My problem

[KanyEast]

hey guys, im a fan of the site, been a fan for a minute but never got the chance to join up until today. Here's my deal:

I'm an intermediate producer, but i don't know ish about equipment except recorders. I'm looking for an OFFICIAL studio set-up. Can any of you guys recommend anything for me to start out with.......and.....

I'm having a HUGE problem recording. Everytime i record i get a hiss sound in the background and my mic sounds a lil muffled, to sum it all up it sounds like im recording from an old boom box instead of the equipment im using. These are the things i have:

Korg CR-4 4 track recorder
Behringer Pre-Amp (for my mic)
MTV Music Generator 3 sampler...lol please don't laugh i've been using this for a long time.
Regular stereo speakers
MXL 990 condenser mic
Pop Filter
and Type II Maxwell High Bias tapes.....

this is all i use, oh other than my Radio Shack Aux cords to hook it all up with.

Do anybody suggest anything for a new set up, and for now what do i need to buy to stop the hissing.

Thanks

 

[KanyEast]

well if anyone has suggestions can you send me a message cause i dont have a computer at home. i use it at work only.

 

[joro]

I would say that the hiss could be one or several of the following.....just guessing though...
It's tape....tape hisses.....it's the machine heads...they could be dirty or low quality...or bad tape...
your gain may be too high on your pre....
You might be using both Pres....
I don't know what the MTV thingy is....sampler though....you still need to play to record...real time.....

if you want a stand alone recorder...perhaps upgrade to digital.
or...go PC or Mac...
Lots of software for both platforms...you would need an interface though...
and a computer at home too...
the interface is called a soundcard for a PC....or a firewire device like the Presonus...or Mackie Onyx (all in one solution with a computer.)
that's a few bucks...

good luck man...

 

[wheelema]

You really are not going to get all of the information that you need here. Not that it is not available, it is only that is not coherently assembled in one place. I would suggest you start with a site like Tweakz, pour over it until it is all just too boring, then come back for specific advise.

Luck.

... and I just noticed that he praises the Neuman TLM-103, so you should take his purchasing advise with a grain of salt...

 

[joro]

You really are not going to get all of the information that you need here. Not that it is not available, it is only that is not coherently assembled in one place. I would suggest you start with a site like Tweakz, pour over it until it is all just too boring, then come back for specific advise.

Luck.

... and I just noticed that he praises the Neuman TLM-103, so you should take his purchasing advise with a grain of salt...

I dunno man...his first studio set up does not include monitors....
How can ya mix without monitors?
Even if it is samples and stuff like that...you still need monitors,...

Sheesh......

 

[joro]

ok...ok..I scrolled down....
stage 2 includes monitors....
That's how I started too......

 

[KanyEast]

what are monitors for?

see im a lil hood you know...lol so i really don't know what the equipment is for?

Like MIDI, i don't know what a MIDI controller is used for? i would LOVE to know though.

One question, is the MXL990 mic a good quality mic? cause i was thinking it's the mic, cause i purchased some Mogami mic cables which are touted "the best cables around", so i got em.

 

[LfO]

"Near-field monitors" are high-quality speakers that are designed to be used when you're mixing.

Mixing on headphones or cheaper speakers (and even hi-fi speakers to some degree) won't help you to create a mix that sounds good on a lot of different systems - for example, phones do wierd things to the stereo field (panning sounds more extreme, etc.). A good set of monitors will be a kind of neutral ground that helps you get a mix that can be played anywhere and sound good.

The Tweakheadz site talks more about this, and explains MIDI (and lots of other things).