Outboard mixing vs Laptop

[howard]

Hi there

I have a project / home studio based on G5, MOTU2408Mk3 and Yamaha 01V96 24I/O desk. I am mostly recording myself (plus one other when they drop around) so don't utilise the 24 Input facility and I'm not really using the system fully at present.

My question is, are there any downsides to converting my home studio to work entirely within the Laptop. Having worked with Logic through various versions i'm pretty confident with the software, and can't immediately see any pitfalls with doing everything 'in the box'. The only problem I can see is the control surface for mixing within the laptop (ie mouse click) isn't as user friendly or fun to use as physical faders / knobs on the 01V96. Having said that i'm sure the Logic plug ins, EQs are superior. I'd probably invest in an Apogee Duet with the Laptop or MOTU Ultralight / traveller firewire system to run the audio interface. Any recommendations are welcome?

Has anybody else come across this issue? The studio has been built up over many years of blood, seat and tears and I don't want to get rid of it lightly!! Having said that looking at the S/H prices for my gear I don'y think i'm going to get a vast amount (however I have had some interest), it's more of a space issue (girlfriend is giving me hassle...!).

Glad to receive any comments

Best regards

Howard

 

[johnpitcairn]

Your girlfriend needs more room for her clothes? ;-)

You may find monitoring latency becomes an issue, depending on what you are recording and how you monitor while doing so. You'll probably need to become familiar with the "direct" monitoring ability of whatever interface you go with (make sure it can do so).

Relying solely on mouse/keyboard can be a quick route to repetitive stress injuries (ouch) for some people, especially if heavy plugin tweaking is involved. If you're used to being "hands-on" with the Yamaha, I'd recommend looking at a smaller control surface. The Euphonix or Mackie units are the standards, but the Behringer BCF2000 running in its hardware Mackie Control emulation mode is a lot of bang for very few bucks. These can be used to control Logic and/or the internal direct-monitoring mixer for some interfaces.

 

[howard]

Hi John
Yes, she's taken over my wardrobe too!
Thanks for the quick reply and tip about control surfaces. The Mackie unit looks really nice but pricey! I agree the Behringer system looks like it could work well. I suppose the other alternative is to hang onto the 01v96 and use as a control surface only, but that would appear a bit extravagent!