Monitoring and audio setup

E

elevatorboy

New member
Hello everyone.
I am new to the site so thanks so much for having me.

Not to make it mental health related but i have a form of aspergers which can include obsessive thinking which creates a lot of anxiety.
I have lately been obsessing over a basic audio setup (done music and some production on a very shitty setup), but now have decided to kind of do it the right way on a very simple cheap budget.

I hope there are friendly folks out there. I am going to take a break from even starting up with the recording again due to my mental health currently but wanted to see if you guys could help answer me a few questions. This way hopefully i can have a little more peace of mind and i can be a little more at ease and confident when i decide to try and go back to it in a much more healthier way.

Questions:

I was thinking of getting a simple audio interface. The set up is going to be a sp 404 sampler into the audio interface into the computer. The Sp-404 has an audio jack so i can put my guitar through there and use the built in effects as well.

I want to use Acid pro 7.0 like i have always done.

I used to have on my very old computer two audio jacks..where i used to put my sp-404 directly into the computer butconverting the red and white cable to a simple audio in so it would fit the port for the computer (hopefully that makes sense).

I "think" i was somehow able to have all the audio come through my computer speakers when recording and able to even monitor my guitar with headphones through one of the speakers (i know..very primitive and not pretty).

To get to my point, if i buy a simple audio interface i noticed it has connections of studio monitors.
But i dont want to spend all that money and i already have good computer speakers.
But in order to monitor my guitar do i i have to have monitors?
Is there a ways to convert the audio in from my computer speakers cable to the audio (think its a left and right channel) to my audio interface?

If not can i somehow use my computer speakers to play all the audio after recording and when recording my guitar use the audio interface headphone jack to monitor what i am playing?


It should be noted that i use audio samples that i cut up by hand in acid pro so i want to hear those sounds to when i am monitoring and when i am DONE monitoring my guitar for ALL the audio to be then played on my computer speakers to hear..rather then hearing everything from my headphone jack, through my audio interface. I hope this make sense.

Let me know if i can clarify anything if need be.

Thanks to anyone who even tries to help.

Love to you all.

Matthew aka elevator boy

:)
 
The point of getting an audio interface is that it has the features that enable good quality recording and monitoring of that recording. It effectively replaces your on-board sound, which typically is ok for gaming, skype and similar, but doesn't provide for the specific requirements of recording.

So the aim would be to make the interface the heart of the system. That means you record through it, and then you playback through it. That way you can keep everything under control.

However, that doesn't help you with your computer speakers . .. yet.

When you get an interface, it will have a headphones output. It will also have a left and right line output (either XLR or 6.5mm TRS sockets). Most likely, your speakers have a 3.5mm stereo plug that connects to an output on your computer. So you can find yourself some adapters, and connect the speakers to the interface. Temporarily, this may have to be via the headphone output of the interface. If you pursue recording more seriously, you will need to think hard about decent monitors.
 
Thanks so much for your reply :)

When you say temporarily with the headphones, you mean before i find those adaptors so i can use my computer bose speakers into the interface connection?
If so what do those adaptors look like to you (from the two examples you told me about). i am dong lofi recording so i am not looking for anything great..:)

with the monitors in place i can have it when i hear my guitar being monitored and when i start to record hear everything in playback as well, including my sample audio that i have already laid out in acid. Just saying this cause its not from the audio interface of course but made and chopped in acid to begin with.

Just like to have to all played in the audio interface including playback now that i hopefully have my computer bose speakers connected into the interface thanks to your advice on using some adaptors to hopefully do this. :)

picture would be great if necessary:)
 
Hi Matthew and welcome.
Gecko is, as ever on the money advising getting an interface ASAP, it will I am sure make the whole recording process easier.

Now, I note that the SP-404 has RCA line outputs. This means cabling from most AI's will be pretty simple since the vast majority use 1/4" jacks*. You will therefore just need a stereo RCA to 1/4" jack pug lead or, an RCA-RCA stereo lead with two RCA to jack plug adaptors (not usually a fan of audio adaptors but these have never given me any bother)

I also see that the 404 has a MIDI DIN input socket? This might be unknown territory for you but since the box has MIDI it surely makes sense to get an AI that could utilize it? This all adds up IMHO to one interface that combines excellent audio quality with the features you need and at a fair price. That interface is the Steinberg UR22, about £100 over here. There are of course many, many others, cheaper and vastly more expensive but I am confident the UR22 is all you need, probably for a lifetime.

*Such jacks may or may not be 'balanced'. Do not let that concern you. Your PC speakers will NOT be balanced in but the AI jacks will still work perfectly. If and when you go for proper monitors you can get the required cables and have a balanced system. NOT that it make any audible difference to most 'short run' domestic setups.

Dave.
 
Ah! Now that you have told us they are Bose speakers (model # please) I see they are indeed 3.5mm jack input (my PC speakers ARE RCA you see!)

So, from a headphone out you will need 3.5mm stereo to 3.5mm stereo
From the 404 you would need RCA to 3.5mm stereo
From a proper AI you would need 1/4" mono jack (2) to 3.5mm stereo jack.
All these cables are readily available on 'Zon and at very reasonable prices.

Dave.
 
Thanks so much Gecko and Dave. :)

To be honest with you both I dont want to mess around with midi.
I want it to be "really" simple for me.

Just guitar into sampler, to audio interface to computer.

Talked to a friend and he thought this would be perfect...
Focusrite Scarlett Solo MK2 USB Audio Interface [SCARLETT-SOLO-MK2] : AVShop.ca - Canada's Pro Audio, Video and DJ Store

I was also wondering with this set up could i maybe have it where i leave it connected to the back of my imac? Meaning Instead of having to convert the Bose Computer Speakers to my audio interface? Or is that going to cause problems with software or monitoring in the future? Just want to have it so i can monitor my guitar and hear the sample sources through headphones then hear everything after for playback through my speakers for editing and such.



Also i wanted to know if you guys could explain the difference (or maybe its similar) between monitoring through your audio interface and monitoring through the monitoring function through software like acid pro 7.0 you could use your example with the audio interface i just posted.

Also it should be noted i will never be offended if you guys explain things to me in really simple to understand language. I actually would prefer it at this point.
Trying to get some answers and just leave it alone for awhile.

I find monitoring really confusing for me to grasp for some reason..


Hope what i just wrote makes sense.

Thanks again..really appreciate it.

Matthew
 
"To be honest with you both I dont want to mess around with midi.
I want it to be "really" simple for me." Well, you don't HAVE to use the MIDI facility, yet, but there might come a time? It really adds nothing to the cost of an AI to put the I/O on there. The same can be said of the 'stereo' mic capability of the UR22. I can virtually guarantee a day will come when you think, "wish I could use two mics!" Again the cost saving is little more than a good steak and a decent claret!

I personally think the Solo is poor value and technically inferior to the Steinberg. The Solo for instance has RCA phono line out connectors. The UR22 balanced jacks. Now, once again, you probably don't need balanced jacks but they are good things to have and show a bit of trouble taken in design rather than designing down to the last cent.

Our resident mac man mod Mr Steenamaroo will I am sure guide you through monitoring with the iMac.

I beg of you, don't do this as cheaply as you can. I am sure you will regret it.

Dave.
 
elevatorboy said:
I was also wondering with this set up could i maybe have it where i leave it connected to the back of my imac? Meaning Instead of having to convert the Bose Computer Speakers to my audio interface? Or is that going to cause problems with software or monitoring in the future? Just want to have it so i can monitor my guitar and hear the sample sources through headphones then hear everything after for playback through my speakers for editing and such.
Click to expand...

I would leave it connected to the imac. I would send all audio through it, then connect your Bose speakers to it. That way you can monitor guitar and samples through headphones, and playback through speakers for editing.

elevatorboy said:
Also i wanted to know if you guys could explain the difference (or maybe its similar) between monitoring through your audio interface and monitoring through the monitoring function through software like acid pro 7.0 you could use your example with the audio interface i just posted.
Click to expand...

In this context, monitoring through your interface is usually described as 'hardware monitoring' or 'direct monitoring', and monitoring through software is called, well, 'software monitoring'.. The advantage of direct is that you get latency-free monitoring. The advantage of the second is that you can monitor and hear whatever effects you might be using in the software. However, the penalty is latency resulting from the processing that has to be done before you get to hear anything.
 
gecko zzed said:
I would leave it connected to the imac. I would send all audio through it, then connect your Bose speakers to it. That way you can monitor guitar and samples through headphones, and playback through speakers for editing.

Thanks so much again Gecko and Dave. So just to be clear.. You think i should leave my speakers connected to the back of my imac instead of it being connected to the interface since they are not monitor speakers?

And the way i should monitor the guitar and samples is through the headphone jack from the interface and then hear the playback though my speakers for editing (that part i get) :)

Thanks :)
Click to expand...
 
elevatorboy said:
So just to be clear.. You think i should leave my speakers connected to the back of my imac instead of it being connected to the interface since they are not monitor speakers?
Click to expand...

No.

I think you should leave your interface connected to the imac.

I think you should connect your bose speakers to the interface, then leave them connected. And you may have to figure out a way of doing this.


elevatorboy said:
And the way i should monitor the guitar and samples is through the headphone jack from the interface and then hear the playback though my speakers for editing (that part i get)
Click to expand...

Well, yes . . . but only if you have your speakers connected to the interface.

What I am trying to get you to do is to forget about the audio capability that the imac has, and send all audio through the interface instead. This is an efficient and effective way of managing audio if you are thinking about doing it on a regular basis.
 
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