Ensemble with L8

Good evening all..
My current setup is a MIC into SSL alpha channel then from the SSL to the Ensemble channel 1 in. I am finding I'm getting a better quality with the MIC is connected directly to the Ensemble, so my question is:
Is there a way to disable the input on the ensemble when the Play button is pressed and enable it ONLY when the record button is press.
My reason for the question is that I find I need to always turn down the input on the ensemble when playing back to avoid a massive feedback problem.
Hope this makes sense.
Thanks
Message was edited by: Allan Doyle2

I find my Ensemble to be rock solid so far (purchased last month). However Logic itself is flakier than a leper with chronic dandruff and exscma in a detergent factory.

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Ensemble with Logic 8 on Leopard stability question

I'm on the verge of ordering an Apogee Ensemble, particularly for its integration with Logic. I'd read that there were initially issues with drivers and stability. As I search the forum, it looks like there have been some mixed experiences in terms of stability even fairly recently.
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Greetings,
I have the Vienna special edition and have set up and instance of the VE. What I'd like to do is have a VE configured that can remain open and access it from whatever logic project I'm working on. In this way I could move from one cue to another loading the samples.
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Is anyone using the VE as I describe and if so would you be kind enough to help this dunderhead.
Cheers,
MJ

For me working with the VI is a mess really. The behaviour of the GUI is terrible it always slips behind the Arrange screen when you edit inside Logic and you have to go searching for your VI behind the Arrange to edit it. With several VIs it's even worse as they will clutter the whole screen. Also they don't don't open like normal Plugs but they have a sort of Pre-Plug In window which you have to open first to access the VI. But try it out for yourself, concerning RAM it's the same as the VE, working with a standalone gives you another 2,7 Gigs of accessable physical RAM though.
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LOGIC PRO WITH APOGEE ENSEMBLE + SYNTHS I/O

Im upgrading my studio and planning to buy an apogee ensemble for logic, an access virus, a moog lp and possibly a couple of outboard compressors. If anyone has a similar setup (i.e. ensemble with a few synths) could you give me a bit of info on the I/O setup?
The ensemble has 4 mic inputs, 4 1/4” jack inputs and 8 1/4” jack outputs. Firstly, are the mic and line inputs separate? (if I have a mic connected to mic input 1, can I connect the moog to line input 1 and record simultaneously?)
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Access virus > ensemble Mic inputs 1-4 (2 stereo patches using balanced 1/4” jack to XLR cables)
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Ensemble output 1-2 > Monitors
Ensemble output 3-4 > virus inputs 1-2
Ensemble output 5 > moog input
(possibly) Ensemble output 7-8 > outboard stereo compressor/processor of some sort! Returned on ensemble line inputs 7-8.
Does anyone have a similar setup to this? If this configuration works I’ll def go ahead with it, but my only concern is that there’s barely any room for more options! I could have 3 mono outboard processors to be used as inserts for I/O 6,7 and 8 but if I want to purchase another synth I’ll have to get another ensemble! Is there a better/more efficient way to run this setup or should I get something other than the ensemble?
All comments appreciated, thanks!

Ensemle have 18 inputs, just 8 of them are analog. If you need more, you must use additional convertors with Adat outputs.

Problem with Group Normalise- any ideas?

Hi everyone- a bit of weirdness which might be my fault... or not. I've been playing with the Group Normalise function and it might solve my problem (creating a consistent volume with backing tracks I've recorded over many years and systems). I tried it once- and got encouraging results. Then I started tweaking the parameters and suddenly it won't process the multiple files I have selected... it just processes the one (seems the be the last alphabetically in the list). After restarting Audition a few times and trying to avoid or recreate the problem I actually had it NOT processing any of the selected files! The catalyst seemed to be tweaking the maximum Db level- once I tried that, things went wrong. But now I can't even "start all over again" to try and recreate the issue, because it's not processing anything.
This morning I tried again, hoping that a complete system restart might have dumped the bug or at least give me that one chance of getting things done, but once again the Group Normalise feature will only actually process the last/bottom file listed in the selection pane. I tried emptying my Audition TEMP folders, but there was nothing there anyway.
The feature "sees" all the selected files and analyses them, adding statistics to the list. It's just the final step that is failing. When I click on "Run Normalise" it applies processing to just that last, listed file.
I've been working on this too long now- so my memory's getting flaky, but I swear the very first time I tried this function it worked properly. But no luck since. Obviously, the 3.01 update could be applied, but there's no mention of this issue being fixed in the release notes.
Any ideas, anyone?
Cheers, Graeme.
Audition 3.0, SP3 Win XP. E6600 CPU 3Gb Ram. ASIO4ALL driver with on-board sound(temporary driver until I get a new firewire card with a TI chip for my MAudio FW410)
Cheers!
Graeme Hague
Author/Composer
Freelance Audio Engineer

Hi Graeme,
you wrote that:
> I'll investigate MP3Gain since everyone seems to think it's a good move.
No, fix it before going to mp3.
> However, I solved the problem in a straightforward way- back to Steve's "use
> your ears" concept.
Hmmm ... that is a luddite concept ....
> With 70 tracks to balance I chose the best of them all as a benchmark,
> then loaded them ten at a time into the Multitrack Mixer View and basically
> "mixed" them to equal perceived volumes with the benchmark track as a control.
As often previously mentioned the average with a 300 milliseconds window and no frequency compensation of any kind works best for me, only really weird stuff needs a manual lowering of level. What you need to do is to define what average level your canned noise should be at, AVG 22.5 works well for vinyl, AVG 30 to 25 for classical music, higher for larger ensemble with more bass and AVG 25 to AVG 17 is probable for church organ - depending on playing style, it can be extremely dynamic, ie. at AVG 35 - and pop. You do NOT need to go to full scale, what you need is predictability. In house notation used, I find it to be a good strategy to define what AVG rating to aim for with a project, also btw. for for multitrack mixing because compressor setting presets with input AVG rating defined makes a lot of sense to my way of thinking. And yes ... you do NOT have to tweak the track to fix, knowing the AVG rating tells you what input gain to apply in the compressor .... that is, if you DO insist on keeping the number of DSP actions on your audio low. Some of the time I prefer conceptual simplicity .....
> Whatever settings the mixer required I then applied in Edit View, zeroed everything
> to re-check and- voila! As close as they'll ever get
A visual evaluation can be a good tool, move the guide lines from -1 dB to -9 dB and they will become helpful.
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Kind regards
Peter Larsen.

Reaktor 5 Ensembles and Logic

I've just started using Reaktor 5 but need someone to explain to me how I get an ensemble into the arrange window of Logic Pro 7.
I have used the stand alone set up and recorded the ensemble and saved as an aif audio file and this works no problem when placed in an audio track but I cannot work out how to use it as a plug in. I have set up Reaktor as an audio Inst and everything works fine as far as playback and controls are concered but is it possible to enter this ensemble directly into the arrange window from the plugin. At the moment when I play the ensemble and press record everything is fine but no data is enetered in the arrange window
What is the best way to use an ensemble with Logic

is it possible to enter this ensemble directly into
the arrange window from the plugin.
You can use Reaktor as and audio FX (Reaktor 5 FX), or as a Midi instrument (Reaktor 5). For example: If you have an audio track already recorded in the Logic's arrange window, you can add a Reaktor FX. Inserts>Mono>Audio Units>Native Instruments>Reaktor 5 FX. Now open a new ensemble and add an Effect (e.g., Space Master.ism, Pitch+Flanger.ism, etc...) Be sure to wire the audio in to the inputs of *.ism, and the outs to Audio outs.
For Synths, Grooveboxes or other midi instruments, you'll need to use a Midi instrument in Logic. This sends Reaktor midi data and therefore will sends audio to Logic. Inserts>Stereo>AU Instruments>Native Instruments>Reaktor 5 Create an New Ensemble, then add an *.ism. Now when you record midi data in Logic's arrange window, it will be sent to that Reaktor instrument. If you are using an Ens with more than one Ism, it's better to use a Multi Channel instance of Reaktor.
At the moment
when I play the ensemble and press record everything
is fine but no data is enetered in the arrange
window
Are you talking about audio or midi?
good luck.
Dual 1.8Ghz G5 PB G4 1Ghz LP7.1.1 Motu 896 Mac OS X (10.4.5) Reaktor 5.1 Reason 3.0.4 Live 5.0.2 Battery 2.1.1 Recycle 2.1 DFH 1.5.3

Re: ERROR while trying to synchronize Audio and MIDI

Hi Guys/Gals
A bit of a strange one. Yes, I have posted a similar question concerning my trusted 2.7ghz G5 PPC and my Digidesign 003R which it turned out that the Digi's FW ports were to blame.
New issue. I have just completed an install on a client's machine, here's it's specs etc:
Hardware:
iMac 2.8Ghz Duo Core Intel, 4Gb ram, 500Gb HD etc (the custom top end before last week's upgrade) arrived last week. Running Leopard 10.5.2 and has all the latest updates. (firmware/software)
Apogee Ensemble (with newest firmware update/upgrade)
Iomega ULTRAMAX HARD DRIVE 1TB USB 2.0/FIREWIRE® 400/800 (sorry, copied from their site)
M-Audio Axiom 49 USB Midi controller/keyboard
Software:
Logic Pro 8 (latest 8.0.1) All standard plugs/samples, no third parties at all, just 100% Apple install.
Reason 4 (latest 4.0.1)
I reformatted the built-in hd to two partitions of equal size, one for the OS and one for whatever. I formated the external terrabyte into two partitions also of equal size, non are journalized, all are GUI partitions. I copied the LP 8 demos to both the internal "spare" partition and to the primary "Audio1" partition of the external drive. The Iomega HD is connected via the 800FW port and the Apogee Ensemble is connected via the 400FW port (the iMac has one of each). If I play any of the demo songs from the internal partition, they play perfectly, if I play them off the external Iomega partitions (either) within 8 bars I get:
"Error while trying to synchronize Audio and MIDI
Sample Rate 45946 recognized.
Check conflict between Logic Pro and external device."
As I said, any demo played back from the internal drives absolutely perfectly..... Any ideas?
Cheers!!
Bobs

There are a lot of different opinions about partitioning in Mac OS X and you can read some of them here:
http://forums.cnet.com/5208-7592_102-0.html?forumID=25&threadID=44865&messageID= 530144
and here
http://forums.appleinsider.com/archive/index.php/t-8096.html
My opinion is that partitions cam be useful when:
1. the OS can't manage big volumes (as it was in the past)
2. the OS can't optimize the space on big volumes
3. want to install 2 or more separate OSes
4. organization (like in your case).
Now, OS X filesystem (HFS+) is robust and reliable and OS X is a multitasking system that parallelizes I/O operations like reading or writing a disk.
So if you have 2 separate hard disk the system can parallelize the operations (i.e. reading from one and writing into another one) but if you have 2 partitions the system (or better the disk subsystem) have to jump back and forth among the partitions.
About the linking schema of the Audio interfaces and the FW hard disks it can change: I connect my FW disk to the MOTU and the MOTU to the mac while a friend of mine have to put the disk before of his Presonus.
Thanks for the beer!
cheers
rob

Logic Pro 9.1.1 AU third-party plug-ins ongoing issue for many

Where is the Logic development team on this? Nearly all third-party AU plug-ins produce random pops and clicks at the beginning of playback and on occasion randomly during playback but before audio regions in tracks with these plug-ins installed. These pops and clicks are even visible in the track's meter. http://www.gearslutz.com/board/music-computers/482381-logic-3rd-party-plugs-pop- click-nightmare-how-does-rest-world-do.html How many people need to complain? Is Logic Pro considered production software?

I can't imagine a more textbook and apple-friendly environment than what I have. 32-bit is not the problem. I don't believe logic runs at 64 until you're on os 10.6 and I'm still on 10.5.8. My entire rig is what you'd see in an apple store logic demo. I've tried nearly everything:
1) All standard optimization tips including but not limited to no date/time updates, no airport/wi-fi, no bluetooth
2) I have a ultra high-quality external fw drive by G-drive
3) Standard issue ensemble with updated firmware
4) Moving AU component files from system library to user library
If you look at the number of people commenting on the GS thread as well as other forums – the problem is common and needs to be fixed. I'm not the only logic user plagued by this issue:
http://www.logicprohelp.com/viewtopic.php?t=43306
http://www.logicprohelp.com/viewtopic.php?t=50030
I really believe it has something to do with how many third-party plug-ins handle AU's reset or initialize callbacks; somewhere in between. This bug is clearly affecting many users and I'm coming close to starting a petition and devoting some serious time to making a big dorky stink about it on youtube.
Either the AU spec needs to be updated to clarify some tricks (or hacks) specific to Logic's on-demand DSP usage or the logic team needs to publish a notice to all "Logic" AU developers. Optionally, if Logic had a preference to turn OFF on-demand AU DSP (so that plug-ins are always-on like in every other DAW or...ugh...outboard gear). Logic's on-demand AU DSP handling is outdated considering the processing power available in ANY apple computer made within the last 3 years. My CPU meter in Logic barely even lights up. On-demand DSP is overkill and antiquated and the least Logic can do is provide production or mission-critical users the ability to opt-out if they have the CPU power to do so.
Having said all that; I hope I'm wrong about something and can come back here to eat my words and feel very embarrassed about my rant. I'm going to keep digging for solutions – hopefully, I'll find out the secret to whatever it is the few of you are doing to keep your third-party AU plugs quiet before an audio region starts.
Also; Scott at Stillwell Audio has graciously begun trying to track down this very issue and is one of the few DSPers who has taken interest in helping Logic folk.

ADVICE FOR GETTING STARTED IN RECORDING

I have just purchased a new IMAC 24 inch 2.4 core duo with 4 gigs of ram. I was wondering what a good setup would be in getting started in home recording, would a good audio interface such as the presonus firestudio, with garageband be good, or something like presonus firestudio, with logic studio, be better, or maybe apogee ensemble, with logic studio? We will be doing some song writing, and recording a band. Any help would be appreciated. Like I said totally new to this.

TCHADWELL wrote:
Hey thanks for replying, garageband is a pretty cool app. and I would not mind starting in that , what ever I start in to learn, I want to stick with that and learn it. How much of a learning curve will it be to go from garageband once I learn it, to logic? Audio quality is going to be important for song demos and ect.
The thing about GarageBand is that there's virtually no learning curve. It uses the same sound engine as Logic, but with a distilled interface that boils everything down to basics. Also, the latest upgrade to GB makes it less of a toy, and if you wanted to get started recording your band today you could plug and play into GB and do your thing with minimal technical distraction.
Logic has a bigger learning curve because it lets you control a million more things, but if you are motivated to learn it, that shouldn't be a problem. I actually enjoy learning and using Logic and you might too. Logic Studio also comes bundled with many extras that make it a terrific deal. You could always start recording in GB while you learned Logic, or just jump right into Logic if you were motivated to dive into the deep end first!
As far as interfaces go, as a practical matter, I think you would need to figure out if you're all you going to play and record together as a band, and if you have enough inputs for that. If you weren't going to use a separate mixer, the interface would need enough inputs to accommodate all the cables that were carrying signals from you instruments and voice(s).
The NRV-10 is very flexible for rehearsing + recording, although you would get better sound quality from either the Ensemble or FireFace. I would guess the Firestudio hovers around the NRV-10 in terms of sound quality. The truth however is that any of this stuff will likely sound good enough especially as you are just getting started. While it's easy for pros to wax poetic over master clocks and vintage pres, the fundamental technology has advanced to the point that any of these interfaces in the Firestudio range on up is going to enable anyone just starting out to get terrific results. And after you have some experience, and find that you have a specific need or want to lift the audio quality of a particular component, then there's a world of gear out there clamoring for your Benjamins .
So if it were me, I'd want to make sure that whatever I was getting was compatible with my system, could accommodate my inputs, and had sound quality that was good enough for my immediate goals. Also, as you are just starting out, I can almost guarantee you that you will need things that you don't yet realize you need. So whatever your budget is you should leave a little wiggle room for unanticipated expenses.

Which new Mac Pro for Logic?

Well, they're out and on the AppleStore and I have about £2800 burning a hole in my pocket...
My question is, for that money I can configure either an 8-core machine running at 2.26GHz, or a quad-core running at 2.93GHz. Can anyone tell me which route is likely to be better for running Logic with lots of tasty plug-ins? I've budgeted for 8Gb of RAM and a second hard drive for sample data, so it's just the processor(s) left to decide on.
At the moment I'm running it on a 1.83GHz Core Duo MacBook Pro, where it limps along painfully, so I don't really have any experience of how well it utilises extra processing cores. I'd welcome any advice.

Hey MIke I agree that some thought should given to technology 5 years down the road but you are making my point about chasing technology. Its all a guessing game. Look at TVs. Look at phones. Etc.
Technology is moving so fast that you have to just use your gear in the moment and hope for the best.
It is not realistic in 2009 to predict 5 years down the road. Its just a big guess. What about the Mac pros that come out in 2 years. Will they make this years new Mac Pro obsolete? People will be having this same discussion in 2 years? They might not even make a desktop in 5 years. Look at the power of laptops now. Desktop sales are very weak and if this trend continues they will fade. I bought my 8 core almost a year ago and I would have had to wait a year if I chose to chase technolgy. When I bought my Apogee Ensemble I did think to myself that great they will probably release a new Ensemble with more Mic inputs. But I am glad I got it and use it and no worries. We are at the mercy of Apple so they will dictate the future and they arent going to tell consumers their 5 year plan anyway. Ok I will shut up.

Logic Recorded level higher on playback?

Tonight i was using Logic to send a mix to my hardware for mastering and capturing back through the Apogee Ensemble with the soft limit engaged as the final peak limiting to bush up the level a bit and prevent overs. No overs were indicated in the track chanels durind recording. However upon playback of the mastered audio at unity gain in Logic i am getting overs of a few dB. To get the peaks at the right level i had to pull the faders down about 3dB. My question is why is the payback level in Logic Pro 8 louder than indicated when going in.

Hallams wrote:
Tonight i was using Logic to send a mix to my hardware for mastering and capturing back through the Apogee Ensemble with the soft limit engaged
Is that an effect from the Ensemble? Or a Logic plug? If it is from the ensemble, are you sure it gets included in an offline bounce? Maybe you need to bounce realtime?
as the final peak limiting to bush up the level a bit and prevent overs. No overs were indicated in the track chanels durind recording.
But if the Limiter is on the bounce, you should check for overs on the +final output+ , being the total signal AFTER the soft limiter.
However upon playback of the mastered audio at unity gain in Logic i am getting overs of a few dB. To get the peaks at the right level i had to pull the faders down about 3dB. My question is why is the payback level in Logic Pro 8 louder than indicated when going in.
The payback level, LOL... Logic as a revenge-generator...
The levels are indicated correctly in Logic. But if the Soft Limiter that you speak of is applied +after the signal leaves Logic+, you should somehow monitor what leaves the Soft Limiter. But as I do not know the Ensemble, I do not know for sure. However, realtime bouncing instead of offline might be the answer here.
regards, Erik.

WCI 10gR3 Security Database

We are currently working through an upgrade from WCI 6.1, skipping 6.5 and going to 10gR3. I have a question with regards to the use of the Security database.
So right now, in the stack of products I understand that WCI, Analytics, and Ensemble all use the Security Database, and the LDAP Directory Service.
In the documentation, each product specifies to create a security database. So my question is... Does each product require a separate security database, or should all 3 product point to the same one.
Can any one shed some light?

Jonathan,
WCI uses the ALUI Directory Service (LDAP Directory Service). Analytics and Ensemble both utilize the Security Service (Security Database) as well as the ALUI Directory Service.
Both Analytics and Ensemble can share the same Security Service instance.
Also be aware that if you use Ensemble 10gR3 in conjunction with WCI 10gR3, install and use the ALUI Directory Service from the WCI installer. Do NOT use the ALUI Directory Service from the Ensemble installer. See the following snippet from the Ensemble 10gR3 release notes:
When using Ensemble with WCI 10.3.0 (WCI 6.5.x), use the ALUI Directory Service (a.k.a the "BEA ALI LDAP Directory") provided in the WCI installer. Do not install the ALUI Directory Service from the Ensemble installer ("Directory Server" option in the Ensemble Custom installation). (Issue #8728047)
Merrick

Audio Glitching On Mew Mac Mini

I've got a brand new mini. Spec below. I had to upgrade...
Using L9.1.8 with Apogee Ensemble with latest Maverick drivers.....
The audio stutters evry 10 or so minutes. No crashes but frustrating....
I did a clean install from my original Logic 9 Disks
I'm using a Lacie Thunderbolt 2 Big Ext Drive
MY WHOLE RIG WAS STABLE ON MY MBP RUNNING LION.
Anyone??

Update CCTM
Just spoke to Apogee. Audio Glitching is a known issue with Macs with Fusion Drive.
10.9.2 Fixes this AND the grphics lag.

Why Does Audio Suddenly Drop Out?

OK, geniuses: Running an Ensemble with 7.2.1 on a G5 Dual 2GHZ, 10.4.7. Without warning, I hear a crack and the audio dissappears. iTunes, Logic, almost any (see below) audio, until I restart the G5. Then everything is hunky-dory until the next time. This happens every fifteen minutes or so. ALTERNATIVELY, instead of a complete drop out of audio, I get an unbelievable level of distortion, liike blown output transistors.
Clues: -Apogee has generously replaced what they thought was a bad unit - new unit makes no difference!
-Presence of additional Firewire drives, control surfaces, etc. makes no difference.
-Ensemble WILL continue to pass live audio, ie. an open mic, just not anything from Logic or iTuens of the Audio/MIDI SetUp config noise.
-Latency has no effect. I've changed it from 128 to 1024.
-I AM using the brand new driver for Ensemble, and using all their particulars for starting up Ensemble prior to the G5, etc.
Ideas?
Power Mac G5 Dual 2 Ghz Mac OS X (10.4.7)

Yeah, that's what I originally though when I acquired the Ensemble and used the driver then available. Since then there have been several updates, all incresing stability, and particularly valuable is the latest, which makes it possible for me to solve the problem by restarting the Ensemble, rather than having to reboot the G5.
Also, it wouldn't explain why everything works OK on the MacBook Pro, would it?
Significantly, about half the time, instead of dropping all the way out, the audio just becomes hugely distorted.
Ideas?

Apogee Ensemble or Symphony to work with Logic?

Hello,
I'm considering to buy Apogee multi I/O hardware to work with Logic Pro in my studio.
The choice is between an Ensemble interface and a Symphony System (Rosetta 800).
I know that in terms of quality the second one is better and that Ensemble is more affordable in terms of price.
What I'd like to know is how does Ensemble work in terms of LATENCY (I hate it) and if VBus is a big +point for Symphony when mixing and using heavy plug-ins and instruments like NI Battery or B4 (for example).
Could any one help me in this choice.
Thanks!

Thanks
Then I'm more interested in buying an Ensemble instead of a Symphony System for my project/mixing studio.
Yeah, my work is all in Logic.
I produce reggae music. I record some live instrument and vocals into logic, then I work with'em and some virtual insturments and plug-ins.
I thought that VBus could help to heva a more efficient RAM usage, allowing me to run big plugins "outside" Logic.
Talking about latency, it could also be due to my USB keyboard/controller, I know.
I asked about that also because using my apogee duet with logic I had some latency when recording a voice in a porject with virtual instruments and plugins. Maybe I do something wrong.
Big Up
p.s. I visited your site. Nice productions
Do you know some links where I could master my tracks (reggae)?

Ensemble with L8

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