Just to let ya'll know ive got some new gear, a DMP3 and a delta 44 to add to my collection of stuff i've been recomended to buy, mainly from the wise dudes on this site. So just to say thanks for 'guiding' me in spending money i'd have thought impossible/insane a couple of years ago. I'll hopefully spend as much of tomoro as possible testing it out and i'll post my results whenever ive gottem. Cheers
Thak-ee thank-ee
- Thread starter thesobe
- Start date
Just to let anyone that's new to recording know, that by spending £800 quid you can get a setup that will give you a sound the average guy on the street wouldn't question if told it had been done in a professional studio.
I'm sure i've seen a similar posts to this in the 4 years i've been frequenting this board, but I now feel I can say that with A LOT of time speant reading and generally messing about recording stuff, the home recordist can achieve results that make going to a studio to record a demo POINTLESS.
You could spend 5 days in some studios and spend as much as it costs to get set up in a room in your house. Theres no pressure or time constraints on your music and you can have 40 takes of the one part if you want without having to worry about the clock ticking and the money thats flowing out your pockets. Music means a lot to me, and thats something I'd never compromise... if i'm in the mood to track something i want to do it right there, not book a room for 2 weeks on monday or whatever...
So basically, i wish someone said this to me in the first place and i didnt have to retrack all my choons, but spending the money on these particular items (see below) will give you a sound more than adequate for 90% of people that are serious about music. Please note that i'm referring to people that are musicians first, as opposed to sound engineers making a living out of this, before ya'll jump my case saying how my vocal mic was only 60 quid.
FYI i used an old 16bit audiowerk card and an audiobuddy preamp before, and got results that satisfied me for a long time, although the only reason i didnt upgrade was lack of cash. We produced a CD that was suitable for getting gigs etc, and again most people were pretty surprised when they found out it wasnt done in a studio. As long as you read up on your equiptment and are willing to put the time in, it's not really rocket science.
So untill you get a record deal and have someone pay for your studio time, I would HIGHLY recommend the following gear. Contrary to popular belief you don't need a top end pc with 2340456 GB of ram to run recording software, as long as you're not looking to spend 500 quid on the latest version of Cubase. It should be the music that does the talking anyway, theres no clip at the start of a cd that says what software was used in production. Coz lets face it, no one cares. If the music's good then it'll shine through any sortof recording (to an extent) and if it's not then it really doesnt matter if you speant 3 grand on a mic.
The last version of cubase for example was used by the pro's a couple years ago FFS. If thats not good enough for you then you're on your way to spending everything you've got on small boxes with metal things inside em that make your guitar sound louder. Fair play to ya.
I'm not trying to offend any of the professional guys that might be on this board, I'm trying to advise people that are in the same position as i was a few years ago that you don't need to buy the 500 quid 'entry level' pre amp or whatever if you want your songs to sound 'semi decent'.
Thats my rant over btw. Ye, here's the gear that I've got. I think its good..enough. I'd advise doing a search on these items to see other people's opinions and possible alternatives, but i'm more than satisfied with my purchases, and feel like i have only now 'arrived' at where i was trying to get when i started. I's say thats a pretty cool thing, so thanks again to everyone that recommended gear etc, and all the best to anyone thats still looking for that little something more.
1Ghz computer - ebay - £70
Cubase vst 32 - ebay - £40
Delta 44 - new - £90
DMP3 - new - £150
Audiobuddy - new - £60
SP B1 pair - £120
SM57 - new - £70
Senheiser e835 - new - £60
Yamaha mixer used only for monitoring - £70
Cables + stands - £70
I'm sure i've seen a similar posts to this in the 4 years i've been frequenting this board, but I now feel I can say that with A LOT of time speant reading and generally messing about recording stuff, the home recordist can achieve results that make going to a studio to record a demo POINTLESS.
You could spend 5 days in some studios and spend as much as it costs to get set up in a room in your house. Theres no pressure or time constraints on your music and you can have 40 takes of the one part if you want without having to worry about the clock ticking and the money thats flowing out your pockets. Music means a lot to me, and thats something I'd never compromise... if i'm in the mood to track something i want to do it right there, not book a room for 2 weeks on monday or whatever...
So basically, i wish someone said this to me in the first place and i didnt have to retrack all my choons, but spending the money on these particular items (see below) will give you a sound more than adequate for 90% of people that are serious about music. Please note that i'm referring to people that are musicians first, as opposed to sound engineers making a living out of this, before ya'll jump my case saying how my vocal mic was only 60 quid.
FYI i used an old 16bit audiowerk card and an audiobuddy preamp before, and got results that satisfied me for a long time, although the only reason i didnt upgrade was lack of cash. We produced a CD that was suitable for getting gigs etc, and again most people were pretty surprised when they found out it wasnt done in a studio. As long as you read up on your equiptment and are willing to put the time in, it's not really rocket science.
So untill you get a record deal and have someone pay for your studio time, I would HIGHLY recommend the following gear. Contrary to popular belief you don't need a top end pc with 2340456 GB of ram to run recording software, as long as you're not looking to spend 500 quid on the latest version of Cubase. It should be the music that does the talking anyway, theres no clip at the start of a cd that says what software was used in production. Coz lets face it, no one cares. If the music's good then it'll shine through any sortof recording (to an extent) and if it's not then it really doesnt matter if you speant 3 grand on a mic.
The last version of cubase for example was used by the pro's a couple years ago FFS. If thats not good enough for you then you're on your way to spending everything you've got on small boxes with metal things inside em that make your guitar sound louder. Fair play to ya.
I'm not trying to offend any of the professional guys that might be on this board, I'm trying to advise people that are in the same position as i was a few years ago that you don't need to buy the 500 quid 'entry level' pre amp or whatever if you want your songs to sound 'semi decent'.
Thats my rant over btw. Ye, here's the gear that I've got. I think its good..enough. I'd advise doing a search on these items to see other people's opinions and possible alternatives, but i'm more than satisfied with my purchases, and feel like i have only now 'arrived' at where i was trying to get when i started. I's say thats a pretty cool thing, so thanks again to everyone that recommended gear etc, and all the best to anyone thats still looking for that little something more.
1Ghz computer - ebay - £70
Cubase vst 32 - ebay - £40
Delta 44 - new - £90
DMP3 - new - £150
Audiobuddy - new - £60
SP B1 pair - £120
SM57 - new - £70
Senheiser e835 - new - £60
Yamaha mixer used only for monitoring - £70
Cables + stands - £70