Recording Audio whilst playing back MIDI

[Paul881]

I use Cakewalk Express 8.0.

I wish to record vocals over a MIDI file. I can do this okay, but the track that contains the new vocals also records the existing MIDI file. At first, I thought this might be the microphone picking up sound bleed from the monitors. But even if I record the audio track with the mic switched off, the audio track records the MIDI again. How can I just record the audio/vocals without simultaneously recording the MIDI? But I still want to hear the MIDI play back as I record only the vocals.

Any ideas?

[Mountaineer]

Check out this thread . . . I think you have the same problem.

http://homerecording.com/bbs/showthr...threadid=21360

Regards,
PAPicker

[Paul881]

Thanks for your reply but I am running Win 98 and there is no "what u hear" box to check/uncheck. I think this only applies to Win 95. Is there an equivelant in Win 98?

Paul

[AlChuck]

No, it's part of Windows 98... I think it might be specific to the Sound Blaster cards, though. What are you working with?

[Paul881]

I am using the AWE 64 sound card with 8Meg RAM.

Paul

[Paul881]

I have looked at the "using the Windows Volume Control Mixer" online document on Cakewalks web site and "What u hear" is definately part of the Windows mixer. I am running win 98 and it's mixer does not have "what u hear". In recording properties mode it has:

*Recording Control
*MIDI
*CD Audio
*Line in
*Microphone


(I notice there is no Wave module as per the Cakewalk document, nor a "What u hear")

In Playback properties mode, the mixer has:
*Volume Control
*Wave
*MIDI
*CD Audio
*Line in
*Microphone
*PC Speaker

This differs from the Cakewalk info which is based on Win 95 in that it has no Play Control but does have PC Speaker & Volume Control.

Hope this helps.

Paul

[Paul881]

Done it!I finally figured it out.

Using the Microsoft mixer, when you want to record Vocals using the line in or mic input on your sound card, over the top of MIDI, without recording the MIDI onto your vocal track, you simply go to Volume control(right click on the small yellow speaker icon bottom right of our toolbar) properties> options> Recording and then check all the boxes>ok. Then uncheck the MIDI "select" box. This prevents re-recording your MIDI file combined with your vocals on your audio track. You will now only record your vocals on the vocal track. But you have to take care not to let your microphone pick up any playback of your MIDI from your monitors as you record, otherwise it defeats the excercise.

What was confusing me, and I could not find any reference to it in the mixer help pages, Cakewalk Express 8.0 help nor the more detailed Mixer document on the Cakewalk site was that I thought that by unchecking/de-selecting any of the recording modules would prevent them from playing back during the recording of further tracks (this seemed a reasonable assumption to me, maybe its cos I'm stupid). Now I know that unchecking/de-selecting the modules only prevents them from being recorded. What also confused me was the references everywhere to "what u hear". This is a Win 95 version of Mixer, Win 98 doesn't have it, nor does Win NT.

I hope this helps any others out there wondering why they keep recording combined tracks and/or who use Win 98.

Paul

[AlChuck]

Both my Windows NT system at the office, with a SB PCI 128 card, and my Windows 98 system at home, with a SB Live! card, have this in the mixer. I suspect the actual contents of the mixer window depend on what drivers have been installed on the computer and are not fixed. The AWE cards did not have the "what u hear" setting.

[Paul881]

Thanks AlChuck. I think you are right because the NT machine at work has AuxB and Synthesizer, but no What u hear. Mixer seems to be one of those little programs that is a critical part of what goes on but no one ever seems to pay sufficient attention to writing a proper detailed manual for it.

Anyway, I am so happy my problem is resolved.

Paul

[AlChuck]

I misspoke slightly -- my NT box at work has a SB AudioPCI 64V and has a recording source labeled "Mixed Output," which is the same thing as "What U Hear" with a less Prince-like and cacthy name.