Janyeno said:
I'm REALLY REALLY new at this... and I'm pretty much clueless so...
Ok... my equipment right now consists of:
Yamaha mg10/2 mixer
Behringer DI Box
Behringer MDX1600 compressor
3 Microphones
2 Monitors
1 Pair of Headphones
and I'm recording onto my computer which has a Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS in it, and I'm currently using cool edit pro...
Band consists of Guitar/Bass/Drums.
Is it possible for me to record multiple people at the same time with my soundcard/mixer set up? and whats the best way to go about doing so(amp mixing, or straight in through di box)?
How would I go about setting this up?? What would I connect what to, and what kind of cables would I need?
Do I need a new sound card?
thanks.
Welcome to the board,
Your soundcard does not support true "multitrack" recording. It will only allow you to record one stereo (left and right) track at a time. Therefore, you have a few options:
1) Run each mic/instrument into the mixer on a separate channel and sub-mix it down to a stereo signal (adjust the level and panning of each element how you want it) which you can send to your soundcard, and subsequently, to CEP. The advantage here is you can use the equipment you already have and you can all play at the same time while recording (live). The disadvantage is once you've sub-mixed, you will be unable to edit individual instruments (e.g.- if you want the guitar louder/softer, you can't change it, because it's on the same track as everything else).
2) Record each instrument separately via overdubbing. Record drums first to a separate stereo track in CEP. Then track each instrument/vocal to separate tracks in CEP. This will allow you to mix individual elements inside the computer.
3) Get a soundcard that supports multitracking. Something like the MAudio Delta series cards, or EMU cards come with multiple inputs so you can run individual instruments to separate channels/tracks in CEP. This gives you the same editing freedom as #2), but allows you to record more channels simultaneously instead of overdubbing.
As to how to hook things up:
If you have good amps and mics, I would mic the guitar cabinets and/or acoustic guitars (i.e. - don't run them direct into the mixer -- usu. sounds yucky). You'll obviously have to mic up the drum kit. You can run the bass direct through the Behringer DI box into the mixer, or mic your bass amp. You may need to acquire more mics for this, especially if you want to record everyone at once.
The use of the compression box is optional and depends on how you decide to track everthing else. For example, if you are going with options #1) or 2), then you could connect the compression between the mixer and the soundcard, if needed. With option #3), you will have too many channels to use compression on each one, so you would have to decide where it is most needed.
Read the following articles:
http://www.theprojectstudiohandbook.com/directory.htm
http://artistpro.com/index.php?module=PnCourses&func=getPage&course_id=22&page_id=107
http://artistpro.com/index.php?module=PnCourses&func=getPage&course_id=16&page_id=42
Happy recording!
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