Big Help Needed! Software.. Pre Amp Or Mixer?!

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danielholgate

New member
okayy guys..

basically... i am running a Mac Os X 10.6.8... 3.06ghz.. 2009..

i have garageband.. and want to record HIPHOP/POP/RNB VOCALS, Bought myself a rode nt1a recently.. i also run Pro Tools SE with a Fast Track USB! and this is nooby crappy equipment that i want to improve!!

So i look around and there is mixers and pre amps.. i finally see the difference between the 2..

So i am asking for which i should get because i only want to record vocals nothing else.. So Mixer Or Pre AMP?

I wanna spend anything under £200ish on a pre amp or mixer... ALSO software software software...

i explored logic but never recorded a full track etc... but people have also said about Reaper?!, and i dont know if Reaper is anygood and want suggestions/opinions. i want to spend £200 and under on a software also as i dont need nothing major because im not making my own beats.

I have been looking at pre amps.. M-audio DMP3 looks promising but also Seen a Mixer 'Soundcraft notepad 124 or 104 Fx..

But first i wanna know if i should get a mixer or pre amp!
 
tbh, if you just want to record vocals and nothing else, and only want to record one vocal track at a time, then i can't see why you'd need a mixer as you'd only need one input and spending £200 on a mixer doesn't necessarily mean better preamps, it normally means more features (i.e built in fx, aux sends, faders, busses etc), whereas £200 on one stand alone preamp should see an improvement in preamp quality over the built in one on the fast track.

i've not tried the the M-audio DMP3 but it gets great reviews. i'd also say have a look at the Joe Meek threeQ channel strip, the Presonus Studio Channel, and the GAP Pre 73. the last two are slightly over £200 and the GAP Pre 73 certainly has a tonal colour to it but they're all great units in their own way, and the presonus and joe meek have EQ's and compressors built in that you can either use whilst tracking or, preferably, during mixing just running the vocal track back through the channel strip to EQ and compress.

in terms of software, are you just looking for full DAW's or plugins/effects etc? in terms of DAW's i'm a big Logic fan, but reaper is also very powerful and much cheaper. however, it'd be worth trying as many DAW's as you can to find the one that works best for you. they all sound the same and the big differences are the workflow and stock plugins. from my point of view there's nothing particularly wrong with garage band and if it's just vocals you're recording over pre made beats and you can get great results, although it does lack some of the editing power that other DAW's have.

tbh, there's nothing particularly wrong with the setup you have so far, although you've not mentioned monitors or the room you're recording in. are there any specific things you're struggling with/not happy with? are you happy with the mic? are there any problems with mixes?
 
DMp3 ive heard great views also.. and have had the other pre amps mentioned before.. i struggle with space in my room i mean REALLY STRUGGLE, but i try to get as good space as i CAN, my room width is between 180-190.. u can see what i mean... i have used a torrent downloaded logic.. i liked it plug ins were kinda tricky but i could get used to them easy... with reaper i tried a trial version and i dont really like it myself.. i used PTSE and u may know that it is very limited... i want a software with decent/plug ins and effects.., i was thinking of logic express 9.. but not sure what the difference is between the more costly version..
 
the main differences between logic 9 and logic 9 express is express is limited to a finite amount of tracks, inserts on each channel, virtual instruments, and express doesn't have some of the very useful plugins; mainly Spacedesigner and Apadtive Limiter. the whole list can be found here on the Apple website. Actually, by the look of it, Apple have discontinued logic 9 express as the full version is now available though the app store at £139 rather than the £300 i paid a couple of years back! (full story here)

tbh, i'm not a big fan of reaper but for the price it's very hard to beat, but the new price for logic 9 from the app store is only a bit more than logic express was, although still 3x as much as reaper is! if you were comfortable with protools SE why not upgrade to the full version? it's not cheap but if you're happy with how it works it's well worth the investment.

Also, i know it's a different thread but i'm already typing so it makes life easier for me, the Blue Spark is a very nice mic imo and doesn't have the same kinda "sharp" high end that the NT1a does, and the focus button on the spark does help pull vocals to the front of a mix, but i'd also suggest having a look at the sE X1, sE 2200a, and MXL V69
 
Justsomeguy said:
the main differences between logic 9 and logic 9 express is express is limited to a finite amount of tracks, inserts on each channel, virtual instruments, and express doesn't have some of the very useful plugins; mainly Spacedesigner and Apadtive Limiter. the whole list can be found here on the Apple website. Actually, by the look of it, Apple have discontinued logic 9 express as the full version is now available though the app store at £139 rather than the £300 i paid a couple of years back! (full story here)

tbh, i'm not a big fan of reaper but for the price it's very hard to beat, but the new price for logic 9 from the app store is only a bit more than logic express was, although still 3x as much as reaper is! if you were comfortable with protools SE why not upgrade to the full version? it's not cheap but if you're happy with how it works it's well worth the investment.

Also, i know it's a different thread but i'm already typing so it makes life easier for me, the Blue Spark is a very nice mic imo and doesn't have the same kinda "sharp" high end that the NT1a does, and the focus button on the spark does help pull vocals to the front of a mix, but i'd also suggest having a look at the sE X1, sE 2200a, and MXL V69
Click to expand...

i dont need the full pro tools.. as i only wanna record vocals over pre recorded tracks.. maybe in the future ill use guitar aswell... but that wont be anytime soon..., people say there is no point in spending so much on pro tools if im not making beats myself aswell as recording vocals... but im thinking of getting pro tools mp or pro tools Express... if you have an idea of them it'd be appreciated

Also.. I had the se2200a and i didnt really like it for Sining Vocals.. but for hiphop/rap it was very good..
 
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