LogicIsDoomed Posted July 12, 2012 Share Posted July 12, 2012 I'm ready to venture into using MainStage 2 for the first time in live performance. I've never used MS before, ever! So I'm hope those of you are very experienced can help me get going in the right direction. Below are some initial questions I have. 1) Do I need to have an audio interface to run MS2? 2) Do I need to have midi interface to run MS2 or can run midi out my controller via a USB cable? 3) I'm planning to purchase some 3rd party sample libraries to use with Logic 9.1.7 & MS2. Some of these libraries are massive in size (20GB - 200GB). So then, should my 3rd party libraries be housed on an external hard drive? Will Logic and MS2 be able to access these samples from an external hard drive in a live performance situation without crashing, choking and burning??? Or is it best to only use sample libraries that I can store on my internal macbook hard drive??? 4) Is it good or imperative to have 2 macbooks running in a live performance situation? If yes, please explain why running 2 macbooks with Logic and MS2 is better than using only 1 macbook in live performance? 5) What are the best MS2 tutorials I should watch on Youtube? Please post youtube link(s) you think are the best to help a novice learn MS2. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DolmensDude Posted July 13, 2012 Share Posted July 13, 2012 "Logic is Doomed" as username and you ask for help? Hmmm... gotta appreciate "nerve"... so here's my quick response to your questions. 1) Do I need to have an audio interface to run MS2? Yes, in theory you *could* take the audio out jack of your MacBookPro (am assuming you'll be using a MBP), but that's not a serious solution (and prone to ground loop buzzes). Answer is still "yes" then. 2) Do I need to have midi interface to run MS2 or can run midi out my controller via a USB cable? You've not said which controller(s) you have/use, but generally speaking, a controller that sends MIDI over USB cables are fine (there are some standards for this) but generally it works. If you have something that specifically needs MIDI over a MIDI cable, then you need a MIDI interface (there are MIDI <-> USB interface cables too) 3) I'm planning to purchase some 3rd party sample libraries to use with Logic 9.1.7 & MS2. Some of these libraries are massive in size (20GB - 200GB). So then, should my 3rd party libraries be housed on an external hard drive? Will Logic and MS2 be able to access these samples from an external hard drive in a live performance situation without crashing, choking and burning??? Or is it best to only use sample libraries that I can store on my internal macbook hard drive??? I strongly recommend sample libraries to be hosted on an external drive, over an interface that can handle high-speed data transfer. If I were to start today from scratch, I'd buy a MBP with an SSD for the system drive, remove the optical drive, replace that with an SSD for sample libraries. No moving parts, can take a bump or two out on the road, and fast (you want BIG and FAST). 4) Is it good or imperative to have 2 macbooks running in a live performance situation? If yes, please explain why running 2 macbooks with Logic and MS2 is better than using only 1 macbook in live performance? Hmmm... why do you think you need both Logic and MS2 at the same time? Were you planning on using Logic to augment what's being played live (samples, backing vocals, tracks from a studio recording???) Your question is dependent on what it is you're actually trying to do live. Once you know this, you have to decide what your so-called single points of failure might be, and then the impact of this falling away live, and then how best to backup/have a redundant "hot spare"... 5) What are the best MS2 tutorials I should watch on Youtube? Please post youtube link(s) you think are the best to help a novice learn MS2. Read the manual, seriously, then read it again, seriously... I've not seen a single useful MainStage video to date... Sorry, but for some users of MainStage, they have hundreds of "learning curve" hours in their "backpack", but depending on what you want to do, you could be up and running in 30 minutes, for others it's a longer "get to know each other" period... Either way, it's a great tool! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LogicIsDoomed Posted July 13, 2012 Author Share Posted July 13, 2012 Thanks Michael for your insightful replies! Very helpful! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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