reason to not go digital unless you are a purist and analog gear is your personal preference.
Great sounding mix!
As someone who grew up mixing live bands on analog desks the main reason id want one in the studio is the control surfaces and muscle memory. But if you like mixing in the box this seems cool. Given i mix more for fun then professionally id spend my 7k on a second hand mid tier mixer and a dante interface with enough channels to do a good hybrid setup
Great vid as always
I love the MCDSP stuff. I ran a similar setup when I ran my own studio/production lab. I ran the MCDSP Emerald Bundle, 2 SSL Duende's, and had 8 Channels of SSL that I got from Enterprise Studios when the auctioned off their entire studio, 8 channels of Trident s20's, and a SSL stereo master bus comp from a 9000 and a pair of Avalon AD series EQ's all for pennies on the dollar. I had everything I needed, enough options not to feel overwhelmed (created enough quick presets for session loads) and was able to get music sounding the way I wanted with a workflow that I could have not only be efficient but sonically close to those big production spots. While have the consoles is cool and all, the up keep is astronomical. Good outboard gear , resourcefulness with what you have, and competent skills will win the day every single time. Bute yeah.. gear porn is always great haha
That might be the best sounding mix you've done.
Technology is amazing... I thought analog emulation was the only option out there, but this is even cooler for pro grade work.
Switched to a pair of NS1000-Ms recently, so it might be a bit of that speaking, but honestly that was the most honest and great sounding mixes I've ever heard of you! The APB really is an incredible piece of gear. I actually came up with a similar concept a while ago but lacked the resoruces and education to make it happen, so seeing companies like Tegeler and McDSP bridge the gap between analog and digital is really cool to see! Makes me wonder what my thesis in electronics might look like ;D
Wow, you got some head crushing bass there!
That bass sounded amazing!
Can you not set the output pins for 'mono' tracks so that it only uses channel 1 on the output pins? I don't have the outputs to try it :-/
This is brilliant, not sure why someone didn't do it a long time ago
Loved the example mix Brother. You smashed it. Thanks for a great review. Very interesting piece of kit. 🎼❤️🤔👍👍👍
nice review, thank you, and the mix does sound great. is it true that the eq plugins for this system are in fact digital and its only the compressors that use analog circuitry?
Looking forward to picking one of these up used in a decade.
McDsp has done some serious work there. Sounds amazing. Btw Iv’e mixed a band here in Newfoundland a good many years ago called sticks n stones. They where from Ontario i believe. Slim chance but is the lead singer’s name ron??
That wasn’t us. We are from Brampton, ON
Killer mix Glenn🤘
Was cool to hear the tracks isolated!
Not sure what you mean about reaper tracks taking two channels? You can send to 1 hardware out from track send, and reainsert. Just change your i/o options to enable everything on mono and stereo
whats that song called of the band you recorded? I love it🤘🤘
River by Sticks N Stones
That band Sticks and Stones I gotta hear that song cuz damn it sounded good 🤘🤘
Thanks. Out soon
9:42 I watch the Vinland series twice. My favorite character, Thorkell. It is interesting how behavior has not changed much. not even 200 years ago, collecting heads was a thriving business.
Actually some channel strips plugins do give you different channel sounds so it doesn't always sound the same
Thank You Sir💙
How come Glenn can talk about twisting knobs and 19 inch racks all day but when I do, I get called a creep?
Universal Audio needs to do something like this.
Nice! I didn’t realize the mcdsp’s rack unit was analog, sweet. Sounds great! Good to hear you having examples with vocals too.
Also the reason people buy an analog console these days is purely for workflow. They can make a great sounding mix in a few hours. Recall can be a bitch for some, but when you have no notes that would require the mixing console recall at the end of the day it’s worth it. Also most records are still recorded with a console as many are recorded like a mix from the get go. Then it’s brought into the box for heavier handed parallel compression, extra channels for fx, automation, surgical EQ, saturation, etc. but by the time it gets to the box the sound is pretty much good to go it mixes a LOT easier. Tracking with hardware helps, but getting the levels near perfect the first time around saves a LOT of time. Along with the channel variances and using EQ and compression to get ballpark where you want it and it just gluing together. Yeah it’s worth the 40k if you are recording and mixing fulltime and have the space. if you can save 2hrs every song that adds up fast! It’ll probably pay for itself in a year. I noticed a big savings in time when mixing by just having a control surface, but the analog help a console gives is even better. That being said, i don’t think you or many people watching this channel will ever make it truly worth it. Maybe if you changed to recording full-time it would make it worth it. to the home studio person who mostly works on their own projects or has the occasional client (like me), waste of $.
Nice unit, looks really cool - but too expensive and probably overkill for most of us. Makes sense for Semi-pro and smaller budget pro studios I guess.
I have been reading about the Audient ASP4816 HE for some quite a long time now. The price is about half of what the Origin costs.
Thanks for the killer video, Glenn! We're so glad you loved the APB 😁
I feel like the vocals on that song poke out way to much. Those drums and guitars are crazy good!
That sounds SOOO SMMOOOOTTTHHH!!!
Sounds great. I feel like what speeds up the workflow on a console is the ability to reach out and grab your tools. This still leaves you going through plugins and adjusting with your mouse. So I don't think this would speed me up. It would give me analog sound. I would probably lean towards analog summing and stick with my protools rig. You can sum for way less than 7K. Still your mix sounded great. It is a very cool tool.
I have analog parts to my process (hobbyist level). Analog is so much faster to even just to get the sound close to the target, though if I'm sending to someone to mix, I'll send then unprocessed. The other factor might be latency. If you perform on stream, a common issue is the latency that audio processing makes the voice sound off the beat if it's too heavy (audio processing is like a tiny tape player that has both a play head and a recording head running on a small piece of tape. It adds up). I can see that console being a huge advantage for that reason alone.
now what would be cool is a light weight compact console you can hook up to this with one cable and it just works seamlessly
Hey Glenn! Whatever happened to that followup video on the Red 16 Line?
It looks like it is Dante compatible, so you could have many choices for a work surface/mixer to control it.
Good video. And WOW! Talk about living in the best time to be able to afford quality recording equipment and make your own studio, and/or record at home for the average folk Really cool. I say ADD - attention deficit disorder. lol. No I meant ADD - Analog Recording, Digital Mixing, Digital Format. That's my favorite way to go unless your recording EDM. But McDSP is pretty badass. Like the website say - who doesn't like surround sound? That helped improve audio so much for regular people (non-rich audiophiles).I don't use surround sound conventionally, I take my surround speakers put them on top of my tower speakers, adjust the gain of the Surround speakers so they are at the same level as my towers, and I got heavy duty stereo wall of sound. Good A/V receivers let you adjust each speaker for optimal sound. Athena 5.25" AS-B1-1 two way for Surrounds, JBL Northridge Series N38II Towers, and an 8 inch JBL sub with a matching Bespoke JBL A/V receiver with dedicated outputs (lists 105 watts RMS per channel and 285 watts RMS for sub, but closer to 140 watts RMS per channel. Gotta love JBL, best system I've ever had. I buy higher end used stereo systems instead of cheap new stereo systems. (But it's new enough you do not need to worry about the capacitors needing replaced or failing like older amplifiers/receivers). When I first got it my neighbors called the police 13 times in one month for "loud stereo"! I do live in a house too. lol! And with just an 8 inch sub and it shakes the walls. lol. Me and neighbors we're cool now though. Want a punch to the gut? Non copyright music: White Bat Audio - "Shin Godzilla". Best non copyright music on TH-cam. That will test your system! Rock On!
Yea not everyone has "option paralysis" as you put it. If you know your tools, you know what to use and when to use it. Maybe when one first starts learning the software it can be a bit tricky. However saying that less options is better because it forces you to use whats there just isn't a good argument. For example I use the mix rack from Slate Digital and it takes very little time to choose what compressors, EQ and other tools to use for the track/job at hand. I have access to more options from other plugins if I so choose but i find the the Slate Mix Rack does everything I need and more just fine. Just roll with what works for you as an individual and you will be fine!
Holy shit, a product demo this week that isn't the Fender Kemper FX? Life is kinda cool sometimes.
What about adding a big fat touchscreen monitor and set it at an angle on your desk in order to have hands on access to all the controls as if it was an analog console? then just use the mcdsp setup and you get a full 1:1 analog console for a fraction of the price, right?