Advice - MBox, ProTools and Ntracks...

  • Thread starter Thread starter Lane
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Lane

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I"ve been using Ntracks for a while and recently bought an Mbox. The box is great, but the ProTolls software is beyond my comprehension abilities..... so I'm thinking I should sell it and go back to Ntracks, which I at least partially understand....... my question is - can I get as good a quality recording with ntracks? I have a mixer for my mic and guitar inputs, with pres... and it seems to work OK, but I want to get it as good as possible..... .

Also, I have a SB Audigy card, and I think its not allowing me to record 24 bit.... do I need a better card and, if so, some suggestions?


Thanks!
 
I'm kind of the same boat as you, trying to find a way to record and get receive high quality. I'm looking at some of the M-Audio equipment and MOTU equipment. So you may want to check out some of that stuff, because I think it would probably produce better recordings than the Soundblaster card, but I'm not positive, hope this helps a little.
 
Motu stands for Mark of the Unicorn, very good interfaces, I believe. Check them out.
 
It doesn't really matter what kind of software you use since good sound comes from the quality of the soundcard. So, to answer your question, yes you will be able to get the same results from N-tracks as Pro-tools.

Cy
 
OK... so the card is the key then? Now... are most good ones 24 bit? What do I need to look for in them? I don't mind spending some $ to get it right.(within reason!).... should I use PCI or the USB ones?
 
Have you tried using the Mbox with Ntrack? There is an ASIO driver available from Digidesign...try it, you might like it.

Later,
C
 
Soundcards come in many variations. The soundcard that works for you depends on how you record. Are you just going to record yourself? If so then you will only need a card with 2 ins. How many outputs do you need? If you plan on mixing in the pc then you would only need a card with 2 outs. You would want more outs if you needed a separate output for each track, for example if you wanted to mix to an analog board.

There are many cards, if not most of them, that are 24bit (24/96).

If you have the cash, then definately consider the MOTU products. Lynx, Hammerfall, Aardvark, and Echo are other brands you may want to look into.

If your pc is an AMD Athlon with VIA chipsets, then you need to make sure the card you plan on buying supports these chipsets. All of them support Intel, so you are safe if that's what you have.

Cy
 
Wow... thanks. First - I thought I could only use ProTools with my Mbox - the driver will let me use Ntracks? Hmmm, I'll look into it.

Now... here's what I"m doing - simply recording my acoustic guitar and my vocals - thats it, though I would like to figure out how to make my midi keyboard work and maybe make some rhythm, bass or percussion back tracks... but I just do acoustic, folk, fingerstyle music.

I use a Behringer mixer that gives me all the inputs I need - pretty much a mic or two and my pickup in my Taylor guitar.... so I dont' need a ton of inputs or, I assume, a break out box?

I want good sound quality - I dont' need the finest there is, but good. I dont want to spend a ton, but wont cheap out either. I don't know about the MOTU stuff... just started looking and that looks pretty steep and what I've seen are interfaces - how does that differ from a sound card?

I sure appreciate all this info! Thanks
 
If you go to www.digidesign.com and hit the "DiSK" link at the top then "DiSK Flix" and there are a bunch of movies on the basics of Pro Tools.

The MBox is an interface. Think of a sound card and an interface as doing the same thing, getting sound in and out of your computer. MOTU stuff is great but I don't think they have anything on a smaller scale, like a 2 in 2 out. all the products mentioned are good. Try to take the time with Pro Tools, it's not that bad, and if you find it's not your style, then do some research. Good Luck.
 
I've seen the videos that you referr to.... only prob. is that my slow dial up wont let me get them and you cant save them to disk..... darn it.

I will keep trying with Pro Tools, but it really boggles me. I can do Ntracks and just want to get 24 bit, which I cant with my SB, and, I hope, better audio. The SB seems OK, but I"m hoping I can get better - mabye the Mbox will do that? Ive downloaded the ASIO driver, and am trying to figure out how to get Ntracks to see the Mbox - no luck yet!

Thanks, again
 
I went straight from n-Track to Pro Tools LE, and I didn't really have a problem. What it is that you're getting caught up on?

It does have a kind of not-so-user-friendly interface (at first), but after getting acquainted with it, it's pretty easy to get along with.


I find it to be more powerful and efficient (in some areas) then n-Track... but there's not a huge difference... so if you get a nice soundcard, (or use the ASIO drivers for the M-Box) then you can stick with n-Track (if that's what you're more comfortable with).


WATYF
 
I guess its just different and I'm comfortable with Ntracks... but I'll keep trying ProTools.

For now... how do I get the Mbox to work with the ASIO driver? I've installed it, but cant get Ntracks to see it yet....
 
Never mind my last question.... I got the ASIO driver working in NTracks. Haven't had time to work with it, but I'm hoping that I'll see an improvement in audio quality using the MBox as my input instead of the SB Audigy - hoping so anyway.

I'm open to more suggestions~
 
I got the Mbox working a just moved to 24 bit and I'm trying to mixdown including an MP3 or WMA... it says it can't do it like the 16 bit version did.... what am I doing wrong?
 
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