Episode 29: DIY Home Studio Step-Up

Upgrading Your Home Studio: Interfaces, MIDI Controllers, and Essential Software

In this episode of the Face Your Ears podcast, hosts Justin Hochella and Rich Bozic provide updates on past guest Josh D'Elia and discuss tips for expanding a basic home studio setup. They cover key topics such as upgrading audio interfaces, incorporating MIDI controllers, and leveraging software like Loopback and macOS's AudioMIDI setup to enhance the recording experience. The episode includes practical advice for musicians looking to elevate their studio capabilities for more sophisticated recording projects.

00:00 Introduction and Welcome
00:19 Guest Update: Josh D'Elia and Sleek Teeth
01:32 Justin's Music Projects
02:32 Rich's Music Projects
04:07 DIY Studio Step Up
11:46 Upgrading Your Audio Interface
17:29 MIDI Controllers and Software Instruments
23:33 Advanced Software Solutions for Home Studios
29:35 Recap and Closing Remarks

Check out the 'Sleek Teeth' EP: https://open.spotify.com/artist/199CI72Zc2a4VQzAhV9nNS

Find them on FaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/sleekteeth/

AudioFuse 16 Rig: https://www.arturia.com/products/audio/audiofuse-16rig/overview

Akai MIDI Controller: https://www.amazon.com/Professional-Keyboard-Controller-Production-Software/dp/B0886ZPWC8/ref=sr_1_13?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.8dy_GQfCBBf5Qm-ub6PNpIZruT7cGlj23-BnXMlWDA8tkuckfqrG2VfcJtNpsNzudfOKzoUTiY1017euEJoEykWJa7wKyoI2q5FA-l0QPRqTXtRKS3B0ER8LwNaA3ZGRPHRkna9Rscfi7Ia_lNEfGPvk-vysNkYfL59hBDOV3g26cIw7wRri8qQB-yC3HBGFCTDvw60MLBye6vVioaSRbIVGobGCiLV13j-3gRJeBSGAfxduaL-8OCUl2ArsLqNUhwdXNZ00Ys8eUeiqooLd_qhg_n_uEKWLN2tcmKHFfhg.CEEAjIc8mn0Nw48550vDkHv1AaVzgPB8VjrlgdaKdc8&dib_tag=se&keywords=midi%2Bjoystick&qid=1732205832&sr=8-13&th=1

Loopback Audio Router: https://rogueamoeba.com/loopback/

For Production Services, Coaching and Lessons, visit:

www.rjbmusicproduction.com

For help prepping your songs/voice for the studio:

www.bozicvoicestudio.com

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Transcript

Justin 0:06

Hello everyone. And welcome to another episode of the face, your ears podcast. My name is Justin Hoshela co hosting with Bozic

Richard 0:17

hello. hello. How's it going?

Justin 0:19

Good, good I just wanted to share an update on Josh D'Elia, who was a guest on our podcast several months back. as part of his duo Sleek Keith that he is in. They've released their EP, self titled EP I should say, Sleek Teeth, which you can check out on all major streaming platforms, including Spotify, Apple Music. Et cetera, et cetera. Definitely check it out. It is fantastic. I absolutely love it. And they actually played a show at the Belasco popular venue in Los Angeles. And it was pretty incredible. They played with a really amazing lineup there. You can check them out on social media to get Look into what that show was like, looked like it was amazing. I wish I could have been there. It looked like a lot of fun, but it's really cool to see all of that stuff come to light. I know when Josh was on our podcast, he was talking about how a lot of that stuff was coming to fruition. it's really great to see it blossoming now. So definitely check out the new EP. I'll put a link to it in our show notes so that you can dive into it. And check it out. Other than that I am working on music a lot lately. It seems I've been. Producing music very quickly, which is really great. I'm really proud of that fact that I've been cranking out music quickly, in, the past I often just get bogged down. In the four bar eight bar loop that we often get bogged down in and just getting a little kernel of an idea and it doesn't go anywhere. but yeah, I've been producing some songs lately just for myself, just for fun, and that's been great. I've been working with a good friend of both of ours, John Hildreth. I know he works with you. With voice lessons, but, um, He and I are longtime friends and we've decided to do some Depeche Mode covers. And so we're working on those. It's been a very long project for us, but I've been working on that as well lately. So there's some updates from me that I just wanted to share. Rich, how about you? What's going on?

Richard 2:32

First of all, great news to hear about Josh. That's awesome. Uh, that's, it's great moving up in the world. Very good. And good to hear about your projects that are going on. Over here been teaching a lot. I'm prepping for a concert. A winter themed concert coming up in December with a bunch of my students. we're gonna be playing everything from holiday music to songs that are winter themed. Should be interesting. That's on December 7th. Also, I've been in the studio recording tracks trying to finish up this album with a band that I'm in called Beakfist with my buddy Alex. We're trying to wrap it up now. So eight song album slowly coming to fruition,

Justin 3:19

That's great. I know you guys have been working hard on that for a while and it's, you know, it's a process. There's a lot of elements. I know you've talked about the drums in the past. That's a lot. People don't necessarily realize how intricate drums are drums alone, right? Not to mention everything else going on in that project. So I'm glad to hear you're making progress there.

Richard 3:40

That project I feel is a big factor of why we're sitting here today. Cause when Alex and I started working together we decided, hey, instead of going to the studio, why don't we invest in our own equipment and try to record this album ourselves? be able to take our time and work at our own pace. And so that's what prompted me to finally pull the trigger on a home studio. and That's why we are sitting here today, my friend.

Justin 4:07

this episode, I think is the next step from an episode we recorded a while back and that episode was DIY studio set up today. We're talking about DIY studio step up. So a little bit of a shift. What happens when somebody has, a basic studio in place, but they want to go further for whatever reason, like rich described where it's you're doing bigger, more ambitious projects, you're doing more recording whatever the case may be. But over time, our studio needs evolve. And so in today's episode, we're going to talk about how you can grow your studio to meet those needs,

Richard 11:39

down to business here, so I have my basic studio set up. But now I'm noticing I think I need to upgrade my interface. What kind of things should I be looking at? What do I need to consider?

Justin 11:56

this is a question that really pops up, especially when you're trying to do more sophisticated recording or have more sophisticated recording applications or situations or however you want to word it. I know a lot of folks can start off with something like. A simple, two input, two output style interface, which gets the job done up to a certain point. And it really also depends on what your goals are, I think. So if your goals are just to. Record yourself one instrument at a time. As long as your interface, has some good tech specs, if you will. You should be good to go. For example, the Apollo twin, doesn't have a lot of inputs and outputs. However it definitely has exceptional quality. is a question, or a problem I should say, that comes into play when you're trying to record more instruments at once. And so Rich, I know this was a problem. That you had to solve for because you have a lot of different instruments that you are trying to record Simultaneously, so you've got a drum kit, right? You've got keyboards guitars like voice

Richard 13:08

Yes. So I record not only one on one with clients, but I also like to use the equipment to record band rehearsals when people come over and we're jamming.

Justin 13:17

Yeah, so I think that that's a consideration is you know, when you have more instruments that you need to record simultaneously. Obviously you need more inputs. And so that's something to look at. In addition to, as I was alluding to before, if your audio interface doesn't have the greatest capture quality, I would call it sampling frequency to be technical that's another feature to look at. Because you do want to have an interface that can record At 96 kilohertz is usually the standard to capture really pristine audio. In addition to that, take a closer look at the kind of actual hardware that interface is using, what kind of preamp technology and so forth that the interface inputs have that are going to color the sound for better or worse. So there's some, further detail to look at there. another thing to look at, especially as computers are evolving. Is the way it's connected. So for example, Apple just released a new Mac mini. That's actually pretty stellar as a music production machine. And it only has USB C. And USB C is becoming more and more of the standard. In fact, I would argue that it basically is the standard now going forward, at least with Apple computers. You're not going to find USB A on an Apple computer anymore. And so that's something to think about. Not that it's going to necessarily degrade the quality if you're using, Like an adapter or something like that. But, it's always nice just to be able to plug straight into USB C a quality of life thing. And speaking of connections another one that is pretty interesting that I know you, you and I have talked about rich is ADAT, which is basically digital audio. And it's essentially a way to. Stream audio over light. It's like a laser beam through a single cable. a lot of interfaces like the one I'm sitting here next to, I have an audio fuse, 16 rig, and it actually has multiple ADAT ports and what's the silhouette of that big deal. What's really interesting is that the company Arturia that makes this interface also makes essentially a breakout box. interface with eight inputs. And what you can do is plug eight analog devices into this box and then connect that little box to this audio. If you 16 rig over a single ADAC cable and voila, you've got an additional eight inputs, showing up within that audio. If you 16 rig device

Richard 15:57

some people might be thinking, and I thought this too. I have an interface. I have two inputs. I could just, keep plugging in the different devices and why do I need so many inputs? That just seems ridiculous. But I have a feeling that what you'll run into in that situation, as I did early on, is you can, you get tired of unplugging and plugging things back and and as your studio grows and you add more instruments to your studio and more mics, you don't want to have to keep on unplugging and plugging in, even if you're just by yourself, one musician recording by yourself.

Justin 16:33

Yeah. And that's kind of me, right? Rich, I've got a bazillion keyboards

Richard 16:37

It's the Star Trek enterprise over there, folks.

Justin 16:39

yeah, that's one of the main reasons I have an interface like the AudioFuse 16 rig that has 16 physical inputs is I can just plug basically most of my gear. It doesn't even accommodate all of it. But, most of it. Into that single interface. And so that's another thing is as our studios grow we maybe get more synthesizers or guitars or effects or whatever that's something that is worth considering is an interface with more inputs and more outputs because the outputs are interesting in that they can be used for like effects loops. In other words, we can send audio out of some of the outputs, like into an effects pedal. and route it back into the interface. So there's a lot of really cool creative applications that can be had when you have an interface that has more input and output.

Richard 17:29

I'm starting to get into more software instruments. aside from my keyboard, what else can I add to my studio to help out in that department?

Justin 17:39

software instruments they've come such a long ways, whether it's a synthesizer or a sample based instrument emulating a guitar or a choir or something like that. Like we talked about in our previous episode, check it out, episode 28. And with a MIDI controller there's a lot to be had there in terms of physical controls and Rich, you actually have a really cool device on your desktop that has some drum pads on it. That is a great tool to have if you're trying to lay down some kind of a drum beat in a project, it just makes, creating that much, much easier than plunking away on piano keys. It's just a little bit unnatural

Richard 18:19

Yes, I have the Akai MPK Mini. It's a tiny little keyboard about an, about two octaves on on the keyboard end. And then there are eight pads and then there are various dials and whatnot that you could program

Justin 18:35

Yeah, that's right. It also has knobs that are mappable. I guess it's the word to, Your software. So for example, those knobs you can map to maybe something like a really popular one on synthesizers cutoff, the filter cutoff frequency, which is going to make the sound lighter or darker. It's probably the simplest way to put it or anything, those are completely mappable. And what's great is that you're getting tactile interaction with the software and you can map multiple knobs so that you can use both hands, to twist all the different knobs and really get in there and have interaction, like physical interaction with that software instrument. And really the sky's the limit. It's up to you, what those knobs control. In your DAW. that's something to really think about as you get more comfortable and you start diving into these virtual instruments, having a MIDI controller that allows you to control the aspects of it is a really great thing to invest in and to take a look at.

Richard 19:40

When you're in Logic and you add one of the programmable synths as a software instrument in your project. The thing that's fun about having this kind of controller is you don't have to sit there and do all of those controls with your mouse. This Akai also has a little joystick on it as well that's also programmable, but

Justin 19:59

Oh,

Richard 19:59

it to move parameters around within a field and whatnot. definitely would recommend one of these devices.

Justin 20:07

Yeah. Maybe something to save for a different episode, but there is a way to, I know you can do this in Ableton Live, you can actually use a video game controller. To control your instrument. you could use like an Xbox or PlayStation controller to trigger notes or manipulate settings in the software synthesizer. So it's pretty cool. Yeah. And another thing not as technical whiz bang wizardry, but weighted keys are something I think worth mentioning in a MIDI controller. Especially if you're doing, more traditional music with piano or orchestral instruments. Having those weighted keys makes a difference. I know, Rich, your MODX 8 Has weighted keys on it, correct? Yeah, that just adds a different interaction again with the software and just the playing technique and so forth and it also reminds me another feature that you can find. MIDI controllers is something called aftertouch. And aftertouch basically is, pressing down on the keys and then, pushing further down. that's a control that, you can map to whatever you want in the software. So it's like press down the keys and maybe you press down a little bit harder and it causes, the reverb to swell or, the sound to get brighter or darker or whatever. that's a really cool control that's available in some more advanced MIDI controllers and synthesizers.

Richard 21:40

another thing to mention are drum pads. So I have a full electronic kit, but you can also get drum pads which you could use with sticks that are a lot smaller. Maybe some of them I've seen are maybe like, maybe two feet by wide by maybe one two by one, something like that with a bunch of small. round pads on them that you could program for different parts of the drum kit and you can actually, if you're a drummer, can actually play out some of those things. Might be easier than dragging little MIDI dots to the screen, to actually play it out yourself. Or using a loop, if you want something and you can play it out, that could be a way to do it.

Justin 22:24

what's cool is sky's the limit. You can sample, banging pots and pans and like throwing silverware around your kitchen and then bring those samples into a DAW and then play those with the device Rich is talking about. There's literally no end to what you can play with these drum pads. It could be anything from traditional music. drum kit sounds to literally any sound that you want to program in there. It just really is a great way to, I think, interact with the software in a more physical way. I think that's the theme here with MIDI controllers, drum pads, and so forth, is it gets us away from Sort of the restrictions of a, just a keyboard or a mouse, You know, And like you said, clicking and dragging in a, in a. Sequencer window like that's not as natural. And so I think it's really cool to give musicians that sort of freedom of physical expression with, plunking and pulling and hitting and twisting and all of that stuff and mapping that into the software. Definitely something to think about. There's all kinds of great stuff to check out.

Richard 23:32

Awesome. Let's now move into the software realm. What kind of things, can you recommend if we wanna take our studio to the next level

Justin 23:42

Yeah, I think this is a great topic, especially circling back to what we were talking about earlier with audio interfaces. Rich, you and I have studios where we actually have multiple people. Yeah. Audio interfaces. As I was alluding to before my audio, a few 16 rig is full, but I still have other devices. And so I actually have a secondary audio interface, a nice Scarlett 18. I eight gen three. It does a great job.

Richard 24:10

Yeah, listeners, if you wanna hop on our Facebook and Instagram, there are some pictures. When I went to Michigan and visited Justin and we set up his home studio after a renovation, there's some nice pictures of his studio up

Justin 24:22

Yeah. You can check it out and see it in all, it's glory. having multiple interfaces presents a bit of a problem because As you go into a DAW, like Logic Pro or Ableton Live, it only allows you to select one piece of hardware at a time. What if you have two interfaces like I do, and you want to balance between those two interfaces? Oh, I've got, Synthesizer A on Interface 1 and Synthesizer B on Interface 2. And It would be annoying to have to go in to the settings and constantly switch back and forth. Especially if I want to play that project back, and listen to those two synthesizers at the same time. So that presents a problem. And the solution is something like loopback audio, which is software by a company called Rogue Amoeba. They've been around the Mac audio game for a while, but what Loopback does is it allows you to create virtual audio devices. And what I mean by that is you can actually pair or group your hardware interfaces or hardware devices, really anything that your Mac sees as an audio device. So that your Mac sees it as one singular device. So for example, I have a quote virtual audio device that combines my Scarlett 18 I eight interface with my audio fuse 16 rig. And so when I use that virtual device in logic pro, it. It sees all of the different inputs of both of those interfaces, so I don't have to switch between them. So Loopback's a great solution for anybody using multiple interfaces and wants to use that in a singular DAW like Logic or Ableton Live.

Richard 26:14

actually wanted to add something I love loopback. It has multiple uses, not only in this way that you've talked about with regard to combining devices through software to use together, but also let's say you're working with a friend who's in a different state on a project and you want to be able to. have your audio play from your DAW onto the call, you can actually, in Loopback, there's a way to be able to route that audio so that your microphone that you're talking over with your friend on Skype, let's say, and the audio can all be together, and so your friend can hear what you're working on your project in real time, and you can work on stuff together. So I found that a cool application for Loopback.

Justin 27:04

Yeah. That's another great thing is that loopback doesn't just do hardware. Rich was saying, loopback also accounts for software. So that could be as simple as combining your microphone in your, Scarlett 18 IA interface with Apple music. And then you go into zoom. And you would then select whatever that virtual device is that combines your microphone and Apple music so that you can talk to the person. They can hear your voice, but then they can also hear you playing the music. From the Apple music application. And that's one simple example, but yeah, sky's the limit again. Like you can combine any grouping of audio hardware and any software on your Mac. It doesn't have to be music related. It could be your Chrome browser. It could be uh, a video editor, it could be anything. So yeah it's really incredible what you can do with loopback. Another option that is free and built in, at least to the Mac and I'm sure there's free solutions on windows. I just don't know what those are, but we can speak to the Mac. That's what we use here on face, your ears. And it's the AudioMIDI setup software which is software that allows you to set up your Studio in software. So this is what your Mac essentially sees for both audio and MIDI. for the audio side, what's really cool is you can create aggregate devices. And so similar to loopback in that it allows you to aggregate hardware, but it doesn't allow you to aggregate software. That's one of the advantages of using loopback, but if you have multiple audio interfaces, for example this is great. So you can combine multiple audio interfaces, out of the box with a Mac. Very easily so that your DAW of choice sees just one device, which is really handy. And if you are someone that like me that has multiple MIDI devices, audio midi setup is something to take a look at you, you have to in a sense because it allows you to name your devices. And so that way they show up correctly in your DAW of choice, whether it's, live or Cubase or Logic, whatever. so that's something else to become familiar with, as your studio evolves and you maybe get some synthesizers piling up in there. So some things to think about.

Richard 29:34

Cool. So just to recap, today's episode we talked about expanding upon a basic home studio. We started with the interface. Things that you could think about in a new interface are better preamps, more inputs and outputs. that's one thing that you can upgrade. The next is the ability to use MIDI controllers to run software instruments such as drum pads maybe adding a keyboard to your setup if you don't have one already, and other various MIDI controllers. And finally, we talked about software assistance such as loopback and using audio midi setup on a mac so thanks justin i think this is a nice little compilation of things that we can do to upgrade our home studio

Justin 30:27

Yeah, absolutely. So hopefully you're able to take something away from this, dear listener, in, evolving your studio. Feel free to reach out, let us know what you think, and if you have any other tips or suggestions or thoughts to consider when stepping up your studio. Home Studio. I want to thank everyone again for listening, and I also would love to mention that we have a new ad for this podcast, and so you might be used to hearing our typical outro message for Face Your Ears, but we thought we'd share our new ad to close this episode out. Thanks again, and we'll catch you in the next one. Bye for now.