computer multi tracking set up ... with pickled eggs ...

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thebox

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heck, if they can do it, so can I .....
I want to record my band live on my pc, ie 8+ separate tracks. Will the terratecEWS88MT souncard and a spirit folio f1 mixer be a good place to start? Anyone using this precise set up?
thanx for any replies ...
 
erm ... yes ...

What's wrong with 8 tracks at once? I thought that was the idead of multiple input cards such as the terratec ews88mt card ... 4 for the drums, 1 bass, 1 guitar, 1 keyboards, 1 voc ... = 8.

Ok, I am a newbie but it doesn't sound that odd ...
We improvise a lot during the songs - that's why I want to record the band live.

Or have i got it all wrong ...?!
 
Depending on your PC horsepower, recording 8 tracks at once should not be a problem. I'm not familiar with the terratec but on the Delta 1010 I often use the 8 inputs at once.

You need software as well. You got it all right.
 
that's a relief

I have a PII ~500Mhz (can't remember exactly- i'm abroad at the moment) with 128 Mb RAM. Will that do ?

Anything with regards mixers?

And another thing ... what's the difference between un/balanced inputs ?

ta
 
The 128RAM might slow ya down.... I have 256, and everything works great, with my Digi Breakout box......even with 8 tracks open at once recording......

Think that, 8 tracks of input being assigned to different channels, on your computer, then bussed to 2 channels....

Thats alot of shit goin' on at once.......

All you can do is try it.... It should work..... What are the requirements of the sofware bundle?

For my Protools, I needed

256K
P3 over 133 mHZ
INTEL Chipset.... (Via brand chips don't work)

But your requirements will be different.....

Joe
 
I assume you mean 256MB of memory, not 256K. You can't get a P3 as low as 133 MHz (not even close). Maybe you're thinking of bus speed, but so far there are no P3's made to be run on a higher than 133MHz bus, AFAIK (although it's possible by overclocking).

128MB of memory should be fine for recording 8 tracks. Your hard drive speed is the bigger issue - it should be a 7200rpm UDMA/66 or you might have trouble (speaking from my personal experience). With a good, fast hard drive I've recorded 8 tracks simultaneously on as low as a Celeron 375 (overclocked 300a) with 128MB of RAM using both Cool Edit Pro and Logic Audio. The memory and CPU speed will be more of an issue when you start using a bunch of realtime effects, but still a P3 500+ and 128MB will go a long way, especially if you're only using 8 tracks. I've recently mixed 30 tracks loaded with effects on my P3-800 / 256MB with no trouble (using Logic).
 
Diragor said:
Your hard drive speed is the bigger issue - it should be a 7200rpm UDMA/66 or you might have trouble
Click to expand...

Erm ... what on earth does the 7200rpm UDMA/66 stand for ? Hope I'm not being too stupid, but how do I check my own set up? I'll probably use Cubase to record although I also have Cool Edit.

I asked about the un/balanced inputs because someone suggested the a Hoontech multiple input card that i scheaper than the terratec, but I checked and it seems to have unbalanced inputs. Is that a tragedy? Also I can't seem to find any uk dealers for hoontech.

But I'll probably go for the terratec anyway ...

ta verrily
Tom
 
:) 7,200 Rotations Per Minute.

That is the speed you should want for your hard drive, 7,200 rpm's, not 5,400 rpm's.

spin
 
I am sure the rest of the group will expound on your question.

:D:D:D:D

spin
 
If you're going to buy more RAM, GET IT NOW!!!! RAM is unreally cheap right now. I went to a comp show with the woman I work with and my bassist (we're starting to build comps) and they had 512MB of PC133 RAM for $50!!!!! I WAS ABOUT TO FLIP OUT!!! It was generic, but hey!! Why not? :) In a personal opinion, though, and something we will not put into the comps we build, don't get generic memory. It more than likely will be a waste of money. Oh yeah, 256MB of PC2100 RAM (DDR)...I can get it for like $80. :D I love having connections...now if I could just get some money to USE those connections...heh.

Brandon
 
Clarification

Sorry for my errors, I was on the phone talking and trying to type that at the same time.....

ProTools LE... Requires

192 MB RAM
P3 500MHZ minimum
INTEL CHIPSET


Im running....

256 MB RAM
P3 800MHZ
20 gig hardrive.
INTEL CHIPSET on ASUS BOARD (spelling?)

and It runs beautiful.....(So far)....

It all rides on what your recording software (system)... requires......But yeah, you should be ok


Have you checked out the net for info yet?

Joe
 
Not to sound tedious but ... how do I check my hard disk speed?
And can I just keep adding RAM to my system regardless of the fact that i only have a PII machine?

Any chance of directing the discussion towards the soundcard and mixer I asked about?
 
Now that he mentions it, Godsguitarist is right. You may not *need* any more memory right now, but you can never have too much and it's a great time to buy. How much you can add depends on your motherboard. SDRAM modules (used by PII-PIII) will take up a slot on your motherboard and you may have 2-4 slots total. You already have at least one slot taken up by what you've got. That's why you'll want to buy as much memory as you can afford on one module when you do upgrade, otherwise you could end up filling all your available slots with smaller modules and have to get rid of one to upgrade.

There are some utilities out there to test your hard drive speed but I don't know any of them in particular. If you're lucky maybe you can see a model number in the device manager in Windows and look it up on the manufacturer's website.

Somebody answered half of your question about the 7200rpm UDMA/66 specifications. To put it simply, the 7200rpm refers to the rotation speed of the drive (the actual platter inside that spins) and the UDMA/66 has to do with how fast it can communicate with the rest of the computer. You'll see those specifications on the box (or the online description of the unit) if you buy a new drive. 7200rpm is the fastest spin for IDE drives at the moment (I'm pretty sure). Your motherboard may not support UDMA/66 but you can get an add-on card for that. If you buy a new motherboard there are some that support UDMA/100 (and you need a drive that specifically supports it too).

I don't know anything about the mixer or sound card you mentioned. I have a MOTU 1224 audio I/O and an Alesis Studio 32 mixer and I love them, for whatever that's worth.
 
I have the Spirit F1 mixer. Great for the price $179 u.s. dollars
 
A few more notes on RAM..... how much RAM you add and what kind to add completely depends on your motherboard. Your processor type will be a good indicator of what kind of board (or what was hot at the time your processor was) you have. Since you are running a PII machine, I'm going to suspect you've had it for about 2 years, and thus, more than likely, have 2 options for upgrading your memory, to begin with. You probably have SIMM and DIMM slots on your motherboard. SIMM slots are a.k.a 72 pin memory sticks. You have to have two of the same to get either one to work. They have to be matched as well. Motherboards now do not have these on them (more than likely), and now have what we call DIMM, or 168 pin memory. These can be used one at a time, no problems. These are the most popular ones used to day. If you have SIMM slots, I wouldn't even bother trying to fill them unless it is necessary because SIMM memory is more expensive and you have to have matching ones, WHEN you can find it. Another thing you will need to check is your memory bus speed. There are several types, but there are only two that you're looking at, more than likely. They are PC100 and PC133. PC100 is what you more than likely have, but you could have PC133. Check your motherboard, see what kind it is and what model it is, then go check out the specs at the manufacturers website. If nothing else, you can do a search on google with what you do find (had to do this the other day with my cheap pice of crap machine...after about an hour, I finally figured out what kind of motherboard I had...I even had to investigate through a foreign language site!! AHHH!!). While you're there, you will also want to check how much RAM your model of motherboard will recognize. It will more than likely not be higher than 256MB, if it's that. Thus, don't buy RAM that is higher because you'll only get what your motherboard can handle. After you figure these three things out, you can go get memory. :D I know it's a lot, but if you want to get the most out of your machine, go by this. I will say this, I"m not COMPLETELY positive on the have to have two SIMMs, it's what my bassist told me. :D But I trust him. If you have any questions about anything further, feel free to email me. Later!!!

Brandon
 
Thanks for all the replies, guys!
Never thought I'd get so much feedback. I'll try and figure out my specifications when I get home (I'm studying abroad at the moment).
Hopefully within a few months I'll be answering a few questions, and not just asking!

BTW ... DavidK ... $179 for the spirit folio f1? Is that the retail price in the states? Damn!

like I said, ta

Tom
 
Yeah, that's true about the two matching SIMMs. I had old Pentium machines that would have 4 slots and you had to fill two at a time with matching modules.
 
Thebox, yup, I paid $179 at Circuit city in the states. They were having a blowout sale, and ironically I went to the store looking for a synth, saw the price on the mixer, and just bought it without knowing anything about it, and it has been great.
 
What's wrong with 8 tracks at once? I thought that was the idead of multiple input cards such as the terratec ews88mt card ... 4 for the drums, 1 bass, 1 guitar, 1 keyboards, 1 voc ... = 8.

Ok, I am a newbie but it doesn't sound that odd ...
Click to expand...

Sorry I havnt been on the net in a while. Anyway, no the idea of recording 8 tracks at once doesnt sound odd, but the idea of doing with a spirit folio f1 does because, correct me if I am wrong, it doesn't have 8 busses.
 
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