Newbie Recording Question

[cumberledge1]

I was just give an Alesis Multimix 8 USB 2.0 as a gift. I have never really recorded music before, and so I fear that I am on the short end of the learning curve right now. I have spent some time twiddling around with this thing, and reading the manuals they gave, but none have really helped me with this.

I am not sure if this is the proper forum for this, but I'll give it a try.

Here is my situation. I am using the Ableton live lite software that came with the mixer, and I did the walk through they gave on recording audio sucessfully. I recorded a guitar track, and I went back, and was trying to record another track over it, and now I am getting this delay/echo. Its just one echo, about a half a second after I play the note. I dont even need to be recording to hear this (I can hear it through the headphones when I am plugged in).

I know this is vague, but does anyone have any clue to what I am doing wrong? I would appreciate any advice.

Thanks yall - have a nice day...

[Chili]

Not familiar with Ableton, but it sounds like you have a monitoring function selected on the track you're recording. I don't think you'll need it because you can hear what you're playing in realtime from the mixer.

Let me back up a bit.

You can monitor what you are playing through the mixer with headphones. You can also monitor the playback tracks coming from the computer as you're recording your new track. I use Cubase which has a button on each track to monitor the sound of the track you are recording. This button is useful for people whose set up does not allow them to monitor their recordings in realtime. So, I'm guessing Ableton has something similar. If you can find that button on the track you are recording and deselect it, that might take care of your echo.

Also, if you're just starting out, be sure to rummage through the Newbies section. It will have answers for most of the questions you haven't asked yet. Also be sure to check out Tweak's Guide. It's a good read from start to finish and will help you get over that steep learning curve.

http://www.tweakheadz.com/guide.htm

Welcome to the site.

[cumberledge1]

Thanks Chili,
I will look into all of your suggestions... especially the newbiw section...

[lukicore]

i asked question in newbie section but nobody answered me I have HP laptop 64bit OS and im looking for firewire interface (it is beter than USB i heard ) Alesis have one with cubase LE

What is the difference between Cubase sx3 and cubase LE????

[Chili]

Originally Posted by lukicore

i asked question in newbie section but nobody answered me I have HP laptop 64bit OS and im looking for firewire interface (it is beter than USB i heard ) Alesis have one with cubase LE

What is the difference between Cubase sx3 and cubase LE????

Well, there's a huge difference between SX3 and LE. LE is the stripped down version that gets sent out with OEM interfaces. SX3 is a full blown version from a few years ago. Whenever I see SX3 mentioned anymore, I immediately think cracked version, soley because it's the most popular cracked DAW or something. Hope you're not thinking of stealing.

So, two tips, 1) if you have a cracked version of SX3, you won't get any help here. Don't steal software. 2) even though LE is the "Lite Edition", it is still very functional and will most likely provide you with everything you need. At least until you feel you want to upgrade.

As for interfaces, there's tons to choose from. Gotta do some research.

[lukicore]

Hi I dont want to steal any softwares that is why im asking questions in here I need to buy an interface and i know that most of them includs some softwares like Cubase LE or Ableton live lite I have tracks of my projet recorded with Cubase SX3 Do i need to buy interface with cubase to mix the tracks ???? Ableton Live Lite can do the job ???? Also my laptos is 64 bit OS I heard that there is a big difference beetween 64and 32 bit Can any body answer my questions ????? Please You my last Hope :-)

[jakman]

Good.... Let's start...
1. Here you can download the Cubase Feature Comparison.
2. So, Cubase LE is build on Cubase 4 witch is not compatible with Cubase SX projects. You can only upgrade these projects with Cubase LE but you will not be able to use these projects back in SX. I upgraded Cubase LE to Cubase Studio 4 witch is so good and cheap (somewhere around €200). So, you don't have to steal any software (witch is so bad), you can use your Cubase LE or Ableton Live.
3. One more thing. If you'd like to use some other software than the software you used when recorded the song, you can still find the tracks on your_project_folder > Audio folder and rebuild the song as you wish.
4. You can mix the tracks in Cubase mixer console (pressing F3) ))
5. There are many differences between 32 bit and 64 bit but if you are not a programmer or not using strong applications (witch can require much stability and resources) you will not feel these differences. The only thing you must pay attention is the hardware driver compatibility and OS. Btw, Alesis Multimix 16 Firewire is not compatible with MWin XP SP3 (max is SP2) and is not working with linux.
6. About who is better than other you can read here: http://www.usb-ware.com/firewire-vs-usb.htm
Any questions? Good luck.

[Chili]

Thanks Jakman, I somehow missed this one. As Jakman was saying, you can use any software to mix your song. You will have to recreate the tracks in the new DAW then Import the wav files and line them up where they belong. If you have a lot of tracks or a lot of punch-ins then it can be tedious. But it's not really a big deal.

About the 64 bit OS, do some searches here at HR, it's been discussed many tiimes.

[lukicore]

Thanx both of you guys Now i just have to choose which interface to buy with witch software :-) BTW Is Guitar Tracks Pro 4 a good program to make music ?????

[JIMBOdrummer]

ya i have an Alesis Multimix 8 USB. it came with Cubase LE it SUCKS.

i've heard Full versions of Cubase is real good. a producer i watch on youtube sometimes MDL uses it. it has a nice interface.

I run on a mac tho. i use Logic Pro 8. CANT WAIT TO GET 9

if anyone runs a mac and wants to save cash they can get logic express. thats what i would suggest. I'm unfamiliar with PC based softwares.



ABOUT THE ECHO.
i had that happen with logic once in a while. its because of the mixer. there's buttons to hear inputs and one to digitally monitor. if yo have both on with an alesis you usually get echos.