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What is on everyone's list for Santa this year?

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Boydie

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« on: December 13, 2018, 07:33:28 AM »
Hey all

I thought it would be fun to see what everyone is wanting/wishing for this Christmas

Peace, harmony and goodwilll to everyone is a given - I am talking about "stuff"  ;D

I have been thinking about thinning out my guitar collection and selling/part exchanging a 1994 Japan '57 reissue strat & my 1990 Gibson Les Paul Standard to get a Fender custom shop heavy relic strat - I keep looking at the 60th anniversary model, which has some modern specs but looks really vintage

Is anyone else looking at anything music related this year - either as a gift from Santa or for themself!
To check out my music please visit:

http://soundcloud.com/boydiemusic

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BoydieMusic

Wicked Deeds

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« Reply #1 on: December 13, 2018, 12:04:29 PM »
I'm feeling a little bit like Bob Cratchet this year. Only off on Christmas day then back to the grind the following day. . I'd love to list a series of wonderful music related goodies but not this year unless some scrooge-like character has an overnight epiphany and surprise me with the best guitar in the shop. There is one thing that would be a lovely surprise though I'm not sure if it will arrive before or after Christmas. Like one of the wise men, Nooms will hopefully be the bearer of good tidings re that wish. Sorry I can't provide a list of musical goodies. I am however desperate to see my children on the 28th of December for a few days.

Hope everyone gets some wonderful surprises!

Paul

PaulAds

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« Reply #2 on: December 13, 2018, 12:54:11 PM »
Not really a present, as such...

I had a builder give me an estimate for a small office/studio in half of my garage. It's pretty much impossible to get any writing or recording done these days...so even though it will cost me a few grand...I'm looking forward to getting started planning that.

I hope everyone has a great Christmas  :)
heart of stone, feet of clay, knob of butter

cowparsleyman

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« Reply #3 on: December 13, 2018, 01:38:35 PM »
Whatho ho ho all.

Hmmm Christmas.....I don't really have anything I'd want, I have everything I need. What would be useful is time to practise using the stuff I've already got. I'd also wish for time for my collaborator friends, I hear it often that time is pressing for them too.

Would a Neumann u47 really make more of a difference to my songs than taking the right time to improve my production techniques. Nope it would'nt...gear often gets bought but few take the time to learn how to use it properly.

I spent a week's holiday in Norfolk recently (not far from SlavaB actually) , I took my laptop and dug very deeply into my DAW, and discovered a few really cool things, now THAT was like someone giving me a Christmas Present, now I'm able to do things I didn't before, a Neumann wouldn't.

One of the most useful experiments I carried out was a comparison of mic placements when tracking my Acoustic guitars, might save someone a ton of cash, (if they got frustrated with how an expensive acoustic sounds rubbish, conversely a cheapo guitar can be made to sound better - years agoI had a £100 Yamaha FG160 that I used as my strumming guitar for a few years and I was only able to do this by 1. New strings 2. A thinnish plectrum and 3. Careful mic placement) the difference in getting it right meant that my Gibson, sounded as good as it did live, but that takes time and a very methodical approach.

Recently I've been looking at Stereo separation tools like Waves S1, or Stereo Savage, but in my DAW I have a cool feature that's lurking under the Pan knob allows 2D Surround Sound (and Full surround) which does the job better than those 2, (you can place the L and R signal independently wherever you want, in the 2D Stereo sound stage, so a lead vocal can be a little off centre, and if you have 2 Lead Vocalists this allow you to plonk them EXACTLY where you want them... QED. I'm sure you guys know about that in your DAWs, forgive me if I'm preaching to the converted...

Oh yes, and most of all, I wish for really well written user manuals for the software I have, Videos are fine but when one needs to go step by step through a process, there's nothing that can beat the printed word with screenshots. (Kirnu Cream MIDI arpeggiator, one of the worst manuals known to man)

So I guess what I'm saying is you can make your own christmas presents, from what you have already, and yes, it's time not stuff for me.

cpm

p.s. if anyone has some Tannoy Reds they don't want...You hear EVERYTHING with those, a revelation, if once in your life you get the chance to hear them....




cowparsleyman

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« Reply #4 on: December 13, 2018, 01:40:20 PM »
Not really a present, as such...

I had a builder give me an estimate for a small office/studio in half of my garage. It's pretty much impossible to get any writing or recording done these days...so even though it will cost me a few grand...I'm looking forward to getting started planning that.

I hope everyone has a great Christmas  :)

I had a drummer friend, his Dad built him a small studio, twas brilliant, Council found out, no more studio...but a rather fetching brick/concrete rockery  :)

PaulAds

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« Reply #5 on: December 13, 2018, 02:22:49 PM »
Ha ha!

First thing I did was check the council regulations with the builder... Who used to work for the council...
heart of stone, feet of clay, knob of butter

cowparsleyman

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« Reply #6 on: December 13, 2018, 02:29:23 PM »
He was an eternal optimist...He thought I stay in his band...Ha ha indeed...

pompeyjazz

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« Reply #7 on: December 13, 2018, 02:34:09 PM »
Nothing that I want or need apart from the thought of another great year of making music. A big thank you to all of my collaboration partners this year @Viscount Cramer & His Orchestra @adamfarr @Rightly @Neil C @PaulAds @Morefrog Jones @Wicked Deeds @Skub @Binladeda

Big love to all on the forum  :)

CaliaMoko

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« Reply #8 on: December 13, 2018, 03:38:39 PM »
The "wants" at the top of my list aren't really "stuff" for the most part...I want collaborators nearby, my own personal sound engineer. One "stuff" thing is a real studio, as long as I had an engineer to go with it. Oh, and session musicians--or my own band. It's really difficult for me to get enthusiastic about practicing and recording--even writing--when it's always all by myself.

Paulski

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« Reply #9 on: December 13, 2018, 06:00:21 PM »
Waves seems to be carrying over a lot of their cyber Monday deals - might get a plug-in or two there, Santa willing..  ;D

Sing4me88

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« Reply #10 on: December 13, 2018, 09:11:29 PM »
I'm thinking of asking Santa to gift me Yamaha Vocaloid 5 - it's a pretty neat vocal synthesizer that would allow me to topline effortlessly rather than having to use piano/keys etc which just aren't the same as having them sang - albeit by a robot!

cowparsleyman

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« Reply #11 on: December 14, 2018, 11:49:22 AM »
I'm thinking of asking Santa to gift me Yamaha Vocaloid 5 - it's a pretty neat vocal synthesizer that would allow me to topline effortlessly rather than having to use piano/keys etc which just aren't the same as having them sang - albeit by a robot!

Well I never, I didn't know this existed...how interesting

shadowfax

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« Reply #12 on: December 15, 2018, 04:02:26 PM »
My wife's Christmas present to me is a Kube soundbooth which hopefully will be delivered before Christmas, they're made to order...

this'll be the first time I haven't had to build my own..luxury!! :) :) 8) 8)
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Sing4me88

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« Reply #13 on: December 17, 2018, 09:05:50 PM »

Well I never, I didn't know this existed...how interesting

It's one of the better vocaloids by the looks of it. A lot of scope to add vibrato, pitch bend, and to tweak the vocal style that most others don't offer. Based purely on the YouTube tutorials, I can see it as really useful for those like me who don't have a singing note in their head!

cowparsleyman

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« Reply #14 on: December 19, 2018, 09:23:56 AM »
Vocaloids - sounds like a throat sweet from the 1940's  :)