tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27537483857725721182012-01-08T21:21:03.519-06:00Resources for Recording, Do-It-Yourself (DIY) Projects, and general musicianship.aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.comBlogger231100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-57675705498599863682011-10-04T18:32:00.000-05:002011-10-04T18:32:38.547-05:00

After talking with colleagues regarding this box (there are now several around) I learned that the encryption is pretty slow. But this is without the hardware encryption enabled. So let's see if it can be enabled. For more information visit: http://www.newit.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=2030.0 Reference Intel(R) Pentium(R) CPU G6950 @ 2.80GHz $ openssl speed -evp aes128 Doing aes-128-

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-58483365273632614122011-07-11T18:37:00.001-05:002011-07-13T10:51:13.778-05:00

Just recently I got a Dreamplug from Global Scale Technologies. It is pretty cool in that it only draws 5W of power and comes with plenty of processing power and features for all sorts of things. It is initially designed for prototyping for full scale products. However it is great for the hobbyist to mess with and have a lower powered computer for servers, voip, etc.In my case I got one to

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-64692277367633573242011-07-03T12:52:00.000-05:002011-07-03T12:52:22.101-05:00

Well it has been a long time since I have posted anything. As many of you know, I have moved back to Santa Fe, NM. It is nice to be back and I have been swamped with business. Hopefully there will some releases that I will be able to talk about here soon. I have teamed up with Jesse Albright of DMBD Audio and renamed his studio to Desert Den Studios (www.desertden.com). With his rooms and my

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-59755680849406977732010-09-23T23:49:00.004-05:002011-11-20T18:41:48.225-06:00

Well just in case you hadn't heard, the C55 Beta Firmware was released for the Digitech GSP1101 on http://www.mustbebeta.com/. If you haven't tried the beta firmware yet, DO IT. It adds so many features to the GSP1101. Stan, as he calls himself, has been a lifesaver to the GSP1101 and I hope that Digitech takes notice of how customer service and product support should work. There have been tons

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-14027929372512481322010-06-01T17:12:00.001-05:002010-06-04T17:43:05.553-05:00

I have always been a fan of modelers and hope that the next generation will be better than the last. It is a great theory, a whole room of amps and FX in a single software package or device. The problem is that they sound usable at best. Tube amps just dominate in so many ways. However, the tube amps are large and heavy, require expensive maintenance, and are just a pain all the way around.

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-10952932531747737232010-05-27T00:39:00.000-05:002010-05-27T00:39:36.730-05:00

Well I just installed my new Lite-On Drive iHAP422. In Audio Mastering the "standard" I guess was to get a Plextor Drive since they had this awesome CD tester called Plextools. Well Lite-On has a similar product called K-Probe. Plextor and Lite-On are the only ones that provide this capability. But Lite-On does make drive for lots of other brands. There is also Nero's DVD-Speed and DVDInfoPro

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-33498370699333268882010-04-08T19:13:00.004-05:002010-05-20T18:02:50.910-05:00

Well it has been a while since I have had time to blog. But things are going pretty well in the Ortiz Audio side of things. In January I finished up with Younger Brother. Straight up Rock and Roll that came out really well. It was a long haul with them, but the final product was worth it. There are samples on my site to hear for yourself. You can also find them on iTunes, Amazon, etc. Or you can

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-41520582994266882122010-01-16T02:40:00.001-06:002010-05-20T17:56:45.493-05:00

Well just back to the hotel after a long Day 2 at NAMM. Thanks to Keith Miller (www.km-guitarslinger.com) and Morley Pedals (www.morleypedals.com). Thursday we flew in around noon and got stuck waiting to check in to the Hotel. So after some pizza and chicken buffet, we got all settled in and grabbed a shuttle to the show. We only had a couple of hours so Keith and I spent the time saying hi to

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-79332493148711387732009-11-22T21:13:00.001-06:002009-11-22T21:14:12.669-06:00

I often get approached by bands to do their mixing for them. Sometimes I have an offer to do mixing.  I enjoy it and I think it is a good opportunity to get another set of ears on a project.  Or maybe you are tracking your project at home, to save some money.  This is the first part of a series that will talk about getting tracks ready for another engineer.  This first part will be about

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-72342027413334642532009-10-16T15:04:00.000-05:002009-10-16T15:04:42.641-05:00

I was one of the fortunate ones to grab Native Instruments Komplete 5 when it was on sale for $399 a couple of months ago. I really wanted the Orchestras in Kontakt, the Akoustik Piano, and the Hammond B4.  I figure the rest was just a bonus. Anyway Komplete 6 came out and the upgrade was only $149 so I picked it up. The feature that excited me most was Kontakt 4 which included natural sounding

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-75148229293507793322009-08-30T02:31:00.004-05:002009-09-10T23:12:43.326-05:00

First off I have to thank Jim Williams of Audio Upgrades for sharing this mod on various internet forums.   This particular mod came from GearSlutz.com This D/A from MCM Electronics (50-7774) is for stereos but uses a nice BurrBrown PCM1716 DAC chip.  It sells for a little over $100 but you can get it on sale for cheaper if you wait for a coupon code. The weakspot is the use of a 4558 dual

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-9645984627241941772009-07-14T11:10:00.007-05:002009-07-14T12:15:57.064-05:00

I am getting back into modifying some gear and I figured I would post the notes that I have collected on Op-Amps over the years. Just some random collected information about certain OpAmps. Sites with OpAmp Reviews: http://tangentsoft.net/audio/opamps.html http://audioreviews.blogspot.com/2005/10/flavors-of-audio-op-amps.html http://www.rock-grotto.co.uk/opamp.htm Designing with OpAmps DIY

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-25537634389111431692009-02-04T21:44:00.003-06:002009-02-04T21:59:15.752-06:00

After many years of running around with my trusted old pedalboard I decided it was time for some changes. For any guitarist it is always evolving. Mine has changed a lot over the years. New gear, different sounds, different bands. With Sangre Mal, we are doing enough complicated stuff with samples and loopers, that it was time for an upgrade. I looked around at buying one. But they are so

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-7367700621981166292009-01-28T23:28:00.005-06:002009-01-29T08:28:57.782-06:00

Got back from NAMM a couple of weeks ago. First off I have to thank Keith Miller (http://www.km-guitarslinger.com/) for hooking up the passes this year. Check out his website, he is an amazing player and an awesome dude. BTW-For those that don't know, I play rhythm guitar in his band. This year I did a lot more stargazing than I normally do. The past 2 years have been more about gear. But in

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-41962051837336167312008-11-03T14:15:00.003-06:002008-11-03T14:49:18.855-06:00

If you search around the internet or talk to studio guys there are lots of tips for getting ready to enter the studio. They are all great and mostly true. But many of them consider the ideal situation. An yeah, of course it is nice to able to meet this ideal. But let's be honest, most bands are not ideal. Instruments and supplies are expensive. My band included, we don't have the money to have

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-67151884577904142008-10-31T15:58:00.004-05:002009-08-20T23:58:54.960-05:00

There of course is lots of contention over this topic. But more and more I read there is definitely a pecking order with limitations on cost, size, and available values. In repairs I use whatever I have on hand or can find. And to be honest, it works just fine. But for the super discerning ear, here is the pecking order or dielectrics: Polystyrene Polycarbonate Polypropylene Mylar/Polyethylene

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-66699319626213690952008-10-29T22:48:00.004-05:002008-10-29T23:08:58.821-05:00

This was recorded starting in late 2006. Then with member shuffles, the project was significantly delayed. Parts of it were finished up in the spring of 2008. Drums were recorded in my small studio space. Shure PG52 kick, PG56 toms, SM57 snare, OH's with AKG C1000 S. Bass was done direct into my MOTU 828 MkII. Guitars/Amps include a bias modded 5150 II, Framus Cobra, ENGL Powerball, and

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-78563689988558628452008-10-24T15:00:00.006-05:002008-10-24T16:33:22.188-05:00

I just recently bought a Presonus Digimax FS. I have been happy with results Ty (Studio Evil) and I are getting with Presonus gear. My hope was to use the clock and the better pre's for drums and some general use. Mainly to put my Behringer ADA8000 on a further backburner. Now my MOTU mk3 is pretty decent. It was a significant upgrade in sound and features compared to my MOTU mKII. But I had read

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-33515772575574863452008-10-20T16:10:00.011-05:002008-10-29T20:51:00.640-05:00

I was having a discussion with a friend of mine about mic pre's. He has some money to spend on gear and I was basically trying to convince him to go high-end. Even if you can't get as much now for the money, it will save you money in the long run. I guess for me I made that same mistake a few years ago. I had some money, and went cheap. Admittedly there weren't as many options as there are today

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-91964057974318678702008-10-17T13:55:00.003-05:002008-10-17T13:59:56.265-05:00

After a few months I have finally gotten a blog up and running. I was originally going to write my own blog software. But after seeing blogger.com and all of its integration with Google and how easy it is to use RSS, I decided to go that route.This Blog will slowly be filled with Recording Tips, DIY Projects, Session Notes, and whatever information I feel like sharing. So check back often and see

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-86275870109961548102008-10-16T17:38:00.025-05:002008-10-16T22:28:10.382-05:00

This was recorded over many weeks during 2008. It is a 3-song EP that was individually tracked. All the tracking was done at Studio Evil with Ty Brookman and Augustine Ortiz. The final mixes were done by Augustine Ortiz with Ty Brookman consulting.Can't really remember all the details.. but I will do the best I can.Scratch guitars were done to a click track which took forever to make. There were

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-47462834258865170812008-10-15T16:15:00.007-05:002009-05-20T00:25:04.221-05:00

Here is a list of parts and prices that I have found over a while. I reference this a lot when deciding my cable purchases. Every component has goods and bads. Reviews of these will come later. Some Prices and such as of May 20, 2009: STRAIGHT MONO 1/4" CONNECTORS: G&H BF2P Straight 1/4" Mono $2.25 - PartsExpress G&H BFQP QUIET PLUG 1/4" MONO $2.85 - PartsExpress NP2C Straight 1/4 Mono

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2753748385772572118.post-74842984892624960742008-10-15T15:36:00.015-05:002008-10-18T10:10:23.983-05:00

Cables are probably the most important parts of any rig. If you have crappy cables, you have to worry about poor signal, unreliable operation, and signal coloration. Quality cables are essential. However you don't have to spend a fortune to have excellent quality cables. Sure every cable manufacturer claims to be the best. A lot of them are also outrageously priced. Many will argue that the

aortizjrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17808730692896241618noreply@blogger.com0