Latest gear you've acquired.....

[trodden]

We lost our cool-ish radio station with local promoters and such, replaced with our corporate overlords a few years ago. Lost many of our smaller venues around / but not all directly related to Covid. And another venue / many other cool businesses are potentially up for demolition as we prepare to vote on…leveling all that property for a last minute planned downtown baseball stadium. Just what we fucking need guys.

I heard about the downtown baseball stadium proposal. Fucking hell.

[kslight]

We lost our cool-ish radio station with local promoters and such, replaced with our corporate overlords a few years ago. Lost many of our smaller venues around / but not all directly related to Covid. And another venue / many other cool businesses are potentially up for demolition as we prepare to vote on…leveling all that property for a last minute planned downtown baseball stadium. Just what we fucking need guys.

I heard about the downtown baseball stadium proposal. Fucking hell.

It’s a joke, just billionaires patting each other on the back. Royals claim their stadium can’t be renovated (independent engineers disagree in their annual reports), so let’s put a new one in the crossroads. And the Royals know their proposal can’t stand alone so they had to get the chiefs attached to it, so they are now trying to get the vote based on people afraid to lose the teams. It all feels extremely rushed and not transparent, and the “if you don’t vote for our last minute idea we are leaving” threat rubs me the wrong way. I would let them leave, if it were up to me.

Whoever bought the KC Star building wants it demolished as they’ll never be able to lease it. KCPL wants more drunk idiots to overpay for their poorly performing garbage chain restaurants (81 days a year anyway). Parking garages want to be able to charge $50 a car (this is already happening with the women’s soccer stadium that opens in a couple weeks…not enough parking and no convenient public transport unless you want to tell people to walk over a mile).

[trodden]

Tama Iron Works Studio series. The last place I worked had 2 and they were BY FAR the best stands we had. It'll hold your RE20 for sure. I know your woes because I'm used to checking on that mic specifically between every take to make sure it's not pointing at the floor. Sick of shit like that.

The Tamas are solid, heavy, stay right where they're supposed to once you lock em in and compared to the LOLOL cost of Triad or Latchlake or whatever, the price point is easy enough to swallow. I can't imagine the duct tape will be coming out anytime soon.

Even their standard series mic stands are fucking awesome. I've got two of these and definitely will be getting more whenever I need more stands. Right now, these and the K&M's are doing the job.

https://www.tama.com/usa/products/detail/md205st.html

Thanks for both your input. I am looking at Tama on Sweetwater now. Free candy vs. sales call... The Triad and Latchlake prices are interesting. They are in someone's budget, though.

FYI,
The new non-heavy duty K&M Stands are garbage compared to what they were 10 years ago. Talking about the $80 model.

[Nick Sevilla]

Got a capacitor kit for my Hammond M-3 organ, to fix up its amp which is spitting and noisy.
Also got a new pair of Avantone CLA-10A limited edition speakers. Active, Brown Veneer. Funky.
Lastly, a used Digidesign analog to digital converter card for my Digidesign 192. So I can access my UAD plugins, without having to buy even more of their hardware. Hardware tied plug ins are caca. And they are not porting them over to Native fast enough. If they did not sound as good, I'd replace them.

Also, a pair of gooseneck lights for my console, and as a treat, an EHX / JHS pedals Lizard Queen octave Fuzz.

[digitaldrummer]

new pair of Avantone CLA-10A limited edition speakers. Active, Brown Veneer. Funky.

those do look cool - I'd be interested how they work out for you...

[A.David.MacKinnon]

Picked up a line 6 DL4 and a Maestro Discover Delay for use with my ambient improv band. Both are tons of fun. The Maestro in particular sounds dirty and fantastic.

[vvv]

Pedals:

Toadworks Looper, I like this brand, and this is nicely diminutive

Radial ABY, to use my NT15's as a pair (yep, I fixed the broked one I wrote about - my diag was correct)

J. Rockett Archer - the silver one, I really like this Klon clone, best I've heard and I have a few (MXR, Wampler, etc.) - I now have a few of their pedals (delay, drive) and I like 'em - I'll note it took me over 2 years to find one at or under a hoondo

[Nick Sevilla]

new pair of Avantone CLA-10A limited edition speakers. Active, Brown Veneer. Funky.

those do look cool - I'd be interested how they work out for you...

They look beautiful.

Spent a couple of hours last night listening, and they do sound like the old NS10s: Midrangey, crisp top end, lower level bottom end. They really push the midrange forward, which is where most of the difficult mixing has to happen. And why they were / are a staple in so many studios. The manual recommends 24-72 hours to "break them in." Which is fine since I need to get my brain accustomed to how they sound. Will be pumping old mixes I made through them over the next few days, and switching between them and my trusty JBL LSR4328Ps, which I have had since 2008. Fortunately they sound quite different from each other.

I have two other sets of speakers, but they sound too close to the JBLs: Another pair of JBLs, a 6" 3 series pair, and an old pair of Yamaha MSP5s. They hype the low end too much. I'll be putting them up for sale here in the next week or two.

[Scodiddly]

A pair of "barn find" original Auratone 5C speakers - I had to help my Dad move into a retirement home and then there's the house to clean out (I'm getting help for that). Turned up a pair of Auratones in surprisingly good shape, pretty sure we've had those for decades but the drivers are still good! Just need to find a small amp for them.

[TV Lenny]

Picked up a homemade 2x12 guitar cab loaded with Celestion Vintage 30's. Also, finally picked up a Ludwig Supraphonic LM402T snare. Used both yesterday to do a quick recording. Both sound epic.

[Nick Sevilla]

I picked up another RedNet 2 on Reverb. Picking it up in San Diego tomorrow.

My Focusrite Rednet 2 went on the fritz this morning, so while I waited for their support (which was only a couple of hours wait... not bad), I went hunting for a second one to replace it, in case this one could not be repaired.

I was very happy with the Focusrite Pro support: They are sending me a new power supply free of charge to see if that fixes it, otherwise I can send it in for repair, or get 25% off by turning in towards a new interface. Which I might do at the end of the year.

I've had this RedNet 2 for over ten years and has been bulletproof. I cannot expect it to last forever, it is an electronics device after all. But, this long and zero issues? That is great.

[Scodiddly]

I was very happy with the Focusrite Pro support: They are sending me a new power supply free of charge to see if that fixes it, otherwise I can send it in for repair, or get 25% off by turning in towards a new interface. Which I might do at the end of the year.

That's great service, especially these days. A lot of companies would have you send it somewhere in hopes of getting in line to get it fixed.

[trodden]

I picked up another RedNet 2 on Reverb. Picking it up in San Diego tomorrow.

My Focusrite Rednet 2 went on the fritz this morning, so while I waited for their support (which was only a couple of hours wait... not bad), I went hunting for a second one to replace it, in case this one could not be repaired.

I was very happy with the Focusrite Pro support: They are sending me a new power supply free of charge to see if that fixes it, otherwise I can send it in for repair, or get 25% off by turning in towards a new interface. Which I might do at the end of the year.

I've had this RedNet 2 for over ten years and has been bulletproof. I cannot expect it to last forever, it is an electronics device after all. But, this long and zero issues? That is great.

I'm fucking stoked on the Focusrite Clarett+8 i've been using for a year. It's a stellar piece of gear. I didn't know what to expect since it was my first time going to something not from Avid/Digidesign. I'm still not too stoked on having a third party software/mixer running in the background, and for some reason, it takes some patience waiting for the computer or laptop along with software to sync with the unit. But it is cheaper than running an HD license and card. I really wish it could do 24 inputs instead of just 16 (with ADAT).

[T-rex]

I’ve been on a monitor redo the last six months or so. I bought the new Auratones a few months ago and they are awesome. I’m still getting used to using them but for as crappy as they sound, they are so pure. You kind of forget how nice a single driver in a sealed enclosure can sound. The lack of a crossover was really apparent switching back and forth with my Adams.

Scodiddly - I’m running my newer Auratones with a Fosi 50 watt class D mini amp. Seems to do a great job with them. $50 on Amazon.
Fosi Audio V1.0G 2 Channel Class D Mini Stereo Amplifier

Then last week I picked up a pair of used Amphion one15s. It’s so funny, the testimonials all kind of steer in the same direction “the first time i used these, the client had no notes.” Crazy enough, I turned in my first mix I had done with them Saturday (finished on them, started on my Adam’s) and the band came back last night and said, it’s sick. No changes at all. And they are picky sooooo, I guess they are on to something.?! I’m about 10 years late to the hype party. I started my first mix from scratch on them tonight and they are making me work for sure. Pretty brutal tbh, but I’ve used my Adams for so long I needed a change.

[Scodiddly]

Scodiddly - I’m running my newer Auratones with a Fosi 50 watt class D mini amp. Seems to do a great job with them. $50 on Amazon.
Fosi Audio V1.0G 2 Channel Class D Mini Stereo Amplifier

I ended up buying a little thing from Parts Express, their house brand "Dayton Audio". Supposed to be 100 watts, has RCA and bluetooth inputs and a volume knob. And no wall wart!!! I think most of the use for the Auratones will just be YouTube stuff, because there's maybe one YouTube personality in the whole world who knows how to use a low-cut filter.