A Craig Anderton Props Post

[aliengroover]

For many years Mr. Anderton has given us great reads, full of information given in an edible, yet fulfilling, style. The article in this month's EQ, "Gear Roulette", is no exception. It is a GREAT write. And much of it came right out of my religion. And that's really refreshing. For one, and this was discussed on Music Player some months ago, I TOTALLY agree with you on the "sound quality" issue. So many people, newbies and oldbies, seem more concerned with buying or having the latest and greatest than the actual music itself. The public, for the most part, could care less what mic pre or keyboard you used on the song. And as you stated with MP3s, they're not overly concerned with "supreme" quality. My belief is that they only care that it sounds "good enough", so long as the song and music are there. No, we shouldn't throw out our high end gear...just keep it all in perspective. The second point I strongly agree on is about not feeling like you should buy something because it's a "standard"....because everybody has it. I always tell people to get what works for you. If you gotta interact with others, there are ways. Two-inch ruled the world for years, but it wasn't like you had to have one in your home studio, just like you don't have to have the world's most popular DAW. But I'd like to add something to that last point...People also should get over this notion of avoiding gear because it's popular and "everybody has one." I've heard people on the 'Net and off say they won't buy PT or a Triton because they don't want to have what everybody else has... Like they're going to walk into Super MusicMart and buy something nobody else uses. It's as ridiculous as saying you'll buy one simply because everyone else has it. Again, it all boils down to what is done with the gear, not what it's done on. Big Ups to CA! Peace Sorry for the wind. :D

[Salyphus]

Word!

[Bunny Knutson]

Mega word!

[not coaster MODERATOR]

palabra

[Philip OKeefe]

Boy, this is eerie. I was going to write an "open letter" to the Musicplayer community after I got back from my vacation. I had it pretty much planned out before I left around December 19th. I hadn't posted it yet because I really wanted to take my time with it - and get the wording "just so". In it I was going to basically say some of the same things. What prompted this was these forums, and the tendency I've noticed lately where many of us (myself included) have been spending tons of time talking about just about anything / everything (many times so far OT it's silly) and also our tendency to talk "gear gear gear". Folks, it's [i]supposed[/i] to be about the music music music! Personally, while I don't mind some OT threads / discussions, it seems like things have been going too far in that regard. Fortunately, Craig has addressed that, and things apprear to be getting better. But for a while there, I REALLY was getting discouraged with the direction the site was headed. I don't mind the gear discussions either, but IMO, we sometimes place TOO much emphasis on the gear and not enough on the music we're supposed to be creating and capturing with it. I've got a fairly nice studio, and capabilities that would have seemed almost magical just a few short years ago at ANY price. The time has come to REALLY use the stuff. Sure, I use it all the time, but I'm lazy, and I have not pushed what I have - or myself - as far as either is really capable of going. So major gear purchases and upgrades are probaably going to be placed on hold for a while while I try to coax more out of what I already have, and out of myself. The gear's capable of more - a [i][b]lot[/i][/b] more, so I think it's kind of silly to expect that a gear purchase is going to be the path to better recordings. HARD WORK and learning how to better utilize what I already have is the path to better recordings. I think I need to spend a little less of my free time posting here and a little more growing, learning and, well, making MUSIC. Not that I don't plan on being an active participant here, but I feel that a bit more of my time should be invested into using these wonderful tools and doing what I really love the most - making records. I know I'm not half bad at what I do, and I'm reasonably knowledgeable about some of this stuff, but I feel I could be better. I WANT to be better, and I'm going to work harder at being the best I can possibly be. I do enjoy the camaraderie, and I like to try to "give back" (or "pay it forward") by helping others whenever I can, and I plan on continuing to enjoy those pastimes - but I also think it's important to grow and learn, and frankly, I have been neglecting those things a bit too much lately. I certainly have learned a lot here (and from reading Craig's articles over the years) and I would like to thank each and every one of you for sharing your talents and knowledge. Man, I'd LOVE to work with or colaborate with some of you folks! :wave:

[Jotown]

Props to Craig, and I hear you Phil, Unfortunately, it seems that whenever I post a gear related, or straight music related thread, almost nobody posts on it, and it sinks to the back pages. Don't get me wrong, I have gotten alot of great info on this board, but I would like to see a little more interest in the truly music related stuff. Anyway, Craig,,,,You Da Man! :thu:

[Alndln]

[quote]Originally posted by Philip O'Keefe: [b] I was going to write an "open letter". In it I was going to basically say some of the same things. [/b][/quote]Too Late!!Alien Groover gets to be teachers pet,sorry Phil! :D (kidding of course).Iv'e been learning from and reading Craig from early articles and the first issue of Electronic Musician on....,and now I get to interact with the tech master himself.What can I say.Other than some of those Piaa DIY's.......( :D )it's an on-going learning experience and pleasure,hope it lasts.

[Dan O]

A good example of getting back to the music would be the "is your music any good thread " . I was looking for some feedback on some music and one person has posted . Dano

[Gtoledo3]

[quote]Originally posted by Dano: [b]A good example of getting back to the music would be the "is your music any good thread " . I was looking for some feedback on some music and one person has posted . Dano[/b][/quote]Have we always had the same avatar?

[Dan O]

[quote]Originally posted by GT3: [b] [quote]Originally posted by Dano: [b]A good example of getting back to the music would be the "is your music any good thread " . I was looking for some feedback on some music and one person has posted . Dano[/b][/quote]Have we always had the same avatar?[/b][/quote]No we have not always had the avatar . I'm just trying to look smarter . Dano

[not Cereal]

the ashley has spoken. apparently this is the avatar we will all soon have.

[RangerJay]

It's not the tools, it's what you build with the tools. So, why not have the best tools? I for one, have yet to master the excellent tools that I have at my disposal, startin with my frontal lobe...

[Philip OKeefe]

Nothing wrong with new / better tools Jay - I totally agree with that. I was just saying that for me personally, I have some pretty nice "tools" and it's time to use them more fully instead of thinking something else added to the arsenal is going to make things improve dramatically. The last two things that made a drastic improvement for me were my ADAM monitors and Pro Tools (Digi 002). Before that, probably my Vintech and Lucid word clock. Before that, I'd say my AW4416's. Add some great mics (251's, SP modded C-414 EB, etc) and some other goodies, and I think I can honestly say I have enough deceint tools to blame myself for any shortcomings in the results, and not the gear. Not that I think my results suck, it's just the concept of continual improvement and my own harsh, self judgemental attitude that's driving me forward. ;)

[Botch.]

Ditto on that article, Craig. I've held off on replacing my Yamaha EX-5 with some of the newer, better-sounding synths just because, what am I going to do with it? Play essentially the same organ and piano patches for a bunch of drunks screaming for "Old Time Rock & Roll"! I can't follow your advice as far as "making sure it pays for itself" as I gig more for fun, but the same principles apply. I finally gave up on my Atari because my dot matrix printer died, and I couldn't get it fixed nor an "Atari" driver for any of the new inkjet printers then available. Now I'm trying to wring as much out of my G3/Vision setup before something else dies and I'll have to upgrade again. Of course, "GAS" isn't just a musical phenomenon. I've got some beautiful, brass body, rosewood handle woodplanes in my shop that haven't built a piece of furniture yet; and we all have a neighbor with a deluxe-suspension, off-road package SUV that still slows way down for the parking lot speed bumps, right? :rolleyes: I teased my boss yesterday, as I was "downloading data" into my 2003 PDA at the office. It was a $4.50, Month-at-a-glance notepad that will keep my phone contacts, expenditures and other stuff just fine for another year, [i]without[/i] crashing!