Anderton

It sure would be cool if when you create a new machine, you post a thread with the components you chose. Good point - Apple gives a much tighter ecosystem. After Windows threw in the towel on the Windows phone, there has been increasing integration with Android. And Windows has also been good about scaling their programs across mobile to desktop, but it will likely never have the same level of integration of all the "moving parts" that Apple has attained. Ultimately I don't think it's possible to have a non-dedicated music system that handles all your photos, personal stuff, etc. Perhaps the route going forward is custom Windows desktop for music, Apple laptop/pad/phone for personal.

This is simply amazing. I was never a Queen fan until I was dragged to see the movie, and all of it sudden, it made sense. If you've seen the movie, this video has special significance...otherwise, it's just plain beautiful. I'd never seen this until YouTube barfed it up as one of its recommendations, I clicked on it, and after picking myself up off the floor...just had to share it. I hope you enjoy it. [video:youtube]

Interesting you should say that I have the first PRS Signature Series guitar (long story). He asked what color I wanted. I said "emerald green, not bad potato chip green." And he did the most beautiful green finish ever. Paul is an amazing, smart, deep person. I have the utmost respect for him and his guitars.

FYI for those who want to post the next song - the title of the Elvis Costello song is "Every Day I Write the Book."

Back in the day, Mac vs. PC threads were pretty common. Windows was still in a minority among musicians, but like today, they gave greater value if you were willing to put up with their needing tweaking "under the hood." Both their audio facilities sucked until the Mac created Core Audio for OS X, and more recently, Windows finally came up with their relatively low-latency WASAPI drivers (although ASIO still rules for Windows). But the times are changing. Apple's new Mac Pro starts at $6K, and is overkill for audio. The Mac Mini is cool, but to configure it to where it's a good computer for music, you need to pay around $2,700 or so. The iMacs are powerful, but the all-in-one design limits expandability. Windows machines have a more open architecture, so there are companies like PC Audio Labs, Sweetwater, Studio Cat, etc. making custom Windows machines that deliver excellent performance. But the consumer models you find at Office Depot and the like may or may not be good for audio; it's a bit of a crap shoot, and the odds aren't great you'll win. When it comes to laptops, Windows laptops are fine, but Apple's MacBook Pro remains a steady, mostly reliable performer (if you look past the butterfly keyboard fiasco). When you see a DJ running Ableton Live, it will probably be on a MacBook Pro. I've used, and continue to use, both platforms. However, Windows does all the heavy lifting for my audio and video work. The MacBook Pro is more of a personal computer, while my circa mid-2000 Mac Pro is more or less dead in the water because it can't update to a 64-bit operating system. I'll probably replace it with a tricked-out Mac Mini someday, but it's not a priority. If someone came to you today, wanted to get started in computer-based music, and wanted to know what computer to get, which would YOU recommend?

Rankings always get a lot of discussion going, because people will disagree with the list. It's something web sites and publications do when things get quiet...like how if a radio show starts to falter, all they have to do is start a topic of abortion or gun control. Music is so incredibly subjective, and so much involved with associations, that the idea of an objective list seems absurd. The song that was playing when a girl French-kissed me for the first time will always be one of the best songs on the planet, as far as I'm concerned...although it probably wouldn't have the same significance to someone else

Well, I couldn't resist putting in my own video... "All Over Again" [video:youtube]

It was something Gibson did in their "let's do some really different things" days and while not all those experiments were a success, I think this is one that deserves to live!

A knowledge-based economy is tricky, because how do you know the knowledge is valid? When you see YouTube "pro tips" on recording by someone who's never had any music that charted, that doesn't mean the info isn't valid...nor is the knowledge shared by a platinum album producer necessarily valid. I think knowledge will be the "raw materials" that a person has, and which can be transformed into something tangible and of value. For example, I know a lot about how to use plug-ins, get good sounds with guitar, etc. Companies are willing to pay me to write up that knowledge for their web sites, and consumers are willing to pay me for that knowledge when applied to something like a multiband preset pack for the Line 6 Helix. So while the knowledge is private, once it's mined, it becomes public as part of a transaction.

This is great. The world needs a forum where people can get into crazeeee phunky psychedelic stuff!!! Thank you Dave and THANK YOU Doctor!

Okay, here's a picture of a guitar I got recently from Gibson - a "playable scrap" Blueberry Burst Les Paul HP I traded it for some web copy. There's no way the photo does it justice, the finish is just plain gorgeous. People see it, and it takes their breath away. BUT - no guitars are being made with the Blueberry Burst finish any more! Granted, it's not a "traditional" Les Paul color. But I don't play "traditional" guitar...I LOVE that look. If you love it too, post some kind of and if enough people think this is a cool look, I'm forwarding the thread to Gibson. Hey, they can't fire me twice!

Not everyone really likes it Actually, I think what people like is being reminded of the songs, and seeing the videos! But regardless of the reason, it sure gets a lot of posts Speaking of which... "Back in the High Life Again" - Steve Winwood (who still has it, and is well worth seeing if he's playing in your area) [video:youtube]

I was one of the first people in the US to hear Sgt. Pepper's. Mandrake was playing at a club in Allentown, PA, when someone came up to us after our set and asked if we wanted to hear the new Beatles album. His father had smuggled a copy of the album out of the Capitol Records pressing plant. We had no idea what to expect, but went over to his house, smoked some weed, and... When that last piano chord on "Day in the Life" faded out, my musical life was transformed. It's hard to imagine the impact that album had, because it was so different from anything that had come before. It was daring the music world to take pop music further than it ever had been pushed before. So some pundit can say all he wants about what he thinks of individual songs...it was never just about the songs.

Much of the Beatles is about the context in which the music lives. When the Beatles came on the scene, things were dreary. Kennedy had been assassinated. Schools were doing "duck and cover" drills because of the horror of the atomic bomb. The music scene was mostly vapid, inoffensive pop music. "I Want to Hold Your Hand" was like a shot of adrenalin to society, and although it may seem tame now, it was rebellion the likes of which hadn't been seen since the early days of Elvis Presley swiveling his hips, and having the audacity to merge "race" music with country. As the baby boomers evolved, the US sank deeper into a war no one understood, and society was transformed by drugs and conflict, the Beatles provided the soundtrack. Music accesses the three-dimensional database called "memory." When anyone of that era thinks of Beatles songs, the context always comes along for the ride.

There's been a lot of talk on social media about social media. Facebook, Google knowing every move you make, LinkedIn making more than 60% of its $3,000,000,000 revenue from its division that sells access to user profiles and contact information to recruiters... So much of social media is "free." But none of this is free, because all we really have to sell, buy, or enjoy is... TIME. When I consult to a company, they're paying for the time it takes me to produce the information they need. And SSS is asking you for your time - to read what's going on here, and to participate. The more I think about this site as the engine revs back up again, the more I realize I'm asking you to pay for being here not with money, but with your time. I respect that. So, I want to make sure that when you participate, you get something in return for your time - knowledge, fun, friendship, self-improvement, a laugh, techniques, life hacks...whatever. Referring to the thread title, in a knowledge-based instead of a possession-based economy (the transition is already occurring), being able to get peoples' attention to hear what you have to say is as valuable as currency. Before this thread sinks to the bottom of the page, I'd like to thank everyone who views, participates, starts threads, or engages in any way with SSS and the Musicplayer.com forums. I'm glad we got your attention, but now, I want to reward that attention with as much value as possible for your time. Thanks for letting me rant

"Smokin in the Boys Room" - Motley Crue [video:youtube]

I'm not sure I agree about Waves. I checked out their Abbey Road Chamber reverbs and some other recent plug-ins, they're pretty amazing. But I think their way of doing business makes the most sense if you have one of their bundles, because there are enough maintenance changes from year-to-year (like converting everything to VST3) to make it worthwhile. Also, the last time I renewed, there were some new plug-ins that didn't cost anything extra.

"Lady Madonna" by the Beatles [video:youtube]

"Papa Don't Preach" by Madonna [video:youtube]

"California Dreamin" by the Mamas and the Papas [video:youtube]

In other words...it's all about the music And weren't penalized in either case. Seems to be a pretty common attitude.

This wouldn't involve Reason, you'd just open Cakewalk first, then Live, and insert Live as a ReWire instrument within Cakewalk. It's really simple once you get past the relatively benign learning curve...it seems like it would HAVE to be more difficult than this, but it isn't I wrote an article for Harmony Central about using ReWire, with Sonar serving as the example host. I think you'll find it helpful. Cakewalk has quite a good ReWire implementation, which is a good thing for your application.

This is something Dendy Jarrett started at the SSS forum on Harmony Central, and people really liked it...so I figured it was time for a transplant. Here's Dendy's explanation of how it works. Use a word from the song title or artist to make the next song title and artist. It must be a track, not the title of an album, and you must not use the same artist in consecutive posts. Example:- Black Night - Deep Purple This could be followed by:- Paint it Black - The Rolling Stones But this could not be followed by - Brown Sugar by the Rolling Stones because this was also by the Rolling Stones You can also use the artist name as the next association, like Paint it Black - The Rolling Stones Could be followed by - On the Cover of the Rolling Stone - Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show Get the idea? It's also cool to include a video link if at all possible as It is quite nostalgic going through and watching as we relive the great songs that get posted. Thanks, Dendy! I'll start it off: "Hotel California" by the Eagles [video:youtube]

Why not just ReWire Live into Cakewalk? Then you don't have to port anything...create in Reason while you mix in Cakewalk

Seriously?!?!? Another scorching riff married to a good-humored assortment of one-liners and other nonsense. By this time, the bands early postures of being relationship arbitrators (Youre Gonna Lose That Girl) had matured into songs like this; entire relationship worlds created around this or that character, all drawn with a knowing authority. (She was a daytripper!). I love how the thing stops every once in a while, as if to digest the riff, or perhaps just draw breath; then the backing track slams into place, shaking its head at its own invention. Note the doubled vocals, and the novel break out of the guitar solo. Dude...it's pop music.