My first hurdle was to get my computer back on the Internet.

 

I had taken it off nearly two years ago in order to protect my audio recording empire from the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, and got a second computer to use for everything but audio.

 

All the audio files thus had to be transferred to the second computer for uploading to clients, which I do with a jump drive - slightly tedious, but I got used to it quickly and it’s very fast. Nothing at all has gone wrong with the dedicated audio workstation in all of that time.

 

However, the Internet-connected computer has crashed a couple of times, so I was not very keen on exposing that workstation to the world again. Nevertheless, it had to be done if I was going to use Source Connect.

 

THE HOOKUP

 

The first thing I needed to buy was a new 25-foot ethernet cable. Once I connected that cable to my computer, I went to the Microsoft web site to get all the downloads my cloistered computer had missed out on over the past two years - a couple of screens’ worth.

 

It didn’t take very long for all the upgrades to be installed, though. And so far, nothing bad has happened to my machine. I will continue to use it only for audio - no email or other downloads.

 

Since I’m not in the habit of using headphones while recording, I needed to buy a pair so that I would be able to hear the client during recording sessions. Plus, I needed a headphone extension cable.

 

I got a pair of Sennheiser HD 280’s. I do use headphones for editing, plugging them into the computer’s other soundcard (a Soundblaster Audigy 2).

 

C-CONTROL SETUP

 

Since the Echo soundcard does not have a headphone jack, I bought a Samson C-Control, which plugs into the Echo card, and the headphones plug into the C-Control (which also has a talkback feature if I ever need to play engineer while somebody else is on the mic).

 

So now I’m monitoring playback via the Echo card instead of the Soundblaster.

 

I needed two patch cables for plugging the C-Control into the Echo card, a headphone splitter so I could plug two sets of headphones into the C-Control’s headphone jack, and a couple of ¼-inch stereo adapter plugs for the headphones (which have mini-plugs).

 

The one other item I needed was an iLok dongle, which is required for the Source Elements license.

 

Prior to setting up Source-Connect, I needed to check my upload speed to make sure the audio would be transferring from my system to my clients at a speed adequate for good sound quality.

 

This is something I actually didn’t check until the Source Elements Desktop was installed, and I was testing Source-Connect and discovered my audio was “jittery.”

 

I had to postpone further testing until I could check with my Internet service provider (Verizon) and learned that I needed to upgrade my service.

 

FASTER NOW

 

Verizon offered an upgrade to me for less than what I had been paying for my DSL! (Let’s not even go there.)

 

My download speed had been around 1,500 kilobits (kbs) per second, which was fine, but my upload speed was only around 125 kbs. It needs to be between 300 and 400 kbs for Source-Connect to work properly.

 

With the upgrade, my download speed is now closer to 3,000 kbs, and upload is over 700 kbs.

 

 

You can Google “check upload speed” and find a number of choices to check how fast your data are coming from - and going out to - the Internet.

 

I used speedtest several times to check on the status of my upgrade, and was pleased to discover that it was in place a full eight hours earlier than promised.

 

By the way, for anyone interested in calling their ISP to inquire about upgrading service - do not go anywhere near tech support. Go right to the billing department.

 

So, once my hardware was all in place, the next step was one of the smartest things I’ve ever done - I got an expert to help me with the rest.

 

George Whittam of ElDorado Recording Services in Los Angeles is an audio engineer and an authorized Source-Connect re-seller. George has helped many voice-over artists with audio workstation installations and maintenance, and with Source-Connect installations - including Don LaFontaine - so I decided to let him handle this.

 

At a time convenient for both of us, we talked on the telephone and George used LogMeIn to enable him to see my desktop and control my mouse.

 

I watched and took notes while he downloaded Source Elements Desktop and synchronized it with my iLok.

 

NEED APPLE’S QUICKTIME

 

The appearance of the SC control panel wasn’t right, and George got Source-Connect on the telephone quickly.

 

We learned that I needed to have Quicktime installed on my computer for Source-Elements Desktop to operate properly.

 

If you're using a Windows computer and have never used Quicktime, you would need to download the Quicktime software from Apple. Mac users are all set, as Quicktime comes pre-installed on a Mac.

 

That was soon accomplished and the SC installation was done. We tested it, which is when we discovered the problem with the upload speed, so the completion of the testing was postponed until after that was resolved.

 

WORKS GREAT!

 

Now all the pieces are in place and Source-Connect works great.

My goal was to have this project completed by the time I sent out my next newsletter, and I made it! Setting goals is an excellent thing to do.

 

Now it remains to be seen whether Source-Connect will change the landscape of my client base - I think that part is up to me. So if you will excuse me, I have some marketing to do …

 

 

Email: mcm@mcmvoices.com

Web: www.marymckitrick.com

Blog: www.marymckitrick.com/blog