Best card for recording drums

[elisav13]

I need a sound card that would be good for micing drums as well as other things such as guitar/vocals. I am using cool edit pro. Also, can someone explain to me how each mic is a seperate track. I am new to all this and want to learn more. Any info would be helpful. Thanks

[Bulls Hit]

I use the M-Audio Delta 44 which allows you to record upto 4 mics at once to 4 seperate tracks

[fldrummer]

I'm using a Aardvark Q10 to record up tp 8 tracks at a time. In the program you can choose which input on your sound card to record to on each track.

[kesterdevine]

Hope you guys don't mind me jumping in here with a question.
You've mentioned two of the sound cards that I have been considering: the Aardvark Q10, and the Delta 44.

But this is where I get confused about tracking drums to the PC and I'm hoping for some clarification.

Once I choose a soundcard that is capable of recording multiple tracks simultaneous, what else do I need (I already have the mics and drums)?

I'm assuming I will need some sort of preamp/ mixer to connect the mics to the soundcard. Is this correct? It seems that preamps come in a wide range of choices and prices and this is where I am most confused.

Would something like this work for connecting the mics to the sound card? Nady mic preamp:
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7/...base_id/106560

Also, while I'm at it, does anyone have experience with the Terratec soundcards like this one?
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7/.../base_id/56252

Sorry if these are really basic questions but I just wanna get up and running without breaking the bank , but I don't wanna buy complete crap either.

Am I thinking in the right direction here? Please help.

Any and all suggestions very much appreciated.

Thanks,
Kester

[Bulls Hit]

Your best bet is a mixer. I use a Yamaha MG12/4, comes with 6 preamps, good quality for a reasonable price. 12 ins, 4 outs plus inserts gives you plenty of room for expansion

[pratt]

the aardvark q10 has 8 built-in preamps so you would not need an external preamp/mixer. the delta44 does not have built in preamps, so you would need something external. other than that - the main difference in the 2 is that the q10 has 8 channels and the 44 has 4. If you're planning on recording a band situation and you have the $$, 8 channels is good. 4 is very limiting...and may require you to submix your drums down to 2 tracks which limits what you can do post-recording. I started with a delta44 and have since moved up to presonus firestation (8 channels).

if you have the mics and the computer, you would just need some multitracking software in addition to the interface (and mixer/preamps if needed)

[kesterdevine]

Thanks so much for the tips and keep 'em coming!

It really helps to know what others are using and how.

Good luck elisav13, and to everyone (like me) who is just getting started with PC recording!

Really appreciate the input.

I'll get it together eventually...

[zook250]

i use a delta 1010lt. it is a great card for its price,with 8 inputs. however you need a board to use it to its full potential as it only has 2 preamps on board. for this i use a 2442mx and it has worked fine for me for 2 years.(i previously had a mackie 1604, dont be afraid of behringer, plus they are low cost and if you want to upgrade, you wont be losing a lot on this type of board.)

i have mic'd a kit with 2 ecm8000 overheads and an akg d112 and it sounded pretty descent. but if you can afford a card with 8 ins , go that way. my drummer uses 7 mics for his kit alone.

i just orderd the 5 mic superlux pack, im interested if anyone here have used them? 4 pra-228a and 1 pra-218a included in the kit.

[colish_04]

I bought that same superlux kit about 2 months ago. Considering the price of this kit compared to anything else, superlux definately gives you a bigger bang for your buck.

Right now I use the 2 mids to mic the floor and mounted tom (4-piece kit), 2 condensors for overheads, the low for the bass-drum (obviously), and an SM-57 for the snare.

The only mic that I'm disappointed with is the low bass-drum mic. It's too warm and undefined. It's really hard to get a nice punchy sound. Other than that, I think the mic's are great considering what I paid for them.

*The manufacturer used screws that are too short to mount the clip onto the mic. I suggest replacing them cause I've already had one of the mic's fall off.