Re: Computers and Global responsibility - was RE: Snap, Crackle, Pop - VST Effect & Sound Card Problems

["Claude Voit" <c.voit@vtx.ch>]

Hal

thank you for entering this "FAQ" subject
here is a reply for the Snap,Crakle, Krispen show thread I didnt send,
because I found it a little too provocative at that moment but I changed 
my 
mind :=)
here it is-
---------------------------

During all these month long "puter setup blogs" , hardware musicians where
playing, composing, practicing, enjoying life using gear they really know.

dobidobi--dow

:=)

Claude


Ap13-Switchblade-2 edps- Gforce- pcm80- Clavia G2- 8port se- pc1600x -
pmc10 -

almost the same setup since year 2000 and almost no HW failure (GForce had 
a
slowly diying display and I had to change the batteries in the pmc10 )

And yes it is a lot heavier but I setup in 15 min from closed racks to 
tuned
guitars

I programmed all sounds, all fx, all configs myself, I know exactly all 
buttons, functions, pedals years ago.
I can play the devices fast, improvise with them, all relaxed without the 
"display angst looper face"

and also yes, it is a very very expensive setup compared to a laptop a 
sound
card and "free" softwares.

but I still think analog mixing/summing of different sources/devices sounds
a lot better, richer and punchier than bit crunched sources comming out all
from the same DA converter

and

no latency in my vocabulary










----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Dean, Hal " <HDEAN@wcupa.edu>
To: <Loopers-Delight@loopers-delight.com>
Sent: Friday, May 26, 2006 3:01 PM
Subject: Computers and Global responsibility - was RE: Snap, Crackle, Pop 
- 
VST Effect & Sound Card Problems


This whole sequence prompts me to solicit everyone's thoughts on the
environmental impact of gear acquisition syndrome and the migration to
computers of so much of what "electronic musicians" of any stripe do.

On the level of the individual, committing to computers requires a
readiness to upgrade/ replace at a steady clip, even if you don't care
about the latest and greatest, because eventually your computer will
break and you won't be able to get it fixed, because the OS is an
antique or the connection protocol is kaput or the software you used is
no longer made and you can't find the install discs, or they've gone
bad... just to list a few of the reasons that an elderly computer and
associated audio software and peripherals won't last a lifetime. I'll
trust that no one needs to be apprised of how much toxic stuff is in the
machines that then get tossed, or what happens to it.

I kept an Atari 520ST running Hybrid Arts software and a 16-bit sampler
together for 15 years.  To be honest, if I were willing to become more
of a geek then I could probably still have it working.  Maybe one way to
address this issue is to say, if you are going to use this stuff, then
be responsible enough to keep it working, and if you can't, perhaps you
shouldn't be using it.

I've not been able to stick to that resolution myself. Instead, I've
left a trail of the Atari, the Twinhead laptop, and the DirectWave
desktop, along with several soundcards, never mind other peripherals.
Meanwhile, my 1974 Les Paul is worth 5 times what I paid for it, other
guitars retain their value, and there is no reason to think a guitar,
amp, VF-1 and EDP won't be running splendidly in 20 years, albeit with
some maintenance that doesn't require a degree.

So even though I am a Cubase addict, love Absynth and Halion and
AudioMulch, and have been planning to dive into the batch of VSTs that
Krispen researched and so generously shared info about, I've concluded
that moving wholly into the CPU realm isn't a good idea.

On the larger scale, the use of computers everywhere for everything is
so widely touted as a boon to productivity, and so often cited as an
environmental benefit because pixels replace paper and people can
telecommute, that it seems blasphemous to question this received wisdom.
I'm not so sure. Try looking up the "cost of the Internet"... it's
interesting how little you can find about it. But all these home and
business boxes consuming power, plus all the servers and the enormous
server banks, are using a LOT of energy. I don't see paper use radically
reduced. Telecommuting is anything but common. Then there is the waste
stream of electronics.

I could go on, but let that be my rant for the day.

Hal Dean

-----Original Message-----
From: Krispen Hartung [mailto:khartung@cableone.net]
Sent: Friday, May 26, 2006 2:14 AM
To: Loopers-Delight@loopers-delight.com
Subject: Re: Snap, Crackle, Pop - VST Effect & Sound Card Problems


Here is my status quo on this issue:  To hell with using the computer
for
looping and music performance. I'm so fed up with the troubleshooting,
installing, uninstalling, tweaking, loading, unloading, configuring,
re-configuring, testing, rebooting, modifying, etc, etc, ad nauseum that
I
could projectile vomit from here to who knows where. I can tolerate only
so
much of this nonsense.

I just used system restore to restore my new ThinkPad to the way it was
when
I received it out of the box. Thank goodness I had system restore active
for
a while before I installed this blasted software and audio hardware.

I removed hundreds of dollars worth of all my audio programs, VST hosts,
VST
effects, Echo IO, etc. I'm going to take a break from this bullshit for
a
while and get back to playing my instrument with my simple two space
rack:
my Looperlative and two Boss VF1s. I'll just let all this software sit
in
archive mode for a while, so I can prioritize and get my mind right for
another experimental festival I'm playing at in a few weeks.

....I should have spent my money on an evantide or Muse Receptor. I may
still get the Receptor so that I can take advantage of all my VSTs.

At least my ThinkPad is back to original condition so that I can use
this
screamin $2800 machine to check email and surf the web at my local
coffee
shops!   :)

Kris