how to make digital sound like analog?

  • Thread starter Thread starter chippedeggtooth
  • Start date Start date
Osbick Bird said:
I agree that it doesn't sound like the outboard mixer could have anything to do with it. I really think he's got the soundcard's mixing program set to where it's not delivering the signal at the inputs to the outputs for monitoring. The card's gotta be full duplex if he can hear the output while recording, so it must be able to do this. I think he must have a checkbox unchecked somewhere or something.
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I think it is the mixer. I'm assuming he is inputting the source into the mixer so there should be no problem monitoring from there. You wouldn't want to monitor after the recorder because then you will have latency on the monitor signal and that can really screw with your performance.
 
I'm pretty sure it's not the mixer, but I am wrong often enough to be willing to admit I'm in over my head. Here's my take on it:

According to the block diagram for the Behringer 802 (in the manual at their site), when you engage the two-track to control room function, you automatically disconnect the main bus Left and Right from the control room section. By doing this and disengaging 2-track from the main mix, Chipped has effectively split his mixer into two separate devices:

1. A recording mixer that sums his source sounds (guitar, bass, etc.) to the main mixer's left and right bus outputs which feed the soundcard

2. A monitoring device that takes his soundcard's outputs and feeds them to the headphone amp and "control room" outputs on his mixer.

In other words, there isn't a way for him to hear the guitar while he monitors his soundcard in this configuration.

Hopefully, his Audiophile card has a setting in the mixer/patchbay software that will allow it to feed the guitar signal both to the recorder and to the output of the soundcard simultaneously. This would allow Chipped to hear both the playback tracks and the sound source without invoking latency. I really think one checkbox could fix this, but I don't know my way around the Audiophile's configuration so I can't be of any more help....

OB
 
I suppose another way to do it would be to leave the software as it is and do this:

Plug the guitar (or amp mic, or POD or whatever) into channel one of the mixer.

Disconnect the mixer's main output bus from the soundcard's inputs

Connect the AUX SEND 1 output of the mixer to the soundcard's input.

Connect the soundcard's outputs to the mixer's other input channels

Disengage the "2-track to control room" button so you can hear the main mix in the headphones.

Use channel 1's AUX SEND 1 knob to set the level of signal being sent to the soundcard.

Keep the AUX SEND 1 knobs of the mixer channels to which the soundcard is connected to turned all the way down, or else you'll get the pre-recorded tracks bleeding onto the guitar track.

This way, you can hear both the pre-recorded tracks and your guitar playing without latency. Only the guitar track will be recorded.

If you need to record the guitar in stereo, use the AUX SEND 2 output and knob the same way. make AUX SEND 1 the left signal and AUX SEND 2 the right signal.

The big problem with this is that it sucks up your aux sends. IF you don't normally use them, then no big deal.

OB
 
thanks again for all your responses, i havent been able to work on this for a while, all that Reality getting in the way of the important stuff like the Album... it's getting crunch time with 2 days to finish album and give it out for christmas presents... damn the presure is getting to me, getting writer's block really bad... but that's beside the point

anyways, it seems like there should be a way to do this with the software but it doesnt seem to work, unchecking boxes and all.

on the patchbay of the audiophile soundcard settings, under the "H/W Out 1/2" there's a list of things you can check

wavout/2
monitor
spdif in
spdif in (l/r rev)
hw in 1/2

i've been using the "wavout/2" cause that's the only one that let's me hear what i have already recorded. "monitor" and "hw in 1/2" let me hear what i am presently recording but NOT the tracks that are already recorded.

could it be a setting in cubasis then? (if I have monitor checked, isnt a monitor from cubasis?)

i mainly need this for vocals, i tried to record without beinga ble to hear myself sing, but i definitely need to hear how it sounds while i'm recording.

trying to do this without a bunch more chords...it USED to work fine back when i was doing 2 track to main, also rebooted the software maybe there;s a setting in cubasis or soemthing

thanks for all the help.
 
This may be stupid, but if you're getting a lot of noise through the behringer, try making sure unused channels are turned down.
 
thanks.

there's no setting in cubasis for that, it's all the audio card. i tried osbird's setup and i can't figure it out, when i do that i dont get any sound from anywhere except a huge big wall of noise. fuck it i'll just have to not monitor my input, which kind of sucks, its getting kind of noisy amping EVERYTHING (i dont really like the sound of direct for bass and elec guitar any ways but if you have TOO MANY instruments that are mic'd off a bass amp it starts getting kind of swampy...and layering multiple vocals it's nice (though i suppose not absolutely NECESSARY) to hear the one you're recording. but that's really being picky on my part.

fuck this. this project is just not living up to all i;'ve been making it out to be, it started out so promising and i have the carcass of the 63 minute side a of the album, but it's just TOO MUCH to work with 6 songs at once, flowing into one another, especially with no herbal supplements (damn) HO HO HO

you know i really invest way too much of myself into this project when i really have no time to be doing this. and nowthere's too much pressure now to pan out. will i cave under the pressure? but i thought i thrived on pressure?

and dealing with all this technology really bites, like my master unit (burning program that comes with cubasis) doesnt even WORK i swear i've spent more time fiddling with technology than anything else, though i have to say i've gotten my fair share of help from you guys
 
This sounds like such a hassle to get an analog sound. Why not just use 1/2" or 1" tape?

Good Lord! Mic, preamp (console), tape machine. That's it.:rolleyes:
 
guess i'm just greedy for all those many many TRACKS at such a low cost, (i'm using it as a 12 track for the price of LESS than a cheap entry level analog 4 track) but the cost is my SANITY with all the technology woes i',m having, i'm overloading my system to where it's not playing back all the tracks at the same time!! and it wont save my mixdown settings like you do. the price you pay.... i couldnt even afford an 8 track tape machine and the four tracks just dont give me enough room to breath. part of the problem with my computer being fussy is i'm recording an entire album side (63 minutes) at once, between 5-12 tracks at once throughout. it;s a concept album that never stops, flows from one to the next, so i didnt want to do different files for different songs.

okay this is IT i've got to go lay down the FINAL VOCALS then i got to wash my hands of this (yeah right)-- well at least the one song i have finished turned out pretty good....but there;s a bunch more that arent and problably wont get done within the next... what 45 minutes? that i have left.

ironically, the cd burning program isnt working, so the final mix is onto a tape anyways. go figure.
 
It may be too late,

but slow down man. Why set a deadline you can't meet?
There are no shortcuts in what we are all trying to do.
Take your time to learn all the basics. It seems to me
you've overlooked a lot of them. I read magazines over and over again. Visit websites over and over again. It doesn't stop there.
It never stops. But it sure is a lot more fun than playing with
a 424. You'll get the sound you want. All it takes is some time and
money. Be patient and kiss all your troubles good bye. Good luck.
 
you're right, i thought i would have the whole album but i got 2 vocal songs and one instrumental pretty decent and the rest of the album is halfway done. one thing i've learned: the finishing touches definitely takes a lot longer than the inital backbone tracks. i figure i can go lofty goals first then reel myself in.

i should read more magazines, i used to a little... any suggestions?

i have to impose deadlines on myself or i'll never get anything done... like trying to write a term paper without a teacher... you have to put some kind of deadlines on yourself, i've decided to use christmas and birthdays for that

even if i dont get as much done as i had hoped, i just need some PROOF of what i can do you know, at this point... and i think i got that, however crudely mixed down it turned out to be.

and most importantly, technology aside i think with these two songs i said what i needed to say lyrically, which is the most important part for the lyric songs, then the instrumental songs, they say their own thing
 
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