mervaka Posted October 2, 2008 Share Posted October 2, 2008 capacity is key. computers do a lot, so are always handy to have around I guess. I'll actually be buying a 6u cradle and 1u tray soon to rehouse an old laptop for this purpose among others like RTA, recording etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobbsy Posted October 3, 2008 Share Posted October 3, 2008 Speaking for myself, a few years back I found myself in the position where my two workhorse MD decks were showing their age mechanically and the choice of replacements on the market was very limited (and only the expensive "pro" units featured Auto Pause which I consider essential). However, since making the move to computer I've found that I'm doing things in terms of layering and cueing (I work in theatre don't forget) that I would never have atempted on MD. I've also found the computer actually more reliable than MD or CD despite fears to the contrary. Storage capacity is not an issue for me...but not having to dub things from PC to MD every time certainly is, as is the ability to have a simple DAW with me in the theatre for simple edits and processing on the fly. Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joy Welsh Posted October 3, 2008 Author Share Posted October 3, 2008 Let's go backwards with the response... Digital out can be used if your desk has digital in. Straight out of the laptop headphone or speaker output. Depending upon the laptop you may get earth interference when running from mains and questionable audio quality. DI box. You will need 2 if you want stereo. You still may get interference as above. External sound 'card'. Best option if you get a decent one as you describe with balanced connections. HTH. Drew. Thanks DrewI have tried the direct connection yesterday and you and others are right there is some bad interference which I cannot have. I do not need stereo so only one DI box if I got this way, but if I may still get interference then I must opt for a decent external sound card, so I am going to choose this route.Thanks again JOY Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndenim Posted October 3, 2008 Share Posted October 3, 2008 Er, John....that IS an external sound card! :) Bob Oh yea, I was thinking of 'Internal'. dohhh.Good luck with your search Joy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joy Welsh Posted October 3, 2008 Author Share Posted October 3, 2008 I'd like to throw another spanner in the works and ask the question...... WHY? I'm not saying there isn't a problem, I'd just like to know what the current problem with minidisk is that is making / has made you change to relying on computers? Rob HI, I am testing out the computer option since I am attracted to the non interruption of having to keep changing mini disks and to have the ease of varying playlists for audiences. I am using minidisk at the moment and I have absolutely no sound problems at all, so it may be stick with what works: this may be the case since I cannot figure out how to control the output of different tracks using the laptop. When I record CD backing tracks to minidisk I can control signal output by increasing/decreasing db's and I can also check tracks after on my mixer LED. All my tracks are then around about the same output, varied a bit for ballad or rock songs. Hence, during a live performance I do not have to alter volumes for differnt tracks. This at the moment seems to be the big plus when using minidisk as I cannot see that you can do this with a laptop. I have ripped and converted my CD backing tracks using winamp pro, using the onboard FLAC decoder. I am thinking of trying a different decoder to see if this works any better. If anyone has any know-how as to how to control signal output using laptop I would be happy. Thanks everyone for different suggestions re connections from laptop to mixer/PA. A Great Help JOYl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david.elsbury Posted October 3, 2008 Share Posted October 3, 2008 For ripping I would suggest using CDEX and ripping to WAV files. Uncompressed, highest quality :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobbsy Posted October 3, 2008 Share Posted October 3, 2008 Joy, Re: controlling levels, may I suggest a two stage process. First, transfer CDs into the computer by ripping them...I use the freeware "Exact Audio Copy" which is available for down load. Then use an audio editor (Audacity is freeware) to "normalise" the tracks to the same level. For performance use I'll often actually apply a bit of compression to keep the quiet bits above expected ambient noise. Done this way you have full control of levels and the highest quality. Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shez Posted October 3, 2008 Share Posted October 3, 2008 Then use an audio editor (Audacity is freeware) to "normalise" the tracks to the same level. Unless Audacity has become a lot more clever than since I last used it, normalising won't help. The process of normalising simply looks at the peak level of a track and pays no attention to the average level which is what the ear responds to. Most CDs will have already been mastered to peak at 0dBFS so normalising won't make any difference. I would suggest adjusting the levels by ear - it's the only really reliable way of ensuring that they sound the same sort of level. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Edwards Posted October 3, 2008 Share Posted October 3, 2008 or you could get a macbook and Qlab. It has lovely fade curves and can trim levels. This has nearly persuaded me to move entirely to computer based playback, only thing missing for me is a great big external USB 'GO' button. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmaudio Posted October 3, 2008 Share Posted October 3, 2008 or you could get a macbook and Qlab. It has lovely fade curves and can trim levels. This has nearly persuaded me to move entirely to computer based playback, only thing missing for me is a great big external USB 'GO' button. Yup.... Qlab for me to. It's so simple I managed to teach all the drama teachers at school how to use it in 15mins! Also, back to the OPs question, I have never had problems using the built in audio in my macbook, except when have a mouse plugged in to the USB port right next to the audio out. Though "get a mac" properly wasn't the advise you where looking for! Cheers Jamie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndenim Posted October 3, 2008 Share Posted October 3, 2008 Sorry I may has missed something, what program are you going to use to play the tracks Joy? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Edwards Posted October 3, 2008 Share Posted October 3, 2008 Winamp. I supopse 'get a mac' is not entirely helpful. If you want/need to stay with a PC then there are some nifty cue programs from the radio world. I'll try and find out from a friend which one he uses. He sticks a touch screen overlay on his laptop and it has a nice big segue button in the corner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom_the_LD Posted October 4, 2008 Share Posted October 4, 2008 External sound card is the best option, as the audio quality on laptops really is not good! Why use winamp? There is much better software out there! For free, look at 'Multiplay' (in the software release forum), and for payware look at 'Sound Cue System'. They are both really great pieces of software. Multiplay is good if you just want to do playing back of cues, Sound cue system allows you to do clever MIDI stuff for linking up with other MIDI devices. For example lighting desks and keyboards. Hope this is of SOME help! Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adethefade Posted October 4, 2008 Share Posted October 4, 2008 Hi Rob, I get your point: MD's a great medium for lots of reasons, but you have to admit it's not compatible with anything else - as in drag and drop file transfer...and the format's days are numbered: it's not easy to even buy the discs anymore. Laptop's always worked fine for me, and if not, there're plenty of rock-solid rack-mount file players out there. Ade Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndenim Posted October 4, 2008 Share Posted October 4, 2008 Wilkinsons is the best place I have found for mini discs. This may sound crass but the best program I have to play mp3's is virtual dj.I can select playlists, ie, spot 1, 2, so on, put them in any order and even select 'smart play' which merges each track together, if so desired. If anyone out there wants this please PM me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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