starting out tips?

W

walkperson

New member
hello all.
I've been writing songs for years and now want to start recording on something other than my mini disc.I'm wondering what gear would be good.I want to do your standard rock and roll setup;bass,drums,2guitsx and vox. i've been advised to get something like a tascam 2488 as its easy to get to grips with for a starter and its good value.But part of me thinks I should get a good laptop/desktop P.4, a good programme and a small interface. My vocal coach works with this and his demos are good quality,he uses a sony vegas programme.also it doesn't appear too difficult to start out with.
so what I have to bear in mind is cost and ease of use;maybe something I could build on would be good too. I would like to keep it under a 1,500 euro but this may be a little ludicrous. I have a shure 58 so I guess I'd need a pack more mics-s57s for drums and all. would i need a soundcard?
if it were too expensive to record a whole band(this doesn't need to be done simultaneously) I could work on my own, just get the songs down first.
any tips or advice would be very welcome
thanks ;)
 
Here's a pretty basic article:
http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,1558,1818497,00.asp

The main questions you have to ask yourself are:

1) What are your current and future needs regarding (number of) inputs needed for recording? -- If you're only recording yourself at home, one instrument at a time, a small 2-channel USB interface might suffice. However, if you have any inclination that you might want to record a drum kit and/or an entire band at once, you'll want a firewire or PCI interface that supports at least 8 simultaneous inputs (perhaps more).

2) What quality level are you looking for? -- If this is just home/demo stuff that is not for wide distribution, you can get by on considerably less. If you will be shopping for a record deal or recording for a label, you may need to step things up.

3) How much are you willing to spend? -- There are lots of considerations, like microphones, preamps, monitors (critical), room treatment (very important), etc. and this can become very expensive. Always try to buy the best you can afford to prevent frequent upgrades that will cost you more in the long run.
 
thanks scrubs

1) i would be quite likely to want to record a full group at some stage so i guess that would point in the direction of an 8track interface,minimum.correct?what kind of price is that?
2)I would want something that would provide demos suitable to send to a label, i think.sellable well.
3) I can only spend about 1500 euro at the moment but I would certainly be willing in to add to whatever setup I end up with as i go along.Would that be possible?
what would be a good place to start from considering the above.
Thanks a million, i appreciate your help.
walkperson
 
There are a lot of options. I'll cover a couple:

1) Get a decent soundcard (M-Audio Delta 1010 is probably the least you could get by with for what you described) and some preamps or a mixer (Yamaha, Soundcraft, Mackie, etc.) to cover your input and routing needs. For monitors, the Wharfedale 8.2a (actives) are very popular on a budget. The computer is up to you, but will need to have PCI for the soundcard (if you want to go with a laptop, see option 2). For software, Cubase SE, N-Track, Tracktion, Cakewalk HomeStudio, etc. are all viable options for not much money. For mics, you'll want to get a few: some dynamics for general stuff (Shure SM57, Sennheiser MD421, etc.), a large condenser for vocals (there are about a million) and a pair of small condensers for acoustic instruments and overhead miking of a drum kit (Studio Projects C4 or Oktava MK012 seem to be popular on a budget). You will likely need some acoustic treatment for your recording space. You can build your own panels for not much money (see the Studio Building Forum for tips). Add all the necessary cables, etc. and you're set.

2) Instead of a PCI soundcard + mixer, you could get something like the Presonus Firepod. It is FireWire compatible, so you could use it with a desktop or laptop, and it has 8 built in mic preamps. Folks seem to like it's sound fairly well. I think Tascam and Mackie make mixers that have somewhat similar functionality, though I'm not familiar with them. Everything else is the same as #1.
 
great,thanks.I've been looking at some of that gear.regarding software what would be the most straight forward software?N track is inexpensive and seems quite straight forward?would it suit a beginner?
what kind of preamps would be good?
i think your first option would be the direction i would incline towards.so that 'd be something like; Ntrack software ,m audio delta soundcard,some preamps,monitors(wharferdales on my budget) vocal condensors-this would come to about 810 dollars and then a decent desktop.which is about the budget i mentioned,i think.
thanks for your help.
i'll keep researching it
regards.
 
Sounds like a good setup. As for N-Track, I haven't used it, but there is a demo version available to try it out and many folks around here seem to like it. If you're looking to attract clients based on "prestige" you may eventually have to move to ProTools or Nuendo, but for a startup home studio, I think you'll be fine. Check the N-Track forum for more input. Good luck.
 
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