Recording - March 2010 - 18

B Y M I K E M E T L AY In our November 2009 issue we provided an extensive review of the SONAR VStudio 700 System—a massively integrated hardware interface, control surface, and synth engine intended to allow Cakewalk’s SONAR DAW to operate in a fashion reminiscent of a multi-kilobuck digital console with all the trimmings. By optimizing its design to work closely with SONAR alone, Cakewalk produced a world-class workspace for its popular DAW, with no compromises or cut corners to allow for other software’s needs. Cakewalk’s new interface, the V-Studio 100, is a very different beast. After the first units were shipped (the photo at right shows an early unit), the word “SONAR” was removed from its name to emphasize the fact that unlike its larger sibling, it happily works with many different DAWs, on Macs and Windows PCs alike. It’s intended for small computer music rigs, be they portable laptop-based setups or studios for solo artists or small groups; it provides interfacing and control surface features in an affordable and compact package all at about a tenth the cost of a fully loaded V-Studio 700 system, putting it within reach of, well, just about everyone. A little bit of this, a little bit of that The V-Studio 100 (henceforth called the “VS-100” for short) is a compact tabletop box that connects to your computer via USB 2.0; it’s not bus-powered and comes with a line-lump power supply. Unlike other interfaces, which may have only a few controls accompanying their I/O and can be rackmounted out of the way, the VS-100 incorporates a small control surface for DAW interaction. There’s a digital mixer section, a basic programming section with four assignable encoders, and a backlit LCD that shows either parameter assignments/values or acts as a small level meter. Its audio interface can handle 8 channel inputs and 6 outputs at up to 24-bit/96 kHz quality, and it doubles as a digital mixer with DSP effects engines for dynamics control, eq, and reverb. Finally, it can operate in standalone mode as a stereo digital recorder, storing WAV files on SD cards. The VS-100 comes with SONAR VS, an optimized “lite” version of SONAR that supports direct communication with the interface and provides a very solid slate ofRECORDING MARCH 2010 Cakewalk V-Studio 100 An everything box for the recording songwriter DAW features for the entry-level recordist. If you have a different Windows DAW already or are working on a Mac, the VS100 will communicate with it quite happily, both as audio I/O and as a control surface (see below). I verified this with multiple applications on my test Mac and PC and had no issues at all. Also included in the box is the VS Production Pack, a free collection of quality plug-ins and virtual instruments from Cakewalk and Native Instruments covering the gamut of uses from vocal tracking to high-quality peak limiting to guitar processing. They’re all happily cross-platform, working with most Mac and Windows DAW software, and add quite a bit of value to the package. Interfacing and setup The block diagram of the VS-100, provided in the very nicely laid-out Hardware Manual that comes in the box with a brief but to-the-point Getting Started guide, allows the experienced reader to quickly come to grips with what the VS-100 does and how. (I think it’s about time for me to do another tutorial on reading block diagrams!) Here’s the skinny. The VS-100 offers eight channels of audio input: two mono channels with either balanced XLR or unbalanced 1/4" TS input for mic-level signals (one with a Hi-Z switch to accommodate a guitar or bass), two stereo pairs of unbalanced analog line inputs, one on 1/4" TS and the other on RCA, and a coaxial S/PDIF input pair on a single RCA jack. The only analog signal processing on the VS-100 is the pair of preamps on the first two channels, which have adjustable gain; all signals are immediately digitized before channel-strip processing. Right after the A/D converter, each analog channel has a compressor and eq in line, then a level control, then a send control for the built-in reverb. Then all inputs are mixed, including the S/PDIF input (which has its own level control). The unmixed input signals can be sent to your computer via USB either before or after the individual channels’ signal processing blocks. This choice is made from a system settings menu and is global for all six analog inputs. This lets you choose whether you want to print with the effects in the VS-100, or just use them for confidence or monitor mixing while you track unprocessed audio to your DAW. There are ten input channels to your computer in all: six analog, stereo S/PDIF, and two channels carrying the processed and mixed stereo signal at the Main Outputs.

Recording - March 2010

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recording - March 2010