Beginnig to Home Studio Recording

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lilfilboi123

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hi all. i just wanna start off by saying i am new here, and also completely new to the world of recording. i have no idea where to start. with that being said, i would just like some advice on how to get my home studio up and running.

i plan to record mainly vocals, and guitar and percussion might accompany it at times. basically, what i have right now, is an acoustic electric guitar, a rode nt1-a condenser mic, and a roland ac-33. and a computer. from poking around websites i understand that in order for the mic to work it requires phantom power, which can be powered through a preamp. the roland ac-33 is an acoustic amp that has both a guitar and a mic (XLR) input, so it basically acts as a small PA system. i can get that up and running easily, and have played a few small gigs with just the amp, the guitar, and the mic. but i wanna take it one step further and start recording the music as well.

so what else do i need to buy in order to get started? a preamp i was looking at was the ART tube MP for like 30 bucks. how do i plug it into my computer? i also heard soundcard? do i need to buy one of those or do i already have one installed on my laptop? i have an HP dv4.

lets say i plug in the mic to the preamp, then to the ac-33 amp, along with the guitar, and then i think theres a output line from the amp to the pc? would that work? then just get recording software? or is there more to it? .. that seems to easy to believe...
 
You're better off buying an interface IMO. The Art Tube MP is about as low as it goes. Yes it works, and not completely horrid (relative to other low end things). But for < $100 (used) you can get an interface which will likely have "better" preamps x2 and other functionality.

Emu 0404
Edirol UA-25
M-Audio Mobile Pre
and tons of other options for USB. Or firewire, or ???

You'll still need a mic cable with either, but with the art you'd need a TRS cable and probably an adapter to interface with a stock soundcard. So that $30 quickly becomes $50+. And if you don't like the result, what's the point.

Basically expect $100 minimum to use an XLR based mic with a need for phantom power. Mic not included. Assuming that you don't have anything starting off. Mic + mic stand + cable + preamp + cable + converter(soundcard) + stuff. It all adds up, even if each is only $20, that's nearly $150 already. The interface takes care of the preamp + cable + converter half as it's an all-in-one.

On the cheap you could get something like a giant squid mini-mono electret mic and a headphone extension cable. That should work with many computers, if they offer plug in power (PIP). Just a small bit of current (5V +/-) that runs through the red/pink mic port. But not on all stock soundcards. And the pro-ish gear will most certain NOT have PIP.

Alternatively you can get something like the Zoom H1. Or the H4n if you need XLR inputs. It's a field recorder of sorts and also doubles as an interface. The H1 is just a field recorder AFAIK. Like an all in one mic x2 to computer. It just doesn't come with a full sized mic stand. It really depends on what you intend to do with the recordings that you make. Just for personal use / educational purposes? Or something more commercial? You might also consider just using a camcorder and extracting the audio from the video track. Zoom Q3, Kodak Zi8, and other fairly cheap options that aren't completely horrid. Depending on if you want to record the event or layer as in multi-track something more complex.
 
My obligatory standard reply-for-newbies that I keep in Wordpad so this is just a paste (I don't want to re-type this all the time):

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
Amazon.com: Home Recording For Musicians For Dummies (9780470385425): Jeff Strong: Books
(Wish I'd had that when I started; would have saved me lots of money and time and grief)
You can also pick up this book in most any Borders or Barnes&Noble in the Music Books section!

Another good one is: Recording Guitar and Bass by Huw Price
Amazon.com: Recording Guitar and Bass: Getting a Great Sound Every Time You Record (Book) (9780879307301): Huw Price: Books
(I got my copy at a place called Half-Price Books for $6!!)

And you can get a FREE subscription to TapeOp magazine at TapeOp.com

Barnes&Noble or Borders are great places to start --- they have recording books and you can go get a snack or coffee and read them for FREE! Don't pass by a good recording book --- this is a VERY technical hobby and you REALLY want to start a reference library!!!

Good Newbie guides that also explains all the basics and have good tips:
Tweak's Guide to the Home and Project Studio
Free beginner PDFs | Computer Music Magazine | MusicRadar.com
The #1 online community for musicians | Harmony Central
Tips & Techniques - Gearslutz.com

21 Ways To Assemble a Recording Rig: How to Configure a Recording Studio Rig

Also Good Info: Directory - The Project Studio Handbook - Digital Audio, Compression, Mixing, Monitoring, Microphones

Other recording books: Music Books Plus - Home Recording

Still using a built-in soundcard?? Unfortunately, those are made with less than $1 worth of chips for beeps, boops and light gaming (not to mention cheapness for the manufacturer) and NOT quality music production.
#1 Rule of Recording: You MUST replace the built-in soundcard.
Here's a good guide and user-tested suggestions that work: The Best Audio Interfaces for your Home Studio by TweakHeadz Lab
(you'll want to bookmark and read through all of Tweak's Guide while you're there...)
Another good article: Choosing an audio interface - Choosing An Audio Interface


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

Sony ACID Express (free 10-track sequencer): ACIDplanet.com: Free Downloads: ACID Xpress
Audacity: Audacity: Free Audio Editor and Recorder (multi-track with VST support)
Wavosaur: Wavosaur free audio editor with VST and ASIO support (a stereo audio file editor with VST support)\
Kristal: KRISTAL Audio Engine
Other freebies and shareware: Music Software - Computer Music Resources - Shareware Music Machine

Another great option is REAPER at REAPER | Audio Production Without Limits (It's $50 but runs for free until you get guilty enough to pay for it...)
I use Reaper and highly reccomend it...

Music Notation and MIDI recording: Melody Assistant ($25) and Harmony Assistant ($80) have the power of $600 notation packages - Myriad: Music Notation Software and much more... / Myriad : logiciels de musique, et bien plus...
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 FREE 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 gave away SamplitudeV9SE and July 2009 issue they put out Samplitude10SE, November 2010 SamplitudeSilver. FREE. It pays to watch 'em for giveaways...)

'Give a man a fish and he'll eat for a day, teach a man to fish and he'll eat forever...'
 
What he said ^

Hey Tim,

I've stolen this post from time to time and posted it in other forums, I hope you don't mind. I always credit you when I do.

I think every recording forum should have it stickied in the Newbie section, and the ONLY response to every one of these threads should be: "Look at the sticky at the top of the Newbie section".

Good info there.
 
Shadow_7 said:
Emu 0404
Edirol UA-25
M-Audio Mobile Pre
and tons of other options for USB. Or firewire, or ???
even if each is only $20, that's nearly $150 already. The interface takes care of the preamp + cable + converter half as it's an all-in-one.
Click to expand...

so lets start with just guitar and vocals. i run the guitar to one of these interfaces along with the mic, but with seperate cables, lets say two XLR cables (my guitar has an XLR cable). then from the interface to my computer? does that eliminate the need for a sound card? and is there anything else to it? (aside from recording software?)
 
lilfilboi123 said:
so lets start with just guitar and vocals. i run the guitar to one of these interfaces along with the mic, but with seperate cables, lets say two XLR cables (my guitar has an XLR cable). then from the interface to my computer? does that eliminate the need for a sound card? and is there anything else to it? (aside from recording software?)
Click to expand...
That's basically it. The interface becomes the computer's "soundcard" and is usually connected to the computer via USB, or Firewire in most cases. You'll most likely end up disabling the onboard card to avoid conflicts between the two.
 
Yes, an interface is basically a soundcard and a microphone preamp, all-in-one.

Although not all interfaces have preamps, so check to be sure. If it has an XLR connector and supplies 48V phantom it likely has a preamp. My PCI soundcard, an M-Audio Delta 44, is only 4x TRS ins and 4x TRS outs, no preamps. My USB M-Audio Mobile Pre is an interface with 2x preamps. Not all preamps are created equal, but capability before beauty.
 
so that cancels a need for my ac-33 amp then right? i can just plug instruments and mics directly into the interface? then the interface goes to my computer with which cable into which port? usb?

im looking at the m-audio MobilePre right now. for 80 bucks, sounds like a good deal. but i went on their website and i think they updated it? it looks different, and new. for i think around 180. do you think it is worth it?

what exactly am i looking for in an interface? which is better? usb or firewire? and budget is around 150, maybe 200 max. i think the (old?) MobilePre for 80 bucks is a good deal. anything better?
 
Steep One , turn on the Equipment
Last steep, remember to turn it off.
Now your almost a Pro...
 
The mobile pre is alright. Nothing too special IMO. It's worth $80 used. I wouldn't buy one new. At one time I had two so that I could use a phantom powered and dynamic mic at almost the same time. Software wise it was weird I had to launch two apps at as close as possible a time to use both with the lowest latency for the start times. Scripted in bash and using arecord.

It looks like the AC-33 is more of a portable speaker system. You could use the phone out on it to feed a line input, but you'd have to set the volume to almost 0, between 0 and 1 anyway. As in < 10%. Otherwise it's not a microphone preamp in the same light as that which you would use to record from. Or I could have misread the specs. It does have unbalanced line out (TS), but that has it's own issues. Like vulnerable to cell phone handshakes and the likes.

Emu 0404
UA-25

and other USB interfaces. I really don't keep up much with current offerings. The old mobile pre is little more than CD quality, at least in terms of sample rates. I use it mainly to archive judging tapes from marching band competitions or to use my CHEAP mics (as in webcam quality). It has input connections for almost anything. But you will need a battery box to supply the PIP needed by some mics.

Firewire has more bus bandwidth so you're less limited. Up until recent USB offerings were kind of few and far between, relative to firewire. USB wise you're not going to find > 4 channels of I/O. Although with USB3 taking hold, maybe... someday... With firewire, 24 channels and stuff is not unheard of. PCI is still the audio bus king. Which really only matters for sample rates (24/192 versus 16/48) and number of channels. Since firewire can be a more "serious" product, you tend to have better interfaces, with better preamps, for a higher price, going that route. And if none of your computers have firewire ports, that's an extra expense. Or a potential, can't use this anymore at your next computer upgrade.
 
First decide:
How many things do you need or want to record at once? A whole band or a guitar and vocal mic (do you want to record 2, 4, 8, or 16 channels/instruments at once)
Whats your budget? (if its $200 no need to look at 8 channel interfaces as you will have nothing left to buy all the other things needed)

Other things you will need:
pop filter $20-$80
mic cables $40-$80 for 2
monitors (better than computer speakers) $200 up
headphones $100
mic stands $40-120 for 2

If 2 channels at once is enough I recommend the Mackie Black Jack USB $199 end of story!
2 channels with 60 db gain, Cirris Logic converters (important to have accurate analog to digital conversion)..........cheapest decent quality that surpasses MAudio and many other brands in the price point.

When you decide a brand.........research it thoroughly and make sure your puter will work with it. And yes..........buy a book about recording and or mixing........if you don't understand a mixer board you won't understand the software either.
 
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