boy am i confused!

[hailey]

hello, thank s so much for this site i need help and bad!!
ok here it is.. i have been recently doing alot of reading on the web about home recording and building a home studio.
but i have to say i am still a bit confused.. i think i have read so much that it all seems to be a huge mess.
i would like to start recording at home i play several instruments and am also in a 4 peice band alerna/punk.
i would like to record my band for demo sake and also go on and record my own little projects by myself. i want to be able to record my band like lay drums 1st with live scratch tracks then redo those parts. i think i have a good enough pc with enough space... ok here are my questions.. i hope i don't sound like a luatic... hard drive or drives?? do i need 2?
next, midi.. is this standard for recording do i absoulutley need
to have a keyboard for my studio, if i or we will being playing the actuall instruments live? 3rd, mixing board will i need one if i am using software like cakewalk?? usb box? do i need one? and if so more than 1?? q10 box?? my friend says i will need one? what is the exact function is this a must if i want to record like 6-8 tracks at the same time? boy am i confused... my budget is pretty open right now, i have been saving for a very long time..
i really want to get started.. i really could use the advice.
thanks for your time.. any help would be awesome!!
sorry for all the questions..

 

[baba]

hi,

i suggest many of manning1's posts on studio setup. they are reliable advice as are most of the posts of the pros that advise on this board.

if you do not need a midi sequencer for soft synths or canned drummers and want to record multiple analog inputs at the same time, then maybe check out m-audio's delta 66 or delta 1010.

if you want midi capability perhaps a 2 card setup, one dedecated to audio and one with midi sequencer might be the way, be advised however that it is tricky to sync 2 cards.

Note: to anyone trying the above configuration, and using windows xp, read about "ACPI" or advanced configuration and power interface. ACPI allows IRQ sharing and often times will result in a failed system if not addressed before installing 2 soundcards.

really, if you have saved and money is not an object, get a card with good converters like the m-audio delta series. you will not regret it later as I am with my purchase of an audigy 2 zs. as far as software, try some demos of the leading products and some of the shareware offerings which are also very good. then make a software decision. most all multitracking software will do an excellant job. your hardware and it's driver compatiblity has a much greater impact on the sound and the ease of use.

remember, many of the pro's on this board could take an outdated pentium 200 MHz computer with it's stock soundcard, armed with about any multitraker that would run on it and produce a better sounding recording than someone lacking expereince in mixing and mastering, using the lastest and greatest with all the bells and whistles. that is the bottom line in recording...here, there are many people who will save you days of frustration with their kind advice.

cheers,
baba

 

[manning1]

read my newbie article in this forum on configuring
a small studio at min cost and high quality and also my other newbie articles in the newbie section showing techiques for good songs/production.
need to know your current pc confign. if you dont have between
1 to 2ghz suggest you upgrade.
two drives definitely. 7200 rpm preferable.
MAKE SURE DMA IS ENABLED. in control panel.
audio needs high speed drives.
one for windows and your multitrack software.
the second for your audio tracks.
as a suggestion you can download the demo of powertracks that i use from pgmusic.com. 29 bucks to buy. 48 digital audio tracks.
all you ever need.
you DONT NEED a midi synth necessarily. if you have a synth just record from the line out of a mixer to sound card line in.
if you have a plain jain sound card in your pc or on board sound.
it wont be good enough.
if you want to record multiple musicians playing at once like keys, drums, bass etc. you will need a mixer to route to different sound card line inputs. look at say a delta type sound card or another multi input sound card. you will need a mixer.
anyway read the articles for more detail.

 

[hailey]

hi, thanks manning1 and baba for your help.
i have another question if you guys could maybe answer.
ok, i am thinking about maybe going with the Aardvark
direct pro q 10. then i would not need a board and could record
a bunch of tracks at one time. will i need the additional sound card? what would you recomend? also thinking of going cakewalk is that compatible ?? also headphone amp??
how is this hooked up?? thanks again... i can't wait to start this learning process.

 

[manning1]

re q10. its up to you, but you might want to look at some of the other forums on the net about it. re; driver issues that many seem to have. you didnt tell me your system confign. so its hard teo advise. to save money on hphones just take output of sound card into any casette deck and plug phonesinto the deck.
if no money. or if you have money get a hphone distn amp.
if it were me i would go delta with a seperate nice few preamps like vtb1 etc.
as to multitrack software i would advise you to try a bunch of demoes. i'm tired of telling people about powertracks.
because a lot have preconceived notions. just try the demoes and see for yourself what fits.