Studio room emulation plugins

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ChrisEmond
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Re: Studio room emulation plugins

Post by ChrisEmond » Tue Jan 10, 2017 1:52 pm

Excellent!
Let me know how that turns out.

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Re: Studio room emulation plugins

Post by guscave » Wed Jan 11, 2017 10:02 am

So yesterday I downloaded the free trial of Sonarworks and all I can say is “Wow”. I wish I had this software before. It made a big difference using my Audio Technica MH50 headphones.

I decided to do a remix of a song I finished a few weeks ago. I didn’t use any reference material but simply relied on the calibration the software did on my headphones. Right away I could see that my headphones were producing about 6 dbs more around 100hz and all kinds of craziness was happening on the highs. The calibration flattened everything out evenly on my headphones and the mix came out better than the original.

The cool thing about this software is that you don’t have to second guess the eq’s on your mix. What you hear is by most part what you get.
I’m going to try another mix from scratch today using the same method.

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Re: Studio room emulation plugins

Post by Lipskimusic » Wed Jan 11, 2017 11:33 am

As per my previous post, I use the Sonaworks plugin almost all the time but it does not work so well in conjunction with the Waves NX plugin...the sound somewhat gets muddy... (I guess it is just too much processing going on). Again, I would like to recommend the Sennheiser HD-650s headphones (and I see them everywhere e.g. Abbey Roads Mastering etc.). And, with these headphones the difference when Sonaworks is engaged (or not) is very, very subtle.

As previously mentioned, analyser tools are also great. I particularly like the HOFA Analyser. It has great functionalities (and presets): You can drag and drop files into the analyser and also mark specific frequencies so that you can exactly address them in your EQ settings. It works really well with reference tracks (thinking of the "a las" - simply juxtapose them to your mix within the analyser).

I hope that makes sense.

Cheers,
Matt

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Re: Studio room emulation plugins

Post by ChrisEmond » Wed Jan 11, 2017 12:10 pm

There definitely seems to be a consensus developing around the Sonarworks plugin. Going that route will mean getting a new set of headphones since my old K 66 aren't up to this job. I know I could send them in for a personalized adjustment but I'm also concerned about other limitations with my actual set. They should still prove very useful in the booth though.

If I'm going to get a model that's already on Sonarworks list, what would be my best bet at approx. 200$ US?

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Re: Studio room emulation plugins

Post by Lipskimusic » Wed Jan 11, 2017 1:19 pm

Within that budget I think most people would recommend Beyerdynamics (https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/DT770M). They have got two models with different impedance depending on the headphone-preamp you use (from my experience low-cost interfaces deal better with low impedance headphones). But again, I would root for the Sennheisers (HD-650s). I also tested the Sony MDR-7506s. They are OK and AKGs 700 range are also considered decent headphones. It also depends whether you are looking for 'open' headphones (in simple terms, better for mixing) or 'closed' (in simple terms, better for recording).

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Re: Studio room emulation plugins

Post by Len911 » Wed Jan 11, 2017 2:42 pm

What about planar headphones?
From the point of view of frequency response, in fact, the closest thing I’ve heard to the LCD-Xs is a lesser pair of headphones with a ‘calibrated’ corrective EQ applied using Sonarworks’ Reference plug-in. But that is to tell only half of the story, and perhaps the less significant half, because what’s really remarkable about the LCD-Xs are things that can’t be compensated for by any software plug-in. For one thing, although listening on headphones will never feel exactly like listening on loudspeakers, the LCD-Xs present a very believable and involving stereo panorama. It’s very easy to distinguish sources panned only a few degrees apart, yet there is none of the artificial width you get in some high-end dynamic headphones.
http://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/audeze-lcd-x-el8

A bit expensive
http://vintageking.com/monitoring/headp ... turer=1285
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Re: Studio room emulation plugins

Post by ChrisEmond » Wed Jan 11, 2017 3:17 pm

Awesome headphones for sure but as you said, expensive :(

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Re: Studio room emulation plugins

Post by Len911 » Wed Jan 11, 2017 3:37 pm

It's easy to lose perspective. A bedroom studio only has so much to spend. Most people listen on less than stellar equipment, and some listen on expensive hifi equipment. The best compromise imo, is to buy the best input strip, that insures that you at least are getting a certain level of quality. If you then mixed on really crappy monitors or cheap headphones, the majority would never know, and the hifi folks who do listen on top of the line planar headphones or expensive speakers would at least hear your quality input strip, and maybe I might feel a little sorry for them if the mix wasn't perfect, but they might feel joyous that they could hear the imperfections, or would they really know?
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Re: Studio room emulation plugins

Post by dougstronach » Sat Jan 21, 2017 4:19 pm

ChrisEmond wrote:Has someone had any luck recently with Studio room emulation plugins? My studio has an unusual configuration and installing absorption panels and bass traps etc, would prove complicated and costly. I've seen some information on Waves NX but I find it difficult to get unbiased reviews.

Thanks for your help,

Chris
Hi Chris:

I've used Sonarworks plugin for the last year or so. I rent an apartment in Toronto so re-designing the room to work as a studio space wasn't an option. To make matters worse, the room I have is square, and I have to sit in the exact center spot of it...a massive no no when it comes to monitoring. The sonarworks plugin saved me..it is quite amazing what it can do for a room and for headphones. i also have the waves NX plugin and use it in conjunction with sonarworks with no problems. Sonarworks corrects the frequency balance of the headphones, while waves gives you a virtual space to simulate real-world monitoring. Good if you work late at night and can't always have audio pumping out of your speakers.

I used to install Sonarworks as a plugin on my master buss inside my DAW, but then listening to spotify or youtube started to really bug me how bad the sound was without running through sonarworks first, so i put together a system to make sure all of my computer's audio went through the plugin. That way, I can reference tracks out of spotify or youtube and hear them in context with my own work. I do that with bluecat audio's patchwork software....hard to explain but you need some way to route your audio internally from your system sounds and DAW into the standalone bluecat plugin which hosts sonarworks, NX and for me, some handy metering tools which I run permanently on a 2nd monitor.

It may seem complicated, but it's a system that works well for me. If you can't hear or reference other tracks properly then you're really just stabbing in the dark when it comes to mixing and music production. Monitoring is the one area that pros working in a pro studio still have over guys like us...not better ears or talent, just better conditions to work in! Sonarworks has really helped me put out mixes that get closer to competing with the pro studios.

good luck!!!

Doug s.

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Re: Studio room emulation plugins

Post by ChrisEmond » Fri Jul 07, 2017 5:24 am

Hi Doug,

Sorry for the delay.
Looks like you put a lot of work into your system and it shows on your mixes. My favorite of your songs is “Love me better'' I think it's a contemporary, well produced pop song that should find many takers in Taxi's listings.

Thanks for the tips,

Chris

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