Getting the best sound for my guitar

C

Christoph

New member
I'm trying to figure out the best way to set up my little budget system to get the best sound I can get. Right now I get a pretty decent sound but I'm just wondering if there might be something I'm over looking that could make it even better.

I'm using Pro Tools M-Powered 7.4 with my little M-Audio Fast Track USB device, Behringer Xenyx502 (Which I may change out for something different but I do like it.), BOSS ME-70 effects processor (This is my baby), I also have a small 15w Peavey Vypyr amplifier (good little amp for the money). I do have a mic (And would like to mic up the up) but it was some free mic and I have no idea what kind it is, I will be buying a decent one in the near future though.

The way I have things setup is the M-Audio device is connected to the computer through USB (Can't use PT without it) and I have my main outs going into the M-Audio device. Then I have the ME-70 Connected to Line in 1 on my Behringer so I can have a little more EQ control with it. THEN I have the Outputs on my M-Audio device running into the CD/TAPE inputs with the CD/TAPE to Phones button on.

Now I have noticed on my ME-70 that it has a Gt. Amp Output Left and Right, the manual doesn't really explain those much at all but I was wondering if I were to use those outputs instead of just the Rec/Phones output would that be a better setup?

I have tried it and when I record just a random riff in Audacity and the save it and play it back it only plays out of the right side of the speakers... ? I haven't figured out exactly why it does but that's why I am here asking for help.

What am I doing wrong with this setup and is there a way to fix it so I can get a better tone than I am getting now?
 
I can't really answer your questions because I'm not familiar with any of that equipment, and I'm not 100% (or even 60%) sure that I'm visualizing the chain correctly. But...

1) the guitar amp output left and right are almost certainly intended to go into the input of a guitar amp (or two, as the case may be) - the signal will be high impedance and low power, to simulate what's coming directly out of a guitar - so these probably won't help unless you plug the Boss through the amp that way and mic the amp.

2) I'd sure try plugging the Boss directly into the Fast Track, circumventing the Xenyx thing - you can add EQ later in the computer.

PS - this is where I got totally confused:
Christoph said:
THEN I have the Outputs on my M-Audio device running into the CD/TAPE inputs with the CD/TAPE to Phones button on.
Click to expand...
 
I had a feeling my chain would sound very confusing so maybe if you saw what I have and it's inputs it might help some.

Here is the Behringer I'm using

502_P0576_TopFront_XL.jpg


And this is the M-Audio device

maudio_fast_track_usb.jpg


I used to plug it my guitar directly into the M-Audio device but I got such a weak signal it just wasn't even worth going that route. With the Behringer connected to the M-Audio and have more control of the levels going into the M-Audio device and get a much better recording because of it.

When I say I plug the outputs from the m-audio device into the 502 what I am doing is (based on the pictures) running a audio cable from the RCA output to the CD/TAPE input on the Behringer so I can listen to the samples/drumtracks that and being played through Pro Tools in my headphones.

There might be a better way to set this up, I just don't really know how.
 
I'd skip using the M-Audio device all together if I didn't have to have it in order to run Pro Tools M-Powered.
 
Ideally an audio interface with a built in pre amp would do the job, other than this you won't get a good sound without pre amp for the guitar, so i guess you would have to use the xenyx mixer you have into the audio interface to get a decent signal. Why do you run RCA from the interface to the mixer though? I would run the cables from the RCA output on the interface to some monitors (or just a hifi if money is tight, as it is for me!) and use the headphone socket on the interface for phones. I have a behringer analogue mixer and a novation nio 2/4 interface, I've used the behringer a couple of times for mic'ing things that need more than two inputs and the degradation in sound quality is pretty noticeable. Never used the tape in/out ports though. --

I read this back and it made no sense, here is a nice little picture! -
 

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Ahhh, I see what you are doing there. I may just route my outputs from the M-Audio to my speaker systems (Going to invest in some good monitors here soon) since it has a aux input on them.

The only reason I was sending the output from the m-audio was so I can could hear the drum tracks through my headphones. There are two switches for the CD/TAPE, on is CD/TAPE to Phones and CD/TAPE to Mix. If I add it too the mix then I in a way get a echo of everything through my mixer, but if I send it through the phones it just routes the audio coming from Pro Tools (drum tracks, ect) to my headphones so I can play along with it.
 
If you're micing the guitar amp, why not plug the mic directly into the M-audio?

You're chain should look something like this:

guitar -> Boss -> amp -> mic -> M-Audio -> computer

How you listen to it doesn't make much difference. Either plug some headphones into the M-Audio or run RCA cable to a set of monitors or the the mixer.
 
dastrick said:
If you're micing the guitar amp, why not plug the mic directly into the M-audio?

You're chain should look something like this:

guitar -> Boss -> amp -> mic -> M-Audio -> computer

How you listen to it doesn't make much difference. Either plug some headphones into the M-Audio or run RCA cable to a set of monitors or the the mixer.
Click to expand...

Thats how I will have it setup whenever I get a decent mic, like I said right now I have some free mic I came across in my parents attic so the quality of it s not so great.

I don't think I'm going to eliminate my Behringer from the equation, I've tried just straight M-Audio hookup and it sounds 10 times as bad as if if just my Behringer.
 
I have a vypyr15 too and it seriously beats the heck out of any plug-in or amp modeller (I use a zoom G2 for direct recording, similar to your boss ME) but just micing up your amp with a dynamic mic right up in its face and having another mic a couple feet away (I also have a little freebie tascam thing that I have really no idea what it is, it came with my 4track) makes it sound a lot beefier than using simulators and such. Amp sims in direct line to the recorder wont give you the tone and feedback control with your playing that an actual amp can. Your VypYr15 is really nice for being actually play it like its a big amp, but not have to be as loud. I fell in love with mine and I will never go back to using amp simulators. You might find that your behringer making your sound 'better' is because it has pre-amps. They aren't the greatest but its a lot better than just going direct.

I guess with your setup, I would go guitar ->boss -> vyp -> mic -> behringer ->computer doodad interface (sorry I only use dedicated recorders so I don't know one computer ap from another)
 
A couple of things... first, hooking up directly from a guitar chain to an input device (soundboard or computer interface) is going to be a losing proposition no matter what you do. You can tweak all you want but until you get something that's meant to simulate an amp and cabinet or mic your amp you're probably not going to be happy with the sound. That's just the way it is.

Second, if you're going to use your setup the way it is, you might want to make sure that the signal isn't clipping when it hits the soundboard OR when it makes its way into the M-Audio thing. That kind of distortion sounds worse than... well... anything really. If that's why you have the board in the chain - to even out the volume before it hits the M-Audio thing, then it's really unnecessary. Just turn down the volume somewhere before your M-Audio thing.
 
There is a level selector switch on the back of your M-Audio box. If you are getting a weak signal without the behringer, you most likely have this switch on the wrong setting.

Try this signal chain: Guitar > Vypyr > M-Audio.
With this chain, you should probably have the level switch set to "Line." I'm assuming the "Guitar" setting is for plugging your guitar directly into the M-Audio box.

I'm not familiar with that I/0 box, so I could be wrong, but simplify your signal chain down to that, and play with that switch to see which gives you the strongest signal. Remember to turn the amp down first.
 
Gtar -> vyp -> interface is just another line recording though. The Vyper 'out' is sterile and digital because it lacks the true cabinet resonance, may as well just use the effect processor. The beefiness of guitar tracks comes from the sound of the cab too, not just the processing. This sound which can only be achieved by a mic of the real sound, or preferrably 2 mics in different spots, in my humble opinion. If you want a tinny digital sound of circuits instead of a room, why bother with the amp at all?
 
Skip the Boss stomp box...

Guitar to Behringer to computer to (better than Audacity) DAW software (about $50) to... "Google search: free virtual amp and effects downloads". Have fun!
 
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