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Author Topic: Mbox2 pro tools  (Read 4682 times)

Offline diverse379

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Mbox2 pro tools
« on: October 10, 2005, 09:21:22 AM »
i just bought the mbox2 and it will not work with my computer so i bought a new one and it would not work fo that one either even though the requirements were right.

anyone who wants to use pro tools must really be careful to visit the digi design website for compatabilities many chipsets are not designed for music production
the best bet is to find someone who can build computers and let them get an asus motherboard with the 955x or 915gl and a sater hard drive with about two gigs of ram

i am having one built and it is only costing me 900 including labor
doing it this way you end up with a 2000 dollar computer for under 1,ooo dollars also be aware that windowsxp  media center is not approved

another point is that people who build your computer to order will often give you massive amounts of software on your system so if you are considering protoools and do not already have a high end system then consider building your computer

does anyone else out there have the mbox2
i got the factory edition with all sorts of software but i have yet to set it up yet i hope it is worth all the effort i put forth in getting this thing set up
To be or not to be that is the question you anwer when you pray practice and read your word

T_Keys

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Mbox2 pro tools
« Reply #1 on: October 10, 2005, 09:24:33 AM »
Where did you go to get your computer built like that?

Offline diverse379

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how to get a custom computer
« Reply #2 on: October 10, 2005, 11:51:29 AM »
the guy who is doing the build was referred to me by a business owner i am friends with the guy does all his computer work

it takes him a couple of hours to build it once he has the parts the parts take a long time because the chips are special music production chips
i am waiting two business days and for NYC that is a long time
or maybe i am impatient.  
anyway whre are you he could build the same system for you but then you would have to have it shipped and then he doesent know you so he might not do the build without having the money for the parts (800) and then he charges 100 to build

your best bet is to go to a computer repair place and speak to one of the techs most of them know how to build a computer it is really not that hard
you need to know what kind of mother board you need
Asus is recommended by protools (check their site)
pentium d or 915GVl (NOT 915g)
sator hard drive
MB 1 gig or two gigs i am getting two gigs

plus CD/dvd/ rw combo drive

and nvidia video card

as long as you knowexactly what you need and like i said you need to check the website or tell the people who are building your computer to get the specs from the website that is what i did and they let me know that all of the chipsets protools recommends are all music production chipsets

this is why when you try to buya used one with those chipsets it is next to impossible to find also make sure before you pay for  the computer you have them load the software after all that is why you are having it built so they can work any bugs out that may be there there shouldnt be if they used the recommended parts but then hey you never know maybe they skimped on something ( you know how people are)

good luck let me know if you still want to try my contact i am sure he would appreciate the business i am just not sure if you wouldnt be better off dealing with someone local.
To be or not to be that is the question you anwer when you pray practice and read your word

Offline Qantares

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M-Audio 18/14 Interface
« Reply #3 on: October 11, 2005, 07:12:23 PM »
The M-Audio 18/14 Firewire Interface will give you more bang for your buck than the MBox2.

It has 18 in's and 14 out's and Neutrik Preamps.

The M-Audio records at up to 96 kHz (Mbox2 only goes up to 48 kHz)

Go to musiciansfriend.com and compare the specs of the M-Audio 18/14 vs. the Mbox2 and see for yourself.

Offline diverse379

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regarding maudio
« Reply #4 on: October 11, 2005, 09:44:01 PM »
i cant say whether it is more bang for the buck or not the factory package which sells for 495

It comes with reason,ableton live lite 4, bfd lite fx expansion , sample tank se, ik multimedia amplitube le. T racks EQ melodyne uno essential,bunker 8 rex file cd plus a protools instructional dvd and a and the plugins are, moogerfooger ring modulator, and analog delay, bf-3a classic compressor, sans amp psa, voice spin, voce chorus/vibrato, tel-ray variable delay, and more
this is a lot of free software or maybe not free cause you pay an extra 100 for it and i have not even got my protools down loaded yet i am still waiting for the processor to come so i can have the computer built

in any event extra inputs are cool if you are doing a choir or a band thing which i am not.

i suppose i could upgrade later if i were to but my system is a roland phantom and a yamaha s90 and a bass and a guitar and i wont be playing them all at the same time

i think that more is not always better if you really understand your recording needs i have been recording since the 80's and i have never needed more than four inputs at the same time and if i ever did i could always use an external mixer

of course if you want to be a real full service studio you can never have enough inputs


but i am glad that you are providing feedback i plan on updating and chronicalizing my experiences with this mbox 2 the ups and downs so that anyone who is planning on buying it will know what they are getting

so far i have searched for computers to run this thing for a week and this is what i found

windows xp media center does not work with pro tools you need xp home or xp pro

i found that most refurbished computers with pentium 4 processors do not have the correct chip set

the pentium d is your best bet and radio shack has a perfect computer with a 915gv chipset that will work for 989.00 with a 17 inch monitor

i have priced other builders for a custom computer and i still feel that is the way to go

my system will be pentium d processor
two gigs ram
200 gig hard drive
256 video card
dvd burner
cd burner
all for 900 (thats a special favor price)
but i shopped around and got the same system quoted at 1,200 to 1400
but the parts alone only cost 800 so if you know how to follow instructions buy the parts and build it yousrself or buy the parts and take it to someone to put it together for you.

the order time for the asus motherboards take a long time though about three business days but if you can wait custom building is the way to go

comp usa has some good systems as well and dell fsx systems are really cool as well
Dell fsx 400 = 1,173 with monitor and 1 gig of ram
comp usa  a couple of pentium d computers for under a thousand but you they come with media center so you have to buy indows xp home and load that

i hope all of this crazy stuff helps

i almost wish i bought a cheaper music producton studio no computer to buy no headaches
i sure hope all this aggravation was worth it
To be or not to be that is the question you anwer when you pray practice and read your word

kadman92

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Mbox2 pro tools
« Reply #5 on: October 11, 2005, 09:55:58 PM »
I build custom pc's and do upgrades....

I also work part time at a CompUSA but they don't really have any "I don't need any upgrade" pc's   Mind you they have some good ones... they have 2 gateways with Pentium D's  and an HP with an Athalon 64 X2.  But all need video cards, they use integrated video and possibly sound, not sure how good the soound is on them.  They all have XP media center which is XP pro with the media functionality added.

I'm in the Southeast Baltimore county area if anyone is looking to build a PC nearly at cost of parts.

Offline diverse379

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dont get it twisted
« Reply #6 on: October 11, 2005, 10:01:13 PM »
although media center xp is an upgrade to the xp pro
it still does not work with mbox2
by all means if you are looking  for a custom computer check the brother out give them a price they can mull over
To be or not to be that is the question you anwer when you pray practice and read your word

Offline Qantares

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Mbox2 pro tools
« Reply #7 on: October 12, 2005, 01:35:37 AM »
Glad to hear you are happy with the MBOX.  

Just trying to give you other options.  

If you only need a few I/Os of audio (not MIDI) at a time, then I agree that the MBOX is a fair choice.

I'm not a fan of Digidesign, as you can probably tell...lol.  Since you are a user of pro-tools, YOU KNOW how weak their MIDI is.  In addition, their silly proprietary nonsense bugs me.

Offline diverse379

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not a fan just committed to my purchase
« Reply #8 on: October 12, 2005, 12:06:36 PM »
hey thanks for the feedback dont get me wrong i am no fan i havent even used it yet but after laying out nearly 500 bucks and then wrecking my explorer on the way home i am in deep 5,500 so the last thing i want to consider is pro tools is weak

it may be and i will relay all my finds as i get this thing going  
i have heard that pro tools is the industry standard that is the only reason i bought this over sonar  i pray i dont end up regretting this decision

so hopefully the strengths of the system will outweigh the weaknesses
what makes the midi weak??
isnt midi just midi? its been around for over 20 years how can they get it wrong?

as far as propritary i imagine that can be a bit of a nightmare but like i said once i am up and running i will report my finds on this forum page

thanks
To be or not to be that is the question you anwer when you pray practice and read your word

Offline Qantares

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Mbox2 pro tools
« Reply #9 on: October 12, 2005, 12:53:36 PM »
I'm really sorry to hear about your losses.  That's a real bummer.

As far as pro-tools being the standard, I guess there is some truth to that, but that is almost a non-issue with the use of OMF files.

All midi is not created equal!  But the Pro-Tools salesguys will never tell you that.  Everyone I know who has pro-tools, uses some other program for midi (digital performer, sonar, reason, etc).

Offline diverse379

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mbox2 is finally working
« Reply #10 on: October 18, 2005, 03:48:25 PM »
wow i finally got this mbox2 working many hours of looking at frozen plugins and playing keys without hearing any sounds many disappointing sounds from the plugins and then haeleileiua ( did i spell that right)
i got the thing working first let me tell you what i learned
!if you are new to internet recording try not to install your new software at night or over the weekend because if you need tech support you will need to wait until business days
second research the system requirements either online or from techsupport at the company where you wish to purchase from
the digidesign website is very cumbersome and they make you wait for an average of 30 minutes before you get help.

okay now for the positives
mbox 2 is really hot and it does a tremendous amount of things and i have not even touched the surace yet
the first thing i noticed was that reason adapted which came with it only had three synths a compressor digi delay and reverb and something called a matrix which is like an analog sequencer?????
the sounds were kind of corny at first until i begun playing with the knobs and controls on the face of the keyboards and then wow the sounds sudenly becalme much more useful if you know anythng about keyboard programming you will have fun with this reason plug in ( it also works as a stand alone which makes it great for shedding and practicing grooves without getting too technical.
the drum machine is unique because it is based on one measure with 16 subdivisions so if you read music you can pick up some drum music and quiclly plug in the beats with the push of a drum pad it is so easy to make the funkiest beats even if you cant play them. i hope i explained that right but in any event the drum machine is very easy to use and alows you to program beyond your level of creativity.
reason in general is very easy to navigate and gave me the least problems out of all the software.

sampletank  BOOO another plug in i spent nearl 48 hours for real trying to make this thing work it turns out with some soft synths you need to manually copy the files to the intrument folder (duh ) i did not know that

once i waited till monday after messing with this thing all day saturday and sunday i got it working with the help of the tech people at digidesign and the sounds were pretty disappointing
so i went out and bought tascam gs3 which is another soft synth sampler and the sounds here were pretty good.

for guitar players they have a really decent amp from ik multimedia which allows you to plug your guitar inot the mbox and and wail on tris tube amp which is extremely flexible
then i downloaded a free live tube amp which can be used as a stand alone like the reason software without needing to be in the pro tools environment.

live wire by ableton dont know how to use this thing it ie very strange how they have it layed out i will get back to it to me either the reason or the live wire do close to the same thing they allow you to make grooves they just go about it differently i am sure those of you who dont play that well would get the most out of live wire because it allows you to loop like crazy so does reason but i think livewire uses more friendly controls

ok what about mbox2 what i like most about it is that i can play my key board or my bass or my guitar very easily the midi is already hooked up
the connections stay ready so as you go from one plug in or program to another everything just works without pressing any buttons or pullin gout chords that to me is great because when i am in musicain mode i dont like playing engineer. it ruins the creative flow for me.

as far as recording on protools it seems easy enough once you do it a few times i havent really gotten inot it yet i have spent the last 96 hours just gettiong used to navigaing the software


i will keep you posted as i get into this recording thing more

one final note the manufacturers of both pro tools and tascams Gs3 recommend that users have more than one harddrive apparently the audio should have a dedicated harddrive to go to and if you have a sampler on your computer and you will be doing a lot of sample editing you should have  third harddrive for that i

its not as big as it sounds the hardrives go for about 90 dollars wholesale and if you have your computer built with the asus mother board it will take up to six hard drives i think
and if you want to get fancy dont throw out your old monitors because you can use a second monitor and even a third to watch the editing window the plug in manager and the mixing board all at the same time

i always thought engineers had multiple computers i did not know that one computer could support multiple monitors and hard drives

well that is it for now

sometime this week i will share my approach to getting inot this thing
mbox2 rules no actually God rules mbox 2 just allows us to play praise music for him

God Bless everyone
To be or not to be that is the question you anwer when you pray practice and read your word

Offline diverse379

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propritary???!!!!!
« Reply #11 on: October 20, 2005, 12:32:23 PM »
Hey somebody warned me Quanterro i think it was but yeah the plugins which are software versions of recording gear like preamps reverbs, compressors, limiters, sonic maximizers etc.

well their are only a couple of companies making anything for pro tools and most of them cost real big money the good news is once you get a couple of bundles ( which are several plug ins for one price) you have most of what you need

example there is a producers bundle $399 which gives you about ten pices the preamp is the most important for me because when i want to lay a bass track i want to go directly in to the board so a preamp tightens the bass right up.  

also i discovered that when you are using a big smple editor it is best to save samples to a seperate hard drive so now we are up to three hard drives for our ideal system

and if you really want o get crazy two processors

i dont know how necessary that though i will not be doing that right now but i will probably do the hard drive upgrade

i have managed to learn the reason software pretty well I made a sequence of James brown"s think and it did not sound bad at all
the instruments still sound a bit tame but i think once i begin tweaking the sounds and utilizing the compressor or reverb i may get better sounds i was surprised how good the sax sounds on one of reasons keyboards the combinator .

that is it for now
To be or not to be that is the question you anwer when you pray practice and read your word
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