Digital Audio Myths - Listening on a PC

arcer wrote: Most modern rock music is recorded wholly in the digital domain. The guitar tones are modelled and plugged straight into a soundcard, the keyboard tones are modelled analogue synths, the drums are loops, the processing is all digital, the reverbs are convolution models. The vocals are pitch corrected digitally. Hardly anything recorded these days has not been slapped through half a dozen digital process to give it more 'life', 'warmth', 'bounce', 'depth'... whatever. And most of this is done inside the very PC or Mac that everyone is saying cannot reporoduce music accurately.

The "modern" bands i listen to uses non of these effects not even guitar modeling...the old stuff is still the best stuff

Fun to read all this stuff about extremely high end systrems blah blah blah blah....

I used to be a bit pure-blood about hi-fi - all concerned about valves, cabling, etc etc

lately however I have realised one important thing.

Most modern rock music is recorded wholly in the digital domain. The guitar tones are modelled and plugged straight into a soundcard, the keyboard tones are modelled analogue synths, the drums are loops, the processing is all digital, the reverbs are convolution models. The vocals are pitch corrected digitally. Hardly anything recorded these days has not been slapped through half a dozen digital process to give it more 'life', 'warmth', 'bounce', 'depth'... whatever. And most of this is done inside the very PC or Mac that everyone is saying cannot reporoduce music accurately.

Sure classical and jazz are still largely recorded using acoustic instruments across air with nothing in the way. Beyond that though, any rock music recorded in the last 10 years is a lost cause in terms of 'transparent' reproduction. There is nothing transparent about the music, it is all emulation. And to be honest I can't hear the difference.

I myself have a very old and very beloved Vox AC30, full of glorious warm tubes and 30 years of grime and grit from being lugged all over filthy bars and gig venues. The other day I was listening to some things a friend had recorded on PC using a cheap guitar and Native Instruments' new AC Box Combo from its amp simulation series. I couldn't honestly tell the difference. I certainly wouldn't be able to detect anything out of the ordinary in the context of a mix. And I am not the only one. I defy anyone to find me a rock guitar player who is only using analogue processing and a single amplifier turned up to 11. Modelling, emulation and simulation are not esoterica, they are now the standard tools of the musician's trade. I'm even beginning to see bands who have dispensed with amplification completely and have opted to use laptops, Guitar Rig and plug straight into the mixing desk. The same goes for keyboard players.

This is how modern music is made. At this very moment I'm listening to the new Eels album on my 1400 euro Dell PC fitted with an Audigy 2 ZS soundcard, hooked up to Alesis M1 Active monitors (my recording set-up) and it sounds just fine.

You can spend 10 grand on any system you want but if you're listening to modern rock music you might as well listen to it on an 800 euro pc with a soundblaster and a half decent set of speakers. It will reproduce the digital recording as well as anything in my book.

You should try this one, if you like Zappa-esque music. Recorded last year with a big orchestra. Superb recording quality.