Just getting back into this. Need Advice.

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Old-Bugga

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Following the well troden path of being a gearhead, getting married, having kids and having to let things slide. Kids have now grown up a bit, and I am wanting to get back into my music a little more.

Have lost touch with whats what and am looking for a little advice on what gear I need. I am not in a band, play guitar, bass and can get by on keyboards.

What I have at present is.

M-Audio Keystation Pro 88 keyboard
Line 6 UX-2 Gearbox
Good spec i7 windows based machine
5.1 sorround sound setup that will do me for monitoring.
I am a confident user of Sony Vegas video editing software.

Would I be correct in saying that I could use Vegas to record my audio?

What I am missing is I want to be able to play a lot of synth sounds and get decent drums.

I also want a control surface or...if would the keystation pro be of use for this?

I used to have my finger on the pulse gear wise, however, I need a nudge in the right direction to save me starting to waste money on buying stuff that I dont need.

Thanks
 
Just how old are you bugga? :laughings: And welcome. :D

The new recording software that everyone is in a rave about is "Reaper" It's a free down load and if you like it ,it's about $60.
Then all you need is a good analog to digital converter --with a mic preamp--just in case you want to put down some vocals.

Maybe Kcearl will stop by and give you some advice... for what your doing and want to be doing ....He is the resident expert to ask.






:cool:
 
I hear so many good things about reaper, I think I'm going to give it a try.

Does it come withy any VST instruments? I'm really set in my ways with cubase (as it's all i've ever used, besides a little bit of acid. not LSD hehe) and version 5 has a nice stock of any instrument I can think of.

I'd like to try it regardless, but before filling up my limited HD space, does it have any vst instruments?
 
Opivy said:
I hear so many good things about reaper, I think I'm going to give it a try.

Does it come withy any VST instruments? I'm really set in my ways with cubase (as it's all i've ever used, besides a little bit of acid. not LSD hehe) and version 5 has a nice stock of any instrument I can think of.

I'd like to try it regardless, but before filling up my limited HD space, does it have any vst instruments?
Click to expand...

It's not a hungry software at all.






:cool:
 
moresound said:
Just how old are you bugga? :
Click to expand...

A very young in the head 42. OK, downloaded REAPER and feel right at home as it feels VERY VERY VERY like Vegas/Acid. Also downloaded NI Kore Player and got that working although I seem to have a noticeble latency between hittinga key and hearing the sound. Any ideas? My machine is a Big i7 system with 6Gb of ram so I dont think there should be an issue.
 
Old-Bugga said:
A very young in the head 42. OK, downloaded REAPER and feel right at home as it feels VERY VERY VERY like Vegas/Acid. Also downloaded NI Kore Player and got that working although I seem to have a noticeble latency between hittinga key and hearing the sound. Any ideas? My machine is a Big i7 system with 6Gb of ram so I dont think there should be an issue.
Click to expand...

Reaper uses many of the design principles of Vegas, so if you are familiar with Vegas, it is not surprising that you feel at home with Reaper.

Your latency is most likely caused by your PC's soundcard. I note you have a 5.1 system. Though this is great for movies and games, it is not good for audio recording, where you need to get audio in and out simultaneously (i.e. duplex).

You should start looking for audio interfaces, either USB or Firewire. You record and monitor through the interface, it replacing the internal soundcard.

You need also to think about the number of channels you need. If you are only recording one or two tracks at a time, two-channel interfaces are many and quite cheap.
 
Your Keystation Pro should do everything you need (for now) as far as synths and drums go. The good thing with the Keystations are you usually don't have to get too far into MIDI to work with them. Do you have a mic? You should maybe start looking into different types or mics to fit your needs and, like "gecko zzed" said, audio interfaces. I'm not sure what your Line-6 device will do, but if you can't plug a mic into it you might want to look at some brands such as: Mbox, M-Audio, and PreSonus.
Also, your surround sound should work for now as a monitoring solution, but it is important to have a "flat mix" with your monitors. That just means the monitors don't have any built-in EQing and give you an accurate representation of what your music sounds like. Some good starter monitors to look for would be the Studiophile AV40's by M-Audio, or if you want to spend a little more money, the KRK Rokit 5's.

Good luck!
 
The Line 6 UX2 gives me my audio interface and Phantom power. I have a variety of mics so am covered for that side.

Soundcard rings true although I REALLY dont want to louse up my current on board one as it actually works well.

OK, however, if needs must then what would be a good one to go for. I am not recording bands, just ,myself one track at a time so.....is the Maudio 2496 still relevant?
 
Yes, correct I am covered for that side. So...what I need is a good recommendation for a decent soundcard.

I used to have a Live Drive and it worked well. Does the current X-Fi Fatality and interface panel still score well, or, the Maudio 2496?

Or...is there another front runner these days. Not looking to spend fortunes, just a half way decent soundcard.
 
Oh, I'm sorry. I misunderstood you. I was thinking since "gecko zzed" said the interface would replace the soundcard, why would you need a new soundcard?
 
To get rid of the midi latency I am getting as a result of the non asio (I am assuming) internal soundcard. At present I am doing my MIDI via USB.
 
Onboard sound card...however....success! I remembered something called Asio4all, downloaded it, and set my Audio Device to use it in preferences, and...... zero latency (at least to my ears). Bliss!
 
Oh, thats great! I was going to say I would try plugging your speakers into your Line 6, if it has surround sound capabilities, but it seems you've found another solution.
 
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