Wednesday update

Feeling more or less normal for the first time in weeks. Weeks. Nearly overnight, I can take a deep breath without feeling the urge to cough. No stuffy nose, no congestion, and I slept through the night and was able to get out of bed with only one trip to the Snooze button.

Did manage to get a spot of recording in, and aside from the ambient noise of my secondary PC the mix is very nice. I was just sketching, kicking the tires on a new song, so to speak, so the power supply hum doesn't bother me much.

I had thought at one point that I need to build a recording booth - along with allowing in some natural light, that was my motivation for putting the window in the wall next to my desk. As I listen to what I recorded last night, now I don't think so. The space is large-ish, and there are many uneven surfaces, some soft surfaces, so the space isn't "live" and room ambient isn't a huge problem. I think if I move the bookshelf to another area, put some foam in that space - maybe a form partition on the backside of my desk, as well - then it will be as effective as a dedicated booth, and far cheaper, too.

I must learn to be aware and control my hand position better. For a guy my size, it sounds like I've got sausages for fingers. Fret buzz is one thing...creating buzz with a carelessly placed hand is quite another.

For my own reference later:

- Instrument

Low shelf = 0
Hi shelf = flat
EQ: 1 = -∞dB  >>  4 = 0dB (only 'cause I don't have the freq. memorized)
Reverb: .15
- Vocal

EQ : flat
Reverb: .12

- Piano, bass (if used)

EQ: flat
Reverb: .2

- Master

very light compression

 

Wednesday update

Feeling more or less normal for the first time in weeks. Weeks. Nearly overnight, I can take a deep breath without feeling the urge to cough. No stuffy nose, no congestion, and I slept through the night and was able to get out of bed with only one trip to the Snooze button.

Did manage to get a spot of recording in, and aside from the ambient noise of my secondary PC the mix is very nice. I was just sketching, kicking the tires on a new song, so to speak, so the power supply hum doesn't bother me much.

I had thought at one point that I need to build a recording booth - along with allowing in some natural light, that was my motivation for putting the window in the wall next to my desk. As I listen to what I recorded last night, now I don't think so. The space is large-ish, and there are many uneven surfaces, some soft surfaces, so the space isn't "live" and room ambient isn't a huge problem. I think if I move the bookshelf to another area, put some foam in that space - maybe a form partition on the backside of my desk, as well - then it will be as effective as a dedicated booth, and far cheaper, too.

I must learn to be aware and control my hand position better. For a guy my size, it sounds like I've got sausages for fingers. Fret buzz is one thing...creating buzz with a carelessly placed hand is quite another.

For my own reference later:

- Instrument

Low shelf = 0
Hi shelf = flat
EQ: 1 = -∞dB  >>  4 = 0dB (only 'cause I don't have the freq. memorized)
Reverb: .15
- Vocal

EQ : flat
Reverb: .12

- Piano, bass (if used)

EQ: flat
Reverb: .2

- Master

very light compression

 

Times are tough all over.

Remember in a previous post how I talked about using the Linux box for video capture? I have no idea if it's going to work, so I'm not willing to spend very much (read: any) money to buy a new card. I called the PC repair shop that happens to be on my way home from work. However, cautious type that I am, I'm not willing to just stop in on the outside chance that he might have one. I called on the outside chance he might be in.

The phone call went like this.

*ring* *ring*

"Vic's PC Shop."

"Your sign says you have used PC parts."

"Yep, I do."

"I need a PCI firewire card."

"Wow...we don't get a lot of calls for those. I might have one I can pull out of another machine. Let me check."

There is the sound of rummaging.

"I've got about a dozen places I can look..."

There is the sound of more rummaging, small plasticky crashes and scrapings.

"Okay, yeah I've got one."

"How much?"

"Oh, let's say...fifteen bucks."

I don't laugh. Not out loud at least.

"Nope. I can buy a new one cheaper from Tiger¹. Thanks for your time, though."

Through the earpiece of the descending handset on its way to the phone cradle, I hear the tinny exclamation, "Well, now, hold on...I'm a good guy...wait wait wait..!"

I guess when you get caught with your hand in an empty cookie jar, you want to retreat as gracefully as you can.

The handset pauses, then returns to my ear. I'm always willing to be entertained.

"Yes?" I say, all consumer innocence.

"I'm a good guy..."

"I know you are. You've done work for me in the past."

"Well, since it's you..." Yeah, even not knowing who I was on the phone, he actually said that.

"I can let you have it for...five bucks."

"Sold. I'll be there on my way home from work."

Pause.

"And, thanks!"

*click*


Epilogue.

I got the card, and I'll install it later. Supper first, then dishes and general pick up 'round the house.

In Vic's defense, he is a good guy, just really optimistic. Or is that opportunistic? The distinction evades me sometimes. In any case, yeah, I'll do business with him again. Of course I will.

His shop is on my way home.

Late Edit

Victory, but not without work, and not without some unaccomplished goals. Apparently, there is what Windows would call a "folder" that you have to have rw permissions on in order to capture video from IEEE1394. Once permissions were in place, Kino perked right up and found my camera.

The challenge now is that I can only capture DV, not SD or HD, which for my purposes is just fine but isn't a good place to be long term. My own personal projects work well in DV, other projects may not. My camera also has the idiosyncracy that to record at 16:9 resolution, you must either be in SD/HD (auto or manual) or in DV on "manual" - manual focus, that is, which is a pain in th'ass.

Still, it's a victory, however small.  I can capture DV on the Linux box, which frees up my main machine for other work.

¹ This isn't even remotely the card I would have purchased were I in a position to do the retail price of anything, but it made the point.

Times are tough all over.

Remember in a previous post how I talked about using the Linux box for video capture? I have no idea if it's going to work, so I'm not willing to spend very much (read: any) money to buy a new card. I called the PC repair shop that happens to be on my way home from work. However, cautious type that I am, I'm not willing to just stop in on the outside chance that he might have one. I called on the outside chance he might be in.

The phone call went like this.

*ring* *ring*

"Vic's PC Shop."

"Your sign says you have used PC parts."

"Yep, I do."

"I need a PCI firewire card."

"Wow...we don't get a lot of calls for those. I might have one I can pull out of another machine. Let me check."

There is the sound of rummaging.

"I've got about a dozen places I can look..."

There is the sound of more rummaging, small plasticky crashes and scrapings.

"Okay, yeah I've got one."

"How much?"

"Oh, let's say...fifteen bucks."

I don't laugh. Not out loud at least.

"Nope. I can buy a new one cheaper from Tiger¹. Thanks for your time, though."

Through the earpiece of the descending handset on its way to the phone cradle, I hear the tinny exclamation, "Well, now, hold on...I'm a good guy...wait wait wait..!"

I guess when you get caught with your hand in an empty cookie jar, you want to retreat as gracefully as you can.

The handset pauses, then returns to my ear. I'm always willing to be entertained.

"Yes?" I say, all consumer innocence.

"I'm a good guy..."

"I know you are. You've done work for me in the past."

"Well, since it's you..." Yeah, even not knowing who I was on the phone, he actually said that.

"I can let you have it for...five bucks."

"Sold. I'll be there on my way home from work."

Pause.

"And, thanks!"

*click*


Epilogue.

I got the card, and I'll install it later. Supper first, then dishes and general pick up 'round the house.

In Vic's defense, he is a good guy, just really optimistic. Or is that opportunistic? The distinction evades me sometimes. In any case, yeah, I'll do business with him again. Of course I will.

His shop is on my way home.

Late Edit

Victory, but not without work, and not without some unaccomplished goals. Apparently, there is what Windows would call a "folder" that you have to have rw permissions on in order to capture video from IEEE1394. Once permissions were in place, Kino perked right up and found my camera.

The challenge now is that I can only capture DV, not SD or HD, which for my purposes is just fine but isn't a good place to be long term. My own personal projects work well in DV, other projects may not. My camera also has the idiosyncracy that to record at 16:9 resolution, you must either be in SD/HD (auto or manual) or in DV on "manual" - manual focus, that is, which is a pain in th'ass.

Still, it's a victory, however small.  I can capture DV on the Linux box, which frees up my main machine for other work.

¹ This isn't even remotely the card I would have purchased were I in a position to do the retail price of anything, but it made the point.