CakeTV Live Episode 3: Rhythm Tracks – Coming June 28th

Watch the last CakeTV Webinar

CakeTV Live Episode 3: Rhythm Tracks – Production and Mixing Techniques
Please join Brandon Ryan and Seth Perlstein of Cakewalk for the third installment of CakeTV Live, Cakewalk’s entirely live, bi-monthly webcast at 2:00 PM Pacific Time. This time we’ll focus on the backbone of music production,  the rhythm tracks – namely drums and bass. We’ll take raw tracks and apply various production and mixing techniques, employing all kinds of features in SONAR along the way. Topics will include: Continue reading “CakeTV Live Episode 3: Rhythm Tracks – Coming June 28th”

Upgrade your music studio with Cakewalk and Roland gear

Roland Specials

There has never been a better time to build or upgrade your home music studio thanks to great offers from Roland US. As we head into the summer, Roland is offering unbelievable deals on some if it’s best selling products. Here’s a little recap of the special Roland-Cakewalk offers:

In addition, Roland is offering promotions on other hardware products, including special financing on all Roland and BOSS product.

Visit their promotions page for more information.

EMI Publishing and SONAR X1: Some Recent Sessions in the Project Studio

Why are Major Publishing Companies such as EMI seeing such great success with project studios?  Because with modern technology, top talent and a good set of ears, a demo may turn into a master at any given time.

Over a year ago I had the pleasure of setting up a studio at the EMI building in the meat packing district of NYC after they chose SONAR X1 for their project studio.  Since then, according to Creative VP EMI Jake Ottmann “the room has been a tremendous success” with an array of well known and developing artists from all over the world engaging in music creation.

The EMI project studio facility was primarily created for the roster of EMI artists who found themselves temporarily working in New York City.  “When you’re a hit songwriter, you are traveling quite a bit and find yourself in different cities at different times,” stated Jake Ottmann.  “We built this room up for top-notch artists and songwriters that are in town and need a great place to relax and write music.  It’s been an awesome experience since its inception and we have seen some great success.  SONAR X1 and the PC Audio Labs machine which are both the heart of the room have been rock solid for these artists and writers.”

Some of the recent artists who have been working in the audio lounge include Jay Trill, Lana Del Rey, Mathew Koma, and The Glory Days.

“Sometimes it’s a few hours here and there with the X1 room just for basic writing, and other times it’s a full on technical writing/producing session that could end up on a master, just like a recent session that went down with an affiliated artist/writer/producer who was working out of here last month.”

~Jake Ottmann (VP Creative, EMI Publishing)

When putting this writing room together, EMI made a calculated decision to go with SONAR X1 and a V-Studio 100 all powered by a tailored PC Audio Labs machine.  “We were looking for a solution that covered all,” explained Richard Reuss who is head of the technical team for EMI.  “We wanted something that covered it all delivered in one box.  We didn’t want to get into purchasing plug-ins from one company, and then synths from another; we decided on SONAR X1 Producer not only for everything it comes with, but also for the way the workflow exists in the program.”  “Our writers are very unique and diverse,” added Jake Ottmann.  “SONAR X1 is not only a cutting edge recording tool, but also an amazing writing tool as well, and that was very important to us in our decision; not to mention the fact that the stock plug-ins, synths and drum modules are just as good as, if not better than anything else on the market.  It’s been working so well for us that our in-house audio team has been using it for post-house related projects as well – we’re pretty psyched to get this much mileage out of the system.”

Although EMI Music Publishing has a huge facility for office space, it was obvious to the staffers that there was not going to be a lot of square footage allocated to this music room.  “I think one of the selling points for us was the fact that we don’t have a ton of room in this spot [the room itself], so having the Pro Channel on every track to get a big console sound without the console is huge for us,” explained Richard Reuss who has been a longtime SONAR user.

SONAR X1 continues to be the choice for leading creative institutions such as EMI Publishing.  It’s also the go-to D.A.W. for many creative producers, songwriters and artists who want to be inspired by their system.  Right now, you can get a great deal with the SONAR X1 First Class Upgrade promotion that will help you to create radio-ready tracks.

 

New HD Grand Pianos for Dimension Pro and LE [updated]

Dimension Pro Expansion Packs

[Update: We have corrected an issue that was preventing some customers from purchasing. We apologize for the inconvenience.  Please try again and enjoy!]

Save $50 off new HD Grand Pianos from Digital Sound Factory
Based on the success of the HD Songwriters Collection, Digital Sound Factory brings two new grand pianos to Dimension Pro/LE in High Definition. Using high quality microphones and preamps, multiple layers were recorded at 24-bit resolution to capture the full dynamic range. As a result of this process, the samples are perfectly matched, sound great, and are free of artifacts. With a natural sounding wooden resonant tone and very long sustain, these pianos are the ultimate addition to Dimension Pro.

Choose from two studio quality grand pianos – just $99.95 each for a limited time:

HD Steinway Grand Piano

 

HD Yamaha Grand Piano

First-class upgrades happening in June

First-class upgrade

From June 1st to June 30th, when you buy or upgrade to SONAR X1 Producer, Cakewalk will automatically bump you up to the flagship version, SONAR X1 Production Suite. Just purchase SONAR X1 Producer from any retailer or upgrade at the Cakewalk Store, and Cakewalk will take care of the rest. Just register your purchase at www.cakewalk.com/register, and you will receive email instructions on how to get your first-class upgrade to SONAR X1 Production Suite.

In addition, Cakewalk is offering other great upgrades in the month of June.

  • Buy or upgrade to SONAR X1 Essential, get SONAR X1 Studio for free
  • Buy or upgrade to SONAR X1 Studio, get SONAR X1 Producer for free

Visit the First-class upgrade page for more information

Mixing and Mastering a Song Using only the Z3TA+ Effects Engine in SONAR

One of the great aspects about SONAR X1 is that it’s a very diverse D.A.W.  There are so many different ways to create music and it’s great for people who like to experiment with sounds and develop unique sonic pallets.  One of the main reasons why many pro users choose SONAR is because there are a lot of veiled jewels and tools that help musicians to sculpt a unique and individualized sound.

Similar to the Beatscape Content articles that were posted, I decided to dive into another one of my favorite hidden treasures of SONAR of which some people may not be aware; the pristine and fat FX engine of Z3TA+ that can be used as a standard VST effects unit.

When I first started using SONAR I loved the fact that it came with so many great VST plugins.  It wasn’t until 6 months into using the program when someone pointed out to me that you could use the Z3TA+ synth as an actual VST effect anywhere you use regular plugins – on clips, in bins, on busses… etc.  After dragging Z3TA+ onto a track I was instantly surprised at what I heard. Continue reading “Mixing and Mastering a Song Using only the Z3TA+ Effects Engine in SONAR”