Monitoring While Multitracking--w/o Latency?, How do I monitor during playback w/ USB? Options

[marley]

Hey Rockers,

I know similar topics have been beaten to death, but I can't find the answer to this specific question. I've got a 1.25 Ghz iMac with 1 Gb RAM, and I just bought a used M-Audio Duo to start multitrack recording. I am so far only using Garage Band, though I plan to advance from there, and I have found that playing through the software results in an unacceptable amount of latency, even on the "low latency" GB setting. I figured out how to use the "Stand Alone Mode" button on the Duo to monitor through the headphones without latency. That's great, but I can't find a good way to listen to my existing tracks while monitoring the track I am laying down.

What I've been doing so far is wearing headphones to monitor the live track from the Duo, and having the rest of the tracks play through the computer's speaker system. This sort of works, but is less than ideal. Is there a better solution, or is this a limitation of USB? I'm sure some of you smart people know how to get around this dilemma. I'd love to hear your suggestions.

Marley

[hahaworld]

Hi Marley!

My experience has been that Garage Band is great as a sketchpad for putting down some basic ideas, but the best way to record live sounds is into Logic or Pro Tools (both of which I constantly use with great satisfaction). I will warn you, however, that the manuals that come with Logic AND Pro Tools are little more than huge novels of information randomly scattered around in the most confusing manner possible. They are both WONDERFUL programs, and actually fairly easy to use once you get set up, but getting set up and started is impossible to do by just reading the manuals alone. I think somewhere along the way, the guys who designed these programs got too big for their britches and assumed everyone automatically knows digital recording terminology. Personally, I'd like to have words with the people who have written these manuals, because I'm a step-by-step kind of guy...not a search-through-the-index-till-I-find-a-word-remotely-related-to-the-trouble-I'm-having-and-then-not-find-a-shred-of-intelligible-help-at-all kind of guy. I realize that the pros out there might read my post and say, "What a stupid little brainless neophyte," but I don't care. I sincerely believe there are others out there in the world like me who just once would like to read a manual that says something like, "Thanks for buying our software/hardware! STEP 1: Hook this cord that looks like this (picture here) into the slot that looks like this (picture here). STEP 2: Click on the menu that looks like this (picture here) and select this (picture here). STEP 3: Play something on your keyboard that you hooked up like this (picture here). STEP 4: Hit this button (picture here) and you'll hear your music!"

Anyway, find a friend who knows how to use these programs and let them walk you through it step by step. You'll soak it up in no time. Garage Band is fun for ideas, but buy ProTools and Logic for the real deal.

Sincerely,
hahaworld