very basic questions!

[treetops]

Hi, I haven't done any recording before, so all my queries are really basic but i'd be grateful if anyone could help.

I want to record guitar (acoustic and electric) and voice using my computer. is the easiest way do this to buy a microphone then use a programme like cooledit to record and play around with the sound? What is a microphone preamp or mixer? and is one essential? I think my sound card is an Avance Logic one. - i guess it is really basic as it came with my pc.

I really just want to record as soon as possible as listening back to my songs would really help me develop as a musician. i therefore am not to bothered at the moment at getting an amazing sound quality; ease of use and spending as little money as possible are my priorites at this stage.

It seems there is a huge range in price for microphones. ive seen the sm57 recommended a lot, can that be used for recording guitar from an amp? are there any mics much cheaper than the sm57 which are worth investigating? Also, will most mics plug in to a 1/8" audio in on a pc or do you have to get some kind of adapter?

cheers..sorry this is pretty long, but hopefully it will be easy to answer

 

[noisedude]

Here's a short website to take you through the basics, I put some gear recommendations on there. Read it and then you'll probably have a load more questions ... which is cool too

 

[noisedude]

Sorry, forgot to put URL ... it's been a long day:

http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/nikkeefe/

 

[Ibrow]

If you want to use your computer as a "scratch pad" then you are well on your way. If you are trying to record "demo quality" then that opens up an entire different set of questions/answers.

The SM57 will serve you well. It's a good starter mic. You can record vocals with it and put it up to your guitar amp and record that way also. Mics, in general, will have an XLR cable and need a preamp(or phantom power) to get it to line level for your computer. So, in order to use your SM57, you will either need to buy a pre-amp, or a mixer. I would suggest looking further down the road of your music recording carreer and think about what you may need, say, a year from now. Once this beast gets it's claws into you, it's really TOUGH to get it to let go. That said, I would recommend either a Yamaha or Behringer mixer. 12-16 channels should do you well, even looking toward the future. That way, you'll have your preamp for your SM57, you will have phantom power in case you buy a condeser mic later, and you will be able to plug in a few different items to keep everything situated.

So, you would run your XLR cable from your MIC to the Pre on the mixer/pre-amp, then run a 1/4" cable from the mixer to the line-in on the soundcard. You will need a 1/4" to 1/8" stereo converter on the end of the cable. Rat Shack or Guitar center have them.

Hope that helps.

 

[Enci]

Hi,

I am also new and under-educated in the home-recording arena and appreciate any help/advice from all the pros in here...
Like you, Treetops, I want to record guitar and voice on my computer, and I have similar questions...

I have a (hand-me-down) computer, which I think has a decent sound card (?). I know I have plenty of space and memory. Although I don't really know much about sound cards and which ones are good. I'm not even sure what kind mine is! How do I identify it? I looked in my 'control panel' under 'sound & audio devices'...it lists 'Crystal WMD Audio' as my 'default device' for audio and sound recording...is this my sound card?
If so, is it a good/ok/crappy one? If not, how do I find out what my sound card is?

I have installed and played around with Cool Edit Pro and I checked the 'devices' there also. It lists both Crystal WMD Audio (1st) and Wave Mapper (2nd) under 'recording' and 'playback' devices...and then under the 'MIDI output devices' it also lists Crystal FM Synth (1st), MS GS Wavetable SW Synth (2nd) and Crystal MPU-401 (3rd)...does this mean anything to anyone?! Clue me in, please!

Till now I have used the Tascam Portastudio 4 track to record, which has been OK for my purposes, (since my music is acoustic folk-rock-alt with limited need for production) but the quality of the recordings could be a lot better and there's some hiss and crackling, so that sucks.

Now that I am recording on the computer...Is it OK that I plug my acoustic guitar (which has a pickup) directly into my computer (with the little size adapter thing for the guitar cable, so it fits in the back of the computer)? Or should I not be doing that? Do I HAVE to buy a pre amp/ mixer type of thing, as Treetops asked? (I don't want to record by mic-ing my guitar or amp, just because of the lack of quality of the equipment I own, I don't think it would sound good...I have a very tiny budget). Can I just use the Portastudio to 'act' as my preamp? Same question for the vocals/mic (I have a Shure AXS-1 mic)?

Sorry this is so long.
Thanks for any help.

Enci
www.encismusic.com