Category Archives: Audio

iZotope Vinyl Plug-In

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izotope-vinyl-plugin

Intriguing. Advanced. Utterly ridiculous. The marketing hype for this effects plug-in for Pro Tools says iZotope is the “ultimate lo-fi weapon” to take your delicious, pristine, 24-bit multi-track audio production and turn them into murky pieces of analog crap! iZotope is basically a free plug-in you can use to simulate playback of the recorded material on a vinyl album. Since the name of this blog is Turntabling, you’d think I’d be all for this plugin, but something about it doesn’t seem right.

I suppose iZotope would be GREAT as a fun gimmick on a digital-only release, but anybody dreaming of putting their music on an ACTUAL record would do well to run away screaming from this with haste.

Again, I think it would be amusing to tart up a portion of some digital track with iZotope, but that’s about as far as I think it would be useful–at least in MY music.

If you’re a Pro Tools user and are dying of curiosity, you can download the iZotope plugin at the product page and have a go.

Crosley CR49 Traveler Portable Turntable

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crosley-cr49-traveler-portable-turntable

I knew about Crosley turntables, but I never spotted anyone using them until I paid a visit to my friends in Hyperbubble. There, perched on the bathroom counter next to a pile of great old vinyl was a Crosley, clearly intended to be used for bathtub chillout time after a long day of recording and producing new music. 

Not this particular Crosley, mind you, but this Crosley CR49 Traveler is perfect for bath time anywhere you care to roam; hotels, guest houses, crashing at a fellow DJ’s house…anywhere you might want to bring the vinyl equivalent of a boom box. Aspiring rappers and sound system-ers, here’s a concept for you—take your turntabling on the busking circuit! This is uber-portable and only requires a power supply. The built-in speakers make this the ultimate retro accessory. Buy two of em and do the world’s most lo-tech portable DJ set. What’s that, you say? Crazy? Not if you’re playing small intimate spaces like a tiny art gallery or somebody’s front room. Hell, I’m tempted!

DJ Essentials Tools and Tricks of the Trade

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Becoming a DJ isn’t easy, but fortunately for newcomers there are a lot of books available that can help you learn exactly what it takes to be a professional DJ. You can learn everything from the art of remixing to buying the right gear thanks to the books on sale right this very second. I was VERY AMUSED to see what was on just such a list recently..apparently buying the right gear and spinning those tracks to please the crowds ain’t enough. I found a collection of books on DJ culture while doing a search on Amazon.com. What does Amazon reccomend for those seeking tomes on how to become a paid DJ professional? Behold:


the-moble-dj-handbook-get-paid-to-party

The DJ Sales and Marketing Handbook starts off the list. So far, so good, right? Learn how to set up and get paid to party! That’s what author Stacy Zemon wants you to do. Why the hell not? Now granted, being a club DJ is alot different than being a MOBILE DJ, but a lot of people find the party DJ route easier to get into and they transition to clubs later. Not a bad career path if you ask me…

remixing-how-to-guide

The Complete Guide To Remixing is probably a good bet, as long as you’re buying DJ how to books. After all, what good’s a DJ who can’t remix on the fly?

Then, there’s THIS little entry in the Amazon list of books, which surprised me on one hand, but on the other, I thought “Well damn, I guess I have some book ordering to do.” Apparently, the Amazon people understand DJ culture better than you might think:

how-to-grow-exceptional-cannabis

And yes, How To Grow Exceptional Cannabis is STILL FOR SALE. Hurry, now.

How Vinyl Records Are Made

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This picture, courtesy of a great article about how albums are physically made clears up one of the great mysteries of creating LPs, 12-inch singles and other records.

For YEARS I have always wondered how albums get those labels pressed on the album with absolutely no warping or other physical problems–even years after the pressing, the labels stay put in most cases. Now I know why.

My original theory was that it was some kind of super glue that held the record label in place, but it turns out that good pressing plants BAKE their labels before applying them to the record album. Baking the labels removes excess moisture that would cause warping or other problems. No water, no goofy labels.

Ingenious!