Rosenstein recently sat down with the Rocket Yard/OWC to talk about what inspires him and why his hardware is so crucial in letting the creatives focus on being creative.
Rocket Yard: You’ve had quite a career. Tell us a bit about your background.
Glenn Rosenstein: I’ve been a recording engineer, producer, songwriter, and mixer for almost 40 years – if you’ve seen my website, you get a sense of some of the clients I’ve worked with. (editor’s note: U2, Madonna, Talking Heads, The Ramones, James Brown and Miles Davis to name a few.) I’m a partner in two Sony distributed entertainment companies, one called 600 Volt and one called Reviver Entertainment. On the Reviver side, we’ve had a few number ones with David Lee Murphy, Kenny Chesney and a duet called LoCash. On the 600 Volt side we’ve done very well with an artist named Whitney Woerz. We just released a lyric video for Whitney and its got over 44 million views on YouTube alone.
Glenn Rosenstein: I’ve been a recording engineer, producer, songwriter, and mixer for almost 40 years – if you’ve seen my website, you get a sense of some of the clients I’ve worked with. (editor’s note: U2, Madonna, Talking Heads, The Ramones, James Brown and Miles Davis to name a few.) I’m a partner in two Sony distributed entertainment companies, one called 600 Volt and one called Reviver Entertainment. On the Reviver side, we’ve had a few number ones with David Lee Murphy, Kenny Chesney and a duet called LoCash. On the 600 Volt side we’ve done very well with an artist named Whitney Woerz. We just released a lyric video for Whitney and its got over 44 million views on YouTube alone.
RY: What inspires you to keep working?
GR: I recognize the privilege of continuing to be relevant in a very competitive field. It’s amazing to me that, at a very young age, I found something I was passionate about – and I continue to find rewarding and inspiring. The challenges of making good records and creating relevant music are complex – the process keeps me highly engaged. There’s a brand new challenge every day. Even when working with the same artist for a number of years, their approach to music will evolve and shift. Their music is going to change. Their goals are going to be different. The process keeps you fresh – you have to approach this as something new each and every day.
GR: I recognize the privilege of continuing to be relevant in a very competitive field. It’s amazing to me that, at a very young age, I found something I was passionate about – and I continue to find rewarding and inspiring. The challenges of making good records and creating relevant music are complex – the process keeps me highly engaged. There’s a brand new challenge every day. Even when working with the same artist for a number of years, their approach to music will evolve and shift. Their music is going to change. Their goals are going to be different. The process keeps you fresh – you have to approach this as something new each and every day.
RY: When did you first start using OWC hardware?
GR: I’ve been an OWC customer for the past decade plus. And we insist that all of the deliverables are on OWC drives. So we’re long familiar with OWC’s product line and reputation for reliability.
GR: I’ve been an OWC customer for the past decade plus. And we insist that all of the deliverables are on OWC drives. So we’re long familiar with OWC’s product line and reputation for reliability.
RY: I’ve noticed you use the Mac Pro. Why do you work with Macs?
GR: I started out using Mac when most music creation software was Mac-only. While software has evolved to encompass a wide variety of hardware and computer options, I tend to stay inside the Mac domain. We do a lot of pop-oriented records with memory intensive plug-ins & VI’s. Our programming world is augmented by live players, but most of the records I’m doing these days start off inside a DAW, and we really covet reliable bandwidth. I’m using a couple of MacPro 12 core trashcans with 128GB of RAM and very speedy SSD drives – it does make for a far more pleasant work flow.
GR: I started out using Mac when most music creation software was Mac-only. While software has evolved to encompass a wide variety of hardware and computer options, I tend to stay inside the Mac domain. We do a lot of pop-oriented records with memory intensive plug-ins & VI’s. Our programming world is augmented by live players, but most of the records I’m doing these days start off inside a DAW, and we really covet reliable bandwidth. I’m using a couple of MacPro 12 core trashcans with 128GB of RAM and very speedy SSD drives – it does make for a far more pleasant work flow.RY: How crucial is it to max out your Mac Pro’s specs?
GR: We’ve got some pretty powerful systems – as maxed out as possible. The good news is that we have relatively few hiccups, if at all. It’s a lot of fun to know that the limitations are not hardware or memory imposed. Now it’s truly about – are you talented enough? Is the song great? Are performances up to par? OWC helps remove hardware barriers so we can simply focus on our creative skills. We take it for granted that it’s going to work – and it does.
GR: We’ve got some pretty powerful systems – as maxed out as possible. The good news is that we have relatively few hiccups, if at all. It’s a lot of fun to know that the limitations are not hardware or memory imposed. Now it’s truly about – are you talented enough? Is the song great? Are performances up to par? OWC helps remove hardware barriers so we can simply focus on our creative skills. We take it for granted that it’s going to work – and it does.
RY: You mentioned that you use OWC drives to shuttle crucial data. Tell me about that aspect of your workflow.
GR: We’re always sharing files. Having high-bandwidth, super fast storage [of the OWC Envoy Pro EX and Envoy Pro mini] is great for collaborative efforts. It’s making our lives easier – it gets out of the way of what we’re doing creatively. You take it for granted, you presume it’s going to work, and you know that it’s going to give you reliable results day in, day out, under extreme duress and under intensive use.
GR: We’re always sharing files. Having high-bandwidth, super fast storage [of the OWC Envoy Pro EX and Envoy Pro mini] is great for collaborative efforts. It’s making our lives easier – it gets out of the way of what we’re doing creatively. You take it for granted, you presume it’s going to work, and you know that it’s going to give you reliable results day in, day out, under extreme duress and under intensive use.RY: How important is the speed of the drives for your day-to-day?
GR: Everything we create has a visual component to it. So, while the bandwidth requirements of audio are not quite as demanding as with video – the reality is music production has transitioned completely into the visual world. If the music is going to appear on social media, there’s got to be a visual component to it. Even if it’s static visual content. So, having larger and larger amounts of storage that is reliable, transparent and extremely high-speed makes our lives that much easier.
GR: Everything we create has a visual component to it. So, while the bandwidth requirements of audio are not quite as demanding as with video – the reality is music production has transitioned completely into the visual world. If the music is going to appear on social media, there’s got to be a visual component to it. Even if it’s static visual content. So, having larger and larger amounts of storage that is reliable, transparent and extremely high-speed makes our lives that much easier.
RY: What role does the Thunderbolt 3 Dock play in your workflow?
GR: When utilizing my 2018 MacBook Pro, I still have to interface with hard drives that have FireWire 800. We have a lot of archival OWC drives with FireWire 800 which we’ll revisit occasionally. We’d be stuck without the OWC Thunderbolt 3 Dock. It gives older product more usability. It’s a little bit more lifeblood to outdated formats. The audio world works on a different financial scale – people are not tossing their hard drives and upgrading to SSDs. The ability to remain compatible with all drive connectivity formats is extremely convenient.
GR: When utilizing my 2018 MacBook Pro, I still have to interface with hard drives that have FireWire 800. We have a lot of archival OWC drives with FireWire 800 which we’ll revisit occasionally. We’d be stuck without the OWC Thunderbolt 3 Dock. It gives older product more usability. It’s a little bit more lifeblood to outdated formats. The audio world works on a different financial scale – people are not tossing their hard drives and upgrading to SSDs. The ability to remain compatible with all drive connectivity formats is extremely convenient.RY: What’s your preference for larger storage arrays?
GR: The OWC ThunderBay 4. Its super speedy, super portable. I can take one of my ThunderBays from session to session, hook it up and I’m good to go.
GR: The OWC ThunderBay 4. Its super speedy, super portable. I can take one of my ThunderBays from session to session, hook it up and I’m good to go.
RY: I saw that you’re currently using the Helios as well.GR: They house my UAD2 cards. The OWC Helios is a transparent building block that allows me to access and utilize all of my UAD plugins from rig to rig. It gives us a lot of flexibility and a lot of options.
RY: What’s made OWC gear indispensable for you all these years?
GR: Reliability and speed. OWC is constantly updating and creating new product offerings that help creative individuals realize their full potential.
GR: Reliability and speed. OWC is constantly updating and creating new product offerings that help creative individuals realize their full potential.
Find out more about Glenn Rosenstein at glennr.com.
