Newbie Question

[Howicktechguy]

I have just instilled Adobe Audition on my computer and am wanting to take it to church and record the services. how would be the best way to take a line from the sound system to my laptop.ie. which port on the soud desk??

 

[jkokura]

A signal path usually goes like this: Source - Mic/DI - preamp - eq/effects - interface/soundcard - software/recording device

You've got the source, the Mic/Di, Pre's and Eq down, now that you need to do is take the mix down from your sound board and get it go into your existing soundcard (NOT the best method) or use an interface or upgraded soundcard and record it using the Laptop.

If you need to use what you got cause of the lack of funds, I would say (and I've done this at church) that you should use an Auxilary channel or bus and run it into the LINE in on your laptop. Take some time before the service and make shure you're careful about setting the level so you don't clip (distort). It'll be easy with a stock soundcard.

The better option is to get an actual interface, either Firewire, PCI or USB and use that to take a signal from the board into the software. Presonus and M Audio make great products for this. All you need is two channels and you'll be able to record your service in stereo!

Jacob

 

[rayc]

Line Out
Cheers
rayC

 

[Kevin Deschwazi]

Line Out
Cheers
rayC

Yep, get a y cable and go from the tape outs of the mixer (probably 2xRCA) to the LINE input on the card (probably 1/8" mini jack?). Don't use the mic in, the world will blow up.

 

[Howicktechguy]

thanks for your help guys. Just another quick question there is a 2track out put on the desk is there anyway of using that one of the guys at church reckons you can use that?? it is a cannon output....

 

[Treeline]

You mean tape inputs? The RCA plugs?

You can use those by getting a cable adapter at Radio Shack - (2) RCA to (1) 1/8" stereo plug. That will work with the LINE input on your computer.

Echoing the warnings in this thread to avoid the microphone inputs on a computer card; even if you could get them to work, they would sound horrible.

 

[Howicktechguy]

Well I used my setup last night and it worked however when I play it back I get a fuzzing noise in the back ground any ideas how to stop that?? can post a short clip if need be for you to listen to

 

[Treeline]

Probably the best thing for you to do is to get some of the basic recording textbooks - not really expensive and available through Amazon or ZZounds (click on this BBS sponsor ads and then do site searches on "recording" and "manuals").

As to the distortion, the answer is it could happen anywhere along your signal chain, from the mic to the cable to the board or its settings, to the cable going to the computer, to the computer itself, to the power feeding the computer. That's not a diss kind of response - it's the reality. So getting a good solid understanding of the basics is really important and the books will help.

Another really good tool is right here on the BBS - and that is getting to know how the search function works. It's one of the links areas on the blue bar towards the top of the screen. I use the search function all the time as it will take me to stuff that tends to answer my questions! Try getting to know it and you will pick up a lot of info; this site has massive institutional memory.

Finally, the first thing I would think as suspect creating the distortion is that you may have plugged into the "mic" jack on the computer and not the "line in" jack. The next thing I'd look at are the settings of the computer software - are they set to any extremes? The next thing would be the settings on the mixer; was any part of the signal chain too hot and so forth. Then comes cables. You can learn a lot about what the computer is going to hear by plugging in headphones to the mixer to monitor the signal.

Good luck and keep tinkering with this. You have a signal and that is a good start. I've been fighting with a new system for a week because I could not get anything at all. Turned out to be a Microsoft XP bug created when they did the service pack 2. I installed a patch and it all works now. Go figure.

 

[rayc]

Everything treeline said is SPOT ON,
To reiterate from a stightly diff perspective:
Stereo out of the deck, with adaptors into the Y cable & into the stereo in of your soundcard should work check your levels going out.
Test the stereo out of the deck - into an amp or cassette recorder & see if there's a prob noise with the signal at that stage.
Then check that your sound card receives a signal from another source with out any probs.
Check the souncard control panel for levels there too.
Then check the recording levels in Audition for distortion
Check EVERYTHING is earthed properly
Check that ALL cables & adaptors work without noise
Make sure your NOT using the mic in on the sound card - easy enough to muck that up.
Then test it all again hooked up & just talking into a couple of mics.
Cheers
rayC