Everything I need... ?

[Pinny]

Hello! I'm looking to invest money into turning my room into a little mini-studio.
Right now my setup is really horrible... Just an EDIROL UA-25 connected to my pc and that's it. I'm looking to buy 6 mics, (5 instrument and one vocal).

My question is, I've really got no idea about all of this and I was wondering what equipment I need? I don't mean specifically, (Like say, for a mic just 'mic' instead of 'shure SM57'). I probably need a Mic Preamp. How many of those do I need then? ... And a mixer. And what else? Any help is appreciated!

 

[Kevin Deschwazi]

First consideration should be the environment. If the room(s) you record and mix in is/are up to scratch then you'll be able to make nice sounding recordings with a very rudimentary and low cost set up.

Now to answer the question you were actually asking ().

If you’re using mics you’ll need preamps. Sometimes these are standalone units, sometimes they will be built into an interface (like your Edirol) or mixer. You’ll need as many mic pres as tracks you intend to record at once. You’ll also need an interface and the number of inputs required will depend on the same thing.

You probably won’t need a mixer if you’re recording into a computer.

So to answer your question fully you need to say how many tracks you’ll be recording simultaneously, the instruments you’ll be recording and what your budget is.

 

[Pinny]

Hi, thanks for the reply.
I'm going to be recording at least 4 simultaneous tracks for the drums.
I'm going to be using guitars, basses, drums, vocals and keyboards.
And my budget...well, I always say if you want to invest in something, invest good so I think I'm gonna save up as much as 3000 euros... :s

 

[jdier]

I think the UA-25 has to go then... You will need something that can get 4 tracks at once. I would suggest getting an RME Fireface 800. It has the 4 preamps you need to get started plus room to add better/different preamps later.

Either unit eliminates the need for a mixer. Just get the unit, plug into your computer, plug in some mics and you are ready to go.

For mics I would personally suggest getting a couple SM57's, an SM7, an AKG112, and a large diaphragm condenser mic of some type.

This would be more than enough to get you started.

 

[TimOBrien]

My obligatory standard reply that I keep in Wordpad:

FIRST... 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
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/07...ce&n=283155&n=507846&s=books&v=glance
(Wish I'd had that when I started; would have saved me lots of money and time and grief)

Good Newbie guides that also explains all the basics:
http://www.tweakheadz.com/guide.htm
http://www.computermusic.co.uk/page/computermusic?entry=free_beginner_pdfs

21 Ways To Assemble a Recording Rig:
http://www.tweakheadz.com/rigs.htm

Also Good Info:
http://www.theprojectstudiohandbook.com/directory.htm

Other recording books:
http://musicbooksplus.com/home-recording-c-31.html


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

Audacity: http://audacity.sourceforge.net

Kristal: http://www.kreatives.org/kristal/

Other freebies and shareware: www.hitsquad.com

Another great option is REAPER at http://www.cockos.com/reaper/
(It's $40 but runs for free until you get guilty enough to pay for it...)

Music Notation and MIDI recording: Melody Assistant ($20) and Harmony Assistant ($80) have the power of $600 notation packages - http://myriad-online.com
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 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're giving away SamplitudeV9SE. It pays to watch 'em for giveaways...)

 

[pandamonk]

I think the UA-25 has to go then... You will need something that can get 4 tracks at once. I would suggest getting an RME Fireface 800. It has the 4 preamps you need to get started plus room to add better/different preamps later.

Either unit eliminates the need for a mixer. Just get the unit, plug into your computer, plug in some mics and you are ready to go.

For mics I would personally suggest getting a couple SM57's, an SM7, an AKG112, and a large diaphragm condenser mic of some type.

This would be more than enough to get you started.

Why does everyone always suggest the RME Fireface 800(£800, 1100 EUR) when someone just wants a few inputs. Yes, it has 4 main inputs, but it can be expanded to upto 26. This is the main reason, imo, that you'd get the Fireface. But honestly, who here is gonna expand that much?

I've heard that the preamps are good. If you want these pres, just get the quadmic(£250, 350 EUR). And for AD conversion/interface, there are many options. Otherwise, get an interface with built in pres(presonus firepod), or separate.

What I got was The Tascam FW-1804(£200), with 4 prosumer pres, 4 analogue inputs, and an adat option for expansion. I will expand with the Behringer ADA8000, which isn't a great option, but offers exactly what need, at a great price. I will also add some good quality pres, SPL Goldmike(not the best, but decent), and CPEQ-Box(same pres as the Soundtracs CP6800).

Anyway, I'd suggest buying a setup which you can easily expand from, which suits your needs. A good option, imo, is the Tascam FW-1804, or the Alesis multimix 8 firewire. There are a few others.

Some good mics are the Audix D6 for kick (don't like the D112, and I've heard the D6 blows the shure beta 52a, which i like, out of the water), SM57 of course (although check out what audix offers) for snare/amps, and a pair of Studio Projects B1s for overheads, vocals, etc(although there are better choices out there, the B1 is a great budget mic).

I'd also suggest investing in a good pair of monitors(I have the Alesis M1 MkIIs, which aren't great, but decent for the price i paid), and acoustic treatment (read this).

 

[jdier]

Why does everyone always suggest the RME Fireface 800(£800, 1100 EUR) when someone just wants a few inputs. Yes, it has 4 main inputs, but it can be expanded to upto 26. This is the main reason, imo, that you'd get the Fireface. But honestly, who here is gonna expand that much?

I've heard that the preamps are good. If you want these pres, just get the quadmic(£250, 350 EUR). And for AD conversion/interface, there are many options. Otherwise, get an interface with built in pres(presonus firepod), or separate.

What I got was The Tascam FW-1804(£200), with 4 prosumer pres, 4 analogue inputs, and an adat option for expansion. I will expand with the Behringer ADA8000, which isn't a great option, but offers exactly what need, at a great price. I will also add some good quality pres, SPL Goldmike(not the best, but decent), and CPEQ-Box(same pres as the Soundtracs CP6800).

Anyway, I'd suggest buying a setup which you can easily expand from, which suits your needs. A good option, imo, is the Tascam FW-1804, or the Alesis multimix 8 firewire. There are a few others.

Some good mics are the Audix D6 for kick (don't like the D112, and I've heard the D6 blows the shure beta 52a, which i like, out of the water), SM57 of course (although check out what audix offers) for snare/amps, and a pair of Studio Projects B1s for overheads, vocals, etc(although there are better choices out there, the B1 is a great budget mic).

I'd also suggest investing in a good pair of monitors(I have the Alesis M1 MkIIs, which aren't great, but decent for the price i paid), and acoustic treatment (read this).

I suggested the FireFace because I own it and can suggest without reservation. I should have also suggested the presonus firestudio as I have worked with it and liked it fine. I have not used the units you suggested, but I am sure they are great too.

 

[jdier]

Why does everyone always suggest the RME Fireface 800(£800, 1100 EUR) when someone just wants a few inputs. Yes, it has 4 main inputs, but it can be expanded to upto 26. This is the main reason, imo, that you'd get the Fireface. But honestly, who here is gonna expand that much?

I've heard that the preamps are good. If you want these pres, just get the quadmic(£250, 350 EUR). And for AD conversion/interface, there are many options. Otherwise, get an interface with built in pres(presonus firepod), or separate.

What I got was The Tascam FW-1804(£200), with 4 prosumer pres, 4 analogue inputs, and an adat option for expansion. I will expand with the Behringer ADA8000, which isn't a great option, but offers exactly what need, at a great price. I will also add some good quality pres, SPL Goldmike(not the best, but decent), and CPEQ-Box(same pres as the Soundtracs CP6800).

Anyway, I'd suggest buying a setup which you can easily expand from, which suits your needs. A good option, imo, is the Tascam FW-1804, or the Alesis multimix 8 firewire. There are a few others.

Some good mics are the Audix D6 for kick (don't like the D112, and I've heard the D6 blows the shure beta 52a, which i like, out of the water), SM57 of course (although check out what audix offers) for snare/amps, and a pair of Studio Projects B1s for overheads, vocals, etc(although there are better choices out there, the B1 is a great budget mic).

I'd also suggest investing in a good pair of monitors(I have the Alesis M1 MkIIs, which aren't great, but decent for the price i paid), and acoustic treatment (read this).

Oh yeah, on the D112. I know that it is polarizing. Some love, some hate. I like it fine and I have it and also have the Beta 52 (which was a little too muddy or round sounding for rock applications (to me)) and I have the RE20 which, while I love it, it is usually tied up on a bass cab and not available for kick.

Again, your suggestions are likely great choices too, I just do not have any experience with them.

 

[pandamonk]

I suggested the FireFace because I own it and can suggest without reservation. I should have also suggested the presonus firestudio as I have worked with it and liked it fine. I have not used the units you suggested, but I am sure they are great too.

Ahh ok. I've seen quite a few recommendations for the fireface, and i just don't understand why. Obviously it is really good, but for only 4ins, it's too much imo.