Looking into recording... need a bit of help

[artimaeis]

I posted the latter half of this question over on the microphone board but figured I'd post the entire question here, just to see if opinions differ...

Okay I'll start off at the very beginning here:

I'm a music major in college (trumpet is my specialty though keyboard and vocals are by no means my weak points ^_^) and I'm looking to do a combination of vocal and instrumental recording of various ensembles around our campus.

I've been researching as much as I can all over the internet and through a few somewhat-experienced friends on the subject of recording but the problem I'm facing is a simple overload of information available. Much of that information conflicts so I'm left all but helpless.

I'm going to be doing the recording from a laptop with a pretty basic digital audio system interface, nothing that can break my bank hopefully.

Here raises my first question:
On my lapop I really have 3 options for a interface:
1.) USB based (Line 6 TonePorts seems like a good option)
2.) get a PC card with a firewire interface and use one of the many available options (any reccomendations?)
3.) spend a little more than i'd like and go with the Creative Pro E-Mu 1616 system.

I really don't like option 2 because it creates potential for a bottlneck in the middleman (pc card with firewire port), though I'm fully aware of USB's limited transfer speed and thus have doubts about that option.


Now my 2nd question lies with mic options. I've researched and researched and researched and I just can't come up with a straight answer.

idea 1: a little less expensive: a matched stereo pair of Behringer C2 (cardioid) or really any other matched pair under $300 that ya'll can reccomend
idea 2: a pair of Shure SM57 Cardiod instrument mic

yeah, those are just ideas, I really have NO clue but a mic budget of ~$300.

A little more detail on what I may be recording:

-big band
-concert band
-choir (large and small)
-individual performance of a wide variety of instruments

ANY help would absolutely be a blessing.

 

[ahrenba]

I'll try to help with what I can (or what I know).

First off, does your laptop already have a firewire port built in? If so, there are interfaces that use firewire connections which have a much higher bandwidth than USB. A firewire interface would be my first choice because of the ease of use (easier than a PCI card), and the high bandwidth. However, I am assuming that your laptop doesn't have a firewire port since you mentioned the option of a PCI card.

However, that being said, USB 2.0 is also quite fine. How many channels are you planning on recording? If it is just a couple, USB should be more than fine. This may need to be verified by a more knowledgeable member on this forum though. In fact, I am looking at picking up a USB interface sometime in the near future.

Now about the mics, I am in the same situation as you. Let's let the resident audio masters on this forum take a stab at these. I hope I was of some bit of help. Good luck!

 

[artimaeis]

No, my laptop doesn't have firewire built in, it was designed more for portability than for power usage. If the USB option really isn't too bad then I'll likely just go with that option. Thanks a lot for your advice ^_^

 

[Almy]

So many possibilities. You've started the right way. Researching for a while to get started. Honestly I would suggest easing your way into it. Don't try to do too much too soon. You won't get everything you want, and you'll be cheaper on the quality. But that way you can play with things and learn as you go...and then really KNOW what you want as you upgrade later.

Aside from that I can offer a link to a pretty nice mic for your horn:

http://www.appliedmicrophone.com/instruments/profile/Trumpet

 

[jdier]

I am a fan of the SM57's and you will own and use them for the rest of your life. Avoid the Behringer stuff. They will wind up in the trash eventually.

 

[blue4u]

I've only been at this for a couple of years myself but I've had two Line 6 devices. They sound decent but the clicks and pops I got while recording made me crazy. I'm not a fan of USB at all! Perhaps 2.0 is more stable but FireWire has been the right solution for me.

If you go with FireWire you MUST make sure you have a quality FW card. Texas Instruments chipset is typically known to be the most stable. Newer PCs should have decent FireWire ports though.

I'm using Tascam FW-1082 and it's been solid for me so far. No hiccups.

Rich

 

[TimOBrien]

No, my laptop doesn't have firewire built in, it was designed more for portability than for power usage. If the USB option really isn't too bad then I'll likely just go with that option. Thanks a lot for your advice ^_^

You can easily put a firewire PCMCIA or Express card in your laptop (depending on the brand).

Yes, make sure it has TI chips.


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My obligatory standard reply that I keep in Wordpad:

First off, immediately get a good beginner recording book (spend $20 before spending hundred$/thousand$) that shows you what you need to get started and how to hook everything up in your studio:
Home Recording for Musicians by Jeff Strong - $15
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/07...ce&n=283155&n=507846&s=books&v=glance
(Wish I'd had that when I started; would have saved me lots of money and time and grief)

Good Newbie guides that also explains all the basics:
http://www.tweakheadz.com/guide.htm
http://www.computermusic.co.uk/page/computermusic?entry=free_beginner_pdfs

21 Ways To Assemble a Recording Rig:
http://www.tweakheadz.com/rigs.htm

Also Good Info:
http://www.theprojectstudiohandbook.com/directory.htm

Other recording books:
http://musicbooksplus.com/home-recording-c-31.html


Plenty of software around to record for FREE to start out on:

Audacity: http://audacity.sourceforge.net (multi-track with VST support)

Wavosaur: http://www.wavosaur.com/ (a stereo audio file editor with VST support)

Kristal: http://www.kreatives.org/kristal/

Other freebies and shareware: www.hitsquad.com

Another great option is REAPER at http://www.cockos.com/reaper/
(It's $40 but runs for free until you get guilty enough to pay for it...)

Music Notation and MIDI recording: Melody Assistant ($20) and Harmony Assistant ($80) have the power of $600 notation packages - http://myriad-online.com
Demo you can try on the website.

And you can go out to any Barnes&Noble or Borders and pick up "Computer Music" magazine - they have a full studio suite in every issue's DVD, including sequencers, plugins and tons of audio samples. (November 2006 they gave away a full copy of SamplitudeV8SE worth $150, November 2007-on the racks Dec in the US- they're giving away SamplitudeV9SE. It pays to watch 'em for giveaways...)