Torn between Ableton Live and Logic mostly because of my investment in Push, I started playing around with the Drum Sequencer in Logic using the new 10.7 record feature, and Push as the controller. It was a little wild, but so freeing and fun! Here’s a little clip of me jamming on the drums.
Why I Almost Reverted to Logic Pro 10.6 from Logic 10.7
I started to think that Logic Pro 10.7 was overkill for me and was introducing too many problems. This guy sums it up well (I really have little use for any of the 5 good features and the 5 poor features are a bit frustrating):
After watching that, I headed for my second studio in the garage to return to the simplicity of GarageBand running on an older version of MacOS, feeling a sense of accomplishment. But that was too easy.
i returned to my main studio upstairs to reinstall Logic 10.6 on the new Monterey MacOS feeling somewhat defeated. Maybe two updates were just too much to deal with at once. Staring at Push on my desktop, I fiddled with Ableton. Shouldn’t I master that, having invested so much money?
But I can’t resist a challenge and I prefer Logic when I’m creating anything other than House music. Besides, I’m just so mesmerized by the call of Logic Pro 10.7 and its possibilities.
What Disco, Metal, Rock, and House Music Have in Common
Major influences on today’s music. House Music Godfather Marshall Jefferson said (in Electronic Musician) his early influences were Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple. But he moved on to club music because he thought only big, sweaty men went to Zeppelin and Deep Purple and he wanted to meet some women. Ha! Not entirely true, though – lol!
Those were also my influences and my friends and I went to plenty of concerts. And if you read the comments on YouTube, you’ll see that other women were/are fans, too.
Wired for Story But Not The Kind You Might Think (#Music vs #Writing)
These days I enjoy reading about writing more than I do actual writing. My brain seems to have been rewired for music – not story. At least, not the kind of story you think of when NaNoWriMo hits the stage every November (for me, November is the worst month with Thanksgiving and travel).
Still, I keep trying to gear myself up for NaNoWriMo, even though I did it once and hated it. So why do I keep trying to do it? I was hoping to finally finish “She’s Not That Good,” but I’m thinking it’s time to put that one away for good. It’s “not that good” – lol! (And I don’t want to spend the time trying to make it that good.)
Or maybe because there’s been a bit of a letdown after 50/90 ended. I miss the music community. So when I peek into the NaNo forums looking for community, I notice there’s definitely a leaning toward younger and it all feels so corporate. I now remember how good it felt to leave Silicon Valley behind. Why would I want to step foot in it again? I don’t.
And so it’s back to Logic Pro 10.7, but this time using one of my 50/90 songs to try out some of those Dolby Atmos features. Oh, yeah, I’m much more excited about that. Here’s the song I’m going to be working on:
Now that’s my kind of story – a whole lot more fun than character sheets and outlines.
Show Me the Way EDM Logic Pro 10.7 Remix
This is me playing with the Dolby Atmos features of Logic Pro 10.7. I tell you, I get different outcomes each time I start playing around with these new features. I created 2 alternatives: 1 with surround and 1 without, but I still can’t seem to export the surround version (had to upload to Apple Music).
It all started when I opened up Youtube and for some reason, Peter Frampton’s “Show Me the Way” started playing and I thought, how perfect! it brings up so many awesome memories. Such feels! I’ll use it to play around with Logic Pro’s 10.7 surround features. Of course, I had to throw in some EDM drums and effects (and my vocals to the chorus). Which makes it even better in my opinion – lol!
(Still experimenting with the features and best listened to with earphones on a computer, although I’m not really getting a stereo effect. So much more to learn!) Any suggestions, tips, etc?
Logic Pro 10.7: Getting in the Groove (#LogicPro #Music #Production)
This week has been quite confusing for me. My first attempt at using Logic Pro 10.7 left me feeling quite frustrated, so much so, I’ve been rethinking my DAW of choice. Switching back and forth to Ableton Live and GarageBand (with its recent updates), I haven’t been able to call it quits with Logic. But I have figured out a few things.
I think all the Dolby Atmos hype has distorted this update. YouTubers, etc. have been so focused on the new cool Dolby Atmos features, that they’ve ignored a very vital point: how to use Logic Pro without Dolby Atmos. Not everybody has a use for Dolby Atmos. And 10.7 has other new updated features, like to the Sequencer, which is one of my favorite tools. And the loops and the dropdown menus making it much easier to find a particular pack.
So, now that I’m getting into it, figuring things out, I’m getting quite hooked on Dolby Atmos. OMG! Using my own files and not the ones provided by Groove 3’s “Logic Pro 10.7 Explained” tutorial (I think his customized key commands messed me up at first), I’ve had quite a breakthrough. (I do find the tutorial quite helpful, following along, but with my track.)
I’m still working on my 32-bar track, but once I get to a point that it can demonstrate the with and without Dolby Atmos, I’ll be sure to post it here.
How are you doing with your first steps with Logic Pro 10.7? What’s your favorite part of the update?
Update: Logic Pro 10.7 Is Not For the Faint of Heart
I suppose I should say “Dolby Atmos in Logic Pro 10.7” is not for the faint of heart. As it turns out, if you don’t use that feature, Logic should work pretty much as it always had. But I went down a difficult path before I discovered that.
I began with the Logic Pro 10.7 Explained exercise videos with enthusiasm and determination. I didn’t take long to realize I was in way over my head. This version of Logic Pro seems to be only for the Logic experts.
I started following along with the lesson using the exercise file and when I used my usual method of creating a duplicate instrument track, Logic started in with all sorts of setting updates, converting my track to a master track complete with dialog box I could not kill – on repeat! I mean, really? Is this normal? It was so bizarre. I couldn’t imagine using Logic Pro in its current state, taking so long to do something that should take a second and then giving you unexpected results.
You can see here the dialog box that kept repeating and then creating a Dolby Master Track to infinity and beyond. I finally had to force quit Logic Pro to get out of this cycle. And this was just the first follow-along exercise file. Is it something about Eli’s exercise file (he does use customized shortcuts quite a bit) or is this standard Logic Pro 10.7 behavior?
I’m no expert, although pretty technical and determined, but I may close Logic Pro and never open it again if it keeps this up.
I did go back in to test the shortcut theory, and if I didn’t use a shortcut, all was well. I’ve never had this problem following Eli’s videos but his customized shortcuts are creating all sorts of problems for me. At least, that’s what I’m assuming the problem is. I will avoid key commands while using his vids. Or maybe it’s all of this Dolby stuff that’s interfering with Logic’s normal behavior. That I don’t know and nobody says.
The other piece of good news is that when I opened an older file without any of the Dolby stuff activated, Logic behaved the way it always has, including bouncing files to an mp3. YouTubers and trainers, etc, who are posting stuff about the 10.7 upgrade are so focused on the new features (Actually, the Dolby Atmos stuff), that they’re leaving out this very important information. Maybe I just missed it, but I have a feeling I’m not alone.
But, thankfully, the new non-related Dolby features seem to work just fine. And there are some cool new features, such as recording in the Sequencer and being able to organize loops/instruments by their pack name. And really cool producer packs that came from GarageBand iOS.
Logic Pro 10.7 Project Tutorial: Starting with a Stereo Mix (#Groove3 #Music #Production #LP10.7)
At the end of yesterday, I felt satisfied that I was, at least, able to hear the sample track I’d mixed using Dolby Atmos in LP 10.7. And I may have solved the plug-in floating beyond reach issue. I still have questions about how to upload a file to services such as SoundCloud and Reverbnation or to email an mp3. After searching YouTube and the internet, I still have no answer.
Not one to give up easily, I’m back to my Logic Pro 10.7 Explained tutorial produced by Groove 3. I’ve worked up to the beginning of Chapter 4: Mixing in Dolby Atmos, hoping that somewhere along the way, I’ll find the answers to my questions. Perhaps I’m missing something basic and that proverbial light bulb will go off.
Exercise Files are provided and Eli strongly recommends following along at the computer with headphones to really hear what’s going on.
Okay, so I’m going in. Will let you know what I discover.
PS – It didn’t take long to realize I need to back up and do the exercise files from the first exercise file (which is the second video) until this point. Just watching the previous videos is not enough for me to get what’s happening now. That so sounds like me – working ahead – lol! And sometimes getting lost. 🙂
It doesn’t help when the instructor uses plug-ins I don’t have…
My Logic Pro 10.7 Upgrade May Send Me Back to Ableton Live (#LogicPro10.7 #AbletonLive)
Logic Pro 10.7 is here. Yay! I was up all night working through tutorials so I would have a clue how to get started this morning when my download appeared. But I’ve been having 2 major problems (even after changing the project settings sample rate to 48 and buffer size to 512 per tutorial instruction):
- My file for my small 5-bar track is too big to email or upload to free plans (need upgraded size plan for SoundCloud and Reverbnation)
- And while I could upload the file to this blog with my wordpress upgrade, the song can’t be heard on Firefox, which was never a problem before. (Remember to listen in headphones.)
Back to searching online for more videos to see if anybody talks about these issues. Not only that, but if I want to close the Dolby plugin, I have to change my display settings to the default small, which is way too small for my eyes.
So, either I:
- Reinstall the previous version (thankfully, I saved it before I upgraded)
- Put Logic away until there’s more information about this “Export file” problem (now that you cannot “Bounce” or certainly not export just a section of the song)
- Keep hammering away at this problem (I think I might have solved the plugin accessibility issue)
- Finally switch to Ableton for good
While Dolby Atmos may be cool, do I really have a need for Dolby Atmos? If not, how do I use LP without it, as in bouncing a file to an mp3 seamlessly. As for the Dolby Atmos plugin being “integrated,” having it pop up off the screen when my display settings are enhanced isn’t really integrated. Ableton Live plugins are truly integrated and why I’ve always preferred Ableton plugins.
Logic Pro has always been a bit complicated for me. I think it just got too complicated. Can we really not bounce a file to mp3 like we used to? What am I missing?
What about you? Have you run into any “gotchas”? How about solutions to my problem? lol!
Logic Pro 10.7 Tutorials
While I’m waiting for my Logic Pro 10.7 upgrade, I’ve been watching YouTube videos and other training videos I’ve found online:
Why Logic Pro Rules (YouTube)
MusicTechHelpGuy (YouTube)
Logic Pro 10.7 Explained (Groove3)
What’s New in Logic Pro 10.7 (MacProVideo)
SonicAcademy may eventually have something, but they don’t seem as interested in keeping up with the latest Logic Pro updates as they are Ableton Live.
What have you found to be helpful?
Screamie Birds Studios 