basic cost of moving to pc?

H

hotpotato

New member
I have around £600 to get a recording set up. Already have the mics, instruments and a pre amp, so will it be a stand alone or PC?

I'm this close to buying the Fostex VF80 or Korg D1200 MkII but am having second thoughts as i'll be looking to get a pc in the not too distant anyway. How much more would i need to spend to get a set up comparable with these two units?

I know i can pick up a PC with 80 odd gigs for not too much but what other 'bits' do i need and how much?

I'm a one man band so multiple imputs aren't neccessary.

Also, What is the learning curve like with the various recording/ editing programmes like cubase? I've only ever used 4 track tape machines some time ago.

Thanks very much for any guidance and info.

Mac
 
If you're going to get a PC anyway, and if it will be located somewhere convenient for you to record, then it makes much more sense to use that rather than the stand alone. On the other hand be prepared for a longer learning process; I had a VF80 and was using it 10 minutes after opening the box, whilst the PC route is a bit more complex. If you're buying a PC with music in mind then think about cooling fan noise and the spec needs to be better than an office machine.

The other bits you'll need to start with if you go PC are basically a decent soundcard and a software multitracker. For the soundcard the M-audio 2496 (for example) is a decent piece of entry level kit, (it's about £110) and for the software you can download n-Track for a free demo from www.fasoft.com; lots of people here love it and if you like it it's only $69 to buy. You'll learn more and add bits and pieces but that's a sound start.

The other big thing you need to understand, more important than choice of PC, software etc., is what you are going to monitor through. You really need to trawl / search this bbs on this topic - I wasted a lot of time because I didn't understand the importance of room / monitoring.

Hope that helps - I'm sure more advice will follow.
 
cheap

You could do what I did. I bought a m audio quattro.(145 dollars on ebay.)Then you could pick up sonar, by cakewalk. They work good together. the quattro uses usb port so it is easy to hook up. Cakewalk sonar is hell of easy, and hook up is easy. I use to have a rolland vs 1880. I hated it. It is boring and a pain in the ass. After you get that stuff, there are plenty of websites like this one to get free plug ins. Some good some not so good. Or you could do the thing everyone hates because its so easy and its kind of stealing. Download all the programs you could imagine(except sonar 3, it doesnt work) for free from a downloading place.(I dont know the name of any, but like napster. But peoples dont likes that. They rather you buy it. Sonar is about 300 dollars,but you have the cash.

I recommend m audio products they work good for me, and cakewalk sonar. Cakewalk products are hell of easy.
 
i'm running a 2800+ currently with a Digidesign Digi 002. I sometimes wish I would've gone a different route, only because of the software limitations (you HAVE to use Pro Tools basically) but I'm still quite pleased with what I can do. Since I have only 4 pre-amplified inputs, I'll sometimes use a mixer to get all of the mics that I need. If you're interested in going the Pro Tools setup, I would recommend getting Behringer 2442 mixer off of ebay. It has preamp outs for each track; which means you can in essence have a track for each mic instead of a stereo channel for the mixer mics (I know it's confusing but I'm still learning all the lingo haha)

i sell computers at my company, so if you're looking for a good price and a reliable system let me know. my contact info will be below

Steve Taylor, A+ CNA IC3
Account Manager, CompSource
1-866-STEVE-00
steve@compsource.net
 
Monitors

Thanks guys. Gary, sorry to be lazy in the first instance but are there some basic tips you can offer on monitoring. I've read you around here for some time and you clearly know your stuff.

I was planning to use my sony stereo speakers (Have used good quality stereo speakers in the past with some decent results)and as for the room....well it'll have four walls and a wooden floor. I suppose i could hang stuff on the wall but it's my living room so i'd rather not, even if temporary. Unfortunately i don't have enough rooms to dedicate one to recording.

As for making mistakes......my first four track demo 10 odd years ago was recorded using a 15W guitar amp as a monitor.......Anyone done anything more stupid?!

Mac
 
yep. i use my computer 5.1 channel speakers. LMAO big mistake sometimes. ;) i bought some cheap sony monitor headphones.
 
Hi hotp. I don't feel qualified to offer tips on monitoring - I can tell you what didn't work for me (Alesis M1 actives) and a suggestion (from Massive Master), which is a decent power amp and a pair of Wharfedale Diamond 8.2s. Huge improvement but I don't kid myself I'm very far up the scale. Otherwise the Tannoy reveal passives seem to be pretty cheap in the UK at the moment and, for what they are, get good user feedback.

I'm still pretty new to all this, the only important thing I've learned is the degree to which you really have to learn to use your ears. Whatever monitoring system you get it is very worthwhile to spend a lot of time listening to your favourite CD's over it; I often listen to just one part at a time, seeing how it fits in the spectrum and forming the basis for a reference when I start doing my own mixes. Which aren't very good yet, by the way:rolleyes:

Where in the UK are you by the way?
 
For some good monitors, go with either the Event PR5's (I think that's the model number) or the M-Audio BX5's. Both sets are powered, so you don't need an amp--you can just plug them into your mixer or outs of your soundcard (which I recommend a m-audio delta44). Here in the states either pair goes for $300USD. They are a good buy, and small and portable, which it seems like you would benifit from.

Here's what I run: PC (Athlon AMD XP2400 with 512 mb of ram and Windows XP), M-audio Delta44 to get the signal into the computer, behringer 20ch. mixer (for mic pre's--the delta44 only has line inserts, so you've gotta go with mic pre's) You can get soundcard/break-out box combos with mic pre's (M-audio omni-studio????) but you pay a bit more, plus a mixer is a nice addition. I use Vegas 4.0 software (which is pretty expensive. . .a friend gave me his bought copy--he didn't want it. . .i got lucky). Vegas (by sonic foundry) is super user-friendly, but, like I said. . .559.99USD. You can use pretty much any recording software. . .it's all somewhat similar if its from a decent company. I'm going to buy probably the M-Audio BX5 monitors. . .they sound really good. For now I use some AKG headphones (which isn't too bad a way to go if you've got a limited budget). They get the job done.

If you've got all the mic's and instruments, you've got probably the most expensive part out of the way (for what you need to start out with, anyway). The computer might cost a bit--the bigger and more powerful the better, and anything you can do to dampen the sound (like quiet fans, power supplies, etc.) will help out big-time.

I'm by no means an expert, but I've got a bit of experience under my belt.

-Brian
 
Another thing you might want to consider as far as inputs go: You said you were a one man band, so multiple inputs is not necessary, but you might benifit from multiple inputs. Many instruments (and vocals for that matter) can be greatly improved sound quality wise with several mic's at once. For example: when I record acoustic guitar, I use a condensor mic about 14 inches away pointed at the 14th-ish fret, and then I record the line in on another channel. I can get a much fuller and better sounding guitar track with that set-up, using two inputs. I really want to try micing the neck of the guitar with a dynamic or small diaphram mic and then another condensor over my shoulder pointed down towards the guitar to pick up some more of the acoustic quality along with the line in. . .so 3 inputs at once. It's not THAT much more expensive to get a card with multiple inputs (no more than 4 would be necessary I wouldn't think--works great for me and I'm a one man band myself).

You certainly could get a great sound from just one good input and multi-tracking, but multiple inputs would give you a little more creative freedom and the ability to get better sounds. . . .just something to ponder.

-Brian
 
Monitoring + Rooms

Gary, I'm in Nottingham mate. What sort of room do you record in? I'm a little concerned that the room i'm planning to record in may have a bit too much natural reverb, with the wood floor and all. I don't live there at the moment but happaned to be playing my acoustic there last night and i noticed a massive difference in the sound to my own place, where there are big fluffy carpets and sofa's everywhere.

I've a feeling i've read somewhere that the fuller and softer the room, the better base it is for recording? Is that the general concensus?

That said i can remember that the first demo i did, we ended up recording acoustic and vocals in the bathroom and stairwell for added reverb cos it sounded so dead everywhere else. But... it's so long since i recorded, i've forgotton what little i learned. Startin all over.....

Mac
 
Experimentation and expeience seem to be the only answers! I've made my duff recordings in all sorts of places. We did have a dedicated room for the band which I did some treatment to and had upgraded to horrible, but we've just split up so it's back to square one. Sometimes just moving a mic a few feet, or hanging a duvet across a couple of mic stands behind it, can make a big difference. One thing I do know is that if you try to deaden a room too much, and don't do it professionally, all you do is kill the high mids and highs and end up with a horrible boxy sound. Working in a live room seems to be better than a badly deadened one.

There's so much information on this site - I find the studio building and display forum fascinating, and there are lots of insights there that help even if you can't build a dedicated studio.

Have fun and be patient:)
 
Sorry, forgot to update on that. Korg D1200 mkII, £600. Wanna get started straight away. I'm so far off pro that i figure 12 tracks is plenty to get something decent down without the unlimited editing that pc offers. I work with pc's at work and it would be nice to get away from them. Maybe at a later date......
 
hotpotato said:
Sorry, forgot to update on that. Korg D1200 mkII, £600. Wanna get started straight away. I'm so far off pro that i figure 12 tracks is plenty to get something decent down without the unlimited editing that pc offers. I work with pc's at work and it would be nice to get away from them. Maybe at a later date......
Click to expand...

I own a Korg D16 as well as a pc multi track set up. I think you'll find the Korg really easy to use. Check out http://www.korgforums.com if you haven't already.
 
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