some help with new set up please

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etrodai

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hi all, i am planning on setting up a pc for recording and i really need some help as i've never really worked with computers for recording (i've been using a digital multitracker).

basically i am gonna be recording just myself. i want to do all the drums with drumkit from hell , either just programming them or playing them through my electric kit (but probably programmed for simplicity), DI the bass and record the guitar using a pod xt live, then maybe add some synth sounds using a midi keyboard controlling virtual synths.

i've been looking into my options, but i'm a bit stumped as there's so much. i was thinking of going with pro tools and buying a 003 rack factory, mainly because i've heard pro tools is the easiest to learn. this will give me mic inputs if i want to add vocals or maybe mic up a cab for guitars, midi for the keyboard and line inputs for the guitar and bass plus a bunch of plug ins.

i know that pro tools LE is limited to 28 tracks, but i don't really see this being an issue.

i was also considering cubase as i hear this is one of the best, but i don't really know much about it. i'm not really sure what kind of interface is best to use with it.



basically, i already have a pc (plus monitors, mics, cables, headphones etc), but i need to get an interface, a midi keyboard, and a programme to record into (i'm open to suggestions other than pro tools and cubase). i also think i need to get a sampler (like battery 3?) to run DFH? i'm not really sure about this, i do play drums, but i've never programmed drums.

i know this is a lot to ask about, but i'm new to computer recording and i want to make sure i get stuff which is right for me as i already wasted a bunch of money before buying gear which doesn't even get used now.

as far as budget goes, i can save towards anything which is a little too expensive to buy right away as long as its gonna be worth it, i can build stuff up as time goes on, i don't need to buy it all at once.

thanks in advance for any help

Andy
 
etrodai said:
hi all, i am planning on setting up a pc for recording and i really need some help as i've never really worked with computers for recording (i've been using a digital multitracker).

basically i am gonna be recording just myself. i want to do all the drums with drumkit from hell , either just programming them or playing them through my electric kit (but probably programmed for simplicity), DI the bass and record the guitar using a pod xt live, then maybe add some synth sounds using a midi keyboard controlling virtual synths.

i've been looking into my options, but i'm a bit stumped as there's so much. i was thinking of going with pro tools and buying a 003 rack factory, mainly because i've heard pro tools is the easiest to learn. this will give me mic inputs if i want to add vocals or maybe mic up a cab for guitars, midi for the keyboard and line inputs for the guitar and bass plus a bunch of plug ins.

i know that pro tools LE is limited to 28 tracks, but i don't really see this being an issue.

i was also considering cubase as i hear this is one of the best, but i don't really know much about it. i'm not really sure what kind of interface is best to use with it.



basically, i already have a pc (plus monitors, mics, cables, headphones etc), but i need to get an interface, a midi keyboard, and a programme to record into (i'm open to suggestions other than pro tools and cubase). i also think i need to get a sampler (like battery 3?) to run DFH? i'm not really sure about this, i do play drums, but i've never programmed drums.

i know this is a lot to ask about, but i'm new to computer recording and i want to make sure i get stuff which is right for me as i already wasted a bunch of money before buying gear which doesn't even get used now.

as far as budget goes, i can save towards anything which is a little too expensive to buy right away as long as its gonna be worth it, i can build stuff up as time goes on, i don't need to buy it all at once.

thanks in advance for any help

Andy
Click to expand...
Isn't it limited to 128 tracks? I'd steer clear of protools. 'cause only their, and m-audio, gear works with their stuff. Once you buy into protools, you're effectively locked in. how many tracks do you think you need, and what kind of quality? You need midi in? do you have any mics/monitors? any more info?

Cubase isn't "the best". All the major programs are fairly similar, with none really standing out too much. There's so many, but I'll name a few, cubase, protools(yuck, good stuff, but hate the lock-in), sonar, ableton, reaper, nuendo(steinberg, same company as cubase), logic, reason, acid, and many others. And these all have different products, like sonar home, studio, or producers, cubase le, se, sx..., protools tdm(the only good 1, imo, however dead expensive), le, m-powered, and on and on. It's really all down to personal preference, budget, and what you really want/need from it.
 
Since the OP seems to need a good bit of MIDI, I would think EXT might be a wise choice here.
 
http://www.xt-hq.com/download/

Its another low cost but not low featured daw, but very focused on MIDI. Its coder, Jorgen, is alleged to have some of the lean, mean, and user interactive coding skills and philosophy of REAPER's Justin Frankel
 
well after reading up on it i've pretty much decided on cubase, probably going to go with the new cubase 4.

so now i need to decide which interace to use. i've been looking at maybe the edirol FA-101. it only has 2 mic preamps, but i'm probably not going to be using more than one mic at a time anyway, maybe 2. the only acoustic recording will probably be to record vocals or maybe mic a cab. i'm planning on doing most of the guitar with a pod xt though, so that would just go into a line in. same with bass.

it also has a midi interface, which i'll need to control virtual instruments.

any opinions on this interface?

also i plan on doing the drums with Drumkit From Hell Superior. i've heard that you need to use a sampler (like battery) for this, but i've never really used anything like this before, so if someone could please explain how this works to me i'd be really grateful.

thanks
 
My obligatory standard reply that I keep in Wordpad:

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/07...ce&n=283155&n=507846&s=books&v=glance
(Wish I'd had that when I started; would have saved me lots of money and time and grief)

Good Newbie guides that also explains all the basics:
http://www.tweakheadz.com/guide.htm
http://www.computermusic.co.uk/page/computermusic?entry=free_beginner_pdfs

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


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

Audacity: http://audacity.sourceforge.net

Kristal: http://www.kreatives.org/kristal/

Other freebies and shareware: www.hitsquad.com

Another great option is REAPER at http://www.cockos.com/reaper/
(It's $40 but runs for free until you get guilty enough to pay for it...)

Music Notation and MIDI recording: Melody Assistant ($20) 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 studio suite in every issue's DVD, including sequencers, plugins and tons of audio samples. (Last November, they gave away a full copy of SamplitudeV8SE worth $150 - pays to watch 'em for giveaways...)
 
well thanks for that and i'll check that stuff out, but it doesn't really answer my questions
 
I'm doing something similar to what you want. Cubase SE3, ezdrummer, digitech rp150, kybrd, vocals and acoustic guit. I went with a firewire mixer (Phonic) because I can hook everything up and leave it. No latency issues, and I can use just the mixer only when I am practicing, no need to start up computer or software. It streams 10 channels of 24/96 straight off the pre's and into the computer. Easy to set up and never have to switch anything around. Using the RP150 and ezdrummer, I can record everything quietly so I'm not waking the family up at 3am.

Some people will say Phonic is on the same level as Behringer, which it might be. I haven't had any problems yet and I think the mic pre's are adequate. But I'm not an expert on what good mic pre's should sound like, so I'm ignorantly happy.

Hope this helps.
 
thanks for the reply.

so how do you make your drum tracks. as far as i know you can't just use ez drummer straight into cubase you have to use a sequencer. i want to just programme the drums rather than playing them in. this is the part i'm not too sure about.
 
etrodai said:
so how do you make your drum tracks. as far as i know you can't just use ez drummer straight into cubase you have to use a sequencer.
Click to expand...

It works in Cubase without any other sequencer. It's a vst instrument and works inside of cubase. You create a midi track and select ezdrummer as the midi in and also midi out. Then open the ezdrummer vst, in there you can preview the different patterns and select the one you want. Usually a pattern is one measure long. You drag the pattern onto the midi track whereever you need it. From there you can copy and paste to make duplicates, repeating patterns, whatever, or you can drag another pattern to change it up.

If you wanted something quick and dirty, you can program a whole song in minutes. For something more natural sounding, it takes me about an hour to choose what I want for the different sections and then makes subtle changes.

The only problem I found with ezdrummer and cubase SE3 is when you copy over to the midi track, it wants to create a new midi track and places the pattern there. This is a minor inconveniece. My understanding is Cubase 4 (which you said you intend to buy) will place the pattern in the midi track that you assign it to.

Hope this helps
 
thaks for the help Chili. so i assume once i've dragged the pattern into my track i can adjust it from there, like adding crash hits, putting in more bass drums hits and stuff like that?
 
etrodai said:
thaks for the help Chili. so i assume once i've dragged the pattern into my track i can adjust it from there, like adding crash hits, putting in more bass drums hits and stuff like that?
Click to expand...

Yup. Cubase has a midi editor and a drum editor which I like. Just double click on the midi pattern and it opens into an editor. Once you buy ezdrummer, you can download templates from toontrack which put labels on the notes in the editors so you know which drum your hitting.

Another thing I just thought of: you said you might want to use your electric kit, I guess as triggers. I don't think you can do this with ezdrummer, but I could be wrong. Maybe you would need to create a custom map and I don't know how to do that.

I've been doing this for about 7 or 8 months, so I'm still a noob. But I'm glad I can pass along what little I know.

good luck, it's addictive..... :eek:
 
thanks a lot for your help chili, you've cleared a lot of stuff up for me. i'm probably going to order ez drummer in the next couple of days

cheers
 
I would go read forums around the net regarding cubase 4 before I bought it, maybe KVR, there are some SERIOUS issues with the newest cubase that may become a major hurdle to you, such as ditching DX support. Many users are staying with the older versions
 
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