Good software to record multiple tracks any ideas?

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drummer1000

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ok...heres the deal.....im a drummer....im setting up a studio with my band(n.b. this invariably means any hard work lifting carrying buying learning etc will fall down to me)im buying a spirit mixer and amp for both live and recoding purposes....right so all i need now is something to record on...i wanna use my pc as this means i dont have to worry bout having very expensive gear lieing around the barn(practice room) as my pc is easily transportable/or i can use the bassists(who lives next to afore mentioned barn)so what software is recommended-i have access to most cheaply(hacker friends/brother in the programming industry)ive heard a lot about protools both good and bad but im aware thier are tons more products on the market..my pc isnt too great 400mghz P3 processor SB16 soundcard 64 meg of ram...in fact the only high spec thing is the internet connection...but thanks to said brother and geeky hacker friends upgrades arnt too big a problem....as i said im a drummer(im also blonde)so please keep answers as simple as possible no techy stuff that isnt easily understood and definatly no words above 4 letters long
 
cool thanks for that now second question...probably a really obvious answer but hey i did say im a blonde drummer.......how do i link a 16 channel mixer to my pc so tht each channel has irts own audio track on the recording program and so that if i wanted to i could have the whole band playing at once and record them all on separate tracks(yes i know i wouldnt have any separation unless they were in separste rooms but still)
 
Ahh...no we're getting somewhere. Unfortunately you're going to need a soundcard, in this case, with 16 channels. That's not going to be cheap at all.

You can get into an 8 channel unit like the Delta1010 from m-Audio for around 600 bucks I'd guess (it's actually 10 channel but two are SPDIF). 4 channel units like the Delta66 run at over 300 bucks.

So it really depends on how much money you've got to spend. It might require some comprimise. But really, it's very possible and common to make a recording that consists of more tracks than you're able to run through your soundcard. It's what overdubbing is all about! My projects are typically 24 tracks and I only use 2-3 channels on my soundcard simultaneously. In simple terms, you crank out a scratch mix of the jist of the band live, and then have your players do their parts seperately or in groups. This is a whole 'nother topic for a whole 'nother thread (or entire book) though.

Slackmaster 2000
 
so using my crummy sb 16 i presume i have what 2 inputs? so that would mean that using the individual track outputs on the desk i could record 2 tracks simultaneously yes?....thus allowing me to say record a drum track and a guide guitar part..or would that mean id need to buy a card with multiple inputs(one of the $300= ones)

thanks for the help....much appreciated
 
Yeah, since the line in on your SB is stereo, you technically have two channels. You should mess around with it & n-Track; after a while you'll have a pretty firm grasp on what you want/need.

The SB16 is a fairly noisy card, but it'll work. Don't be tempted to spend 50-150 bucks on something like an SB Live! or Audigy. Save your money and on the low end, snag something like the m-Audio Delta44 (4 analog in/out, with breakout box, no SPDIF) for $230 or so. Having four inputs is certainly minimum for recording drums, and while the converters on the delta cars aren't stellar, they sound 100 times better than a SB.

Good luck!

Slackmaster 2000
 
hmmm so one insert gives me stereo(2 tracks)so that means that cause it s gotta line and mic in sockets i have 2 sets of stereo tracks....as for the recommendations....cheers y'all i got my brother searchin his office for spare parts as i type...he he he he he
 
drummer1000 said:
hmmm so one insert gives me stereo(2 tracks)so that means that cause it s gotta line and mic in sockets i have 2 sets of stereo tracks....
Click to expand...
No. You will not be able to use the LINE IN and the MIC IN at the same time, with the SB soundcard.

Plus, you wouldn't want to use the MIC IN for your drums or basslines. ;)
 
You might want to check out Sonar or Vegas for your tracking. You might also want to take a look at Sound Forge for your Editor.
They have demo versions at their respective sites.

Vegas Audio 2.0 and Sound Forge 5.0 can be found here...

http://www.sonicfoundry.com

Sonar can be found here....

http://www.cakewalk.com

peace ....
 
eeek good job i checked that out then cheers spinsterwun


would using the mic have resulted in bad bad damage lots of smoke couple of bangs etc or just a evil horrid sound by the way?


i think i have various versions of soundforge vagas on a warez disk i was given in college by a mate but ill check those links later anywho
 
No, no smoke, it just would have sounded like crap. Plus the mic port is mono limiting you to one channel.

Use the line in and split the channel L & R to effectively use two mono channels.

Slackmaster 2000
 
sounding like crap isnt nesaceraly a bad thing though depends how crap it sounds and wether it has any viable use....hmmmmm i may try it out at some point(i try to be uncoventional in my recordings eg using bass drums as an added low end reverb unit by placing it between amp and mic........just dickin about genarally)
 
Funky tones generated by downgrading the signal are way different from some added annoying noise that can't be removed at a later time. Although I suppose both have their place. :)
 
very true...just look at i think its stupid girl on the first garbage album they got that funky evil white noise sound cause there digital eight tracks screwed up and started feeding back...but i bet it was a bitch to work with once they decided to keep it in
 
Well then, you can use the mic port if you feel like it. But it's mono and you can't use the mic port at the same time as the line port because they share converters.

Slackmaster 2000
 
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