Recording on your Computer

[cs274404]

Hey guys I am hoping to do some recording this summer using my laptop. What types of programs/software/downloads etc. have you guys had success usnig? Please let me know. Thanks.

[robmcgrail]

Hey. i use adobe audition 2.0 its a brilliant peice of software for audio recording and editing. Youll probly need a decent kinda sound card aswell. i bought an external edirol fa-66. but theres plenty out there with different features to meet what you need.

Best thing to remember is start on the outside and work in. By that i mean you need good sources and inputs on the outside, e.g. mics, your guitar itself and all that if you ever want to get a decent quality. no ammount of editing on a program can make up foir a rubbish recoring in the first instance.

But yeah adobe has been good for me. And apelton live 6 is also handy, especially for midi.

[daveydave]

I agree with Rob, Audition is a nice package to work with. However, there are some others & I won't assume anything about how much money you have to buy. Let me throw some software tools out there for you to think about.

1.) Audacity - a pretty good audio editor and recorder -free
2.) Sound Forge, my personal favorite
3.) Har-Bal - www.har-bal.com - too interesting to write about in 1 or 2 sentences.
4.) Acid Pro - great if you are looking to be mixing multiple tracks loops etc...

What exactly are you going to be recording? Are we talking home recording studio or portable concert recording?

dave

[Tommy]

Originally Posted by cs274404

Hey guys I am hoping to do some recording this summer using my laptop. What types of programs/software/downloads etc. have you guys had success usnig? Please let me know. Thanks.

The best thing to do is when you get the idea for the track in your head you flip it over the cross fader straight through the darth vader into the 1337 port and then using a program like paint or MSWord bring it back down at probs a rate of between 4 and 4.0192 and then flip reverse it straight through calculator then compress it into a mega mix. Thats what I usually do anyways.

Thom

PS. If you have MGS2 on disk if you use that and codec up Naomi it usually knocks at least 3-4 mins off the lay back master file

[cs274404]

Originally Posted by daveydave

I agree with Rob, Audition is a nice package to work with. However, there are some others & I won't assume anything about how much money you have to buy. Let me throw some software tools out there for you to think about.

1.) Audacity - a pretty good audio editor and recorder -free
2.) Sound Forge, my personal favorite
3.) Har-Bal - www.har-bal.com - too interesting to write about in 1 or 2 sentences.
4.) Acid Pro - great if you are looking to be mixing multiple tracks loops etc...

What exactly are you going to be recording? Are we talking home recording studio or portable concert recording?

dave

I will be recording in my house with an acoustic guitar and an electric guitar and small amp. Maybe some bongos too. I just want some program that will pick up my voice and the guitar more than anything. Thanks for all your help everyone.

[cs274404]

Any reccomendations on a mic?

[robmcgrail]

whats your budget?

I use a studio projects b3 for my vocals. but unless your going to invest in mixers and a decent sound card it wont really be any use. condenser mics are all round better, but you need phantom power to run them, which youll get witha mixer, or should do.

Dynamic mics have a lesser frequency responce so wont pick up as much "detail" but are sutible for home recording if your not looking for amazing results. The shure sm 58 for vocals and sm57 for guitar micing are widly reccomended.

If youve got the money, get the condensers though. look around at different types. i record acoustic guitar using 2 pencil mics, but micing up a amp youll want a different one.

Ask around see whats reccomened by a few different people before you buy

[Calum]

For programs, you can't go far wrong with cubase...

[cs274404]

Originally Posted by robmcgrail

whats your budget?

I use a studio projects b3 for my vocals. but unless your going to invest in mixers and a decent sound card it wont really be any use. condenser mics are all round better, but you need phantom power to run them, which youll get witha mixer, or should do.

Dynamic mics have a lesser frequency responce so wont pick up as much "detail" but are sutible for home recording if your not looking for amazing results. The shure sm 58 for vocals and sm57 for guitar micing are widly reccomended.

If youve got the money, get the condensers though. look around at different types. i record acoustic guitar using 2 pencil mics, but micing up a amp youll want a different one.

Ask around see whats reccomened by a few different people before you buy

I want to keep it under 100$ for the whole system (mics and condensers and all)

[Closing_Doors]

Well in that case I hear you can download software illegally on the internet these days

[robmcgrail]

oook. well your gonna have a little roblem. in thats case. either hook your guitar stright into you pc using on of these into your mic slot. Your not gonna get great results however. And as for your mic, if your recordign seperatly you could always just i dunno. use a pc mic and put it in the pc mic input also i guess...

Hmmm. let me look around see what i can find...

This interface is usb. allows you to connect 2 mics, with either jack input or XLR input and then it will send the signal to your computer program to record on. if your not using midi, i highly reccomend adobe audition. It has very powerful editing tools on it.

Ok so thats pretty much your buget gone i think? search around for cheaper options, theres plently of usb interfaces avalible.

Ok microphones. If your recording vocals and guitar seperate. which i assume you will be, then ill try find a mic that should suit both applications. (your micing up your amp right?)


Microphone such as this one would probly be sufficiant on a low budget. Its a condenser, so youll need pahntom power

NOTE: the usb interface ive shown you does not have phantom power, if your going to buy a condenser mic, then you need an interface/micxer with phantom power.

Your other option is dynamic mics, which sure arnt as good as condensers. but still can do a darm good job.

[Tommy]

Phantom Power Interface
Behringer B-1
Some cracked software

May be a little over a hundred but its worth it.

[Bumpman]

Originally Posted by Tommy

The best thing to do is when you get the idea for the track in your head you flip it over the cross fader straight through the darth vader into the 1337 port and then using a program like paint or MSWord bring it back down at probs a rate of between 4 and 4.0192 and then flip reverse it straight through calculator then compress it into a mega mix. Thats what I usually do anyways.

Thom

PS. If you have MGS2 on disk if you use that and codec up Naomi it usually knocks at least 3-4 mins off the lay back master file

Best thing I've read today.

Although I'm a sucker for 1337 jokes.

[cs274404]

Okay so maybe $100 was not a realistic number for anything quality. I am new to this stuff so I had no idea. The mics you guys mentioned are both good ones it looks like so I will probably get one of those. I have researched this phantom power and it seems to be a power source that amplifies sound and minimizes unwanted sound? is that anywhere close to accurate. I also downloaded Audacity today. What do you guys think of that? Will that be sufficient or not? I really appreciate all your help. I would be lost without someones help on this. I am learning slowly though so please give me your opinions on this also. Thanks again guys.

[Tommy]

Originally Posted by Bumpman

Best thing I've read today.

Although I'm a sucker for 1337 jokes.

Im glad someone appreciated it

[Tommy]

Originally Posted by cs274404

Okay so maybe $100 was not a realistic number for anything quality. I am new to this stuff so I had no idea. The mics you guys mentioned are both good ones it looks like so I will probably get one of those. I have researched this phantom power and it seems to be a power source that amplifies sound and minimizes unwanted sound? is that anywhere close to accurate. I also downloaded Audacity today. What do you guys think of that? Will that be sufficient or not? I really appreciate all your help. I would be lost without someones help on this. I am learning slowly though so please give me your opinions on this also. Thanks again guys.

Err all you need to know about Phantom Power is that you basically need it to power Condenser microphones. The difference in quality you will get from using a Condenser Mic compared to a Dynamic is huge and well worth the added expense.

I use a Tascam 2488 physical interface myself so im no expert on software apps but ive only heard good things about Audicity, but at the end of the day if your only recording guitar voice and a bit of bongos then you dont really have to worry about the program you use at much as you wont be pushing the frontiers of musical creativity. Basically you need to make sure you find anything that has a interface your comfortable with.

Thom

[Bumpman]

Honestly; $100 really won't get you very far at all. If you've budgeted anything less then $750 for a working computer setup then I can guarantee you that you will be disappointed. The reasons are too many to list, but to name a few; standard sound-cards produce a poor quality recorded sound, and it's not the friendly Velvet Underground/Elliott Smith kind of poor quality, it's the bad kind; think mobile phone ringtones. Software can be obtained illegally, but the very best developers make sure that you'll end up getting caught when they slide in an automatically downloaded update. If you want usable software you'll be made to pay eventually, one way or the other. Also you'll need a respectable amount of RAM, a high RPM hard-disk and obviously you'll need a firewire input on your laptop for the XLR and Quarter-Inch inputs you'll need to buy. If you were breaking the bank I'd tell you to buy a Raptor hard-drive, or even to replace your hard-drive with an SSD.

Once you look at the price of any of the things you need to make a laptop recording setup work like it's supposed to, things will start to seem hopeless. It's not an illusion... they are. My advice would be that unless you're really looking to head into the mid-to-high quality pricing scale. Stay away from computers entirely. The best thing you could do, on a budget, is buy a standalone system that records to either tape or hard-drive. Both of those formats can be easily converted to CD, and edited on PC. Buying second-hand will shave a significant amount off the price and allow you to buy what is essentially a better setup. Don't disregard tape as an option if you really can't afford a hard-drive setup, because it does sound good. You'll also need to check the back of the case, as Hideo has cleverly hidden Meryl's frequency (140.15) there. Without this vital information you'll never find the Armstech President Kenneth Baker or DARPA Chief Donald Anderson.

[daveydave]

I'll second the Shure 57's for mics. Good for just about anything, it's the mic that every band has a few of in case their expensive mic of choice goes down. You can use it for vocals, guitar, drums, it's pretty clean. I'd be willing to bet that just about every show that you've ever been to there have been some 57's on stage.

dave

[robmcgrail]

on your question about audacity. if your jst simply loooking to put somthing on your computer then its good enough. if you want to edit that file, add effects, reduce unwanted noise do some nice eqing, compression/dynamics proocessing, then you definatly want somehting more advanbced, e.g. adobe auditioon as i already mentiond.

Your whole set up will depend on what your looking to do. if you just wanna get your ideas from your head onto an mp3 ttrack just to store. all you honestly need is a pc mic. If your aiming a bit more serious, into maybe creating a CD or a few well recorded traks, you have to spend money. theres plenty of great home recording websites on the net. heres a few:

homerecording.com/

homerecording.about.com/

insidehomerecording.com -this one has a few podcasxts on that listening tpo can becoem usfull.

Read though some of the things they say in there. best to get your head round a bit of theory and majke sure you buiy what you need.

[mark.]

take a look at KRISTAL Audio Engine too - 'tis completely free and decent enough for multi-track recording, has a few effects you can add, nothing a decent amp won't have mind.
My advice is try using Audacity or KRISTAL see how decent it is, and whether or not you want anything more, then if you want better quality recording you can take a look at the programs for sale.

I use KRISTAL myself, 'tis enough just to get the song clear in my head and a reasonable quality recording (pretty sweet considering my mic is just a standard pc mic) - gives promoters the general idea as well if you're looking into gigging...

[Closing_Doors]

I'll second that Kristal recommendation. Considering it's free it's pretty damn good.

[cs274404]

When you guys say "standard PC mic" do you mean just a little stand up mic that might come with your comp?

[BenjaminCostello]

I highly recommend this mic for your price point - it goes directly into the computer via USB eliminating the need for a mic pre, or a mixer / interface that has phantom power.

http://www.samsontech.com/products/p...fm?prodID=1810

B

[Spencer]

What is the best way of connecting your mic and guitar mics into your pc? Via a mixer? Your gonna wanna record everything dry anyway but what do you use to get best sound quality into your PC?

[BenjaminCostello]

Your best bet is to get a simple usb or firewire interface to your computer (if you intend to record more than one channel at once). Sonically, you're going to get the best sound if you record each part separately so the sound is isolated, makes editing easier too. But, I always get a better performance when I do guitar and vocals together.

You might look at something like this:
http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_u...kUSB-main.html

[.em.]

Originally Posted by Bumpman

Best thing I've read today.

Although I'm a sucker for 1337 jokes.

I second that.

"....If you have MGS2 on disk if you use that and codec up Naomi it..."

l0l. is that a metal gear solid reference i see? (love those games)

"You'll also need to check the back of the case, as Hideo has cleverly hidden Meryl's frequency (140.15) there. Without this vital information you'll never find the Armstech President Kenneth Baker or DARPA Chief Donald Anderson."

lol again! I went to check the back of my game cases, but you are probably talking about MGS1, a copy of which I do not own (but i have played it).

I'm just looking for a mic, for vocals only. (but still on a pc) I'm looking to spend less than $50. any suggestions? It's just for practicing, nothing serious.

[cs274404]

Dorks

[maccas81]

if its recording software youre after it has to be nuendo...not cheap mind you but if you can get it cracked its pretty much the best there is!

[Mr Benn.]

I record guitar stuff all the time and used to have real trouble with good quality but I got a thing called a 'Jam Lab' It's a little box that plugs into a USB Port and you plug the lead into that and it give's a really clear sound. I couldn't tell you what it does to be honest though, I think it amplifies the signal and possibly works as a compressor. I believe it would work with a Microphone aswell if you had a Jack lead.

As for software, I Use Goldwave if I'm recoring single tracks or Audacity if I'm recording more than one. As far as free programmes go, It's pretty damn good. The effects aren't brilliant but it has most of the basics.

I don't know if that helps but if your budget will stretch to it, then the Jam Lab is a bit of a godsend for me.

Also I've heard that Beringer make very good value for money mixing desks and things. I'm planning to buy one for my self.