Monitors and the Bare Minimum

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AddisonXI

AddisonXI

Argumentative...
Alright my new friends of Homerecording I would like to show all that is due to start my professional-amateur home recording studio(See what I did there? ^_^)

First we have our audio interface. The cheap. The productive. It's small. But does what I need. (drum roll)

M-audio Fast Track Pro - $150 ( I found it brand new on ebay 50 dollars cheaper than zzounds.com, should I be weary?)

Onto our microphone. It's big. It's a LDC. The beautiful and bold...(drum roll)

SE Electronics SE2200A. Question though...do I need to buy a mic stand for this? Looking at the pictures I cannot tell how this sets up.

I have not picked out a set of monitors yet because I have a question(yes as always....new guy and his questions. ^_^)

Active, Passive, Desktop/Multimedia Monitors.. I need a good starting point. Would I need a set of active monitors? or could I just hook up my audio interface to only one and go from there. Passive monitors are the ones you hook up by the wires slid in + and - slots? Thanks for the help. ^_^

Also is there anything else I'll need to start my recording studio or is this the bare minimum?
 
Ok, I think after reading and trying to understand...I COULD record without Monitors but to truly understand the sound I can't use only headphones. I think I'm going to stick with Active monitors instead of passive.. I found a deal on zzounds.com that will give me a pair of monitors, two mics(one dynamic and one ldc), two mic stands, and 4 cables(2 female-female, 2 male-female, think that's right) all for about 400 bucks. Seems like a good deal. I know the mics are nothing special but couldn't hurt to have extras??? Monitors are the KRK RP5G2.

Also, I found an old(atleast I think it's old) preamp. It's called the Realistic MPA-90. Not even sure if it useful but it was free so can't complain there.

So yea...excited to make the purchases and hopefully give you guys something to listen to and get some feedback. ^_^
 
Hey there.
That realistic mpa is a public address amplifier, so no, not especially useful in home recording.

The deal has monitors,mics,leads and stands right?
So you'll need a computer and an audio interface with mic preamps to get started.

The maudio fast track pro is fine, and you shouldn't be weary (unless you're over worked :p)

The SE electronics mic you talked about, IDK if you've bought it or not, but any normal mic stand will do.
A microphone like that should come with its own fitted shockmount. If it doesn't you'll need to get one.
The shock mount is usually unique to the mic (although you can buy universal ones), but the part that screws to the stand is generic.

I know you've picked monitors, but for future reference, passive means an amplifier is required. Active means an amplifier is built in.

The connector type doesn't necessarily dictate which is which, but active amps will always require power.


Hope that helps!
 
So, is the monitor selection a personal preference??? Is the active better than passive or vice versa. By saying active amps will always require power is that saying they require an outlet to be plugged into and that is all? Where passive monitors will plug into an amplifier than will plug into the wall? Thank you for clearing up the questions about the mic stand. I see the shockmount in the picture.

Thanks again for everything ^_^
 
The packaging weight of the mic is 7lbs. I would recommend a better than cheap boom stand with a fairly heavy counterbalance weight. You don't want that thing taking a digger cuz of a $30 crap stand. :D
 
Thank you for the advice Jimmy. :) I will definitely look into that. Any recommendations for a certain mic stand. Would the cheaper stands suffice for say...the SM57&58s?
 
Yeh, you've pretty much got it.

An active amp really is just a passive speaker and an amp, wired together and stuck in a box.

Active speakers usually need a wall wart (each), and a jack/rca/xlr audio input at line level. Interfaces put out line level.
Passive speakers need an amplified signal. This could be over 2core wire with stripped ends, or jacks/xlrs/rcas.

Neither is 'better'. A great amp and great passive speakers are better than cheapo active ones,
but mackies are better than cheapo hifi speakers and an alesis amp.

It's tomatoes and tomatoes, except you gota do the pronunciation thing for that to work :)
 
Sorry to sound naive but what is a 'wall wart' lol.. I think right now no matter what monitors I buy they will be on the less expensive end. Definitely have a stricter budget than I'd like but just something to get started with and learn the ins and outs of home recording. :)
 
Just strap this on a cheapie mic stand. If needed, place a barbell weight over the bottom post of the stand.

Any cheap stand will work for a 57. They don't weight so much, though you can still hammer nails with them. :)
 
Sorry, didn't really mean wall wart.
AC power supply. ie household plug socket.
 
aaah, lol. I see why it is called such. :) Learn something new everyday. Sometimes two or three things if you browse these forums :-D
 
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