The ARH Chronicles

I enjoy taking pictures of this stuff almost as much as I enjoy playing with it.

I’ve been recording my own music for nearly a decade now, and I’ve gone through a huge amount of hardware, and an even larger amount of software.  From Cubase to Nuendo to Pro Tools and now to Logic Pro.  I’ve generally liked them all, but as I’ve matured as an engineer, I begin looking for different things in a DAW, and some satisfy more than others.  But in a nutshell, I’ve had my hands on a bit of gear over the years.

I switched to Logic Pro fairly recently and was excited to no longer be tied to using my Mbox2, which I used with Pro Tools.  I was never very happy with the Mbox2.  I’ve always felt the preamps sound crummy, and the A/D converters left a lot to be desired.  In fact, I felt that way about all the Digidesign gear I owned, including my 003 console.  It bothered me, particularly because the hardware is so expensive.. but so it goes–I dealt with it.  Until Now.  Fast forward to last week.

ONE

Before I had entirely decided to replace my Mbox2 (after all, it still worked with Logic, although still sounded crummy), I was looking for a portable interface to use with my MacBook Pro while I was on the go.  I really only needed one input, and USB would be just fine.  I came across Apogee’s ONE, which is a fairly new USB single input interface from a company known world-wide for their very high end digital audio gear.  Having lusted over the Duet for a year or so now, I figured at $250, I couldn’t go wrong with the ONE.  I thought I knew what I was going to get out of it, but boy was I mistaken!

First, the ONE is a very compact device–smaller than your average cell phone.  It has one large knob on it, just like it’s older sibling, and comes with a small breakout cable with an instrument input, and an XLR input.  After installing the software and plugging it in, the first thing I noticed was how crisp and clean everything sounded.  Through my Ultrasone headphones, I heard things in my music I had never heard before–it was truly stunning.  At this point, I realized Apogee did the D/A converter right.  Secondly, the ONE has a built-in condenser microphone in the front of the unit.  Built-in mics usually sound hokie, but this one sounds amazing, and arguably better than some $250 microphones out there.  Not only did the built-in mic sound great, but everything I threw at it sounded awesome too–lightyears better than my Mbox2.  In fact, I was so satisfied with the ONE, I decided the next day to go out and replace my Mbox2 with a Duet.

DUET

But before I spent all those pennies, I decided to read a few reviews to make sure I wasn’t hyping it up to much.  There are literally nothing but positive reviews about the Duet online, and I feel a little foolish writing yet another one to add to the pile.  That said, I cannot help it–I need to vent (in a good way!).  I went ahead and bought the Duet, and got it running with Logic Pro on my iMac in under 10 minutes.  It’s an incredibly easy to use interface with excellent software and it makes setup a breeze.  (Sorry Windows people, Apogee interfaces are Mac only!).  I immediately noticed everything I noticed with the ONE.  Cleaner sounds, awesome preamps, tons of headroom, and amazing converters.

So, do I have any gripes?  Well, I’m not a huge fan of breakout cables.  But then again, I’m not a huge fan of having 8 connectors on the back either.  I believe I will grow to like it more.  I have all my connectors for my Duet securely zip tied as to not add any strain and prematurely wear out the breakout cable.  I will not be traveling with the Duet, so a solid permanent installation is fine.  The ONE is for traveling!  Other than that though, I’m 100% satisfied and cannot recommend these devices enough.  These products are in the consumer-level price range but don’t be fooled–this is serious audio gear.  Throw away your M-Audio or your Mbox2.  Buy Apogee, I swear it will change your life.

I received a friendly comment from Mark Casem at Comcast Corporate this morning.

We recognize the fact that we (Comcast)need more room for improvement. We are really trying hard to improve the way we serve our customers. As you can see, we also use social media channels such as youtube, blogs, facebook, Twitter and more to assist our customers! You can read more about our efforts here: http://www.comcast.com/Corporate/Customers/custcare.html

We’d hate to lose you as one of our customers. Contact us. We’ll check the best package that will allow you to save money.

Thanks Mark, I appreciate your effort.  But you have to understand, I’ve been through this (more than a few) times before.  There’s only so much patience I have for dealing with basic utility companies like Comcast, so there’s only so far I can take this.  I’ve been dealing with all of this for well over a year now, and there hasn’t been one point in that time when I’ve been completely satisfied with my service.  Even when I was paying less, the service was horrible.  Connection dropouts, choppy HD signal, and failed attempts to solve these issues.  Now the service is marginally better, but the price is an issue.  No matter what, there’s problems, and I simply cannot deal with it any longer.  I will be keeping my Comcast HSI, as there are no better options here.  But as far as TV goes, it’s just not worth the headaches anymore.  Like I said in my last post, I’m not going to go into details about what I’ve been through with this company over the last year, but it’s been a HUGE inconvenience and unbelievably intrusive on my life.

I appreciate your new ways of serving customers and reaching out through social media, but I don’t see any improvement in the back end of things–and that’s where it is really needed.

I don’t blog much.  I’d like to though, it’s just that I don’t often think of something blog-worthy and get to a computer quick enough before it completely leaves my mind.  Maybe it’s a problem, maybe it’s not.  Nobody really reads these things anyway.  That being said, any of you that even halfway follow anything in my life know that I have issues with Comcast.  I’m not the only one, and know that.  ”#comcastsucks” is commonly seen on Twitter, and I’m guilty of contributing reguarly–but my experienced are so hugely beyond how any company should treat a paying customer it nearly makes me feel ill.

I’m not going to retell my entire story–I’m going to be rather quick because I have a point to make.  Long story short, this “Xfinity” service that Comcast has been begging all of us to upgrade to is nothing more than a renamed contract program.   There’s nothing new or particularly special about it, it’s just a label.  A label that mandates that you cannot MOVE for 2 years during your contract.  For some, this may not be an issue.  For a student like me, it is.  Why would moving break your contract?  Go figure.

Also, it’s clear that no matter what I do, I cannot get internet and and TV for less than $150/mo.  I’ve talked to numerous people, and attempted a huge number of service changed all to no avail.  They continue to try to get me to add on a phone service that I don’t need claiming that it will “save me money”.  After they find out that I have two (2) TVs, they quickly realize that it’d be the same amount in the end anyway.

There’s so much more to this than I can even bother explaining in a 500 word blog post, and I know nobody’s interested.  But I will say this: I WILL BE TERMINATING MY CABLE TV SERVICE WILL COMCAST.  Yup, I said it.  Screw it, I’m done.

amtrak sacramento station

I know, I know; long time between blog updates.  There’s a few things to blame, but most importantly it’s the fact that I was spending the majority of my time hunched over pages and pages of notes, studying for my MSV final (which I managed to get a solid “A” on, by the way).  But that’s over now, and I’ve started my second term here at Ex’pression College.  So far, so good.

Between terms, though, I spent a couple days “decompressing” in Grass Valley.  After a wonderful visit from Mollie and Bethany on Friday, I headed back to Grass Valley with them on Saturday night.  Despite flat tires and flying snowboards in the highway (don’t ask), we made it back to the foothills safely.  

I left Monday night, and instead of taking the California Zephyr (Amtrak’s long distance superliner between Emeryville and Chicago), I decided to take the less luxurious Capitol Corridor commuter train.  I took a bus from Auburn to Sacramento, and hopped on the CC at the Sacramento Amtrak station.  I had about 25 minutes before my train left, so I went inside the station and took a seat.  The station itself blew me away.  Big high ceilings, large chandeliers, and big murals depicting the opening of the railroad through Sacramento in the 1800s. (See crappy cell-phone picture) It’s almost like a chapel!  Pretty amazing.  Anyway, the train was fast and arrived in Emeryville early, so I have no complaints.

DAW Setup

Just prior to me leaving town, I received my new Apple display, which was the final piece of my Digital Audio Workstation!  It’s finally come together, and it is wonderful.  8-core Mac Pro, Pro Tools, Logic Pro, KRK monitors, etc.  Everything I need to produce some wonderful tunes.  There’s a picture of my setup over there somewhere, take a look. 

Okay, that’s it.  

-ah

The view from Grizzly Peak

This wasn’t my first time on Grizzly Peak Blvd, and there’s no doubt that it wont be my last.  There’s something truly tranquil about this route, it’s refreshing and invigorating, and car/motorcycle enthusiast or not, this road is a must-see for anyone living in the SF Bay Area.

The views of San Francisco, the bay, the bay bridge, and Berkeley are all simply astounding; nothing short of breathtaking.  I’ve done this route three times now, and I am fairly familiar with the road, but this time was different for me; it was at night.

Foggy GPB at night

I don’t normally take pleasure drives at night.  Not only is it somewhat dangerous (animals, etc), but it’s usually not nearly as fun.  This time was an exception though.  Allow me to explain..

Grizzly Peak Blvd starts in El Cerrito, and eventually connects to Skyline Blvd, where it continues to curve all around San Leandro until it gets to Castro Valley.  I didn’t take it this far, but it’s a worthy drive if you have the time and are adequately prepared for hairpins and switchbacks for miles at a time.  The wonderfully unique thing about GPB (That’s what I will call it from now on) is that it’s not all about the road.  That’s not to say that it isn’t a fantastic road, but it’s rather tame.  Long straight-aways are equally as common as hairpins and switchbacks, and while you’d think the 25 mph speed limit would put a damper on the thrill, it just simply doesn’t.  Because like Redwood Rd (although an entirely different brand of beauty), you come to GPB for the views, the scenery, and the experience, not just the drive.

I started in Berkeley, by climbing to the very tippy-top of the hills on Marin ave.  A right turn on GPB gets you going south, toward Skyline.  You will pass what locals call “The Wall”, a famous meeting spot for bike rides heading south through Skyline to San Leandro.  The residential area is rather tony; the streets are lined with Porsche’s and BMW’s, and the reason for this becomes evident no more than a mile down the road when the trees open up and the view (seen above) reveals itself.

Beautiful curves of GPB

I didn’t get a picture of the view at night. there was something working against me tonight: The fog.  It almost defies gravity.  The higher up in the hills you go, the more intense the fog gets.  I always thought fog settled in the valleys… Hmm.  Anyway, it was borderline unpassable because of fog.  But I trekked on, and it didn’t take away from any of the magic that GPB provides.  The dull lights of the city could still be seen, and the mere thought of me winding my way down the Berkeley hills was enough of a high for me tonight, regardless of whether not I could actually see where I was headed.

I could ramble on for days about GPB, but I wont.  The point is, go there.  You absolutely must experience, hands down, one of the finest views in all of the east bay.

-ah

I wasn’t planning on posting again until I got home on Thursday, but I’ve got a few more things to say.

Scott and I had a conversation in the hot tub last week about Susan Adam, and how wonderful of a person she truly was.  She was a role model to us all, and loved her family so much; it was truly phenomenal.   Today when Kayla’s mom Julie laughingly recalled her experience with skin cancer, it inevitably brought Susan to mind, and made me reevaluate some of the issues I’ve been fighting with over the last few weeks.

Whether is my fear of someone not feeling the same way I do, or it’s disappointment in a friend for doing something you know they’ll regret.  When it comes down to it, there’s no reason to dwell over such small things.  We’re all fortunate people, and after thinking about all of this, I can’t possibly imagine spending any more time worrying or dwelling over such small issues.  It’s selfish and a waste of energy.

I have my health (although a little sunburnt), I have a great family, fantastic friends, a wonderful new apartment, fantastic education on the horizon and a whole life ahead of me- I’m going to live it, not loathe it.

The last couple weeks have been busy.  I moved in on the 11th, spent the 11th through the 17th “setting up” my new place, then I met up with Scott and we flew to Maui, which is where I currently am.  It feels really good to be away, although I don’t feel as disconnected as I wish I could.  There’s a lot of stuff going on in my hometown that whether I like it or not, requires my involvement, and tears me away from this beautiful island.  

Scott and I are returning to San Francisco on Thursday, and will drive up to Grass Valley on Friday.  I’m staying the weekend in Grass Valley, which is officially my first time “visiting home” since I’ve moved out.  Weird.  There’s a few more people I need to say goodbye to, a few more things I need to say to people, and a few more of my personal belongings I have to move.  It’s a short stay, but there’s really only a few things I need to say to really only a few people.  This is my last chance to tell some certain people how I feel.  You know who you are.

Wish me a safe flight home and I’ll see you guys on Friday.

Last night was my first official night living in my new apartment.  I’ve spent many nights here before, but last night was the first sleep in my real bed, and the first night going to sleep knowing that I am officially moved in.  It felt good, and I slept better than I have in a really long time.  It’s a strange feeling, waking up to being the only person in this home.  It’s lonely, but not in a bad way.  It gives me the time and space to really concentrate on what I want to get done with little or no distractions or interruptions.  I haven’t really felt this creatively uninhibited before,  and I’ve already begun working on a handful of music projects.  The juices are flowing well; I’m where I need to be, with who I need to be with more than anything — myself.  It sounds cliche, and in reality, it is very cliche.  But it doesn’t really matter because I understand now the value of having time away; away from all the drama and distractions that plagued Grass Valley.  This is a new start for me, and it feels fresh.

All that being said, I am going to Hawaii next week with my buddy Scott, and I couldn’t be more excited.  It’s funny taking a vacation from, well… nothing really.  But I feel like it will be one more nice little outing before I start class in December which for good or for bad, will take up the majority of my time over the next 2 to 3 years.  So, if you want to see me, do it before I start class!