Too Much Technology? NEVER!

Is there a such thing as too much technology for your studio? Really, do I have to even ask the question? Of course there isn’t. Having technology available at your fingertips just makes it that much easier to do and create projects exactly as you have imagined them. The real tragedy lies in not having enough technology to accomplish your goals.

Now, my studio is just a few components all mixed together, thus, not really a studio at all. However, I have just made two exciting additions to my setup… A 32″ monitor (using it at 720P via HDMI) and an HK 5.1 surround sound receiver! Overkill you say? Well, first let me explain why I added these components.

It really has to do with the fact that I moved all of my A/V equipment downstairs so I could dedicate the upstairs to living and the downstairs to more recreational affairs. Not only is the room perfect for surround sound and the LCD TV,

The Setup (Relevant Components):

- AMD Athlon 64 PC; 3 GB RAM; 500MB ATI GPU; Windows XP
- 19″ LCD 16×9 Monitor @ 1440×900 + 32″ LCD 16×9 Monitor @ 1280 x 720 (720P) (Extended display)
- Sony DVD-R
- Sony DV Camera
- PSR-3000 Keyboard
- Samson CO1U Studio Condensor Mic
- Yamaha UW10 Audio Interface (16bit)

Note: My system may not seem like the hottest thing on the market, but consider that it seems to take half the amount of RAM to run XP as it does to run Vista. Personally, I see no reason to upgrade right now.

Main Software I Currently Use:

- Finale 2009
- Sonar 8
- Adobe Design Premium CS4
- A bunch of free video and audio editing programs from NCH Software
- Gimp (for image editing)

That’s it really. That’s all the hardware and software I have to work with. Not too exciting, but it does the trick.

New Found Benefits:

- All of my recording and editing can be done in one location, as well as playback

- The audio sounds much better now through the HK receiver. I’m still pumping it through the Yamaha UW10 before it gets to the receiver for now. I could go 5.1 out of the on-board audio. Still need to get some near-field monitors speaker though.

- Everything is 2.5 times larger now.

Note: Keep in mind, the right 2/3 of the above screen shots appear approx 2.5 times larger than the images on the left 1/3. The screen shot eliminates this effect.

- I definitely do not have to strain to see anything
- I can play all my games in High Definition and the field of view is so large that I feel Like I am actually in the game.
- Netflix online videos play very clean and with surprisingly good resolution with no need to change my setup
- I can watch a movie and use the computer at the same time without using a laptop
- Icons are the size of my thumb

- My video frames per second (fps) have tripled! Using the DVI to HDMI cable has apparently lessened the load on my PC overall, presumably by requiring less effort in the conversion process. I watched my fps jump to an amazing 258 fps in some areas using the highest resolution and texture settings in CoD2 (way too much, but cool anyway). Most moderate game play areas hung around about 140 fps. Intense game play hovered between 55 and 90 fps. Needless to say, there was no lag or visible refresh rate. The most amazing thing is that these huge increases were gained by playing the game at a much better resolution… in HD (720p)!

Note: I can play it in 1080i, but lacking the progressive version of 1080, I like the way 720p looks.

– Half-Life 2 can be played at FULL resolution and perfect clarity
- CoD4 looks sharper than ever and almost all of the lag I was previously experiencing has ceased (didn’t check the fps).

Those are just some of the immediate benefits I could think of off the top of my head. There is a very interesting post from a professional game music composer (Breaking In as a Composer, Part II) that basically says you need a minimum of $14,000+ of software and equipment to even get a foothold in the gaming industry. I can’t remember if he mentioned needing a gigantic monitor anywhere, but it certainly can’t hurt. Anyway… As you can see, I am nowhere near that threshold, so I have a lot of catching up to do. Right now I’ll have to just be content to play the games and hope to win the lottery.

So, the moral of the story is…

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