RTFM !

PaulBrewer

Do the Brothers read Manuals ?

Do you ever actually sit down and go through stuff section by section with your DAW (or plugin or whaever) in front of you ?

All you need to know IS there .

If you don't why not ?

GTE

For me the things I use are reasonably intuitive to operate so the most of the basic bases are covered by just working though the program somewhat.

Having said that Im reading bits and pieces of manuals more and more since I bought a Behringer MX3242 console and wanted to know all its configuration options. Good read

ludwit

Yes.

Did it for Cubase and it was hard work as I didn't know why you would do half the things I was reading about.

Quiggers

I'll only reach for the manual if i cant get it to work or if i need a midi implementation chart.

I'd never treat them as bed time reading

Paolo_M

Yeah, not long finished the Reaper User Guide.
Went through each section with All Through The Night open in Reaper in front of me, was also working the examples on some other projects too.
Pretty much learnt all I need to know, technically speaking, in about three weeks.
Did ProTools 101 in a similar fashion not long ago.

Now I can just focus on learning the skills of tracking, production and mixing without the hassle of learning the tools too.

Rockshamrover

PaulBrewer wrote: »

Do the Brothers read Manuals ?

Do you ever actually sit down and go through stuff section by section with your DAW (or plugin or whaever) in front of you ?

All you need to know IS there .

If you don't why not ?

I did first time around but it didn't make sense then as I need to be doing to learn.

As my knowledge has grown, it is much easier now to go back and RTFM to fill in the gaps.

Big problem though is the manuals can't and don't cover every scenario, so the info you need isn't necessarily there to begin with.

woodsdenis

Or you can JFGI

Rockshamrover

woodsdenis wrote: »

Or you can JFGI

ha ha:D

trackmixstudio

ORTF:D

OR

STFU

PaulBrewer

WGAF,A?

Aridstarling

Did with Cubase 5. Also an Audient ASP 8024. Both well worth the time spent.

PaulBrewer

Rock makes a good point -

If you're unfamiliar with the concepts you're in a bit of soapy bubble ok - however if you do have a grasp it will be time well spent.

I find if I've read a manual and not taken everything in one go that I will have absorbed enough to trigger a slight memory to check something along the way - once you've done that it's usually in the memory bank for good ...

jtsuited

I am ashamed to say that I very rarely even open manuals to anything. Apart from stuff like Max or Csound.
Normal DAW's (protools, logic, cubase, ableton, etc) and plugins etc are fairly idiot proof.

Neurojazz

Front2Back , and now usually hit google also for other peoples takes on issues

When i hear friends (strange i know) struggling, it's usually TFM situations.

trackmixstudio

I always dive in and reach for the manual if I start to drown.
Always done it this way.

madtheory

Always. Even the one for my new car.

MilanPan!c

I only read the bit about the new stuff, version to version, for my DAW. Other stuff, not unless I have an issue.

Speaking of manuals, back when I worked for Cakewalk, they only half gave a **** about their manual, as the third-party ones were so good.. they saw investing in a manual as kinda redundant... in fact they let an outside writer beta test stuff and then endorsed his book (Cakewalk Power FWIW).

A win-win.

After seeing that I usually go to outside resources FIRST, if its a technique thing, and only to manuals if something ain't working.

SeanHurley

I generally read manuals online before buying a piece of kit. It is a great way to see if the product does what you need it to do. If I buy (or indeed get to use in a studio) I will read again the bits I feel I need to know to do what I need to do.

I think manual reading is most relevant for software and digital products. Analog outboard gear (e.g. compressors and eqs) is generally intuitive and stick to a "standard" design i.e. EQs have frequency and gain controls, compressors have threshold, ratio, attack and release.

JonathanAnon

For Cubase, I learned it by messing around with it.. Eventually bought two books to find out the finer points..

For Linux Multimedia Studio, saw a quick video on youtube and just learned the rest myself..

For Reaper, tried reading the manual, then videos, then youtube.... still like pandora's box..

PMI

Due to age, most stuff I get I know what it does and will revert to manual if I want to progress or if I get stuck, ie: Logic 3 to 9 I starting looking at manual again around 8 for new shizzle

henessjon

i hate the fm

when i learn to read a book maybe

attention span problem due to aging dementia

Neurojazz

SeanHurley wrote: »

I generally read manuals online before buying a piece of kit. It is a great way to see if the product does what you need it to do. If I buy (or indeed get to use in a studio) I will read again the bits I feel I need to know to do what I need to do.

I think manual reading is most relevant for software and digital products. Analog outboard gear (e.g. compressors and eqs) is generally intuitive and stick to a "standard" design i.e. EQs have frequency and gain controls, compressors have threshold, ratio, attack and release.

I like that - i'd always google 'name of crap i'm going to buy' +problems or +errors

Wish i'd done that for the waves stuff!

PaulBrewer

That makes sense ok.

I'd usually muck in with the demo and suck it and see - however that really is s more sensible plan ...

krd

MilanPan!c wrote: »

I only read the bit about the new stuff, version to version, for my DAW. Other stuff, not unless I have an issue.

Speaking of manuals, back when I worked for Cakewalk, they only half gave a **** about their manual, as the third-party ones were so good.. they saw investing in a manual as kinda redundant... in fact they let an outside writer beta test stuff and then endorsed his book (Cakewalk Power FWIW).

A win-win.

After seeing that I usually go to outside resources FIRST, if its a technique thing, and only to manuals if something ain't working.

I guy I knew who bought his first pro-tools in the early 90s. At that time the systems were so expensive - if you wanted Pro-tools, would send someone to sit with you for a few weeks. Same with all pro gear - you paid your money - and more likely than not you were a pro studio who could call their tech support until you got what you needed. Or they'd send someone.

krd

My father - who was a flute player and used to play his flute in orchestras and stuff.

People would come along to him after buying incredibly expensive flutes (they can be as expensive as buying a house - or in post boom Ireland several houses) - for him to prove that flutes were "broken" - so people could get their money back. Without fail, my father would find the flutes to be perfect - and the people, who had lots of money enough to buy the flutes.... to be broken.

My father would play something like Mozart's Magic Flute and watch the dicks fall hypnotised to it.

Just because you pay a hundred grand for a diggerido - doesn't mean when you blow into it you're going to become James Galway.

Actually, I have it on good advice - that when Paul Brewer was working in Music Maker, he used to sit down at keyboards, hit the demo button, and say "look it plays itself" while he pretended to play the demo, by randomly hitting the keys on the piana. I seen him do it. He'd even go "look - by hitting the rhythm button, I can may Chopin go disco". Disco Chopin - with a Boney M medley ...Was usually how he'd close a sale. He'd close the sale by going from Ra ra Rasputin to Brown girl - it was worth seeing - He was a killer musical instrument salesman - they'd usually say "You had me at the Rivers of Babylon"

PaulBrewer

krd wrote: »

Actually, I have it on good advice - that when Paul Brewer was working in Music Maker, he used to sit down at keyboards,

I didn't have time to sit , Gawd Dammit !

krd

PaulBrewer wrote: »

I didn't have time to sit , Gawd Dammit !

With my own eyes - With my own eyes I seen it.

Brown girl in the ring, tra la la la - rah rah Rasputin, lover of the Russian t....


Paul, you can't work in music shops as long as you have without growing a Demo button.

Your ABBA medley is to die for. Voulez vous, a-ha...

dav nagle

When I got Logic which came with a MASSIVE instruction manual I did read it every night in bed just to get an over view of what it can do, so as Lord PB mentioned if a scenario arises you may just revert to that passage in the manual for the answer. You tube is great too!