h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

So, there I am, guitar at the ready, Cubase fired up, about to hit the 'Record' wotsit, when the guitar cable snags the Syncrosoft license key. The cover comes off the key and three of the four connecting pins have snapped. Argh! Cubase won't run without the licence key and it looks like getting a replacement is going to take a while.

There goes the weekend of recording!

Yes, it's my own fault for leaving the key plugged into an external USB port on the front panel: the replacement is going inside the case, out of the reach of evil guitar cables.

I'm not quite sure what exactly happened and how, but it sounds as if you managed to cause havoc with your recording equipment. Sorry to hear that.

The key is a copy protection thing and Cubase won't run without it. I just rang Turnkey (who usually have these things) but they're out of stock until the 20th.

Is that the only shop that sells those keys?

There could be some others but the distributors are shut until Monday so finding one could be tricky. I've googled but haven't found anything.

I think I might have to try a different bit of software and hope that I can move everything to Cubase when I get a new key, though these things regularly go pear shaped.

Can't you play around doing some silly stuff using 'Garageband'? I'm presuming you use a Mac?

Nah, I'm a PC person. I'll find something that'll work, even if it's the thing off the Computer Music coverdisc.

I'd use my cracked Ableton Live but I don't trust it!

>Ableton Live<


I remember once trying that. The most unuser friendly software in the world.

I urge to pick up a cheap 2nd hand Mac at some point. You can get them on ebay. Then you can use garage band, which is incredibly user friendly bit of fun. You can always save stuff as mp3s mp4s and play on itunes.
You could think of it as a kind of 'sketchbook' for playing with ideas.

Just chucking in my 2penneth for you to muse on.

The mac operating system is incredibly intuitive and easy to pick up compared with the monstrocity of windows IMO.

Just a thought.

I've been toying with the idea of getting a second computer for internet stuff while leaving this one for Cubase and other assorted creative stuff, but if I do it will be another PC. Nothing against Macs, when I've tried 'em I've loved 'em, but I'm happy with Windows XP, familiar with it and feel no real need to change.

Not that it's going to happen: Gordon Brown has ensured that any major purchases will entail getting a proper job for a capitalist venture rather than a useful one for the country.

Oops, was that a bit of a rant there?

Did I mention that as of Thursday I'm our office's union secretary?

:whistle:

Argh!

So are there no specially modified versions of cubase on t'web you could use just for this weekend until the new dongle arrives?

Probably but I'm reluctant to install anything Steinberg related for fear of mucking up what's already there.

I've just downloaded Frinika but it seems a tad limited, not to mention odd.

Gawd, Frinika's a duffer. Can't record audio direct to a track: it has to go through the built in sampler.

Remind me next time I pop over to bring you a copy of Sonar LE, I've at least two legal copys that have come free with bits of kit.... I've a copy of powertools (or whatever its called), that I don't use either, I guess* a LE version, and a dozen LE/shortened versions of the horrid abelton doobrys
Not that I'd know such things. but, I believe there might be a few ripped/cracked versions of sonar and its incarnations lurking on torrent sites Or, there is always Goldwave, which, for a time at least is free to run and allows multitracking I think, plus can run VSTs
Never heard about the physical licience key dongle thing, with sonar its just registered online and then that seems to be good enough to let the software know its legal Actually I might have to have a pop installing this protools/powertools recording software doobry at some point just to have a play with it

*Cough's*

Any one who fancys having a look at my new gituar taking shape can have a look as i have put up a picture on my photo space

(the link is on My Space)

RJR

PS would like to know what people thinkplease

Roy sorry to ask again but i've lost your Phone no, please could you mail me it again

Socket, sorry Roy, if it makes you feel any better: I did a bit of recording this afternoon in Sonar, (its soemthing for the Aviators doobry). Tw'as going well, Till it crashed and I lost it all (and then noticed I'd not turned on previously the autosave feature (now turned on)) And then I were so pished off by my not haveing saved it that I just lost all interest/concentration to re-record it

I ended up buying a new interface for the bundled Cubase LE (a Tascam US-144, like the old one but has four active inputs at once) and a Rode M3 microphone for recording acoustic guitar. The excessive purchasing was in no way influenced by the sweetness of a Turnkey salesman called James. Not at all.

I just realised I need another XLR - XLR mic cable. Nadgers.

But, do you have the dongle?