My first week with a Zoom R24

I wanted to post my perspective about my decision to sell my M-Audio Fast Track C600 and buy a Zoom R24 Recorder/Interface/Controller.

I worked in an analog studio from 1992-1995. It was set up with some great, albeit old, gear from the late 70s. MCI board, MCI 2" 24 Track recorder to match and much much more. I learned so much.

But since then, I've had a hard time getting back involved in recording using the computer. I am an admitted mac snob and have been using them since '87, they are all I know. So I obviously bought Logic Pro 9 to go with the C600 last year. I had used GarageBand before that, of course.

I just never bonded with that way of working and felt I needed something to bridge the gap, you know, some kind of control surface that gave me that tactile feel. I looked at the Zoom R16 the year before but ruled it out for a number of reasons: did I need 8 inputs? (Turns out YES!) Was Zoom a very good company? I had owned a G2 and thought it was dreadful. (Turns out YES, too!) Did it have good enough pre-amps? (Yup!) Would it be too hard to learn using a tiny screen, no visual on recordings like the computer, etc.? (Turns out NO, not hard & it also turns out that the lack of the "big picture" screen, I'm getting more intimate with my recordings, counting out beats, sequencing drums for the first time since 1992!)

"My future is comin' on, it's comin' on. My future..."

This week, while my Lexicon I-Onix U22 interface was at the factory being repaired, I decided now was the time to upgrade to a new, larger input interface. I had my eye on a few but then I saw the M-Audio Fast Track C600 in a magazine. I had not seen or heard about it before, even though it has been around since 2010. I gave it a try.

It arrived last Thursday. It was smaller than I thought it would be from online pics. The knobs are kinda on the tiny side. And it's mostly made of plastic, unlike my I-Onix that was made of mostly metal and felt rather Pro. The shiny plastic on the top is very "tender". Even with a soft micro fiber cloth it scratches up easily. But all aesthetics aside, the thing works really well!

It fits more of what I wanted than anything else out there, so a few negatives were okay as long as it works. Having transport controls, two headphone outs, three monitor options, 4 inputs with 2 Hi Z on the front making it easy to plug in a guitar.

I've been able to record multiple sources at the same time. Create separate headphone mixes using the software mixer driver that's included. The aforementioned software mixer is a bit on the complicated side. I'm still trying to figure it out and don't expect much in the manual to explain it. It's a very sparse manual.

M-Audio/Avid's customer service leaves something to be desired as well. It was my one hesitation in purchasing this product. You can't get any contact with these people unless you "buy" (or are granted by registering your product) support "Codes" from them. Pretty ridiculous.

I purchased it through Sweetwater and thanks to my rep there, Derek Senestaro, I hope to get some kind of feedback from them about the scratching.

I immediately had some major noise problems after hooking it up, something I had not faced with the I-Onix. But it turned out NOT to be the C600, but operator error in my setup. My USB cable running to my SV-1 was creating a ground loop. I lifted the ground on the SV-1 and removed the cable to use only when I'm updating via the software editor or using it to lay down some midi tracks. Problem fixed and my system is quiet as church mouse now!

One other thing I did was purchase a Vocal Reflection Screen. I had wanted one but thought they all cost too much. But Guitar Center had one made by Primacoustic Voxguard on sale for $85. It's not a "pro" unit but it will work well enough for a while. I don't think it would put up with the abuse in a "real" studio. All that said, don't get me wrong, I really like this unit. It's well made and the newest model includes some "slits" in the back left and right sides to allow some frequency to go through from the vocalist. I find that it's helpful to have some sound absorption behind your vocalist as well and to make sure you keep the mic in the "sweet spot". I'd say one of the best things about using any vocal screen like this is the feeling you get. It's like blinders on a race horse, helps you focus, helps you get in the zone.
All and all a very good purchase and the company really responds quickly to questions being very helpful, even if it's not a product they sell! Bravo! If only M-Audio/Avid could actually answer their phones at all!

So this weekend, Corey and I got in the "studio" and started experimenting with vocals! She's finally getting to see that she can sing! It's so exciting! More about this later and hopefully, soon, some audio tracks to share!

Adventures in Recording at Home, or Did I really spend this much on my hobby?

Now, I'm not usually one to brag too much (no, really, I'm not!). And I'm also not usually so eager to show my personal belongings to the mass populous. (I know, 3 people read this including my Mom!) But I'm really proud of my little music room at home that is slowly becoming my little home studio, as well.