<<I'm trying to set up my Mac Pro in a basement 'bunker' for listening/
mixing. At the moment the sound just comes out of the Mac monitor
speakers.
I already got some recommendations for near field speakers from the
forum. Do I need any additional hardware to set this up for a quality
listening experience?>>
Ideally you'll want to add an audio interface, but for the moment you
can connect the audio output of the Mac to active monitors. It's not
very elegant, nor is it a critical listening scenario, but it will get
you sound into the speakers, provided you get powered speakers.
<< Do I need to invest in a top-of-the-notch audio card?>>
Even a middle of the road interface is going to give you very good
audio. In the Mac world there are many outboard FireWire or USB audio
interfaces, & very few actual soundcards which fit in the PCI slots.
Unlike those for PCs, the PCI audio cards that I'm aware of for Macs
are parts of much larger, much more expensive pro systems.
<<Is there a handy way to take advantage of the S/PDIF digital audio
output? >>
If the speakers you purchase have a SPDIF input you could do this,
however you will be stuck with always having to make volume
adjustments for listening level in software. I suspect you'll tire of
this quickly & want to have a physical volume knob within reach.
Alternatively with certain interfaces you could run the SPDIF out of
the Mac into a SPDIF input on the hardware, although you gain
absolutely nothing doing this over sending audio via the FireWire or
USB connection most interfaces will be utilizing anyway.
<<I have Adobe Soundbooth and Cubase SL but I have no idea if these
are suitable for editing wildlife sound. What SW do you use/recommend?>>
I use Digital Performer. I have no experience with Soundbooth or
Cubase, but basically all DAWs can do extensive editing processes,
some more intuitively than others.
<< A friend mentioned Pro Tools ('radio journalists standard')>>
ProTools is a standard in the recording industry. It comes with
specific proprietary hardware requirements which end up making even
the lite version an expensive alternative. Every serious DAW available
can do everything that ProTools can do, & with the same level of
quality.
<<For listening in a small basement room - would you recommend
acoustic foam?>>
Only if you have noticeable slapback echoes which are coloring the
overall sound of the room. If the room appears overly bright sounding,
perhaps if most of the boundaries are concrete, you may get just as
much an improvement in sound by laying down a thick carpet. Too much
absorption, though, can create an overly dead room, which is just as
problematic as an overly live room. Adjust in small increments.
<< Is that at all necessary? Would it enhance listening or is that
intended for making/concealing noise.>>
'Acoustic' foam absorbs mostly high frequencies. It will do nothing at
all for concealing noise, i.e. stopping incoming external noise.
Neither will it do anything whatsoever to stop sound you create in the
room from traveling into the rest of the house. Used indiscriminately
it can unbalance the audio spectrum, resulting in a preponderance of
low mid & bass response in a room. Used judiciously along with other
treatments it can tame some problems in rooms with excessive flutter
echo caused by bare walls. Generally the primary problems in smaller
listening rooms are in the lower frequencies, but if you hear multiple
repeated fast echoes when you clap your hands in the main listening
position in your room, you have problematic flutter echoes & a few
strategically placed pieces of foam can knock those down. Compressed
fiberglass panels (e.g. Owens-Corning 701, 703 & 705) do a better job
of this with a wider bandwidth extending into the mid range.
Additionally foam deteriorates over time (15 to 20 years in my
experience) into sticky gooey particles, while fiberglass maintains
structural integrity essentially indefinitely.
<<Anything else I ought to know?>>
Yes, but one small step at a time is probably better than
informational overload.
Scott Fraser
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