Re: All-Laptop live?? (was RE: RE: A poll--shoes off?)

[numbernine <numbernine@gmx.net>]

hf> So has someone on this list gone *all laptop* with a line-out to the 
PA? I
hf> heard Johnny McLaughlin tours this way. Does anyone at least use 
Abelton
hf> Live as a live looper?

hf> BTW I wear shoes. I don't know if my tetnus shots are up to date.

hf> Dave Eichenberger
hf> http://www.hazardfactor.com

I go *all laptop*.
I play hurdy gurdy, so I have to go to a specially deviced
preamp, which has some mixer possibilities, go to the laptop via RME,
back to the mixer (only for getting a balanced signal, and where a
Jamman is inserted) and to the PA. I did all FX in Cubase SX now I
change to Bidule.
When I play only with basic looping functions (record, overdub,
start/stop) I don't need the screen. My laptop is somewhere below the
stage and closed.
Now I try to get on with mobius to get rid of my jamman and do
all with the laptop (just with stereo multitrack looping, mhmmm).

I have used this setup for maybe 50 gigs now, and it always worked
(once or twice I had to restart at soundcheck) I played in Africa
with Voltage between 150 and 250, my jamman screw up, the rme and the
laptop still played.
And although I really (!) had no problems yet, I'm still scared before
going on stage. Once I had to play at a festival in Australia (with
about 25.000 people in the audience) and soundcheck was at noon, it
was 40 degree celcius on stage and the gig was at midnight. I had
twelve hours of sweating, not because of the heat, just worrying if my
gear works and the laptop was melting down or not.
the only good thing is that I'm not nervous about playing anymore.

For safety reasons to avoid clicks I still play at 6ms latency, and
wish to go down to 3 but maybe it needs next generation hardware.
My laptop is nearly three years old now.

regards,
Matthias