newbie with low volume and hiss

[hawk]

First off, I'm glad I found this great BBS as there's a lot of great info here! Thanks!

I have a 2 part question, here's part 1:

My setup:

- 900Mhz AMD, 512MB RAM, plenty of disk space, using Cool Edit Pro 2.0

- Fender strat > effects chain > amp > headphones out to line-in SoundBlaster AWE 64 (ISA.)

My problem is the final volume of the tracks is very low. So, when I play it back, I have to crank the speaker volume which creates a lot of hiss. I've set the input level using the Windows mixer so that Cool Edit's VU meter is just shy of the red area, but still the volume is low. Cranking up the amp makes no difference. Will a mic/preamp fix this?

Now, before you all flame me for using a SB AWE 64 , let me tell you I'm looking into getting an Audiophile 2496. But I want to make sure that my problem will go away before I spend the dough. Could that be my problem?

Part 2:

If I upgrade my hardware, can you recomend a mic and preamp for a total of $200-250? Also, should I upgrade my sound card or use something like the Edirol UA-1A instead? My goal is to record electric and acuoustic guitar tracks with possible drum tracks from my Yamaha keyboard.

Thanks in advance!

[Nilbog]

You certainly need to mic your guitar instead of going direct. For the Mic, use an sm57 - they're fairly cheap and pretty good. For a mic pre, do some searching aroudn the board for inexpensive ones. Stay away from Zoom.

[charlesthegreat]

if your volume is really low, try normalizing the wav file. it should take away a lot of the background noise since you arent jacking your speakers up to full volume.

[Nilbog]

A lot of that hiss is probably coming from the soundcard.
Ive done recording with soundcards and have always had to do noise reduction afterwards.
Problem is, they seems to pick up everything that is going on inside the machine.
A mic and mic pre, and an audio interface will certainly help a lot.

[hawk]

I'm definately leaning towards the SM57 and mabye the M Audio DMP3 (although I really don't need two channels.) I'm still not sure about the sound card. Maybe I should get the Edirol instead of a sound card? Any opinions on the Edirol vs. sound card?

Charles, I've used normalize some but have found that while it does make it louder, it also makes the noise louder. Maybe I'm not using it correctly, though. Cool Edit has something called Hiss and Noise reduction that helps too but at the cost of muting the guitar tone a little.

[randyfromde]

"if your volume is really low, try normalizing the wav file. it should take away a lot of the background noise since you arent jacking your speakers up to full volume."


I think the problem is more the volume level coming in if you have to crank the speakers. Be sure that you have the levels set so the recorded sound is pretty "loud", I'd say above -6db or so. But be careful that you don't overload the soundcard or you'll get hideous digital distortion.

I may be way off-base here, but I was under the impression that except to set the final volume at mixdown, you don't ever need normalization. Just be sure you get a clean strong signal recorded "to tape"

[Nilbog]

no offense to you - but why are people still asking about soundcards?! Dont buy them, dont use them if you ever want to make anything clsoe to a decent recording. I use my soundcard to record because I mhappy with the crap I get out of it.
If you want to impress people, get real gear - if you want people to think youre retarded, get a soundblaster.

[warpigs]

okay, total NEWB here, but what would you consider "Real Gear"
I've just started looking into building a home studio. I've got a SB Live! POS sound card. I plugged my zoom bass effects pedal into it last night just to play around with it.
I've got Sound Forge 6.0, and access to mics.
So do you guys reccomend those USB boxes that don't use the sound card to record to the hard drive? do they provide the best sound for the buck or what?
TIA.

[Nilbog]

Those USB boxes suck, too. But they are going to do a lot better than a SB soundcard.
If you want really nice stuff - look into firewire or PCI audio interfaces. But they aint cheap.

[hawk]

Well after doing a bit of research, I've decided to go with the Audiophile 2496 and an sm57. The only question that remains is which pre? I've heard great things about the DMP3. But, not sure why I'd need two channels. What is the best SINGLE channel pre in the price range and quality of the DMP3? I'd like one with a VU meter if possible.

thanks...

PS, what exactly "sucks," about the Edirol? Can you be more specific?

[distortedrumble]

when it comes to mic pre's you can buy a little mixer...the behringer UB802 is 40-50 bucks and a ub502 is 30-40 bucks. i own one. you might only need one channel for guitar but having the extra channels comes in handy if you want to keep certain settings in terms of eq on your mixer...that way i have a channel for vocals, guitar, keyboard and bass. i personally couldnt tell you what sucks about edirol in particular....I've never tried any of the products. and what constitutes "real gear"? i have no idea...try looking for stuff you can afford and sounds good unless your willing to get a small business gold card and shell out the money. for a bunch of pro gear

[hawk]

Originally posted by distortedrumble
when it comes to mic pre's you can buy a little mixer...the behringer UB802 is 40-50 bucks and a ub502 is 30-40 bucks. i own one. you might only need one channel for guitar but having the extra channels comes in handy if you want to keep certain settings in terms of eq on your mixer...that way i have a channel for vocals, guitar, keyboard and bass. i personally couldnt tell you what sucks about edirol in particular....I've never tried any of the products. and what constitutes "real gear"? i have no idea...try looking for stuff you can afford and sounds good unless your willing to get a small business gold card and shell out the money. for a bunch of pro gear

Wow, that's a great price for a mixer! What kind of cable do you use to go out of the mixer, into the sound card? Will a standard guitar cable work?

[Nilbog]

Originally posted by hawk

PS, what exactly "sucks," about the Edirol? Can you be more specific?

Its not specifically the Edirol that sucks, its ALL USB boxes. I mean, a lot of people here use them and like them - and I agree that they are fine for hobbiest type home recording.

USB simply is not capable of the kind of throughput to be able to do more than 1 or 2 tracks. Because it's slow, there can be latency issues (although not as bad as an internal soundcard.)


I have a Behringer Eurorack UB1204fx pro which I picked up for like $120. It's basically a mackie clone. Nothing special but I like it and it's what I use rather than dropping the cash on a seperate mic pre.

[distortedrumble]

yes i run standard guitar cables to it.

[hawk]

So you dont need to use a balanced cable?