P
Perfectionista
New member
Having grown tired of the relative limitations of recording on a stand alone recording unit compared to just doing it all on my computer, I’ve decided to ditch the dps16 and get started recording on my computer. I am an aspiring songwriter and I do a pretty wide range of music, from dark acoustic country-ish ballads to ‘appetite’ style hard rock to that lamentable sugary pop sound we all despise so. It ranges from warm and tubey to that super slick sound. As I was planning on getting a new computer anyway (mine is a dell with a p3 450mhz and 128 ram w/ a 40 gig hd which I upgraded from the 3 gig that was on there originally), I need lots of ADVICE on how to go about getting a set up that will 1) support me in my quest for sonic clarity 2) bring me years of usefulness and 3) not need to be changed constantly. Also, as far as the inputs go, I will be probably never be recording more than 2 external sources at a time. Most likely, I will just be using a keyboard or midi controller, a drum controller, the 2 channel mic preamp and possibly two more sources.
Here is what I have for gear right now:
My Guitar rig (marshall jmp-1, mesa 20/20 power amp, alesis midiverb 4)
Boss 770 drum machine
Joe Meek VCQ 2 cs 2 channel mic preamp (with spdif outs)
Studio projects c3
Sure sm58
Tannoy Reveal monitors
Akai DPS 16 hard disk recorder (to be sold)
Alesis RA 150 power amp
My budget is fairly flexible as I plan to do this slowly. I am fortunate to already have the good mics, a good pre, monitors and a power amp so I was thinking of about a $4000 TOTAL budget for this (but it could be more). I’m in this for the long haul. So here are my questions for all you bitter computer musicians hardened by years of systems conflicts and crashes:
1) What should my computer set up consist of? Processor speed? RAM? Hard drive? Sound Card? Video Card (I understand that adding a second monitor in the future is helpful)? CD-RW? And is there anywhere I can just buy the damn tower without getting the monitor and all the other junk I already have?
2) Should I use a workstation like the Yamaha motif/korg triton to make my sounds or should I use a midi controller and play sounds stored on my computer? Which is more efficient in terms of adding new sounds in the future, usability etc…? What about a rack unit?
3) Are my monitors OK? Are there monitors made more specifically for use with a computer? Should I have powered monitors instead of the power amp/monitor set up?
4) If I will be using lots of drum samples on my computer, would it render the boss 770 drum machine that I already have obsolete? Don’t get me wrong, the 770 isn’t ‘bad’, in fact, its touch sensitive pads make for a decent sound, but I feel extremely limited by the sounds on there.
5) And finally, once that is all settled, what are your recommendations for programs to use. Which programs will really allow me to craft something really top notch, almost radio ready? Which plug ins do you recommend? I need to be able to have a program and some plug ins which are truly flexible and a set up that can offer lots and lots of tracks and extensive mixing features.
I thank you all in advance for your help. I am just beginning the big switch and I am really pretty clueless. I’d much rather be an informed customer than make expensive mistakes (I am the king of buying the ‘wrong’ thing, even after extensive research). In fact, I owned a certain bridge in New York at one point….
Here is what I have for gear right now:
My Guitar rig (marshall jmp-1, mesa 20/20 power amp, alesis midiverb 4)
Boss 770 drum machine
Joe Meek VCQ 2 cs 2 channel mic preamp (with spdif outs)
Studio projects c3
Sure sm58
Tannoy Reveal monitors
Akai DPS 16 hard disk recorder (to be sold)
Alesis RA 150 power amp
My budget is fairly flexible as I plan to do this slowly. I am fortunate to already have the good mics, a good pre, monitors and a power amp so I was thinking of about a $4000 TOTAL budget for this (but it could be more). I’m in this for the long haul. So here are my questions for all you bitter computer musicians hardened by years of systems conflicts and crashes:
1) What should my computer set up consist of? Processor speed? RAM? Hard drive? Sound Card? Video Card (I understand that adding a second monitor in the future is helpful)? CD-RW? And is there anywhere I can just buy the damn tower without getting the monitor and all the other junk I already have?
2) Should I use a workstation like the Yamaha motif/korg triton to make my sounds or should I use a midi controller and play sounds stored on my computer? Which is more efficient in terms of adding new sounds in the future, usability etc…? What about a rack unit?
3) Are my monitors OK? Are there monitors made more specifically for use with a computer? Should I have powered monitors instead of the power amp/monitor set up?
4) If I will be using lots of drum samples on my computer, would it render the boss 770 drum machine that I already have obsolete? Don’t get me wrong, the 770 isn’t ‘bad’, in fact, its touch sensitive pads make for a decent sound, but I feel extremely limited by the sounds on there.
5) And finally, once that is all settled, what are your recommendations for programs to use. Which programs will really allow me to craft something really top notch, almost radio ready? Which plug ins do you recommend? I need to be able to have a program and some plug ins which are truly flexible and a set up that can offer lots and lots of tracks and extensive mixing features.
I thank you all in advance for your help. I am just beginning the big switch and I am really pretty clueless. I’d much rather be an informed customer than make expensive mistakes (I am the king of buying the ‘wrong’ thing, even after extensive research). In fact, I owned a certain bridge in New York at one point….
