actually, i don't think the kids have terrible taste or make garbage music. in fact, i think we're long overdue for a cultural overhaul, and there's a lot of reason to be optimistic that the kids can put gen y through the fucking blender and shoot it out into space.

i just called panic at the disco fans "kids". some of the more pathetic ones are probably even older than me; they're likely mostly within five years. but, i grew up right on the generational cusp, and consistently identified with older gen x types. so, i call them kids - even if they're only two years younger than i am - because that's honestly what it's always felt like, and still feels like. i didn't understand gen y in the 90s, and i don't understand it now. they seem to choose to be dipshits on purpose and somehow revel in it.

but, the actual kids? the ones born in the 90s? they seem to be far more creative, and have far better taste.

i've mostly ignored and skipped gen y. it's not because i was old - i wasn't old. first impressions by most people will assume i'm even of gen y. the truth is that their (my? ick.) music really did just honestly suck. and, there's not really any direction to move in but improvement.

the actual kids will do better. they can't not.

camera came in today.

it works, at least. maybe not so well. lol. well, there's lots of settings to play with....

i'll take it out tomorrow, to start.

it seems to be the plug, but i'm not done testing yet.

it got better when i set the exposure, but it seems to require a lot of the light for the video part. it's going to require a few experiments, clearly.

it's giving me about an hour on the 2 gb card. i'm going to want five or six hours, at least, so one of the things i'll do tomorrow is get a new card....

it's breakfast time.

but what i determined this morning is that the signal out of the machine is currently both stable and correct. there is a small issue with the high mids - this is not the same as the fading. but, curiously, it seems to correct itself when i reseat the headphone plug in the connector. that reduces this remaining minor issue to either:

a) the cord (resistance, somehow).
b) the plug (bad connection).
c) the headphone jack in the amp.

after breakfast, what i'll need to do is test it directly out of the mixer. if i'm getting similar issues, it's either the cord or the plug and i'll have to test with further plugs and/or just buy a whole set of things - a new cord, a new plug and a new brace. if i'm not, it's the jack in the amp, and while i probably can't fix that i can at least finish mixing what i'm doing through direct connection to the mixer.

i suspect it's the plug, from previous testing.

there's still a chance it could break again when i open cubase, but at least i'll have a bit more of a control if that does happen, and know it's software.