RodionKarimov | Imagination Works

Introduction to DAW REAPER

Today we will meet with DAW ( Digital Audio Workstation ) REAPER. Unlike other modern DAWs, which are oriented on sleek design to motivate users to buy them and on semi-automatic performance of different actions, REAPER is more oriented on professional work with sound and provides functional instruments, which provide lots of possibilities and require understanding of what user is currently doing and some degree of technical education in this area. Because of this : from one side, this DAW is more difficult to study for novices, but from the other side, it provides lots of possibilities, which may be unaccessible in other studios due to semi-automatic nature of their instruments. REAPER can be downloaded and used for free for 60 days; after this period of time there is need to purchase program : at its startup pop up window appears, which asks to buy program, after 5 seconds it can be closed and no functions are restricted; but this program worth its money and should be bought according to license. It costs 60 or 225 USD, depending on usage scenarios; its site is located here : http://www.reaper.fm/ .

Lets briefly become acquainted with interface of program : in the central part there is tracks area, which allows to place sounds, MIDI notes, control automation of sounds, synthesizers, effects and other instruments and perform large amount of other operations; this is the main work area of program. To the left there is column with tracks handlers, which allow to control their volume, automation, switch on and off tracks, add instruments and effects to them and perform lots of other operations. Some tracks in this area can be made folders, which allow to group tracks and control them all and apply effects to all of them in bulk ( this also saves computer resources, because this way effects are applied to single track after mixing of all sounds into it, instead of application to each track individually ). At the bottom part of window there is mixer panel, which allows to control tracks parameters individually and set parameters of the whole composition. At the top part of window menu, buttons and hardware information reside.

There is ability to work with DAW this way : record sounds or use existing ones, place them on tracks or attach VST instruments to tracks and place there MIDI notes, which activate these instruments; then, when composition will be ready, it can be exported into lossless formats ( FLAC, WAV and others ) or lossy formats ( Ogg, MP3 and others ). Before actual composition creation, there is need to think about it and feel it, make plan and then implement it. If there is no complete picture of composition, there is ability to create parts of it and its story : rhythm parts, melody, pads, sounds effects and experiment with them, by changing them and moving them here and there until feeling will come. Periodically I’ll write articles about work with this DAW, with VST instruments and effects ( FM-synthesizers, compressors, distortion, delay and others ) and will publish little examples for you to study on them. Lets say in ahead, that I’m not professional musician and for me it is hobby and rest after work, but I know how to work with this DAW ( there is not big amount of information of work with it ) and have knowledge of technical aspects of electronic music and can share my knowledge and experience and at the same time learn something by myself. Thats is all for today, see you in the next articles.

Review of small-studio level external USB sound cards Steinberg UR : 242, 22 and 12 with 192 kHz and 24 bits for 90 – 200 USD

Today we will review small studio level external USB sound cards Steinberg UR : 242, 22 and 12. Their characteristics are mainly similar to middle-level Steinberg UR44 sound card, which was reviewed earlier. The same : USB connection, 192 kHz sampling rate and 24 bits precision, Yamaha D-PRE Class-A microphone preamplifiers, DSP Yamaha SSP2, DAW Cubase AI in the package and fully metal body. UR242 is different from older relative in less amount of connectors : 2 combined XLR/TRS 1/4″ jack inputs for microphone and linear input, 4 linear inputs on back panel and 1 TRS 1/4″ jack monitor headphones output with separate volume control. It is powered from additional line adapter, maximal power, sent to headphones, is a 15 mW; its mass is 1.3 kg and sizes are 198 ( width ) x 47 ( height ) x 159 ( depth ) mm; it draws maximum 5 W of energy.

Steinberg UR22 is the audio card with even less amount of connectors ( there is need to note, that big amount of ports is not always necessary, for example, for small studio or for simple music and sounds listening ) : it has only 2 linear outputs, instead of 4. UR12 is simplified more : 1 microphone and 1 Hi-Z inputs and 2 linear outputs, without MIDI connectors. They are powered fully form USB port, maximal power, sent to headphones, is a 6 mW; mass of Steinberg UR22 is a 998 g and sizes are 159 ( width ) x 47 ( height ) x 159 ( depth ) mm; mass of Steinberg UR12 is a 850 g and sizes are 144 ( width ) x 47 ( height ) x 159 ( depth ) mm; they draw 2,5 W of energy. There is need to note, that cards’ prices go down in accordance with their functionality : 199.99 USD, 117.50 USD and 89.99 USD, accordingly, at the beginning of Autumn of 2015 year, so, there is ability to choose optimal variant for optimal price.

When Steinberg UR audio interfaces are used with DAW Cubase, function True Integrated Monitoring becomes available in it, allowing to control all parameters of inputs and outputs, DSP effects and all other options of sound cards. Also devices support Loopback, allowing to mix all input channels and played back signal for sending to Internet streaming programs. They work in Mac OS X 10.7 and newer and Windows 7, 8, 8.1 and 10 with support of Core Audio, ASIO 2.0 and WDM interfaces for integration with modern DAWs : Avid Pro Tools, Ableton Live, Steinberg Cubase, FL Studio, Cackewalk Sonar, REAPER and others. Devices are Class Compliant and can work with Apple iPad 2 and newer with use of Apple iPad Camera Connection Kit or Lightning to USB Camera Adapter.

Dynamic range of Steinberg UR 242, 22 and 12 is a 101 dB ( A-Weighted ), to all microphone inputs there is ability to plug in phantom power +48 V; microphone and linear inputs and linear outputs can work in balanced and unbalanced modes, instrumental Hi-Z input works in unbalanced mode. Working frequency range of microphone/linear inputs of devices is 20 Hz – 22 kHz ( +0.1/-0.2 dB ); dynamic range is a 101 dB ( A-Weighted ); THD+N equals to 0.003%; maximal input signal level is a +24 dB; impedance is 4 kOhms; gain levels +12 – +56 dB; pad is down to -26 dB. Instrumental Hi-Z input has following characteristics : maximal input level is +8.5 dB; impedance is 1 MOhm; gain levels range is +4 – +48 dB; pad down to -26 dB. Linear inputs on back panels of devices have following characteristics : working frequency range is 20 Hz – 22 kHz ( +0.1/-0.2 dB ); dynamic range is 102 dB ( A-Weighted ); THD+N 0.003%; maximal input level is +22 dB; impedance is 30 kOhms ( for +4 dB input ) and 20 kOhms ( for -10 dB input ); for them signal modifications -12.5 dB ( for +4 dB input ) or +5.5 dB ( for -10 dB input ) can be switched. Working frequencies range of linear outputs is a 20 Hz – 22 kHz ( +0.1/-0.3 dB ); dynamic range is 104 dB ( A-Weighted ); THD+N 0.005%; maximal output level is +10 dB; impedance is 150 Ohms.

For installation of DAW Cubase AI there is need in connection to Internet for downloading of additional data with 500 MB size. Steinberg UR242 supports following DSP effects : Latency-free monitoring with FX ( dspMixFx ), True Integrated Monitoring with FX in Cubase, Guitar Amp Classics, REV-X Reverb, Sweet Spot Morphing Channel Strip, Phase switch per channel and High-Pass filter. Cubase AI – is a simplified version of professional DAW of Steinberg, it is based on the same audio engine with 32-bits float precision of calculations; can work simultaneously with 32 sound tracks, 48 MIDI tracks and 16 instrumental tracks with ability to record completed compositions to disk in WAV and AIFF formats, and in MP3 after purchsing of according module. For audio and MIDI editing in program following editors are built-in : Key, Score and Drum, pitch-shift instrument AudioWarp with support of ACID files format, which allows to use large amount of already created sounds samples, and Chord Track editor. 28 VST effects and processors are built into it for work with sounds, sampling synthesizer instrument HALion Sonic SE with 180 sound; mixing console with 4 Inserts and 4 Sends for each track and equalizer. DAW Cubase AI can work in 32 and 64 bits operating systems Windows and Mac OS X.

Package contains : Steinberg UR 242, 22 or 12 audio interfaces themselves, USB cable, power adapter ( for UR242 ), CD-ROM disk with drivers and programs, user’s guide and warranty card. On optical disk there are : drivers, devices control panel and DSP effects ( for UR242 ) : dspMixFx, UR242 Extension ( for connection to DAW Cubase ), Basic FX Suite ( VST effects and processors set ), Sweet Spot Morphing Channel Strip ( compressor and equalizer ), REV-X ( reverberation ) and Guitar Amp Classics ( program emulator of guitar amplifier ). All in all devices are very good, they have great digital abilities and connectors, as well as optimal prices; there is also need to note that there are audio interfaces of Behringer, Focusrite, Roland, ESI, M-Audio, Alesis and other companies, that are better, than these ones in analogue part. Steinberg UR 242, 22 and 12 are great solutions for small studios and concerts, as well as high-quality in-home sounds and music playback.

Steinberg – is a German company – creator of DAWs, VST effects, processors and instruments and also of audio interfaces, being based in Hamburg. It was established in 1984 year and now is being owned by Yamaha Corporation from 2004 year. At current moment Steinberg is one of the leading audio equipment and programs manufacturers in the world, for example, its professional DAW, instruments and hardware are used by following musicians : Hans Zimmer, Junkie XL, Justice, Kraftwerk, New Order and others.

Panasonic Lumix G 20mm / F1.7 II ASPH objective lens with fixed focus for Micro Four Thirds mounts review

Lets study Panasonic Lumix G 20mm / F1.7 II ASPH objective lens with 20 mm fixed focus for Micro Four Thirds mounts. Its diaphragm is set in F1.7 – F/16 range with use of 7 blades; minimal focusing distance is 0.2 m; field of view is 57 degrees. There are 7 lens elements in 5 groups set in the objective, 2 of them are aspherical ( to reduce image geometrical and color distortions ); all lens are covered with protective and anti-reflective multicoating. There is ability to attach 46 mm optical filters to it; objective lens sizes are 63 x 25.5 mm, its weight is : 87 g; its body is made from metal, which increases its durability and reliability. It has no image stabilization functions and have automatic focusing with use of built-in motor. Package contains : Panasonic Lumix G 20mm / F1.7 II ASPH objective lens itself, front and back caps, lens storage bag and user’s manual. There is need to note, that this objective lens can be used not only with Panasonic cameras, but with all other cameras, that support Micro Four Thirds mounts, for example, Olympus.

Steinberg UR44 – very functional external USB audio interface with 192 kHz, 24 bits and 101 dB dynamic range for optimal price

Lets continue our reviews of external sound cards with relatively new and very functional device Steinberg UR44. It is connected to computer via USB port, it is powered via it and additional power adapter. It works with sound with 192 kHz sampling rate ( and also supports rates 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96 and 176.4 kHz ) and 24 bits precision. It has 2 XLR/TRS combined inputs for microphone and Hi-Z input and 2 the same connectors for microphone and linear input ( for them card has phantom power +48 V switches and indicators, volume level controls and clip indicators ); 2 monitor headphones outputs with separate volume control. As well as overall device’s outputs volume control.

USB аудио интерфейс Steinberg UR44 ( задняя панель )

On back panel it has MIDI input and output, 2 main linear TRS outputs, 4 linear TRS outputs and 2 linear TRS inputs; USB port for connection to computer, power adapter input, power button and Class Compliant mode switch. For all microphone inputs audio card uses high quality Yamaha D-PRE Class-A preamplifiers; it has built in hardware VST 3 effects, their processing is handled by Yamaha SSP2 DSP. Steinberg UR44 can be switched into CC ( Class Compliant ) mode, in which it can work with Apple iPad devices version 2 or newer; this way there is ability to obtain high quality mobile recording solution.

Steinberg UR44 is powered from separate line adapter, plugged in through separate port; its mass is 1.6 kg and sizes are 252 ( width ) x 47 ( height ) x 159 ( depth ) mm, it is released only black-silver color variant with fully aluminum body. Audio interface is supplied with DAW Cubase AI and VST effects and processors set Basic FX Suite. Dynamic range of device is 101 dB ( A-Weighted ), working frequencies range 20 Hz – 22 kHz ( with +0.1/-0.2 dB deviation ) and THD+N is equal to 0.003%.

For installation of DAW Cubase AI there is need in connection to Internet for downloading of additional data with 500 MB size. Steinberg UR44 supports following DSP effects : Latency-free monitoring with FX ( dspMixFx ), True Integrated Monitoring with FX in Cubase, Guitar Amp Classics, REV-X Reverb, Sweet Spot Morphing Channel Strip, Phase switch per channel and High-Pass filter. Cubase AI – is a simplified version of professional DAW of Steinberg, it is based on the same audio engine with 32-bits float precision of calculations; can work simultaneously with 32 sound tracks, 48 MIDI tracks and 16 instrumental tracks with ability to record completed compositions to disk in WAV and AIFF formats, and in MP3 after purchsing of according module. For audio and MIDI editing in program following editors are built-in : Key, Score and Drum, pitch-shift instrument AudioWarp with support of ACID files format, which allows to use large amount of already created sounds samples, and Chord Track editor. 28 VST effects and processors are built into it for work with sounds, sampling synthesizer instrument HALion Sonic SE with 180 sound; mixing console with 4 Inserts and 4 Sends for each track and equalizer. DAW Cubase AI can work in 32 and 64 bits operating systems Windows and Mac OS X.

Sound card is supplied with DAW Cubase AI, with which it is closely integrated, because card and DAW has the same manufacturer. Wherein it can work with other DAWs : FL Studio, REAPER, Cackewalk Sonar and others through ASIO 2.0 and WDM or Core Audio for Windows ( XP, Vista, 7, 8, 8, 8.1 and 10 ) and Mac OS X, accordingly. Body of audio card is produced from metal, this makes it easier to use card for mobile recordings and on the open scenes and reduces electromagnetic interference on the card’s internals. Also in the package with Steinberg UR44 device itself there are : CD-ROM disk with drivers and programs, USB cable, power adapter, warranty card and user’s guide. On optical disk there are following programs : Yamaha Steinberg USB Driver, UR44 Extension ( for integration with DAW Cubase ), dspMixFx UR44 ( for integration with other DAWs ), Basic FX Suite ( Sweet Spot Morphing Channel Strip – compressor and equalizer, REV-X – reverberation, and Guitar Amp Classics – program emulator of electric guitar amplifier ) and electronic versions of user’s guides of device and programs.

All in all Steinberg UR44 is very functional sound card, which has very good characteristics and high quality hardware and costs the same amount of money or even less, than similar devices from other manufacturers; its price is around 250 USD. There is also ability to look on other audio interfaces of Steinberg, Behringer, Focusrite, Roland, ESI, M-Audio, Alesis and other companies production, which can have better analogue characteristics.

MC APO Telezenitar-M 2.8/135 teleobjective lens review

Lets continue our study of Russian-made photo objective lens with MC APO Telezenitar-M 2.8/135. As it follows from its name, it is apochromatic ( it has corrected spherical aberrations ( geometrical image distortions ) and chromatic aberrations ( color image distortions ) for 3 or more light waves lengths ); has 135 mm fixed focal distance and 1/2.8 – 1/22 diaphragm. They were developed in KMZ plant in the beginning of 1980ties and their industrial productions started in 1983 year; also, modifications of objective lens were produced by other companies. Field of view of objective lens is 18 degrees, frame sizes are 24 × 36 mm, and minimal focusing distance is 1.3 m. There are 5 lens elements in 4 groups set in it, all of them are covered with protective and anti-reflective multicoating. MC APO Telezenitar-M 2.8/135 attaches to camera via M42×1 mount, with use of adapters and converters it can be attached to modern cameras with other bayonets formats. Objective lens sizes are : 83 x 66.5 mm, and weight is : 430 g. All in all : it is very good objective lens; it has no automatic focusing and diaphragm control and they should be set manually via control rings, because of this this lens can be advised for experienced photographers or to those, who want to dive in this area. It has small amount of lens elements and because of this it is far more superior in image quality area, than zoom-objecte lenses with simillar characteristics. Also, it is light weight ( for tele-objective lens ) and it is convenient to shoot photos from hands with it and wear camera in trips. Currently these objective lenses are rare in shops and they can be bought via private ads in conditions from “new one” to “with marks of use”.

AudioTrak DR. DAC3 – external audio interface with support of 192 kHz/24 bits mode

Lets review external sound card AudioTrak DR. DAC3, which supports sound processing mode with 192 kHz sampling rate and 24 bits precision. It communicates with computer via USB port, through which it also receives power. Its digital to analogue converter ( DAC ) has 129 dB signal to noise ratio ( which is very good and provides very good sound quality, if all other sound card’s equipment supports audio processing with such high signal clearness ); it has unbalanced RCA outputs and monitor headphones outputs with separate volume level control and RCA inputs. Card supports digital optical S/PDIF input and output via TOS-LINK and RCA connectors. Sound card sizes are : 140 x 111 x 30 mm ( width x depth x height ), weight is : 400 g, and it consumes 3 – 5 W of energy, depending on workload level. There are drivers released for audio interface for Window XP, Vista, 7, 8 and newer and Mac OS X operating systems with support of ASIO 2.0 and Core Audio, accordingly; through which it can work with all modern DAWs : FL Studio, REAPER, Cackewalk Sonar and others.

As it can be seen from AudioTrak DR. DAC3 printed circuit board ( PCB ), it has operational amplifiers ( OA ), which can be easily replaced with better ones, and film or ceramic capacitors of low-pass filters, which filter out high frequency noise after OA. Use of such capacitors is much more preferable in analogue part of sound cards, because they have much better and much more stable characteristics, than electrolytic capacitors, which can boil-up and explode after some time of use. Key outputs of card has gold-plated surface : it provides good contact, when gold-plated connectors are used ( there is need to remember, that nickel-plated connectors can not be used in such case, because otherwise areas of contact after some time of use will be covered with oxide film, that lowers contact quality ). Overall AudioTrak DR. DAC3 is very good sound card, which can be recommended for home or semi-professional small studio.

KMZ Mir-20 – wide angle objective lens for M42x1 mounts

Lets review wide angle objective lens KMZ Mir-20, it was produced by KMZ plant from 1973 year to 1992 year and by other plants, now it can be bought through private ads in conditions from “new” to “with marks of use”. It has 20 mm fixed focus and field of view 96 degrees; 1/3.5 – 1/16 diaphragm; 24 × 36 mm frame size; and minimal focusing distance 0.18 m. Objective lens has 9 lens elements in 8 groups with enlightened optics or with protective and anti-reflective multi-coating, depending on objective lens modification. KMZ Mir-20 is attached to camera via M42×1 mount, using different adapters and converters it can be attached to cameras with different mounts standards. It has no automatic focusing and diaphragm control, so they should be set manually with use of control rings. Because of this it most suitable for experienced photographers, who know which settings to use in different situations. Optical filters can be attached to objective lens from back side with use of M28×0.75 mount. All in all it is very good objective lens, accounting its low lens elements amount and their high quality ( in USSR and in Russia optics production takes its roots in military area and quality of production is very high ), it is far more superior, than zoom objective lenses with similar characteristics; and taking into account its low price ( especially when it is bought through private ads ) it is very competitive with other fixed focus wide angle lenses.

Bicycles ride to Azov hill near Polevskoy

At Sunday 20th September bicycles ride to Azov mountain near Polevskoy was held on. Main group of riders moved to Polevskoy from Yekaterinburg and went on the Polevskoy highway. I met them at the entrance into city; we bought food in nearby supermarket and then navigated to Azov. I know way to it, so I moved ahead and showed road to the rest of group. On the way there was breakage with bicycle of one of participants; we quickly fixed it and moved to Zyuzelka village. Road from it to Azov goes up and often there are winds from West ( they blow in the face ); because of this bikers with big body mass exhausted on it very much. After 3.3 km from Zuzelka village there is ground road, which goes from it to the North and to the hill itself; it is easy to recognize it, because there are posters with information.

Uphill into Azov itself is not hard, most difficult part is boulders, trees roots and puddles with mud. On the way there Small Azov rocks located ( they are smaller than Big Azov rocks, as it follows from their name, but they are also interesting to view on ). At the roots of Big Azov rocks viewing platforms are located, from which great view on the Polevskoy and its surroundings opens : there is even ability to see Poldnevaya village and hills, that are located near it. On one of the rocks of Big Azov there is fenced area, from which magnificent view opens in almost 360 degrees around, for example : in the West direction there is ability to see Shunut mountain on the horizon. We ate some food and talked on different topics for some time at the rocks roots and at around 5 o’clock moved in return trip. Downhill from Azov is breathtaking and with good bicycle fork it is worth it, but there is need to note, that it is better to not repeat such rides without bicycles helmet and experience in cross-country rides, because there are lots of rocks, tree roots and puddles with mud on the way. After downhill we waited for rest of group; most of participants headed their way back to home to Yekaterinburg. I moved in the direction of Big Lavrovka village to explore way to Shunut hill. Approximately after 6 km from Azov hill good asphalt road ends and wet clay road begins; movement on this type of road takes lots of energy and time, so we will move to Shunut mountain at the middle of October, when at night time there will be negative temperatures and clay will freeze, so that there will be ability to move on it on the bicycles. See you on the next bicycles event!

View from the Azov hill in the direction of Poldnevaya village, hills near it and Upper Ufaley

You can see rest of photos here.

M-Audio M-Track Plus – portable audio interface with low power consumption

M-Audio M-Track Plus external sound card

M-Audio released external sound card M-Audio M-Track Plus with low power consumption, that is designed for use with laptops and other mobile devices. Card works with 48 kHz sampling rate ( which is not much for modern semi-professional audio interfaces, which able to work with 96 – 192 kHz sampling rate ) and 24 bits precision. It has large amount of hardware indicators and knobs, which allow to view sound parameters and control them directly without delays of signal sending to computer and its processing. Card has digital coaxial S/PDIF input-output and MIDI input-output; 2 XLR inputs with ability to switch on phantom power +48 V for them, 2 balanced 6.3 mm jack inputs, 2 TRS inserts and main 6.3 mm jack output. Also, there is ability to plug in monitor headphones to it with separate volume level control. Card is powered with 1 USB port, through which data is also transferred. Its body is produced from aluminum, its sizes are : 165 x 119 x 57 mm ( width x depth x height ) and its weight is 0.68 kg. M-Audio M-Track Plus is compatible with Windows XP, Vista, 7 and newer ( 32 and 64 bits ) and Mac OS X operating systems. Sound card is supplied with DAW AIR Ignite, which allows to record audio, arrange and edit tracks, apply effects, switch musical instruments for MIDI notes and export tracks for use with more advanced DAWs like FL Studio, REAPER, Cackewalk Sonar and others.

Review of extra-wide angle lens Zenitar 2,8/16

Lets review extra-wide angle objective lens ( “fish eye” ) Zenitar 2,8/16, that is produced in Russia. It was developed and now is manufactured by «Krasnogorskiy Plant of S.A. Zverev» for following bayonets : M42×1, Nikon, Pentax and Canon, it also can be used with other mounts via adapters and converters. It has 180 degrees field of view, 16 mm focal length, maximal and minimal apertures : f/2,8 – f/22 ( with 6 diaphragm blades ), frame size : 24 × 36 mm, and minimal focusing distance is 0.3 m. To obtain optimal results, there is need to use full-frame cameras, otherwise field of view will be cut near the edges. It has 11 lens elements in 7 groups, all of them are coated with multilayer protective and anti-reflective coating. Objective lens does not have automatic focusing and image stabilization; they would not work any way with adapters and converters; so, this lens is appropriate for experienced photographers, which know which settings to use for different scenes. It has great picture quality at the center and strong geometrical distortions at the edges ( they are inherent for all objective lens of this type ). Zenitar 2,8/16 has fixed focus and small amount of lens elements, so by image clarity, sharpness and lightness it is far more superior, than standard zoom objective lens of cameras. Wherein it has much smaller price, than other competing extra-wide angle objective lens.

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