[Bob Katz]

Anyone here using Soundflow with Pro Tools? Streamdeck? Ipad with Soundflow?

I have two Avid S1’s in Studio B and I hardly know how to use them but I’m learning. I’m much more fluent using clip gain and rubber banding for mixing. When I need to grab faders I can assign the S1 to control the VCAs, or occasionally ride one instrument in a mix. But 90% of the time, making a cut and separating regions and assigning clip gain works ergonomically for me. I find I can even cross fade between clips with different gains and get something that often sounds smoother and is faster and easier to implement for me, than playing with the dots and rubber bands. It helps that I’m used to working that way in Sequoia in the mastering room. Object-based processing in Sequoia is the bomb… pro tools users are mesmerized to see what we can do in Sequoia. “Clip gain” and “clip processing” is a relatively new, primitive concept in Pro Tools that is years behind what Sequoia can do with objects.

Anyway, getting off track. I’m setting up a MacOS surround system in Studio A and want to make it as ergonomic and easy to use as possible. I don’t have much desk space left, about the width and depth of an S1 will fit. Should I buy another S1? Should I add an iPAD or Android on top? I understand that SoundFlow is available for iPAD or streamdeck! I wonder if I put an ipad on top of the S1 and engaged Soundflow if it would make operations easier. Or is it better to just run Avid’s control app on the ipad?

[Phil Koenig]

I don’t use Avid.  But since you mentioned “what else” I thought I’d mention my controller:  An old Midiman Radium keyboard that a friend gave me.  It outputs Midi, fed into the DAW as control input. I added a scribble strip to it, to make icons above each key so I don’t have to remember what each key does.   52 of the 61 keys have my user defined functions to control  my DAW.  It also has 9 faders, 8 knobs that I don’t use at the moment (7 bit midi CCs don’t have the resolution I prefer).

It has improved my workflow to the extent that I’d feel crippled without it.

I tried to post a photo of it but couldn’t figure out how to make that work.  Most forums allow me to post a photo from my phone camera or from a local file, but no luck.  And with imgur.com removing all photos from anonymous posts, I’d have to hunt down another image hosting site I guess.

[Bob Katz]

Thanks, Phil, for your suggestion. The thing about “non-Eucontrol” controllers is they can’t keep up with the speed and additional features. Avid basically owns the controller universe. As far as posting pictures, I  can add an image from my iphone or desktop by clicking on the image icon in the toolbar that appears above every posting.

[Bob Katz]

SSL UF-1 versus the UF-8. How about some real world reactions and recommendations? Are you totally comfortable with the keyboard’s numeric keypad for transport control or do you like the dedicated transport keys of the UF-1?