Building home studio help!

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ForeignFaraz

New member
Hello, I am an aspiring audio engineer that has been mixing & recording for about 6 months. I only do Rap/Hiphop, I've been wanting to upgrade my current setup to something better. I currently own a Bluebird spark SL & a cheap $99 M-Audio interface. I want a little more of a professional, cleaner, & overall better sound, So I decided to create a interface chain instead of purchasing an interface alone. To start my chain I've decided to pick the Audio Technica 4050 Microphone, because of the great reviews especially for rap vocals. Then thanks to another forum I was advised to go with the Focusrite ISA One preamp or Slate Digital VMS Linear or Golden Age 73 Pre.
I was leaning towards the Focusrite ISA One though but which do you guys recommend? I'm going to add a compressor in the chain later on but for right now I will complete it with a solid interface. I was either thinking of the Audient ID14 or Audient ID22, I don't know which is better or even if there is any cheaper alteratives? Am I able to stop the gain coming in from these and just use the preamp gain, If so how do I go about it. I apologize for so many questions, but I am passionate about this and I want to do well! Thank You so much if you have any more advice or tips around building a better studio or rap vocals let me know! Thank yall again!
 
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As already suggested, almost any decent interface these days is not going to add anything to your line in signal. You might be overthinking this part.

How is your recording and mixing space? Good room with good treatment?
 
What's the "Padding"? What size room?

Acoustic treatment is usually a combination of absorption (bass traps) and diffusion. You can also modify an acoustic space for tracking with portable treatment (gobos and/or moving blankets). For example, having gobos or something set up behind the vocalist rather than an isolation shield behind the mic can be effective.

Having the monitors set up properly and de-coupled from flat surfaces (like a desk) is important for mixing, as well as bass trapping in the corners and at the primary reflection points in a typically small home studio setting.

Quality gear can help to make life easier, and it's a subjective discussion. It can also be a bottomless money pit that doesn't really solve anything without getting around the basics first. Gain staging, mic placement, how to deal with plosives and sibilance, critical listening, EQ and compression... there's a learning curve. Having a great preamp can be a good thing, but you need to have everything else in order. It might not be the thing holding you back.

Mic choice is also very subjective. It's common to try and shoot out 2 or 3 mics that "might" work, and go with the one that sounds right for a given voice and track. Everyone's voice is different so it's not like finding a good mic for a guitar or mandolin or something with a known spectrum. Listening to the vocal without the track often won't tell you very much either.
 
Sometimes an 'isolation shield' and foam/padding can make a vocal sound dead - no amount of money in interfaces and mics will fix that, but judicious use of EQ, reverb and delay in your DAW will.
 
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