Written by:Rip Rowan
Tuesday, March 31, 1998 6:00 PM

One of the worst aspects of running a studio on a computer is the lack of a console.

I really miss being able to just reach out and grab a knob and turn. And I'm not alone. The recent drop in DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) prices means that lots of people are taking the home studio plunge. Musicians and engineers alike are investing a few thousand dollars in a home recording studio that runs entirely on their computers.

They are lured by the storage and editing power of the computer. With today's software the potential is incredible: limitless digital editing and effecting can be had for under a thousand dollars.

The announcement ofYamaha's DSP factory drives this point home. When this thing is released it will support up to 16 input channels and 32 output channels using two cards and four expansion units. This combination is up to 32-bits thru and will include 208 realtime EQ controllers, 52 dynamics controllers (compressor / limiters) and four digital reverberators. If the expected street price is what I've heard, this configuration, the Cadillac of PC hard disk recorders, can be yours for less than $4000.

But these people (like me) are soon going to be missing something important (like me). A console.

Lots of knobs, lights, and large, informative meters. Intuitive, tactile controls that communicate as well as control.

God I miss 'em.

I think my customers miss them too. Part of what you pay for when you go to a studio is to have the comfort of knowing that you are in fact surrounded by the largest, latest complement of brand-new vintage studio gear available. "I see you have the machine that goes 'bing!'"

The goal should always be to approximate the technological grandeur of the Starship Enterprise. The quality of a studio in fact can be told by the combined number of lights and knobs in the control room.

Not really. If that were true my studio would be the worst one on the planet. Well, maybe... but let's not go there.

A new market in fact has emerged to provide workstation-type controllers for ProTools and related systems. Some are proprietary, like the Ensoniq Paris console surface. Others are "open" like the Mackie control surface.

These tools serve to improve the gee-whiz factor of the computer-based recorder. But they have a long way to go. Primarily, they're too small. And they attempt to hide too much functionality behind too few controls. Give me KNOBS, lots of KNOBS!!

But I think the manufacturers are listening....

I wonder how long it will take before someone introduces a full-size, one-knob-per-function desk to complement a 16x32 Yamaha DSP Factory?

I wonder if they're listening....

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