Dad3353

There's a fairly simple and cost-free way of evaluating what you already have. Use the 'cans' for listening to stuff you know well. I can buy the best stuff on the market, but my hearing is, shall we say, past its prime. This doesn't stop me recording and mixing, as I listen to stuff I know, and compare with that. One of my references is Ziggy Stardust; if the cymbals I hear in my recordings are louder than those on my Ziggy reference, I know to lower them. I can hardly hear them, so if I mixed for myself, with whatever gear, it would be atrocious for other, normal, people. Choose yourself some reference tracks, in any genre that you are familiar with, and compare listening to those with any and all of your systems. That will show up any deficiencies, and give you a baseline from which to decide (or not...) to upgrade. Hope this helps.

Good afternoon, Trev, and ... Plenty to read and amuse you here, and lots to learn and share. Sorry to hear of this 'incident'. That's Life; 'stuff' happens.

... and the bass is so low in the mix as to be almost inaudible. Shocking..! ...

Too late now, but if I was to build from scratch, I don't think I'd have gone for parallel walls and floor/ceiling. It complicates things a little, of course, but helps a little acoustically, I think. Just sayin'; well done.

And I'm starting to seriously consider Linux, to rid myself of the insidious W10 incursion into my PC usage. I don't want the PC software to 'help' me, nor treat me as a 'mate' or 'buddy'. Sod off; I'm doing things as I wish, and don't want nor need to join in with your nonsense. If only my principal Vst's ran on Linux...

We never have these compatibility issues with our Windows PC's. Mac, eh..? Who'd have 'em..! ... Not..!

The Spitfire BBC Symphony Orchestra is a 'must'. A questionnaire to fill in (no great shakes...) and it's free..! Thanks for posting.

Good afternoon, Maz, and ... Plenty to read and amuse you here, and lots to learn and share.

One of the more interesting drumists, to my ears, and so passes muster.

Just another impression on this, in view of the (perfectly valid...) opinions above, I've been a Joni Mitchell fan since... Well, forever, so some bias here. She has a very varied set of interests, and has, over time gone down several different rabbit holes, and explored many different genres. I find it perfectly fitting that, whilst respecting the more delicate numbers, there's a bit of 'raunch' on stages of the sort. There are other videos of more intimate occasions, and I found it refreshing to see and hear her evident enjoyment of this performance. I'll freely accept the reservations mentioned; it doesn't detract at all, for me, whenever I watch this video (and I've played it extensively..!). I can think of only one or two songs from her whole repertoire that I could be tempted to skip over, but even then I probably wouldn't. One of the Great Wonders of the Modern World, to me; her art and output have brought so much light and joy into my life.

I'm the opposite, regarding double-pedal drumming. Used tastefully (read 'sparingly...), it's very effective, but 'blast beats' do nothing for me, except maybe get me to turn it off. I've not a long list of drummers expert in this (naturally, as that's what I don't listen to..!), but there are top folks such as Weckl, or Bozio (there are many others...) that get my attention when they dabble in this Dark Art. I do have a double pedal on my kit; I use it maybe twice in a typical set, rather as a suspense-building crescendo (think timpani rolls...) than as a beat in itself. In fact, at my last job, I had a double pedal under my desk, and spent the 'working' day exercising, but basically as muscle and reflex builder rather than as a musical instrument. As with much else, 'Less Is More', I reckon.

He read somewhere that 'modeling' guitars were where it's at. They're definitely dummy pick-ups, though.

I don't drive fast, and, for medical reasons, I'm not an 'adrenalin' bod; when driving long distances this is the sort of thing I'd be listening to ...

Didn't he hear the door-bell..? ... ... (Sorry. )

Conversely, I'd never heard of The Chameleons, Comsat Angels or House of Love until you brought them forward (assuming that that's not the same 'Les Caméléons' that we crossed paths with in a past touring life...)

Bof. I can't say I've ever noticed the fellow (yes, I was there at the time...).

'S'what comes of being 'picky', though, isn't it..? It's fine when the choices and opportunities are there, but becomes a bit 'painted into a corner' when the wheels stop turning. If there's only a few, limited situations that float your boat, get the work in in practising and learning, and wait for the golden opportunity to knock on your door, or start hustling to make it happen. It's not the easy route, though, so be prepared for either lowering your expectations (although that doesn't sound likely, given your stance...), or a struggle to meet all criteria. Go for the recording and take it from there, and use the occasion to strike up new acquaintances, open up the 'networking'. I hope it all works out, and BC is always here for ranting, kudos, jokes and (sometimes stale...) advice. Other than that : welcome back.

+1 ^^

Seems armless enough.

Here's the Spoiler with the Composers, for those struggling for the last couple of faces ...