Updating an aging system (me)

[osirus]

The constant drumming of the rain outside the window, combined with the steady hum of the cooling fans, creates a cacophony of the monotonous, which works on my fatigue like tiny hammers pounding into throbbing temples.

“This is ridiculous,” I admonish myself, maneuvering my way down another dead end; eyes nothing more than narrow slits in the reflected light from the monitor.

Waves of frustration descend, manifesting themselves in trembling spasms, beginning at my shoulders and working their way down. My grip on the mouse tightens, as quivering fingers banish the curser to the screen’s nether-regions.

“Will I ever find what I am looking for?” I mumble in frustration.

Wait! What’s this? A site which makes the claim to be the PLACE I’ve been looking for?

Could it be?

Tutorials! Reviews! A community of creative minds!

I’m home!

About me… I am an ex-homegrown analog recording studio owner from the mid 80’s, who has been out of touch for twenty+ years and wants desperately to catch up… I still own the ½”, 16 track and all the other stuff from the time period. (Fostex, Tascam, Carvin, JBL, etc) I want to interface, if possible and move forward. I hope to find some answers in these halls of creativity.

Now, on to my questions (and I am apologizing up front for the length of this post)…

a long, long time ago I would plug the DX7 into the board, maybe add a little EQ and hit the record button. Do a few punch in’s until I got it right and move on to the next sound. MIDI was pretty new and definitely did not interface with the analog mixer (still had VU’s!).

Now I have a new Yamaha keyboard (DGX620) and am looking to start putting both my technically and musically creative (heh, heh, yeah right) skills back to work. So here goes….

1. No room in my digs for my gargantuan mixer, so I would like to get some “inexpensive” (less than $200) software for the PC. It would be nice if it already had a few whistles and bells. Also the closer it comes to “feeling” like an analog board, the better this old guy will have learning to use it.
2. I want more sounds than my keyboard offers (especially vocal oo’s and ah’s and doo’s, etc.) and would like to know if I can download (purchase cheaply or for free) sounds that can be played using my keyboard’s MIDI/usb interface.
3. What should I get for an analog computer interface? I’ve been looking and saw something from M-audio called the 1010L… any comments? Are there any sound cards out there that offer “phantom power”? I have some pretty nice vintage (I like that term…) microphones.
4. All these new (within the last 25 years…LOL) terminologies require assimilation, integration and incorporation into my aging, but relatively capable mind. Are there any books one could recommend on:

• a) MIDI? (Especially how it can be manipulated in the digital recording process).
• b) Digital recording basics.

OK, I am done for now… I appreciate your patience and assistance and I leave myself in your capable hands...thank you very much!

 

[gecko zzed]

[*]No room in my digs for my gargantuan mixer, so I would like to get some “inexpensive” (less than $200) software for the PC. It would be nice if it already had a few whistles and bells. Also the closer it comes to “feeling” like an analog board, the better this old guy will have learning to use it.
[*]I want more sounds than my keyboard offers (especially vocal oo’s and ah’s and doo’s, etc.) and would like to know if I can download (purchase cheaply or for free) sounds that can be played using my keyboard’s MIDI/usb interface.
[*]What should I get for an analog computer interface? I’ve been looking and saw something from M-audio called the 1010L… any comments? Are there any sound cards out there that offer “phantom power”? I have some pretty nice vintage (I like that term…) microphones.
[*]All these new (within the last 25 years…LOL) terminologies require assimilation, integration and incorporation into my aging, but relatively capable mind. Are there any books one could recommend on:
[/LIST]

• a) MIDI? (Especially how it can be manipulated in the digital recording process).
• b) Digital recording basics.

OK, I am done for now… I appreciate your patience and assistance and I leave myself in your capable hands...thank you very much!

1 You can download Reaper for free. It is a very capable and functional audio & midi application. It's mixing interface behaves well, not too different from an analog mixer, though there are other applications that are closer to analog than Reaper. Garage Band and Audacity are other downloadable applications, though I have no experience with these. You can look at Sonar (Sonar Home Studio is very affordable), and you often get applications bundled with hardware.

2 There are many virtual instruments that you can download, some free, some not, some good, some bad. You can load these into Reaper or Sonar or whatever, and control via your keyboard (assuming it has midi output). Additionally, you can buy a hardware sound module (like a Roland Sound Canvas) and drive this using the application (again using midi).

3 You need something to go between your sound-making devices and the PC. The 1010L will do this. However, you might like to choose easier paths. For example, Tascam makes a neat USB interface that has a couple of mike inputs, a couple of line inputs and midi. If you are planning on recording more than two tracks at once, then you have to go further afield. This is where the 1010 comes in, but you could also consider a firewire interface such as the Presonus Firepod which has eight mike or line inputs. Most contemporary interfaces such as these include phantom power.

There is a heap of information about digital recording and midi manipulation around, but I don't have any links handy. Others may help.

Like you, I graduated from the school of tape and physical faders, and squirmed protestingly into the digital realm. At the start I still yearned for the physicality of analog mixing. However, it wasn't too long before I got used to mixing "in the box" (i.e. in the PC environment), and though some still prefer pushing things with fingertips, I won't go back.

 

[osirus]

Thanks gecko! That is exactly what I was looking for. I know I will be able to figure it all out. I took a cursory look at Reaper and it definitely "feels" good. I will do some more investigation.

Do you know if the term General MIDI indicates controller capability? My keyboard has both MIDI and usb capabilities, but the manual is far from clear on this point.

Thanks again!

 

[guitar zero]

This is a pretty good site
http://www.tweakheadz.com/rigs.htm

Books:Guerilla Home Recording by Karl Coryat. It's written by a guy who's been recording at home for 30 years using old wierd (read analog) gear. He does a good job of covering the basics of digital recording.

The Recording Engineer's Handbook by Bobby Owsinski is good, but much more technical than the first book. It's written by a professional sound engineer who's using a lot of gear that I'll never use (read expensive). But there's loads of good info here.

Good luck

 

[gecko zzed]

Thanks gecko! That is exactly what I was looking for. I know I will be able to figure it all out. I took a cursory look at Reaper and it definitely "feels" good. I will do some more investigation.

Do you know if the term General MIDI indicates controller capability? My keyboard has both MIDI and usb capabilities, but the manual is far from clear on this point.

Thanks again!

General MIDI usually indicates controller capacity. So, for example, the level, panning, reverb and other controls on my keyboard will drive the respective parameters on the software application (I use Logic), and vice versa.

However, all is not sweetness and light. I use Reaper as well, and find that its MIDI control functionality is rather eccentric. Reaper (so I believe) was designed primarily as an audio application, and its midi capacity is not as highly developed as in some other applications. I'm willing to be corrected on this.