hooking up mixer

[aarontoben]

hello. my band just bought a used peavey 12-channel mixer and the cakewalk program off one of my friends. he didn't have a manual and we aren't really sure how all this works. i was wondering if anyone could give me some tips on how all this should be set up, what plugs into what and so on. we figured out how to record a guitar using a pod but nothing with a microphone yet. we must not have something connected right or not have the right settings in cakewalk. if anyone can give me any advice, i would greatly appreciate it! thanks! (sorry, i know this is a stupid question but we don't have any manual to read for the mixer or the program)

 

[mshilarious]

What model Peavey is that, and what soundcard are you using?

 

[aarontoben]

Peavey Unity Series 2002-12 RQ mixer
As for the soundcard, we just got a new eMachines computer and it is the stock sound card that came with the computer. I don't have the computer or the specs here so I can't be any more specific right now.

 

[thajeremy]

first of all...upgrade the sound card as soon as possible...the onboard card will work but you will be more satisified with a pro card. With that sound card, you can record 2 seperate channels at once. Just plug a mic or instrument into channel 1 (panned left), and mic or instrument into channel 2 (panned right) on the mixer. Now with your outputs, you will need a Y cable one end needs to be 1/8 TRS (stereo) to plug into the line in on your soundcard. The other needs to be 2 - 1/4 TS (mono) plugs to go to the left and right main outs of the mixer. Now...what ever goes into channel one will be recorded on track one left, and what ever goes into channel 2 will be recorded on track one right. Im not sure how to set Cakewalk up to record on 2 seperate tracks but im sure it can be done. In CEP, you can set up track one to record only left signal and track two to record only right signal and then you would be on 2 totally seperate tracks.

hope this helps

Jeremy

 

[aarontoben]

do you have any recomendations about soundcards? and if anyone can tell me the gist of what each set of knobs on my mixer actually does(in general), i would appreciate it.

 

[Flipmedia]

hmmmm

Not to be a hard ass here, but even though this is a newbie forum, you still got to do some reading for yourself. If you plan on recording and getting a half descent result of it, you'll be doing a lot of reading and looking through forums such as this one. This forum has all the information needed to get you started and then some. Good luck.

 

[RideTheCrash]

Every board is setup a little differently in the way of knobs. My board for example goes from top to bottom like this:

Gain knob
5 EQ knobs (hi, hi mid, mid, mid-tune and low)
2 FX knobs
2 Monitor knobs
Pan knob

That's roughly one strip. Um...if you haven't figured out already, each channel has it's own strip, so trust me, seas of knobs usually aren't as intimidating as they look. But I have to agree with a previous poster, do some reading on your own, find a good website to give you the basics, because it's really hard to help you out if you don't know them.

 

[aarontoben]

yeah. i know i'm gonna have to do a lot of reading. does anyone have any suggestions on soundcards? i want a good one but i don't wanna spend hundreds of dollars on one.

 

[RideTheCrash]

It really depends on your situation. If you're recording a band -- especially drums I suggest the M Audio Delta 1010 or 1010lt.

Delta 1010lt: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7/g=home/search/detail/base_pid/701376/

The 1010 is basically the same thing except it has a breakout box and 1/4" jacks instead of RCA. I just got a 1010lt and it sounds great, but I haven't had much of a chance to toy with it just yet. They both have 10 in and outs.

If you're just recording like an acoustic guitar and vocal (which I don't think you are?) you could try an M Audio Audiophile 2496 card, which gives you 2 ins and outs: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7/g=rec/search/detail/base_pid/701341/

Hope that helps.