Why your studio need a UPS

Here at Project Studio Handbook, between us we've been running home studios for over 53 years and at no time have we ever felt the need of a UPS (Uninterrupted Power Supply). Until last week when over the course of three days we experienced five brown-outs. 

We all know pulling the plug on the computer is akin to hitting someone over the head with a baseball bat. And yet for the most part our computers and connected hard drives seem to survive the occasional interruption in the power supply. However when we rely on our systems for work and have critical data stored that may have taken weeks or years to create, we cannot be confident that disaster is not just around the corner. 

As you may know, a brown-out is a temporary interruption in the power supply that lasts for a fraction of a second but is enough to crash digital systems. Blackout is of course a longer power outage that may last minutes, hours or even days. 

Following a series of brown-outs we investigated every item in the studio to see if there wasn't an issue which could be fixed by removing and repairing a faulty device.

After several days of diagnosis we couldn't find anything wrong and concluded that the brown-outs were due to interruptions in the local power supply to the building. We therefore decided it was time to protect our DAW, NAS, router and connected hard disks with a UPS device.

Our new CyberPower UPS protects our Mac system, NAS, Router and online backup drives

Put simply, a UPS is a device that takes over the job of supplying power to devices if the mains power supply to the building cuts out. It comprises a large battery and several outlets to which you connect the devices you wish to protect. You plug the UPS into the mains power to keep the battery at maximum charge. 

You can also let your devices know they are attached to a UPS by connecting them with USB cables. When the UPS kicks in they can perform safe shut downs. Once connected with a USB cable, Windows, Mac OS X, and NAS drives can detect if they are connected to a UPS and provide control panel parameters to allow you to configure what they should do if the UPS kicks in. For example you might configure them to perform a controlled shutdown immediately or wait until the UPS battery is down to a specified percentage. 

When you choose a UPS you should ensure that the total wattage output it is capable of can accommodate the total wattage needs of all the devices you intend to connect to it. It is not necessary to have a UPS that can take over power supply for an extended period of time. A battery that only lasts 15 minutes will be sufficient to ensure your devices can shut down safely. 

You should consider the following when buying a UPS ...

Total wattage required
Size and strength of battery
Number and type of power outlet connectors
True sinewave output, which is required for some computer power supplies
USB connection and hub if you plan on collecting multiple devices
A good LCD display read out on the front which indicates load and battery charge status

The CyberPower CP1500EPFCLCD we purchased. Rated for 1500VA/900Watts, provides 10 minutes of back-up, more than enough to allow our systems to shut down safely

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Guitar re-amping

We all know that a great advantage of digital recording is the ability to keep our options open and delay making technical and artistic decisions until the last moment.

With unlimited tracks, and MIDI and software instruments running live we can leave it until the last moment before deciding what sounds, performances and effects will make it to the final mix.

With the advent of software like Melodyne and Logic's Flex time and pitch algorithms, we can even change the melody lines sung by singers or played by acoustic instruments.

One instrument, however, differs from all others. The tone of an electric guitar is primarily created with a combination of player technique, instrument and amplifier/cabinet. But what if we want the option of changing the tone after recording the performance? This requires recording the direct pickup output (a so called DI signal) from the guitar, and there are many channel strips and audio interfaces that provide a suitable DI input, and then later sending the recording through some amp simulation software plug-ins.

But many players rely on the responsiveness and vibe of the sound coming from their amplifier to create a great performance. You will be aware that valve guitar amplifiers respond to playing technique to give players an extra dimension.

This is easily solved by connecting the guitar to a DI box which copies the signal. One copy is converted to a mic level signal suitable for a mic pre-amp and which once converted to line level can then be sent to a DAW, whilst the other is passed to a Link or Thru output and hence back to the performers amplifier.

This video explains the process .. http://www.projectstudiohandbook.com/videos/playlists/audio-interconnection/signal-paths-from-guitar-to-DAW/signal-paths-from-guitar-to-DAW-video.html

Using a mic on the guitar speaker it's possible to simultaneously record both the sound from the amplifier and from the guitars pickup (the DI signal).

What, however, if we want to send the recorded line level signal from your DAW back to the amplifier, and then record the tone with a mic? This process is called re-amping and requires that the line level signal is converted back into a guitar pickup signal, which has a different level and impedance.

The solution is a simple re-amping box. These boxes simply convert line level signals to guitar level signals suitable for an amplifiers guitar input circutary. So now we can even delay deciding on the exact guitar tone until the mix.

It is not the policy of Project Studio Handbook to endorse any specific products but John Godsland's hand built interconnection products are so good and so inexpensive we can't resist. The Orchid Electronics Amp Interface box is a no-brainer.

We can of course also use a re-amping box to send any recorded or line level signal to a guitar amplifier, allowing us to process synths, acoustic instruments and vocals too. Suddenly a whole new area of sonic experimentation is available.

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