FL Studio Nearing Android Release

Yup, I'm still bitching about the state of audio production on Android, but hopefully our community of droids and Nexus-es are about to get a huge shot in the arm.

FL Studio Mobile is progressing nicely, and the developers have released this teaser vid showing off the features which are currently working.


Here's to hoping we'll see the software side of things improve. Maybe that'll help spur some hardware development on proper USB input options...

Video Review: How I Do Most of My Writing

Happy Friday!

So I'm sure you've all read up on how I do my recording on the go thanks to my combo of H4n and Android tablet. Seeing as how I do a lot of writing these days, I thought I'd also show you what my mobile work set up has become as I endeavor to leave the laptop at home more and more.




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Where Are the Android Recording Solutions?

So in playing around with the Yeti Pro I recently reviewed, I got curious about what else I might be able to do with this USB wunder-mic.
Since I own both an Android Tablet and a Galaxy Nexus, both of which support USB hosting, it was only natural that I try connecting them to the Yeti. I fully expected it wouldn't work, but I was a little surprised by what happened.

See that red light on the Yeti? It's on. The mic is on and functional. I'm able to control gain, volume, and monitor from headphones. It's AAAALLLLLIIIIIVVVVVEEEE!!!

Both the Nexus and the Galaxy Tab both powered the mic. I was shocked.

Unfortunately, neither phone nor tablet knew what to DO with a USB mic, and that's where I was stopped short of my dream mobile recording rig.

There's exactly ZERO software to support external mics on Android. None. Zilch. Nada.

Even though this is a feature users have been asking for since the first Android phones have hit the market, and users have jury-rigged ridiculous solutions to try and add mics to the Android ecosystem (usually through the 3.5mm headphone jack), and even noting that we have USB hosting capabilities on a number of Android devices now, there's still not a single app that can talk to audio gear.

For the voice actor, this is definitely the one solid advantage the iPad will maintain over any Android device. We've seen an explosion of software and hardware solutions aimed at turning Apple's tablet into a true recording studio companion. USB mics that can connect through the iPad camera connector, new mics announced that will connect directly to the dock connector, docks that convert the ipad into an audio interface, even new audio mixers that dock the iPad and use it as the brain of a multi-tracking recording chain.

It's time Android. It's time. If I can use my tablet as a live view monitor and control surface for my Canon 7D, It's long past time for me to be able to connect a USB mic to my tablet and record my VO.

The future is now...

Can you hear the difference between MP3 bitrates...

...because I CAN!

MP3 or not - Don't you hear it?

If you were to play the same clip of audio at 320Kbps (the highest quality MP3 you can rip) and 128Kbps (about average, maybe a little below) would you be able to tell the difference? The 320Kbps file is 2.5 times bigger than the 128. Do you really get two and a half times the "quality"?

Ok, so all audio snobbery aside, I actually could tell the difference between the two samples on this site. It wasn't a huge difference, but there was a subtle feel to how the voice interacted with the instruments, and I was certain I had the right clip.

I have to say that comparing the two clips was pretty interesting. When I rip music now I only rip to 320Kbps or to FLAC. Mostly I'm just paranoid about not losing too much information (archiving CD's or if I ever need to re-rip), but it is kinda satisfying knowing that 128Kbps MP3's aren't quite as bad as us audio snobs make them out to be.

MP3 or not - Don't you hear it?
someaudioguy some audio guy mp3 music recording technology demo vocals voice

More End of the Year Top Ten/Best Of Lists

I'm a SUCKER for top ten lists...

ExtremeTech's List of Ten Worst Technologies and Trends of 2007

Gizmodo's Top Ten list of gadgets that will get you fired from your office job

ExtremeTech's Top Ten Tech Tips of 2007

Consumerist's Top Ten Products of 2007

Kotaku's Most Commented stories of '07

Enjoy!

Google to Offer Refunds for their Premium Video Service

Quick follow up to a story I posted last week, Google will be offering refunds to customers that had purchased content through their premium video service.

"We planned to give these users a full refund or more. And because we weren't sure if we had all the correct addresses, latest credit card information, and other billing challenges, we thought offering the refund in the form of Google Checkout credits would entail fewer steps and offer a better user experience. We should have anticipated that some users would see a Checkout credit as nothing more than an extra step of a different (and annoyingly self-serving) kind. Our bad. Here's how we're hoping to fix things:"

This is all well and good, but really I'd still have liked to see some effort made at changing up this business model. I know Google's hands are tied by the studios, but some push into unlocking the DRM would've been nice. I mean, this content will just be gone once it's no longer supported.

I just find it sad that the music industry is just starting to figure out how to make money on audio again, and instead of the movie industry learning from that, we'll all just have to wait while they stumble around for a couple more years...

Read the rest here @ Google's Blog

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Rescuing Recorded Sound from Ravages of Time

This is just plain cool!
Scientists are using modern technology to archive the recordings off of older media. I wonder what our media's shelf life will be. I doubt CD's will really last beyond 30 years, and I wonder how long a harddrive can last inactive, let alone early wax cylinders which have lasted over 100 years.



Still it's fascinating work:

"These echoes of a bygone era were recorded on media such as wax
cylinders and shellac and lacquer discs. But many are now too fragile
to play in their original format; the pressure of a stylus or
phonograph needle could cause irreversible damage. Others are too
broken, worn or scratched to yield high-quality sound. The archivists
needed a means to preserve the recordings without injuring them further.

A physicist with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Haber
was developing subatomic particle detectors to be used at CERN in
Geneva, Switzerland. This involved using digital cameras and robots to
place each delicate detector in precisely the right place. In a flash
of insight, Haber realized that an optical scanning system could solve
the Library's quandary."

Read the rest @ huliq

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Free Geek Squad I Am NOT!

Heh-heh, went a little Yoda on the subject line there...geeky... It seems everytime a client finds out I'm pretty decent at "tech stuff" I start getting hit up for advice. That then gets turned into asking for help with just a little issues, and eventually full blown tech support...for free. Because, well, obviously since I'm into it, I MUST want to help them with their issues. Quite a few get a little pissy when I inform them that this is something I charge for. It would be like me going up to one of them and saying "Hey you're pretty good at this pretending/acting stuff. I wrote this play in high school, and I'm putting it up at a community theater, and I just figured you'd be in it... no no.... for free..."
some audio guy someaudioguy geeksquad technology support rant