Gudday.
I'm thinking about finally upgrading from my ISIS, and I'm intrigued by the idea of the CW DSPs onboard. I'll either get a LunaIIex and some adat box, or maybe the A16.
I generally only record audio, no midi or synths here, but I'm wondering how the luna goes with a couple of compressors or eqs on the inserts and maybe a reverb or two on the auxs. XTC mode is supported on the Luna, yeah?
Is there any reason why I wouldn't/shouldn't get a Luna? What would I have to look out for?
System: XP2000+, Asus A7N8X, 768meg 2100ddr, 1x20gig, 2x40gig Segates (raid0), Gainward ti44800se.
Thanks.
Willy.
Thinking about getting LunaIIex
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marcuspocus
- Posts: 2310
- Joined: Sun Mar 25, 2001 4:00 pm
- Location: Canada/France
If you already got some adat converter, that good, if you don't, i highly suggest you have a close look at A16U, it is really a top performer, really high quality, less trouble than adat (no sync issues at all).
Has for Luna, it is really good for IO. It come with a mixer, the STM1632 (16 mono/stereo channel with direct outs on each + 4 aux send/return). Pretty good mixer if you ask me.
a compressor on every channels + parametric EQ on all channels is possible, but then you at maximum dsp usage, no room for anything else on DSP. If you limit a bit those comp/eq usage, you can also load a couple of effects in AUX channel, to use as send/return.
To record, i think Luna is very good, and enough powered.
But if you think of trying some synths, then your doomed to get more DSP than a Luna. Cuz i know you'll love cw synths, and mod3 specialy. So, maybe you're better of with a pulsar2 right from start, and, Pulsar2 has ADAT integrated.
Personnaly, if you can, get the pulsar2.
Has for Luna, it is really good for IO. It come with a mixer, the STM1632 (16 mono/stereo channel with direct outs on each + 4 aux send/return). Pretty good mixer if you ask me.
a compressor on every channels + parametric EQ on all channels is possible, but then you at maximum dsp usage, no room for anything else on DSP. If you limit a bit those comp/eq usage, you can also load a couple of effects in AUX channel, to use as send/return.
To record, i think Luna is very good, and enough powered.
But if you think of trying some synths, then your doomed to get more DSP than a Luna. Cuz i know you'll love cw synths, and mod3 specialy. So, maybe you're better of with a pulsar2 right from start, and, Pulsar2 has ADAT integrated.
Personnaly, if you can, get the pulsar2.
Really depends what you are looking for. As you said, you "mostly record audio". Where this audio comes from?
Pulsar synths are mostly interesting for electronic music makers, using them in trad. music needs much creativity
Luckily, B2003 hammond smulator is changing this. Hopefully in the future we'll see more Pulsar synths that are suitable for..say rock musicians.
Pulsar synths are mostly interesting for electronic music makers, using them in trad. music needs much creativity
Luckily, B2003 hammond smulator is changing this. Hopefully in the future we'll see more Pulsar synths that are suitable for..say rock musicians.
When I say I record "audio", I mean that I record bands, usually 5 tracks of drums, 1-2 tracks of bass, and maybe a couple of guitars depending on what's left over, live.
Synths don't interest me at all, in all honesty, I'm not one guy sitting behind a midi keyboard creating stuff, and I can't imagine myself to ever be one.
I'm looking to get 16 channels in of miced instruments, and the DSP in the Luna seems like an interesting bonus.
Any Amp emulators available?
Thanks.
Willy.
Synths don't interest me at all, in all honesty, I'm not one guy sitting behind a midi keyboard creating stuff, and I can't imagine myself to ever be one.
I'm looking to get 16 channels in of miced instruments, and the DSP in the Luna seems like an interesting bonus.
Any Amp emulators available?
Thanks.
Willy.
yeah,but synths are not the onlyuse for dsps.lots of processing capabilities exist.also,if you HAD synths,you might find them interesting for extra textures and layers.(just a bonus for just-in-case you are dealing with an artist who could use them...)
you know there are plugins like vinco or psyq or finaliza or optimaster that would be really useful for mixing(and recording) a band and they use dsp....a plug like vinco replaces a $1000 compressor(la1176).to have 5 or 6 of those is worth the investment....the luna with the a16 will work great..pulsar is a better buy overall.
how about vdat?if you are stritly recording live,that would make a lot of sense.32bit crystal clear recording.....
you know there are plugins like vinco or psyq or finaliza or optimaster that would be really useful for mixing(and recording) a band and they use dsp....a plug like vinco replaces a $1000 compressor(la1176).to have 5 or 6 of those is worth the investment....the luna with the a16 will work great..pulsar is a better buy overall.
how about vdat?if you are stritly recording live,that would make a lot of sense.32bit crystal clear recording.....
You never know when a band might need a Moog or B3 for a mix! As for the I/O, the 24/96 is great, just know that it doesn't have it's own power supply so it's noise level will be greatly dependent on the purity of your power line as it runs into your computer. If you have crappy powerlines into your homestead, you will hear your hard drive spin up every time you do something. Having plugged my setup in a couple of different places, I can say that in the proper environment it can be an incredibly quiet device.
Having said that, I think, especially if you'll be recording a drum kit with several mic's the a Pulsar II with the Z-Link IO option and the A16 would really be a better option. You'll still get an ADAT port, but the ins and outs of the A16 are pristine. I haven't verified this, but I also got lots of pops when loading a new project in SFP using the 2496 whereas I think the A16U has some kind of peak shielding. No noise problems at all.
The other thing is that if you're using a Luna II you'll be able to load plenty of stock FX, but if you want to load a couple of Vinco's, MasterVerb Pro's, PsyQ's or Optimasters, you'll run out of juice REALLY fast. I'd say the Luna II is best used as JUST a mixingboard/routing system, or JUST a sampler, or JUST a modular system. It's great for doing one real task while having access to butter it up with other available tools, but you can easily flex a Pulsar II to it's limits if you have a high track count with lots of processing.
I also want to be clear, it sounds like there's tons of limitations here, it's more accurate to say there's tons of possibilities, and it's important to know what each one promises so you don't buy one that seems to promise the world and not do it when you've got the band in the studio.
I think, for what you're doing, a Pulsar II + A16U would be the best bet. It's essentially like having an 02r96 in your computer + good FX (as opposed to the reletively crap ones that come with those boards) and a few synths if you need em. It's more expensive, yes, but the purchase that doesn't do what you need is the most expensive thing you can buy no matter what it costs.
Hope that helps,
Sam
As for the I/O, the 24/96 is great, just know that it doesn't have it's own power supply so it's noise level will be greatly dependent on the purity of your power line as it runs into your computer. If you have crappy powerlines into your homestead, you will hear your hard drive spin up every time you do something. Having plugged my setup in a couple of different places, I can say that in the proper environment it can be an incredibly quiet device. Having said that, I think, especially if you'll be recording a drum kit with several mic's the a Pulsar II with the Z-Link IO option and the A16 would really be a better option. You'll still get an ADAT port, but the ins and outs of the A16 are pristine. I haven't verified this, but I also got lots of pops when loading a new project in SFP using the 2496 whereas I think the A16U has some kind of peak shielding. No noise problems at all.
The other thing is that if you're using a Luna II you'll be able to load plenty of stock FX, but if you want to load a couple of Vinco's, MasterVerb Pro's, PsyQ's or Optimasters, you'll run out of juice REALLY fast. I'd say the Luna II is best used as JUST a mixingboard/routing system, or JUST a sampler, or JUST a modular system. It's great for doing one real task while having access to butter it up with other available tools, but you can easily flex a Pulsar II to it's limits if you have a high track count with lots of processing.
I also want to be clear, it sounds like there's tons of limitations here, it's more accurate to say there's tons of possibilities, and it's important to know what each one promises so you don't buy one that seems to promise the world and not do it when you've got the band in the studio.
I think, for what you're doing, a Pulsar II + A16U would be the best bet. It's essentially like having an 02r96 in your computer + good FX (as opposed to the reletively crap ones that come with those boards) and a few synths if you need em. It's more expensive, yes, but the purchase that doesn't do what you need is the most expensive thing you can buy no matter what it costs.
Hope that helps,
Sam
Thanks, that's pretty much how I see it. That's the sort of information I needed too. Are the stock effects any good?On 2003-07-28 13:29, dehuszar wrote:
You never know when a band might need a Moog or B3 for a mix!
....
The other thing is that if you're using a Luna II you'll be able to load plenty of stock FX, but if you want to load a couple of Vinco's, MasterVerb Pro's, PsyQ's or Optimasters, you'll run out of juice REALLY fast. I'd say the Luna II is best used as JUST a mixingboard/routing system, or JUST a sampler, or JUST a modular system. It's great for doing one real task while having access to butter it up with other available tools, but you can easily flex a Pulsar II to it's limits if you have a high track count with lots of processing.
....
I also want to be clear, it sounds like there's tons of limitations here, it's more accurate to say there's tons of possibilities,
Willy.
Many links all over the forum.... Maybe we could maintain one central database for all the links?
But here's the finalizer : http://www.d-media.dk/plugs/final_liza.htm
But here's the finalizer : http://www.d-media.dk/plugs/final_liza.htm
WillyBomb, the stock fx sound pretty good indeed, though not exactly spectacular.
Seems there's really a change going on in 3rd party developement, either they've learned a lot or they simply dare a lot more today
All new devices come up with a significant increase in sound quality and fidelity. This will probably be even more extended in future releases, as usual.
I was hardly able to run the guitar amp simulator by UnitX (Amper) on 4 DSPs, Orbitone's Vorb FX uses roughly 2 DSPs, a decent small reverb like the PT2016S (an old one though) uses twice the load of a simple MasterVerb or the STM1632 mixer.
Also keep in mind that the 'stock' devices are now distributed over several packages, which may cause additional costs.
I agree with Sam and Gary to get a Pulsar 2 with a good set of software included, which may vary from the source you aquire it.
A 2nd hand Pulsar Two usually sells around $600-800 with some good stuff included.
just my 2 cents, Tom
Seems there's really a change going on in 3rd party developement, either they've learned a lot or they simply dare a lot more today
All new devices come up with a significant increase in sound quality and fidelity. This will probably be even more extended in future releases, as usual.
I was hardly able to run the guitar amp simulator by UnitX (Amper) on 4 DSPs, Orbitone's Vorb FX uses roughly 2 DSPs, a decent small reverb like the PT2016S (an old one though) uses twice the load of a simple MasterVerb or the STM1632 mixer.
Also keep in mind that the 'stock' devices are now distributed over several packages, which may cause additional costs.
I agree with Sam and Gary to get a Pulsar 2 with a good set of software included, which may vary from the source you aquire it.
A 2nd hand Pulsar Two usually sells around $600-800 with some good stuff included.
just my 2 cents, Tom