Hardware VS software for new studio

TelePaul

TelePaul

J to the R O C
Hi guys I'm planning on upping my game over the next 6 months from singer/songwriter facilities to a full band recording set-up; a 'live' tracking of drums, bass, guitars and vocals. Up until now, I've been using a tacam US 122 2 in interface. Now I'm faced with the choice of going down the road of a new DAW with a firepod or two, or a stand alone 16/24 track hardware recorder.Musicians friend seems to have unbelievable deals out there, and augmenting them with what i have, I think I'd be in business. For example;

Hardware:
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Tascam-2488-AllInOne-Recording-Package?sku=241108

Software:
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/PreSonus-FIREPOD-Recording-Bundle?sku=241481

I'm kinda looking for opinions....in temrs of adaptability and upgradability, whatd be the best bet? Should i let the fact that a Firepod would require a new audio-dedicated PC deter me? Couldn't I just load hardware recorded wav files into Cubase nd mix there? Thanks guys.
 
I really prefer the software side of things. My first recorder was a Zoom MRS1044 then I upgraded to a Yamaha AW14g. I wound up ebaying all of that and getting a Firewire 410 and Protools M-Powered, and later on to my current set up with a Digi 002 and Protools LE. I found the hardware side troublesome and cumbersome. Editing on either of the machines was way too much of a headache and the bulk of their built in effects sucked. You lose the ability to create aux sends and all of your effects are basically inserts unless you route out of the device.

You could pull the .wavs out of your all in one and use cubase, but its just a headache to do so.

I REALLY recommend going the software route...my gut feeling is if you don't now, you will eventually...you may as well not waste the cash going the hardware route.

Again, just my opinion.

6
 
sixways said:
I really prefer the software side of things. My first recorder was a Zoom MRS1044 then I upgraded to a Yamaha AW14g. I wound up ebaying all of that and getting a Firewire 410 and Protools M-Powered, and later on to my current set up with a Digi 002 and Protools LE. I found the hardware side troublesome and cumbersome. Editing on either of the machines was way too much of a headache and the bulk of their built in effects sucked. You lose the ability to create aux sends and all of your effects are basically inserts unless you route out of the device.

You could pull the .wavs out of your all in one and use cubase, but its just a headache to do so.

I REALLY recommend going the software route...my gut feeling is if you don't now, you will eventually...you may as well not waste the cash going the hardware route.

Again, just my opinion.

6
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Thats cool man, I've been very impressed with the capabilities of software, but I don't trust computers so much; I think theres something to be said for stuff working right out of the box. But I am quite sold on the firepod...maybe I'll get around to acquiring one of each.
 
I'll cast my vote for software too. If quality and production ability per dollar is a concern I don't think it can be beat.


F.S.
 
I would be wary of those MF package deals. I've shopped there (carefully) for years and I always find that those deals seem to include a bunch of things that are soon going to be closed out/discontinued. If you're going to sink a considerable amount of money into a full band setup, I'd put some research into every piece of the set up rather than taking what they give you. The bundle prices are good if you look at the cost of putting those same pieces together individually, but you may ultimately end up with a bunch of things that you don't want. MF has some good deals on things, but I think if you take a little longer and check out ebay, other retailers (Full Compass, B&H Photo, Digitraxx (for M-audio stuff) and others) you can find great deals on stuff.
Over the last year I went through a similar gear expansion. Pretty much every piece (interface, all the mics, outboard, etc.) was targeted after some pretty intensive research and I'm way happier with the result as opposed to what I would get for years from picking the $99 or $199 specials off the front or back covers of the MF catalog.
Good luck-- sounds like fun :D!
 
kojdogg said:
I would be wary of those MF package deals. I've shopped there (carefully) for years and I always find that those deals seem to include a bunch of things that are soon going to be closed out/discontinued. If you're going to sink a considerable amount of money into a full band setup, I'd put some research into every piece of the set up rather than taking what they give you. The bundle prices are good if you look at the cost of putting those same pieces together individually, but you may ultimately end up with a bunch of things that you don't want. MF has some good deals on things, but I think if you take a little longer and check out ebay, other retailers (Full Compass, B&H Photo, Digitraxx (for M-audio stuff) and others) you can find great deals on stuff.
Over the last year I went through a similar gear expansion. Pretty much every piece (interface, all the mics, outboard, etc.) was targeted after some pretty intensive research and I'm way happier with the result as opposed to what I would get for years from picking the $99 or $199 specials off the front or back covers of the MF catalog.
Good luck-- sounds like fun :D!
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Thanks for the advice! Though I'm naturally a wary buyer. Living in Ireland, import tax almost outweighs the benefits offerend by online retail. So I'll pick and chosse carefully.
 
I'm not so sure

How many channels do you think you're going to need simultaneously?

'Band' is a pretty vague term in that it can mean 3 people or 30.

Also, are you planning on just recording in a more or less dedicated place, or do you want to record live in various clubs? There is such a thing as the portability factor.

Ultimately you will get better results with a pc (or mac) setup, but it will require more $ in the way of inputs, especially mic pre's, depending on the number (of inputs required).
 
notCardio said:
How many channels do you think you're going to need simultaneously?

'Band' is a pretty vague term in that it can mean 3 people or 30.

Also, are you planning on just recording in a more or less dedicated place, or do you want to record live in various clubs? There is such a thing as the portability factor.

Ultimately you will get better results with a pc (or mac) setup, but it will require more $ in the way of inputs, especially mic pre's, depending on the number (of inputs required).
Click to expand...

8 i guess...I could track a 'live' sound okay with 8, right? 4 person band?
 
Is that 2 guitars, bass, and drums? Any keyboards?

How many of you sing?

How picky are you about the drum sound, how big of a set is it, and are you doing this live at gigs, or just live in your studio/practice room?

What kind of music, roughly? (preferably in terms an old American fart can understand, please ;) )
 
notCardio said:
Is that 2 guitars, bass, and drums? Any keyboards?

How many of you sing?

How picky are you about the drum sound, how big of a set is it, and are you doing this live at gigs, or just live in your studio/practice room?

What kind of music, roughly? (preferably in terms an old American fart can understand, please ;) )
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Ideally; two guitars, bassist, drummer.
5-piece kit with cymbals
In my studio/practice room
1 singer, but I could overdub vox and guitar solos

Old American fart terms? Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young.
 
TelePaul said:
Ideally; two guitars, bassist, drummer.
5-piece kit with cymbals
In my studio/practice room
1 singer, but I could overdub vox and guitar solos

Old American fart terms? Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young.
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Really? Well, now we're talkin'!

So leaning more towards the electric, rocking side as opposed to the acoustic side, I'm guessing?

Just one singer? Hmm, OK, let's see.

One vocal mic
two guitar mics
one bass mic or one channel of direct bass
leaving you four for drums/room

Yeah, that's definitely do-able, but I'll warn you, you'd probably be happier with a couple more channels. A lot of this is going to depend on how the room already sounds, how much isolation you have and/or want and really, what kind of sound you're going for. If you want a live sound, then I think you're OK with eight, but it will take some serious experimentation with the drum/room micing mostly, but hey, that's the fun part, IMO.
 
TelePaul said:
Hahahha man weren't they awesome pictures?
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Yeah, I wish somebody would do that for me!

Me & Duane Allman, me & Hendrix, and me and Rory Gallagher.

And of course, me behind the board with Sir George at Abbey Road.
 
TelePaul said:
cool. more channels would give me more drum options, right?
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Yeah, but more options period. A lot of guys like to use 2 different mics on their amps, one close, one farther out, and blend the two, to get a bigger sound. Some guys like to take one channel of miced bass, and blend a channel of the bass direct to get the fullness of the amp, but with the punch of clarity on top with the direct signal.

And you can do overdubs, but if you don't have good isolation, then the bleed from the original sometimes will interfere. Let's say you run through the song, and keep the 2 guitars and bass, but you want to redo the drums with more mics. If you've got too much bleed of the original drums on your guitar & bass mics, it might be a problem. It might not, as sometimes bleed can actually work out to your benefit, but unfortunately not that often, and you won't really know until you try it.

I think you've got a pretty good handle on things. Sorry to dominate your thread. I hope I didn't scare off anyone else from jumping in here. I wish someone would, so you get more opinions than just mine.

Good luck and have fun!
 
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