hello and some questions

[sktbx]

hello,
this is my first post here-
I have no training and would like to know for my situation what is the best way to go about mastering my tracks which are in great need of some type of fix.

I have an intel pII 400mhz system w/win98&2000.
I currently have and use the following software:
modplug tracker,
soundforge,
reaktor, recycle, unity ds-1, n-track, cubase, and
i am always looking for new stuff to try.
I am a student and have little money lol
but am becoming increasingly obsessed with home studio production.
I intend to soon purchase a new soundcard, portable dat recorder, binaural mics, (for original sample aquisition), and a set of monitors or headphones (i have not yet decided). and i only have about 1200$us to spend.
What equipment would you reccomend that is relatively inexpensive but effective. i am looking to purchase the dat recorder off of ebay and have no idea where i can find the best deal on the rest of the stuff.

I also need some suggestions on what i can do to improve the sound quality of my tracks. I make some idm, some drum n bass, some experimental electronic and things of that sort, so i guess if you are at all interested in that type of garbage i would be in your debt if you could give me any suggestions. i am at http://www.mp3.com/sktbx in case it doesn't link in the signature, and i will not be offended in the least by any type of honest feedback or assesment of my musical talent or sanity in general.

I hope this unintentionally verbose post is well recieved.
thanks a load
-sktbx

 

[DavidK]

Hey there, I listened to one of your mp3s.

Some ideas on improving your system?

Mixer. Might not be essential right now, down the
road you will need it. The mackies have pre amps
for mics, and they are very good and cheap.

Monitors. Headphones are designed for not waking
others, but are not the best way to mix (in fact a poor
way.) A decent home stereo would be a start. Maybe
then a pair of Monitors like Tannoys, which are nice
and around $300

Soundcard. Probably the most crucial link in the system.
The one that came with the computer probably wont
work well. If you work alone or dont record many instruments
on one take, I suggest a Darla24 card by Echo $279.
It doesnt crash ( a lot have problems ), it has two
inputs and eight outputs, can record at 24bit/96k,
although 44 or 48 k is all you need. Most
importantly, it sounds really great, nice and clean.
Its also easy to set up and work with, and customer
support actually returned emails.

If you are into midi, a sound module will help.
Alesis Nano Synth is going for $179, which is
probably the best buy in Synth History. Its
a barebones Sample Playback unit, but it has
64note polyphony, 16 channels of midi, some decent
drums, in can fit in the palm of a very large hand.

Mics for sampling? Very brave of you. It can be
very difficult to obtain a quality sample that
way, but I am glad you are up to the challenge.

Also, maybe consider an outboard effects processer,
like the Alesis Quadraverb or something to that
effect.

If buying on ebay, do yourself a favor and thoroughly
check out prices on the net. Almost always, you can
find a new unit cheaper than a used unit on ebay.

Feel free to email with questions DTKempers@juno.com

I am a pro classical violinist, but recently got
back to my own music and in the past 6months
have been putting together a project studio.

I got:

566 Pc, 128mb ram with CD writer
Cakewalk Pro 9 Deluxe
Cool Edit pro
Encore (notation)
SB Live
Darla 24
Alesis RA 100 amp
Tannoy pb5 II monitors
JBL Monitors
RCA wireless headphones
Keyboard Controller
Alesis Nanosynth
Alesis Quadraverb
Spirit Folio F1 14 channel mixer
Avlex C133 Condenser mic

A very modest barebones system, but if used properly,
you van actually do some serious stuff.

Take care, David

 

[ola]

You two should have your titles removed and replaced with something more appropriate...

The only major thing that I can think of that you haven't mentioned yet is hard discs. What discs are you using? Do you have a dedicated 7200rpm IDE or are you running everything on one disc? If you're planning on having many simultanious tracks and/or record at 24/96, you will need a good hard disc.

sktbx - How many simutanious inputs and outputs do you need and are do you need mic preamps on most of your ins? You might want to look into Hoontech soundcards. They're great value. I have the DSP24 w. ADC/DAC2000 and am happy with it. If you need fewer I/O, the DSP24 MKII might be for you.

Good luck to both of you, although I don't think you need it.

Cheers

/Ola