Okay, so in order to make good use of some Christmas gift money, spend a little money on my newly-formed business (tax deduction!), I upgraded my copy of Logic Pro to the newest version, X. I've been going through a lot of old material, getting a feel for the new interface, shortcut keys (seriously, what happened to the "ProTools" preset?!?), effects, tools, and all that jazz. Here's one thing I learned just today:

If you're going to bring anything from ProTools into Logic for overdubbing, editing, mixing - whatever - make sure you set up your Logic session with the correct tempo settings before you import an AAF from ProTools. It makes a difference. I had assumed that the AAF would only contain timing information, but perhaps, since I was using a Bars:Beats timeline in ProTools, that the timing information was in fact in Bars:Beats, which Logic took verbatim. That meant that importing a session from ProTools at 95 bpm did not line all of its regions up correctly in Logic, which was still set to the default 120 bpm. Once I cleared out the project "Main Window" (what used to be the Arrange Window in previous versions of Logic), set the tempo to 95 and re-imported, everything was hunky dory!

The above screenshot is from a session I just posted a temp mix of to SoundCloud, called "Soul X."

So far, my favorite things about Logic Pro X? I like the look and layout. I'm really digging the new Drummer tracks, which are working great for a guy who just likes to write tunes in his studio. I like to write songs that I imagine a real live drummer might play, and someday I just might get to have that. But, until then, this makes it sound less like straight up loops. I know a lot of people harp on the little pictures and bios of the "drummers" that are included, but here's my take:

Drummer supplies algorithmic drum tracks. You get to have control over lots of different parameters. There are different algorithms that form the basis of each drummer's style and sound. So why not give them names - like, people names? You're going to have to name them something, right? So why not give them a person's name? Sure, the pictures and bios are just a little bit cheesy, but in the end, what's the difference between choosing Lars or Gavin versus "Alternative Rock Natural A" or "Heavy Metal Club Drums 3"? It's a tool - if it does the job you need it to do, who cares what it's called.

Anyway, until later - carry on.