This is an excellent video produced by Toontrack and a valuable resource for anyone wanting to craft better songs. Enjoy!

James from Pro Tools Expert decided to see if the price of cables determines the sound or if it’s just a load of marketing hype. Watch this and then listen to the WAVs here and decide yourself.

At NAB 2013, Mike caught up with Dan May from Blackmagic Design and Bryce Button from AJA Video.

One of the new features in Pro Tools 11 is support for a range of video interfaces from Blackmagic Design and AJA Video. Dan and Bryce share what their companies are offering and which of their products would be most suitable for Pro Tools users to look at for use with Pro Tools 11.

Listen on iTunes

Download MP3

Blackmagic have added the Mini Monitor and Mini Recorder to the Express to broaden the range of the UltraStudio range of Thunderbolt video interfaces. Blackmagic are stating these are supported in Pro Tools but Avid’s compatibility charts don’t yet reflect this. They say…

When you need tiny sized portable video capture and playback for your Thunderbolt laptop or desktop computer then UltraStudio Express and UltraStudio Mini are the perfect solution. You get an extremely affordable solution with high quality SD and HD video all powered from the Thunderbolt connection so you just plug in and go! UltraStudio Express includes capture and playback of SD/HD-SDI, HDMI and analog video and analog audio all in the one beautifully designed model. UltraStudio Mini Recorder is the pocket sized SDI and HDMI recorder and UltraStudio Mini Monitor features SDI and HDMI playback, perfect for simple low cost NLE monitoring.

The pricing is pretty good too.

Pro Tools Expert and Waves guru Michael Pearson Adams has released his first title for Groove 3, playing to his experiences when working with Waves - SSL Bundle Explained, in their words…

Michael Pearson Adams, former North American product specialist for Waves shows you all the features and

Click to read more ...

We know that our annual membership is a steal, you get to watch our growing list of over 500 Pro Tools videos for £20 ($30) a year. If you are already a member of Pro Tools Expert then nothing changes, you will still continue to get FREE access to all videos as you have always done and for as long as your membership runs. Simply continue to log in on this site and use it as before, you have no need to use the new Pay Per View site. 

However, you may just want to watch a couple of videos, well now you can on our new Pay-Per-View video service. It is hosted by Vimeo and you can pay using either a credit card or Paypal.

So the new Pay-Per-View service has launced with a limited, but growing selection. Find out more here

You might want to check out this tease for the upcoming Avid Abbey Road Webinar.

It features copious amounts of gear porn.

You can sign up here

Our FREE plug-ins section on Pro Tools Expert is hugely popular, so my friends at Groove 3 asked me to create a video series showing how to create an entire mix using just FREE plug-ins. In their words…

Mixing music with plug-ins has become the norm these days, but is it possible to create a great sounding mix with plug-ins that offered for free? Well, DAW expert Russ Hughes says “YES” and shows you some great plug-ins that are available for free and how to use them on a mix. Russ even includes the audio file stems from the tutorials so you can practice mixing along!

Russ starts of with an introduction video explaining the series and what it will accomplish, as well as playing the song you’ll be mixing together. Next, he tackles the drums and percussion, showing you how to get super lows on the kicks and a nice top end using a collection of free EQ plug-ins. Bass guitar and piano are then looked at, and Russ explains how to get them to sit in the mix just right.

Acoustic guitar and synths are focused on and Russ demonstrates how to use a free delay plug-in to enhance the parts. Electric guitars and vocals are next up and Russ introduces amp simulations and reverbs to do the job. Lastly, Russ concentrates on the final mix, revealing how to “glue” the whole thing together.

If you’re mixing on a budget, or just want some more insight on mixing in general, this series is a must see! Join Russ and watch how to get the best bang without spending any money on plug-ins… Watch “Mixing with FREE Plug-Ins” today.

• 9 tutorials / Over 1 hour total runtime
• Audio stem files included so you can practice what you learn
• For all beginner mixers, engineers and producers
• Tutorials written by DAW master Russ Hughes
• Simple to use video control interface for Mac & PC
• Watch Online, Download, Stream to iPad, iPhone & iPod

More here

Click to play

Russ takes a moment to edit a festive audio track and shows you his shortcuts and tricks for hi-speed audio editing.

Just a couple of days after me coming across the Timecode Buddy system and posting an article here, Russ and I have been working on a project where the client speced the Timecode Buddy system so we got the opportunity to see it in action, first hand. We are under an NDA so no pictures or details of the project I am afraid.

We were using two Canon C300 cameras and a D5 & D7 and then using two iPads to slate the D5 and D7 and to take the shot notes. We placed the Master unit on a ledge in the middle of the complex set to get the best coverage and we had no problems with the range in an RF challenging environment. Battery life was also very good with them running way more than a day on a set of Duracell AAs. 

First thing we jammed the master unit with the Sound Devices 744t and then re-jammed at lunch and mid afternoon for safety. We had no problems at all it was a great system and a British outfit as well.

So if you need a timecode solution for location recordings then do take a look at the Timecode Buddy system. Here in the UK you can get the Timecode Buddy systems from HHB. The WiFi Master is £675 exc vat and the Timecode Buddy TX  is £245 exc vat. For other parts of Europe and and the rest of the world you can find your nearest dealer from the Timecode Buddy web site.

For those with the FREE version of Structure it is still possible to make a patch for use in your session. This simple to follow tutorial should have every Structure user coming up with great patches.

Watch it here

One of the failings of sampled instruments is the 'machine gun' effect that takes place when trying to create things such as cymbal crescendos and other repetitive rhythmic effects.

Russ shows that with some thought and a few tricks, that it is possible to make them far more realistic.

Watch it here

Thing are looking up on the video front at Avid. This is a very cool video from Avid expert Sean Halley as he shows you how easy it is to build a tone by selecting your amp, cabinet, mic, and effects within Pro Tools. You'll quickly hear how accurate the models are—and see how fun it is to explore and create the perfect tone. It won't be long before Eleven Rack becomes your go-to recording rig.

We have had some requests from users wishing to download the entire songwriting series to watch where they like as often as they like.

So we've dropped them into a folder and zipped it up as a 1.7gb series of Quicktime movies, over 2 hours all for £10.00

You can buy it here

It may not be 'Lost' or 'Ashes to Ashes' but this has seemed like a never ending epic of blog videos.

You can buy the entire series as a download here as 11 Quicktime movies to play on any machine as often as you like for just £10. Click here to buy

In this series Russ lays himself bare and shows how a song is put together from scratch, including mistakes, how to fix them and how to take a song all the way to mix.

In this series Russ lays himself bare and shows how a song is put together from scratch, including mistakes, how to fix them and how to take a song all the way to mix.

In this session - tracking the vocals

• Watch it here
• iPhone/iPad users watch it here

In this video Russ shows just how powerful Hybrid is for creating complex soundscapes. A must for those who want to get under the hood of Hybrid and for those thinking about getting their hands on a copy.

Watch it here

We continue our look back on the most played videos of 2009, this time it's converting Apple Loops for use in Pro Tools, Structure and Transfuser, this video was very popular as you can imagine.

This video shows a cool trick for converting all your Apple Loops in Garageband, Logic or Logic Express for use in Structure, Transfuser and Pro Tools. It's quick easy and just needs you to download a simple to use piece of software.