Articles
LIMS 2009 PC Music Guru Show Report
Four fabulous days were spent talking nonsense to passing punters in a huge hall inside the Excel exhibition space. This is the second year of the London International Music Show and how it differs from Music Live! or the British Music Fair, or the Plaza is anyone's guess but all the usual exhibitors were in attendance. Most of the visitors seem to prefer thumping drums, banging keyboards or whacking guitars than talking intelligently about computer based music technology - and who can blame them? It wasn't packed by any stretch of the imagination although tube strikes may have had something to do with that, but there were enough people to make it interesting.
Tweaking Windows XP for Audio
Windows XP is just like, soooo 2001, but regardless of Microsoft's efforts to move us to Vista, Windows XP remains the most popular choice for musicians. Probably not for too much longer as XP keeps getting discontinued (we really mean it this time) and Windows 7 is just around the corner meaning that you could soon upgrade without ever getting your hands dirty in Vista. So while Windows XP continues to exist it's fitting to pull together the best tips on getting it optimised for running audio.
Why does XP need to be optimised for audio?
Tweaking Windows Vista for Audio
Vista has not been warmly received by computer musicians. Largely, I believe, this is down to perception and driven by quite a bit of anti Microsoft scaremongering from self important technology gurus like me. They are not without merit though because it's true that in most cases Windows XP will out perform Windows Vista by a tiny bit, and that Vista brings very little to the table that XP can't already handle and so the price of the upgrade seems a bit steep when XP is already doing the job. However, much that's been said about Vista being rubbish for audio is unfounded and actually unhelpful as it's increasingly difficult to buy a computer with anything other than Vista on it these days.
Soundcards - Recording sound into your computer
Common computer music question - “Where do I plug in my guitar?” Turning your humble computer into a kick ass studio falls at the first hurdle if it doesn’t have something into which you can plug a jack cable. If you want to record live sound into your computer then you’ll need to consider getting hold of the right soundcard.
Most computers come with a soundcard of some sort. If your computer has speakers and makes bleeps and noises then you have a soundcard. The majority of soundcards are designed for games, multimedia and playing CD/DVD’s so not a lot of thought has gone into the idea of serious studio recording. Nethertheless it is a place to start and we’ll come onto the proper gear in a minute.
Computer Music - What's it all about?
Submitted by robinv on 11 May, 2009 - 22:46
Computers. Damn them and the evil that resides in their circuits! The intrusion, the aggravation, the childlike demand for attention, the incessant whirring and blinking of lights, the way they draw you in with promised delights, feign friendly intelligence and then unexpectedly turn on you just when you think you've got the hang of it, or more usually when you are about to show you wife/husband/dog something clever. A curse we've grown accustomed to. You may have bought one with the mistaken belief that it'll help you do the accounts, or write letters, help your kids with their homework or maybe let you print your own flyers for your next gig. The reality can often be one of miscomprehension, feelings of inadequacy and even fear.
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