Really Basic Questions

[yuutokun]

I have recently gotten into singing and songwriting and until now I have been using my iphone or digital voice recorder to record samples and demos of my songs.

However, I have Behringer xm4800 dynamic mic and was wondering how I might be able to use it to record on my PC for decent sound recordings.
I have a very stand 8 channel Realtek HD onboard sound card and have tried plugging it in directly but I tend to get these breaks and fades while I'm singing.

I suppose this means I need to get my hand on an audio interface or preamp, but I'm not quite sure what I need to get setup.
As I'm just recording vocal demos right now I don't really need anything that is that high end and would prefer cheaper equipment if possible.
Still want it to sound more professional than my iphone lol

Any help and guidance you could offer would be very much appreciated.

 

[Thurgood]

Welcome. Their is a huge volume of information located here; use your search function thoroughly. Gain staging, mic pre-amps, Computer audio and interfaces are good places to begin your searches. Make music. Be well all.

 

[TheRecProducer]

I am guessing that you meant xm8500, the handheld behringer mic. It is sort of like a knock-off SM58, but I suppose that it will still sound better than your voice recorder or iPhone. The problem is just what you think it is. You have a nice sound card, but not an 'audio interface' designed for recording audio. The input on your soundcard is designed for a little computer mic or headset that you would use to for online gaming (I don't know your card specifically, but I am guessing here). Anyway, if you want to save money, I would check eBay or craigslist for a used audio interface and some audio software. Or, a higher end portable recorder like you have, but one that you can plug a mic into.

 

[yuutokun]

Thank you guys.
Now that I know more for sure what the issue is I can look on other threads for more info.
It's just hard to search for info on something I am totally lost on.
Thanks for the clarity Rec.

 

[TimOBrien]

My obligatory standard reply-for-newbies that I keep in Wordpad so this is just a paste (I don't want to re-type this all the time):

First off, immediately get a good beginner recording book (spend $20 before spending hundred$/thousand$) that shows you what you need to get started and how to hook everything up in your studio:
Home Recording for Musicians by Jeff Strong - $15
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/04...mp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0470385421
(Wish I'd had that when I started; would have saved me lots of money and time and grief)
You can also pick up this book in most any Borders or Barnes&Noble in the Music Books section!

Another good one is: Recording Guitar and Bass by Huw Price
http://www.amazon.com/Recording-Gui...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1215734124&sr=1-1
(I got my copy at a place called Half-Price Books for $6!!)

And you can get a FREE subscription to TapeOp magazine at www.tapeop.com

Barnes&Noble or Borders are great places to start --- they have recording books and you can go get a snack or coffee and read them for FREE! Don't pass by a good recording book --- this is a VERY technical hobby and you REALLY want to start a reference library!!!

Good Newbie guides that also explains all the basics and have good tips:
http://www.tweakheadz.com/guide.htm
http://www.computermusic.co.uk/page/computermusic?entry=free_beginner_pdfs
http://www.harmony-central.com/articles/
http://www.gearslutz.com/board/tips-techniques/168409-tips-techniques.html

21 Ways To Assemble a Recording Rig: http://www.tweakheadz.com/rigs.htm

Also Good Info: http://www.theprojectstudiohandbook.com/directory.htm

Other recording books: http://musicbooksplus.com/home-recording-c-31.html

Still using a built-in soundcard?? Unfortunately, those are made with less than $1 worth of chips for beeps, boops and light gaming (not to mention cheapness for the manufacturer) and NOT quality music production.
#1 Rule of Recording: You MUST replace the built-in soundcard.
Here's a good guide and user-tested suggestions that work: http://www.tweakheadz.com/soundcards_for_the_home_studio.htm
(you'll want to bookmark and read through all of Tweak's Guide while you're there...)
Another good article: Choosing an audio interface - http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/sep08/articles/audiointerfaces.htm


Plenty of software around to record for FREE to start out on:

Sony ACID Express (free 10-track sequencer): http://www.acidplanet.com/downloads/xpress/
Audacity: http://audacity.sourceforge.net (multi-track with VST support)
Wavosaur: http://www.wavosaur.com/ (a stereo audio file editor with VST support)\
Kristal: http://www.kreatives.org/kristal/
Other freebies and shareware: www.hitsquad.com/smm

Another great option is REAPER at http://www.cockos.com/reaper/ (It's $50 but runs for free until you get guilty enough to pay for it...)
I use Reaper and highly reccomend it...

Music Notation and MIDI recording: Melody Assistant ($25) and Harmony Assistant ($80) have the power of $600 notation packages - http://myriad-online.com
Demo you can try on the website.

And you can go out to any Barnes&Noble or Borders and pick up "Computer Music" magazine - they have a full FREE studio suite in every issue's DVD, including sequencers, plugins and tons of audio samples. (November 2006 they gave away a full copy of SamplitudeV8SE worth $150, November 2007-on the racks Dec in the US- they gave away SamplitudeV9SE and July 2009 issue they put out Samplitude10SE. FREE. It pays to watch 'em for giveaways...)