Ok I concede

Smithers XKR

Smithers XKR

Well-known member
After many weeks of "gentle" persuation by my more knowledgable peers here I have finaly decided to spend some time trying to learn a bit of DAW.
I have always intended to try to learn both genres, my legacy outboard gear, my Atari and rack stuff like an old faithful, sorry for all the faults, just cant let it go.
So now I would like to try to start to learn with the DAW system.
Firstly I will tell you the things I know.
I have downloaded a free older version of Cakewalk, it looks ok and has a 16 track mixer.
I know that I will need a phantom power interface to run my condensor mikes.
Other than that is there any advice to help me to get started please as I am new to DAW.
Thanks 👍
 
Smithers XKR said:
After many weeks of "gentle" persuation by my more knowledgable peers here I have finaly decided to spend some time trying to learn a bit of DAW.
I have always intended to try to learn both genres, my legacy outboard gear, my Atari and rack stuff like an old faithful, sorry for all the faults, just cant let it go.
So now I would like to try to start to learn with the DAW system.
Firstly I will tell you the things I know.
I have downloaded a free older version of Cakewalk, it looks ok and has a 16 track mixer.
I know that I will need a phantom power interface to run my condensor mikes.
Other than that is there any advice to help me to get started please as I am new to DAW.
Thanks 👍
Click to expand...
Welllllllll. and again this is just one dumbass's opinion who is a jack of all master of none kind of Homewrecker
Some questions before I advise.

What type of computer are you going to use Mac or PC?
How old is it?
How much are willing to invest $$$$ ( what's your budget ) to get tracks in the box?
How many tracks at a time will you be recording? the choices run from 2 stereo in and out to a hell of a lot with 20 to 32 tracks analog to digital / digital to analog (AD/DA) units available at under $2k maybe even under $1K

you're jumping in at an amazing time to jump in...it is finally getting damn easy...


Answer those and I'll chime in on my thoughts of how you might want to proceed.
 
Ditch the cakewalk and buy reaper.

1) It’s a very very versatile daw.

2) It takes up very little resources on your computer. You can have the whole daw on a thumb drive so you can install it anywhere. That’s incredibly useful because you don’t have to have the latest and greatest computer.

3) It’s cheap. 60 bucks last I looked.

4) it has a forum dedicated to learning reaper

5) there’s boatloads of info on YouTube

6) has great tech support and free upgrades

7) it’s a full pro daw, not a watered down version

8) has a 60 day free trial period before you have to buy it.

9) you can sync tape to it

10) it has an ever expanding amount of user made plug ins (open source free to download)

I’ll let others chime in re: interfaces
 
Another vote for Reaper here. I have it, paid for, rarely use it because I am a long time user of Samplitude (Pro X6) but Reaper is without doubt a gift to the audio community.

Audio Interfaces are harder to recommend. I take the point about "how many tracks" but to be honest an 8 input AI such as one of the Focusrites will have a mixer/routing app that will just serve to confuse the newcomer. I have a Mk1 F'rite 8i6 and have never got the hang of the MixControl software!

So maybe go for 2 in 2 out at least to begin with and if money is an issue you could go for the Behringer UMC204HD. Really good mic pre amps and a generally decent interface. My absolute fave at the moment though is the MOTU M4.
Two mic/line/instru inputs and two more line inputs (4 track mic recording if you have an old mixer handy) MIDI DIN ports and a very useful 'loopback' facility which allows you to record any sound going through your computer such as YT. This facility was removed from Win 10 or at least well hidden!

The Behrry 204 is a decent AI. The M4/M2 is close to state of art in terms of noise, distortion, converter quality and driver stability and all for a very reasonable price. MOTU are also VERY nice people to deal with.

Dave.
 
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I’ll be one of the few who says DONT GET REAPER........yet!

Get it AFTER you learn the basics of literally any DAW. Reaper is like a sandbox at first.

The processes aren't as well defined because it's less interested in funneling you into a specific work flow rather than allowing you to define it yourself. It has a lot of strange defaults and specific quirks that almost force you to tinker with it to get it into a workable state. It feels like a product designed by software developers, not a UX department. However, the incredible extensibility and customization options probably wouldn't even be on the table if that wasn't the case.
 
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CrowsofFritz said:
I’ll be one of the few who says DONT GET REAPER........yet!

Get it AFTER you learn the basics of literally any DAW. Reaper is like a sandbox at first.

The processes aren't as well defined because it's less interested in funneling you into a specific work flow rather than allowing you to define it yourself. It has a lot of strange defaults and specific quirks that almost force you to tinker with it to get it into a workable state. It feels like a product designed by software developers, not a UX department. However, the incredible extensibility and customization options probably wouldn't even be on the table if that wasn't the case.
Click to expand...
I agree in principle but the odd times I have used Reaper, almost always to help a forumite, I have found it fairly easy to use on a basic level. If a newb wants to start on something really basic, Audacity is very good but only for basic recording. For one thing it cannot handle ASIO drivers and so latency can be an issue.

However, getting to grips with ANY DAW is a steep learning curve. When you have played around with one or two or seven over ten years you get a 'feel' for how they all work under the bonnet...a bit! But I would urge anyone totally new to PC recording to pick a DAW, learn it and stick to it unless/until it no longer does all you need. That last is very unlikely to happen with Reaper.

There is another approach if you are interested and have the time. Virtually all the major DAW players have trial versions. Some, like Cubase allow a limited period, usually 30 days, with a limited version of the big 'un. Others like MAGIX Samplitude let you have the full fat version (BIG download) for a month. You can therefore play this game for over a year and not spend a cent! But! You might not get a lot of music done!


Dave.
 
One thing I can say, find your DAW, learn how to use it and then get your "work flow" down. Once you have a good understanding of the tool and tools (AKA Plugins), then you can create. Nothing worse than having an idea then fighting with the device/software on how to capture the idea.

I like Reaper, you can't go wrong with it, but find a DAW and get comfortable with it. Your DAW doesn't make music, it is just a tool. But you have to learn how to use the tool.

Having went through my midlife crisis about 12 years ago, I started recording, a dream I had for a very long time. I thought, OK, I am a computer guy, how hard can it be? Well, here is the deal. In the old days, these dudes recording had sound engineers, producers, guys like Dave (ecc83) doing all of the heavy lifting, while the recording artist just created. Now we are doing all of the work. That is a lot of shit to learn and know. Sound spectrum, keys, compression, cutting through, final mixing, kinds of microphones, where to place them, DI and the list goes on. That is a lot of stuff to have to know. I haven't even talked about file formats, bit rates, stems and what now.

Pick a computer/OS (I suggest not doing Linux unless you are a computer geek). A modern computer with i7 or Ryzen 7, 16 gigs of RAM, 500 GB SSD will get you there for a Windows PC. Find an interface with ISO capabilities and phantom power. Not hard to find, between 100-200 US. Grab some decent microphones. Don't go over the top. Just get something that will get the job done. You're not pro yet, so don't spend like it. Make sure you can DI your guitar if that is your main instrument or learn to mic it up.

That should get you started, now comes the hard part. Find a DAW and learn how to do "stuff" with it. Recording, adding tracks, saving, etc. Then learn EQ and compression. From that point forward, it becomes more of an art/science.

Now you just do, post in the MP3 clinic and learn. You won't get there, but hey, it is the journey, not the destination. Most of us will never be famous beyond this board. That's OK, cause that is what we do.

Other can add/subtract, but that is how I see getting started.
 
I'm firmly in the Reaper camp. I had an old version stripped down version of Protools that was packaged with equipment years ago, and two LE versions of Cubase. Yeah, they all work. Reaper works great too, and it fits my workflow just fine. Plus they keep making it better, and they don't charge you for every update, or every month like some programs do. Buy V6 and you are good through V7.999, and that will work as long as you want to use it, and you can put it on more than one machine if you end to move among different computers like I do.

Remember, that you can still record in the same manner as you would with a tape deck. Set up your inputs, hit record and if it isn't right, back it up, delete the old track if you want, just like you would with tape and hit record again. There's no reason it should stifle you.
 
I went from 8-track reel2reel and outboard gear to DAW recording about 12 or so years ago and I chose Reaper as my intro to digital recording. The install was easy and once I had it loaded I was recording basic tracks within 15 minutes. It was easy to get started but the software is deep. The good thing is that you can learn at your own pace and there are videos of just about anything you can think of on Youtube. Reaper also comes with lots of essential effect and signal processing plugins and the DAW will run on almost any computer. Add a decent interface and you'll be good to go. I think they all have phantom power.
 
LOL RFR hit it on the head.....I was going to wait till we got to getting you set up to advise the dumping of Cakewalk for Reaper.
All the reasons mentioned above. Reaper is like getting a muscle car for you first car. Super powerful but just like a muscle car just because it is super powerful doesn't mean you have to drive it fast first time out. It is just as easy to get started recording with it as any of the less powerful DAW softwares out there. The difference is the Cocko's support BBS and plethora of Youtube training videos is endless. There in no other DAW software out there with such a huge amount of support in using and better yet growing and developing it even further. We old timers here got to watch its birth back when the creator Justin still owned and controlled it..amazing..Several members here were on the team most know is Pipeline.

I barely scratch the surface of what it can do but love what I can do so easily with it. It is ez pz to get it hooked up and running in a few hours or less of instructible videos. Once it is set up you have pre arranged set ups or templates you can make and use that have you recording pretty much in a few clicks.

REAPER IS YOUR FRIEND

Still holding off on the cornucopia of choices as far as interfaces, mixers and such to get you into the box.
 
Having used several different DAW software applications over the years, I think, picking one with plenty of user support and sticking with it is the best solution. I currently use reaper and would not switch unless forced to… not because I have anything against other software, but I don’t want to fool with the learning curve for something else. When it comes to interfaces, it seems like some “prosumer” models have advanced their ADA conversion game lately. You can get a whole lot better sonic quality for $300 than you could 10 years ago for $800. I Purchased, a b stock Blacklion, audio interface recently, and it sounds noticeably more defined than my old sound devices USB pre, which sold for a lot more money when it was new. I would not advise you to necessarily get the same thing I have, but I would advise you to get an interface that has gone through an upgrade to a newer version in the last year or two.
 
TAE said:
Welllllllll. and again this is just one dumbass's opinion who is a jack of all master of none kind of Homewrecker
Some questions before I advise.

What type of computer are you going to use Mac or PC?
How old is it?
How much are willing to invest $$$$ ( what's your budget ) to get tracks in the box?
How many tracks at a time will you be recording? the choices run from 2 stereo in and out to a hell of a lot with 20 to 32 tracks analog to digital / digital to analog (AD/DA) units available at under $2k maybe even under $1K

you're jumping in at an amazing time to jump in...it is finally getting damn easy...


Answer those and I'll chime in on my thoughts of how you might want to proceed.
Click to expand...
Its an old Windows 10 desktop TAE.. but runs fine. Unit was refurbed from about 2015 but monitor is new.
I have a free older version of Cakewalk. That was the best freeware I got advice to DL. I need an interface for the condensers
 
I have used Cakewalk for almost 20 years, great DAW, lots of help at the Bandlab site, and runs great on a Windows Machine. Google "optimizing Windows for audio recording, and off you go. Have fun and try to not get frustrated at first.... low and slow Amigo,
cheers
 
mowtontom2 said:
I have used Cakewalk for almost 20 years, great DAW, lots of help at the Bandlab site, and runs great on a Windows Machine. Google "optimizing Windows for audio recording, and off you go. Have fun and try to not get frustrated at first.... low and slow Amigo,
cheers
Click to expand...
Yes Bandlab has great support. Thank you mow 👍
 
Smithers XKR said:
Its an old Windows 10 desktop TAE.. but runs fine. Unit was refurbed from about 2015 but monitor is new.
I have a free older version of Cakewalk. That was the best freeware I got advice to DL. I need an interface for the condensers
Click to expand...
You don't necessarily need an interface that has phantom power because you have a very nice Yamaha desk that I learned you had in another DAW thread. That desk has 4 aux outs so you can send 4 signals to an interface that will convert the analog audio into digital. That said I believe all of the interfaces in the link below have phantom power.
You didn't say how many track you want to record at one time but if 4 is more than enough, you can be recording into your computer very quickly for a small investment.
At $150 the Behringer u-phoria umc 404 is the least expensive mentioned in this article HERE It will work just fine but any of the 10 mentioned will work...These are all lower entry level interfaces that will provide super good audio.. you can spend a shit ton more on the high end stuff but you'd be hard pressed to be able to tell the difference in a blinfolded A/B test. UAD , SSL have some really nice high end stuff both just entered the entry level market with the UAD Volt 476 @ $370 with some very cool '"free" plugins..and the SSL 2 and 2+ $179 to $239 with the plus just have 4 instead of 2 headphone / audio outs ...But the SSL is only 2 tracks in at a time which is why it isn't in the top 10 of 4 channel interfaces...I'll post the video from sweetwater below.

On the Cakewalk vs Reaper...either will work just fine and there is plenty of help and videos out there for either to get ejumakated on them.
Using the google as proof that reaper is more popular I searched the term "using Reaper to record" and got just under 11 million results...
"using cakewalk to record" gave just over 2 million results...which is plenty enough to get the help you need but you catch my drift. There's a reason Reaper has 6 times as many results. Reaper in theory can be free if you are cash strapped. The original developer would be totally cool with that, The trial software is uncrippled 100% usable you will just get a nag message that you need to buy a version @ $60 BUT YOU DON'T HAVE TO if you can't afford it...use it to your hearts content. OK so you saw the messages above lean and encourage you towards Reaper but again Cakewalk will 100% get you going if that's what you choose to use,

I have monitors but mostly mix in headphones and only listen to the monitors on rare occasions that's just me most all pros listen to their recordings on multiple monitors before they release their stuff.

So there you have it...Your Yammy mixer and any of interfaces mentioned in that link above between $150 to $400 and a few cables and you're rolling in the deep...

That's when the trouble starts :laughings:

 
Last edited:
TAE said:
You don't necessarily need an interface that has phantom power because you have a very nice Yamaha desk that I learned you had in another DAW thread. That desk has 4 aux outs so you can send 4 signals to an interface that will convert the analog audio into digital. That said I believe all of the interfaces in the link below have phantom power.
You didn't say how many track you want to record at one time but if 4 is more than enough, you can be recording into your computer very quickly for a small investment.
At $150 the Behringer u-phoria umc 404 is the least expensive mentioned in this article HERE It will work just fine but any of the 10 mentioned will work...These are all lower entry level interfaces that will provide super good audio.. you can spend a shit ton more on the high end stuff but you'd be hard pressed to be able to tell the difference in a blinfolded A/B test. UAD , SSL have some really nice high end stuff both just entered the entry level market with the UAD Volt 476 @ $370 with some very cool '"free" plugins..and the SSL
On the Cakewalk vs Reaper...either will work just fine and there is plenty of help and videos out there for either to get ejumakated on them.
Using the google as proof that reaper is more popular I searched the term "using Reaper to record" and got just under 11 million results...
"using cakewalk to record" gave just over 2 million results...which is plenty enough to get the help you need but you catch my drift. There's a reason Reaper has 6 times as many results. Reaper in theory can be free if you are cash strapper...the original developer would be totally cool with that, The trial software is uncrippled 100% usable you will just get a nag message that you need to buy a version @ $60 BUT YOU DON'T HAVE TO if you can't afford it...use it to your hearts content. OK so you saw the messages above lean and encourage you towards Reaper but again Cakewalk will 100% get you going if that's what you choose to use,

I have monitors but mostly mix in headphones and only listen to the monitors on rare occassions...that's just me most all pros listen to their recordings on multiple monitors before they release their stuff.

So there you have it...Your Yammy mixer and any of interfaces mentioned in that link above between $150 to $400 and a few cables and you're rolling in the deep...

That's when the trouble starts :laughings:
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Thats great I can use the desk and a cheaper interface 😄 thanks TAE 👍👍
 
If you're just getting started (and not already a slave to a DAW) it doesn't even make any sense to not use Reaper. Sorry. Not sorry. Download and use Reaper (it's FREE and will only NAG you for 5? seconds after your trial to purchase which you can do whenever you feel like it) it has the best support out there and you can find many tutorials on how to do things... it has an "Action List" where you can just type in something you're trying to do and you'll probably find out how to do it yourself... there is no reason to use any other DAW in this day and age unless you're an old dog who has been suckered into paying for Pro Tools all those years ago. ;)
 
Beware of the SSL2+ I am pretty sure it does not have 4 ins and outs. I would strongly recommend the MOTU from that list or indeed ANY list! The pre amps and converters are excellent and the meters sublime. It is also operationally very intuitive to use. I had the Behringer 204HD and, while it is really very good for the money it is not as easy to use as the MOTU.

Dave.
 
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ecc83 said:
Beware of the SSL2+ I am pretty sure it does not have 4 ins and outs. I would strongly recommend the MOTU from that list or indeed ANY list! The pre amps and converters are excellent and the meters sublime. It is also operationally very intuitive to use. I had the Behringer 204HD and, while it is really very good for the money it is not as easy to use as the MOTU.

Dave.
Click to expand...
.
Yeah I had edited and mentioned that after Smithers quoted me ".
the SSL 2 and 2+ $179 to $239 with the plus just have 4 instead of 2 headphone / audio outs ...But the SSL is only 2 tracks in at a time which is why it isn't in the top 10 of 4 channel interfaces...I'll post the video from sweetwater below.

On the MOTU they are a great company as are all the others just curious what made the Motu easier than the Berry for me the behringer stuff has been pretty much plug n play To get the interfaces to work is really drivers and Reaper and I've had zero issues with the berry drivers...Never used MOTU but respect their name. TBH this new UAD Volt 476 really has my ears perked up. UAD is such a great company and their proprietary plugs are well respected in the industry and A LOT of very successful / popular current recordings like Billie Eilish were made using UAD interfaces... crazy
 
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