Recording setup for Dual Mic, and Dual Monitoring capability?

[LoXodonte]

Hello,

I’m making an equipment inquiry as I’m seeking a solution to a bit of a recording conundrum. I operate a game media website where we do a lot of live commentary/radio show style content. There are two of us that are needing ourselves mic’d and recorded with monitoring capabilities. I’ve first eyeballed the Mackie Onyx Blackjack but I don’t think it’s going to do everything we need. Here’s our setup:

2 PC’s
2 Headphones
2 Microphones

The main goals is for both people to hear each other in their headsets, but also be able to hear their independent computer audio. Only the first person needs to do any capture/recording of the signal.


The 1st PC needs to record the signal from both mics, and monitor those mics in his headset.
That PC will also have “Game Audio” that will need to be monitored/mixed along with those 2 microphones

The 2nd PC doesn’t do any recording, but still needs to be able to monitor the 2 microphones and its own independent game audio.


The simplest solution I could think of was a 3 device setup.

1.) 2x Microphones plug into a “middleman” device, this device outputs audio on 2 outputs. 1 output goes to the first computer, the 2nd output to the 2nd computer.
2.) Each computer has some sort of high quality sound card that receives the audio from the middle man and monitors it in real time over a Line-In along with that computers default playback device.


This was the simplest workflow I could imagine but I don’t know what products would correspond with this setup

 

[Btyre2013]

you just need a mixer, problem solved.

 

[LoXodonte]

you just need a mixer, problem solved.

Under what configuration and into what? The mackie compact mixer I was looking at appeared to only have one main-out, but also had a tape out. You think using both of those outs, converting to 3.5mm with radio shake adapters into an onboard realtek is going to have integrity sound? Thanks for trying man but I'm looking for a quality, and simple solution... not a 1 liner. :\

 

[Tadpui]

I'd say start with Bytre's suggestion and work from there.

So it sounds like you need at least 4 tracks here:
- mic 1 (mono)
- mic 2 (mono)
- computer audio 1 (stereo)
- computer audio 2 (stereo)

Depending on how much control you want after recording a session, you could do this 2 ways that I can think of:

Option A would be using a mixer with USB connectivity. You'd need 2 mic inputs and 2 stereo line inputs. Such a mixer would only output a stereo mix of your 4 input sources. So you'd have to get the mix sounding right before recording.

Option B would be to use a 6-input audio interface. Again, you'd need 2 mic inputs and you'd use 2 pairs of line inputs for the computer audio. But then you'd have 4 discrete tracks that you could mix as you wish after the session has been recorded.

I'd say that the Realtek headphone outputs would probably be the easiest way to get audio out of your computers and into a mixer/interface. You'd need to play with the levels since the headphone signal is amplified to a degree...maybe enough to drive a line input, maybe not.

A lot of interfaces/USB mixers don't agree with living alongside integrated audio devices in the same computer. Some do, some don't...it's kind of a crap shoot. The drivers get conflicted easily. So the computer that's recording from an interface might be a little fickle about running game audio on one device and supporting an audio recording device at the same time.

There might be a way to route game audio directly to a track via the audio interface, but I can't think of how to do that off the top of my head.

 

[Tadpui]

Or I guess you could use a stand-alone recorder, send all mics and game audio to that. Then after the session you could import the recorded tracks into a DAW of your choice and mix accordingly. This option would at least remove the complication of having one computer running both integrated audio card and an audio interface. And it would take any potential CPU/RAM strain off of the computer. Audio gets glitchy if it doesn't have enough CPU time to commit data to disk before the ASIO buffer fills up. If you have a strong gaming machine, this probably won't be a problem. But if you're just scraping by with the minimum requirements, the computer might not have enough horsepower to do both.

 

[BroKen_H]

Clarification please: OP states that computer one will have game audio and computer two will have independent game audio. If they are separate, what are you going to use to sync the playback?

 

[LoXodonte]

Clarification please: OP states that computer one will have game audio and computer two will have independent game audio. If they are separate, what are you going to use to sync the playback?

Wow! Lots of feedback today, thanks for the responses guys.

Ok I think I need to clarify a lot actually. Everything is sync'd in OBS (Open Broadcast Software). OBS can monitor multiple audio input devices and media streams on machine 1. It receives the game audio of machine 2 through an HDMI connection. In short: capturing the Game audio isn't the problem so rule out any mixer input needs for "hard-routing"... for lack of better phrasing.

What I meant by independent game audio was to emphasis the need for each commentator to only hear their game audio, and not the other persons computers audio. However because we will likely be using closed back headphones we'll need to monitor the voice audio of each other. So the need is for both commentators to hear one another, and the game audio that is relevant to them.

The cleanest and simplest solution in my mind still seems kind of jankety, and I don't even know if it would work.

2 mics run into a Mackie Compact.
Main out from Mackie runs to an adapter for 2x 1/4inch connection to a 3.5mm Line-in on Computer 1
Tape-out from Mackie runs to an adapter for RCA to 3.5mm connection to Line-In on Computer 2

Line-In are SounblasterZ soundcards which have monitoring for Line-in, acheives the goal allowing each person to hear themselves and one another
Soundblaster Z is set as default playback device on each computer, so the game audio goes to this device
OBS records Game Audio stream from default playback, and the audio input on Line-in

Seems clustered to me...I have 0 faith in Radio shack adapters and it seems like signal rape to take a quality mic signal and end it at a gamer grade soundcard. Plus there's a few unknowns...like will there be latency. Trying to talk with closed headphones and lag will mess you up.