Feb 15, 2008 12:10 pm Hooray Hooray.
Congrats!
New Gear's Day: my first MIDI controller
Posted on Feb 15, 2008 11:12 am
Tadpui
I am not a crook's head
Member Since: Mar 14, 2003
Yes yes, happy new gear's day to me.
My E-MU Xboard 49 came in the mail last night and was waiting for me when I got home from work.
After one of the longest and most painful installation procedures of my computer peripherial-buying days (install the drivers & software CD which somehow didn't actually install any software, install the sound module, install each of the 6 sound libraries individually, update the board's firmware, rebooting after each step...whew!) it was installed and working beautifully. Now I just have to do it all again on my DAW downstairs.
But after all that I got to play around for hours with my very first MIDI instrument of any sort. It's kind of frightening though...a whole new universe of techie terms and trial and error...a whole new set of software and hardware interfaces that are going to take months to master. I feel like I just took 10 steps backwards in the progress of making my LP. It's going to be a while before I can learn to effectively use this beast.
But the keyboard itself is great. The keys are full-size and very responsive (I've never been a piano player so you could fool me as far as the keys action). The velocity curves are easy to change around, and I was easily able to find a couple that I like (full-blast on every hit is easiest now LOL).
The amount of software that came with this thing is just immense. I dinked and plinked and swooshed and wowed for 3 hours and didn't even feel like I'd scratched the surface of the available sounds. It came with Proteus X LE as the sound module, and entire libraries of:
- acoustic drums
- electric drums
- beats/loops
- world percussion
- grand piano
- classic filters/synths
And probably a couple that I'm yet to find.
All in all, from a total novice's standpoint, I'm very impressed initially with the Xboard. All of the sounds so far have been top-notch, I wouldn't hesitate to use anything I've heard so far in a recording.
Not bad for $170! I'd recommend it in a heartbeat to anybody wanting their first MIDI controller.
I think I'll have another New Gear's Day celibration tonight and another tomorrow as I delve deeper into this mysterious universe of MIDI instrumentation.
...so this is what all the fuss is about :D
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Feb 15, 2008 02:53 pm Excellent, Tad!
I know how you feel. I just got my hands on a new firewire audio/MIDI interface that is awesome. It's an Alesis IO14, and it is exactly what I've been looking for. Four simultaneous channels of recording, plus a MIDI interface, which is something I've never had before. Now I can easily create my own percussion loops with my buddy's Roland SPD-6 Percussion Pad.
Tad...the recent revitalization of your recording jones has got me going too. I've been hitting it pretty hard lately, writing and demoing and just having a ball. (See my recent blog for more info...)Thanks for sparking the muse!
Oh, and Happy New Gear's Day to you as well!
Feb 15, 2008 02:59 pm Hey thanks Jim!
I'm very happy to hear that you're back on the train as well. Its just such a rewarding feeling to actually make some progress on your very own material isn't it? But yes this is going to be a little detour to my productivity for a few weeks whilst I figure out just how in the hell to do anything with this keyboard!
I spent another hour today at lunch poking around, and I stumbled on to HUNDREDS more sounds that it can make...great, there goes the weekend!
Feb 15, 2008 03:13 pm Congrats Tad! It's awesome getting new gear especially when it envokes new enthusiasm.
I too am celebrating a gear day. Big sale at a music store in town. Added the following to my mic collection.
APEX DP4 7 piece drum mic kit
APEX 210 Ribbon Mic
APEX 410 WDC
So that adds 9 new mics to the collection.
Yup, Like you, I'll be busy this weekend!
Feb 16, 2008 01:16 pm Congrats Tad! New toys are always good for some motivation and creativity, have fun!
Dan
Feb 17, 2008 01:22 pm Hey thanks BH and OD. Yeah this is going to be an absolute revolution in my music-making. No more step sequencing! No more robotic drums!
Oh man this is turning out to be even better than I'd hoped. I've managed to get the keyboard installed on my DAW, along with most of the samples and Proteus X. Then I was able to get Cubase to recognize it as a valid VSTi, load it up and play some drums along with one of my songs. Terrific! I know its not exactly ground breaking stuff here but this is a huge step for me, the MIDI novice.
Now my next challenge is to be able to put different pieces of the kit on different MIDI channels so I can individually treat the kick, snare, and overheads. I'm not having any luck finding any such function so far. Looks like this is something that has to be done in Proteus X instead of Cubase. If anybody knows how to do this, chime in!
Feb 17, 2008 01:23 pm I have the Xboard 61 myself with the full Proteus X, and I have to say it's a really good deal for the money. Glad you're happy with the new stuff, I'm sure it'll see a lot of use. (mine does)
On another note, I thought I saw it advertised that the Xboard 49's were supposed to be shipped with Proteus X2 now? You might want to contact E-MU customer support and ask if you qualify for a free upgrade. Usually takes em a few days to respond, but it might be worth finding out.
-James
Feb 17, 2008 04:34 pm I just realized this morning that it was in fact Proteus X2 that came with it(in addition to Proteus X LE, which was why I was confused).
At this point I can't actually tell the difference though :D
I'm going to try to get some drums laid down today for a redo of an old recording for my current project. I've almost got it to the point where I can play it on the keys. I have to say I'm still impressed with the velocity sensitivity with the drums...with the right expression, they can sound so convinving!
Feb 17, 2008 05:42 pm nice tadpui! midi is fun. you don't have to use every aspect of it. i was lucky in that i got to take a midi course in college as an elective, at ucf. there was this great little midi lab which we had access to any time of night. we could drive over to the campus police station over in the swampy forest and sign in with our ID and get the key. what a beautiful thing for a night owl like me. so many nights when i was bored, i'd head out at 2 a.m., alone, and head into this windowless classroom full of all this gear, get food and drinks and just play around in there until dawn working on class homework projects and just getting a feel for it. my band even used that room for recording, doing an acoustic LP in the middle of the night once. i learned midi by experimentation. i still don't really get it, but i have a set of things that i always just try until something works. like if i get no sound, i just switch the midi channel to 'all.' i don't know if that's the best way, but it works for me.
midi is great for drums. i'm working on recording this new acoustic song, and for the first time i started dragging hits forward in the grid, to get a slightly 'hurried' and human feel during fills and other sections.
Feb 17, 2008 07:53 pm Yep, what fotry said firstly. Midi is fun, even if you don't use every aspect of what it can do. For me I was lucky enough to start using it from day one. But that was because it was something I waited for for several years and began learning before it became a reality.
As for huge installation set ups. Try one of NI's big guns like Kontakt 3. The library alone is over 33 gigs. It comes on DVD's, a bunch of them actually. And it is a daunting set up you must watch closely while installing.
But congrats on the new gear indeed. And if you get stuck simply ask. I can probably help ya out with anything midi.
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