DMP3? What do i do!!

ElegyOfficial

ElegyOfficial

New member
Hey!!
Okay,
This is sorta embarassing so please take it easy on me :), But i bought m-audio DMP3 from a friend, for like super cheap (reason for buying it because he said its pretty necassary for studio and said its quiet and told me all the features). Never really asked him how to use it so i decided to ask here, but let me tell you what my set up is at the moment.

I have a Behringer XENYX 1222FX Mixer, M-audio Fast Track Pro soundcard, and my DMP3. and mics cables and all that jazz

Pretty much what im asking is what does it do, and how do i hook it up?
Do i connect my mic to mixer to preamp to soundcard or mic to preamp to soundcard.

And if i connect to from mixer to preamp to souncard... or whatever, tell me where to put all the cables and where everything goes. like a guide for dummies type tutorial :)

Again im probably going to be laughed at because of my stupidity so take it easy on me. im a total newwwb.
 
Hey, we all start somewhere.
Signal chain (think of it that way) should go like this:
Mic - preamp - mixer - soundcard/interface.

First, the mic is where the sounds start from, it goes first.
Second, the preamp increases the very weak microphone signal into a line level that other equipmentcan then work with.
Mixer, as the name says, this is where you can "mix" all your signals together. Next question, do you need the mixer? Only if you need more than one thing going into your interface and computer (vocals, guitar, bass etc.) If yu are just using one input at a time like just a vocal track, you could go preamp into the fast track. Just tremember, the signal coming out of the preamp is now line level, so it needs to go into a line level input, not another preamp.
Also, your mixer has preamps built into it, so you could use your mic directly into that without using the DMP3 at all.

I guess we need to know what are you trying to do as far as recording?
Good luck
 
Washburn100 said:
Hey, we all start somewhere.
Signal chain (think of it that way) should go like this:
Mic - preamp - mixer - soundcard/interface.

First, the mic is where the sounds start from, it goes first.
Second, the preamp increases the very weak microphone signal into a line level that other equipmentcan then work with.
Mixer, as the name says, this is where you can "mix" all your signals together. Next question, do you need the mixer? Only if you need more than one thing going into your interface and computer (vocals, guitar, bass etc.) If yu are just using one input at a time like just a vocal track, you could go preamp into the fast track. Just tremember, the signal coming out of the preamp is now line level, so it needs to go into a line level input, not another preamp.
Also, your mixer has preamps built into it, so you could use your mic directly into that without using the DMP3 at all.

I guess we need to know what are you trying to do as far as recording?
Good luck
Click to expand...

Okay ill try to do that.
but heres my problem.
(i only need one thing and you said i dont need mixer, with that said...)
I have settings on my amp for guitar and everything so are you saying that i cant use the mixer because i have one mic signal? or is it just a suggestion
 
ElegyOfficial said:
Okay ill try to do that.
but heres my problem.
(i only need one thing and you said i dont need mixer, with that said...)
I have settings on my amp for guitar and everything so are you saying that i cant use the mixer because i have one mic signal? or is it just a suggestion
Click to expand...

You can use your mixer but you mic signal will already be at line level when it reaches the mixer,,,,,,,,,,what you need to do is,,,,,,,,,,,,plug a 1/4 inch cable from your DMP3 Line OUT to your mixer Line IN...............

I would ditch the mixer if you are recording a track at a time though.

You don't need the mixer........

I bought a Behringer 1832 xenyx thinking that i would use it mic pres.............But my m-audio Fast Track USB sounds better.............

It is however............one HELL of a mixer for live performances!!!!!!!!
 
didn't mean to be confusing. The mixer allows you to use several inputs (multiple mics etc) If you are just using one mic, the mixer is overkill and you don't need it.
 
Washburn100 said:
didn't mean to be confusing. The mixer allows you to use several inputs (multiple mics etc) If you are just using one mic, the mixer is overkill and you don't need it.
Click to expand...

No,
there is a reason why i got it.
I got it to record drums, and not having any high mid or low things (to better control my audio) on my fast track pro my mixer made my guitar sound even better. :(

idk and i do record seperate tracks wich is sad cause i cant use mixer haha. but its ok i guess :P

(PS: my DAW is mixcraft, not pro tools or cubase cuz im bootleg like that)
 
Yo Elegy! Nobody said you*can't* use a mixer, only that you shouldn't, unless you have a bunch of simultaneous inputs. What is a mixer anyway? It's a bunch of preamps, usually cheap ones, with a lot of routing options. What does it do? It combines a bunch of signals into fewer signals *permanently*. Why do we use them? Usually because we need to get a bunch of signals (this usually means drums) into an interface or recorder that has fewer inputs than the number of mics.

Every time you run a signal through a preamp, it adds a certain amount of noise, and to some extent, it modifies (which usually means corrupts) that signal. Why do we want better preamps? Either because they corrupt the signal *less*, or because they actually change it in a way that *we like*, such as certain multi-thousand dollar tube preamps.

So- if you've got 2 inputs into the soundcard and 8 drum mics, you use a mixer to *mix* those 8 inputs into 1 or 2, and you hope you got it right the first time, because you can't change it afterwards. OK- so now you are recording vocals (1 mic, 1 channel). You plug the mic into the best preamp you have, in this case, a DMP-3. Then the line out from the preamp goes to the interface, sound card, or recorder's line in. What happens if you stick the mixer into the signal chain? It adds unecessary noise, and corrupts the signal, and you get *nothing* for it. So you plug your cool preamp into a cruddy preamp and lose some or all of what you got the cool preamp for in the first place.

The good news is, if you turn the gain control on the mixer channel way down, and the preamp up, it will reduce the effect somewhat. Now the other thing- this low-mid-high thingy- that's called EQ (equalization). These days, the EQ in your recording software is quite a bit better than the EQ on your mixer. So you would be better off sending a clean , flat signal with no EQ to the computer, and applying EQ "in the box" afterwards. The cool part about that is that if you don't like it, you can change it afterwards. If you apply the EQ going in, it's one more thing you'd better get right the first time. Furthermore, what sounded good when you started may change as elements are added to the mix.

The real problem here is that you are using the recording techniques of 1954 with the tools of the 21st century. And in spite of vintage nostalgia, the tools of 1954 were not better than they are today, just the guys using them. My advice? Use the mixer when you have to, and try running the drum overheads into the DMP-3, then to a line input on the mixer. Turn the mixer channel down, and the DMP-3 up. If you are recording 2 or fewer channels, use the DMP-3, and get the mixer out of the signal chain. Don't like moving all those cables around? That's why God made patch bays. And stop using a mixer for EQ going in. There is better and more versatile EQ in your recording software, and you can play around with it during the mixdown. Hope this helps-Richie
 
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