What do I need??

[Room 9]

OK, I am transitioning form a Boss BR 1180 ('all-in-one') recorder to computer- based recording in an effort to enhance the quality and depth of my sound. Can anyone make recommendations for the computer/ software/ mics that I should consider? My sound is acoustic (sort of dave mattews with country twist...)Thanks!

 

[philbagg]

OK, I am transitioning form a Boss BR 1180 ('all-in-one') recorder to computer- based recording in an effort to enhance the quality and depth of my sound. Can anyone make recommendations for the computer/ software/ mics that I should consider? My sound is acoustic (sort of dave mattews with country twist...)Thanks!

A computer with at least 2gb of ram and a good processor (preferably dual-core) should be powerful enough. Get yourself a good interface (search this site for recommendations, there's been plenty), and it should come with software such as Cubase etc. Alternatively, Reaper is very highly spoken of around here and it's pretty cheap too ($60 i think).

For microphones, condenser mics usually work pretty well for acoustic guitars and vocals. Take a trip to the mic forum here and see what cheap (yet good) condenser microphones have been recommended. I'd suggest getting two of the same so you can stereo mic the acoustic (usually yields the best results).

Oh, you'll also need either a good set of monitoring headphones (and I mean good), or better yet, a good set of monitors. The KRK Rokit 5's are amazing, and I'd personally recommend them. I got a pair for €300 here in Ireland, which is dirt cheap for such a great set of monitors.

Hope this helps.

 

[Room 9]

Awesome. Thanks. Another silly question for a computer newbie- What, exactly, is an "interface". My impression is that it was computer+software+mics+monitors= 'home studio'. Where does interface fit in?

 

[Descalabro]

Awesome. Thanks. Another silly question for a computer newbie- What, exactly, is an "interface". My impression is that it was computer+software+mics+monitors= 'home studio'. Where does interface fit in?

Hi.

As I understand it, the interface is, in a very basic way, an external sound card with preamps and inputs and outputs, which allows you to obtain very low latency times when monitoring what you're playing/recording, for one or several instruments at a time, and also control the signal level before it hits the recording software. The interface makes the connection between your instruments/pedals/amps/mics, and the pc, and then back to the headphones/monitors.

Latency is the time the sound takes to be processed by the interface (from analogic to digital signal), go into the pc (input latency), and go out again into the headphones or the monitors (ouput latency).

http://www.drumpower.com.au/ebay/images/Presonus/firebox/FIREBOXhookupbig.jpg

You can get small ones like this:
http://www.djtechtools.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/firebox.jpg

Or larger ones like this:
http://www.harmony-central.com/ProductImages/Large/000027942.jpg

Of course I only mentioned the basic characteristics of an interface, there are more which I don't even know. I only own a small one.

I'm not certain, but I think the lowest latency interfaces are the ones which use Firewire connection.

 

[dintymoore]

Awesome. Thanks. Another silly question for a computer newbie- What, exactly, is an "interface". My impression is that it was computer+software+mics+monitors= 'home studio'. Where does interface fit in?

You're right, you could use your mic input on your computer but after a few weeks (or hours) you'll probably realize that it doesn't sound that great.

It might be worth trying because maybe you could do that for awhile because it does work and for basic songwriting it might be ok.

After you outgrow that, you'd likely want an interface and a mic. The cheapest interface I know of is this (comes with Cubase and a great reverb too):
http://cgi.ebay.com/LEXICON-ALPHA-U...emQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item3efbc097ce

 

[HomeNoiseRecord]

regarding the mic input vs soundcard thing, heres a couple of links (not trying to shamelessly plug anthing her as the bands now split)

check out www.myspace.com/adamjowens and compare Poseidons Last Breath to The God Particle for example.

TGP was recorded guitar-pod2-mic input and done on cubase.
poseidons was done exactly the same, but instead of computer mic it was a usb soundcard, and the difference is pretty big, less noise, better dynamic range etc

 

[Room 9]

What else??

OK. Let me get this straight, are this the essentials for home recording?
Computer (with 2 gb ram)
interface (with recording software)
mics
monitors

Anything else critical for success? And roughly (in USD), what am I looking at cost-wise to get started with good, maybe not top-of-the-line, equipment? 2000$ 5000$? Any tips on cost saving without cutting quality?Thanks!

 

[philbagg]

OK. Let me get this straight, are this the essentials for home recording?
Computer (with 2 gb ram)
interface (with recording software)
mics
monitors

Anything else critical for success? And roughly (in USD), what am I looking at cost-wise to get started with good, maybe not top-of-the-line, equipment? 2000$ 5000$? Any tips on cost saving without cutting quality?Thanks!

One more thing you could look into getting is an external hard drive to use as a back up. The last thing you want is to have a load of stuff done recording-wise, and then lose it all to a system crash. The WD stuff is pretty good for the money.

About 400-500 USD will get you a good set of monitors (as mentioned, the KRK rokit 5's are amazing)

I'd recommend going higher than 2gb of ram, maybe 3 or 4. I'd call 2gb ram a minimum. 4gb is great for the job, and ram is very cheap these days. I'm not sure how much the computer will be. If budget is a deciding factor, go with PC. Macs are much, much dearer, and if it's purely for recording, there isn't much of a difference. Read about it here. We have a really powerful pc here in the house, my dad built it (he knows computers inside and out). But its downstairs. If I could use it to record and mix, I would. But it's in an awful room (sound-wise), so I'm using an iMac up in my room. Not nearly as powerful, but it does what I want it to and I haven't had much problems.

I'm not sure how much the computer will set you back.

Mics? 2 great choices for starter mics are the Shure SM58 and SM57. Look them up. They're "legends" in the industry. Otherwise, take a look over in the mic forum and see what people have recommended and then look up prices.

Dogman recommended a good interface above. Check that out.

I'm gonna guess and say roughly $2000 for the lot. Don't hold me to that though.

 

[Room 9]

whta do I need?

Very cool. So if I have a small mixer (Behringer), resonable monitors, an SMP 58 mic, all I need is a computer, a sound card, and a sequencer program (ie cakewalk)? What about a MIDI keyboard? Thanks...

 

[jedblue]

I don't know that changing your recording device is going to improve your results to the extent you might think over what's possible with your existing BR1180. Perhaps looking at your recording and monitoring environment first might get you a long way there - mike, monitors and the room(s) you're using?

I see that one of the dangers you face is that having changed your recording device to a computer setup you don't get what you want because it's these other factors that are contributing most to what you don't like about your current results?

I'll quote you this from Sound on Sound about the BR type machines "the bottom line is that it is possible to make good-sounding recordings with this unit. In the real world, the quality of recordings made on the BR is going to be limited by mic placement, ambient noise, room acoustics and instrument quality, not by the quality of the preamps, the lack of 24-bit recording or the degradation caused by digital attenuators. In fact, for all its fixed 16-bit/44.1kHz nature, the BR will deliver better recordings than its competitors in many situations, because it's almost completely silent in operation. I recorded a quiet finger-picked acoustic guitar part with the mics quite distant and the BR in the same room, and no trace of hard drive noise made it onto the recording."

 

[Room 9]

Hi- Thanks for your insight. I'm not displeased with my recordings per se (have finished 3 full lengh CDs with the BR 1180). I just want to expand my sound and add dimension that I'm not sure the BR can provide. We had a 'professional' record a demo of my band, and the computer set up was what he used. It sounded very good- better than my stuff. So...how to proceed from here? Move to computer recording or stick with the BR?? How can I know??

 

[nate_dennis]

I'm not displeased with my recordings per se (have finished 3 full lengh CDs with the BR 1180). I just want to expand my sound and add dimension that I'm not sure the BR can provide. We had a 'professional' record a demo of my band, and the computer set up was what he used. It sounded very good- better than my stuff. So...how to proceed from here? Move to computer recording or stick with the BR?? How can I know??

Take your money, invest in room treatment 1st. Then Monitors. Then mics. Then pres. Use what you have. The BR's are nice pieces. Use your USB port to dump your tracks to the computer if you want. I say treatment first, then monitors, because if you can't really HEAR what you're doing, you can't make good choices of what your recording needs. Use what you have. Improve your room, your chain, and your ears and you'll get there.


Just my $.02

 

[Room 9]

Good idea. Where is the best place to learn about room dynamics?

 

[Jeff_D]

Anything else critical for success?

yup. room acoustics and talent.
Check out the studio building forum for room treatment stuff.
Welcome to the money pit./

 

[nate_dennis]

Good idea. Where is the best place to learn about room dynamics?

These guys have good tips and info.

But also check out this page. I'm not affiliated with the company, but Ethan does frequent these boards and gives a lot of great info (even though it sometimes costs him business.) So check it out.

Basically you'll need bass traps and some diffussion. I hear varying accounts of how much a decent DIY treatment will cost. It's next on my list (but it has to wait till after I move.) Those links will get you started.

As far as monitors go; I'm a fan of KRK. I use the RP6s (though the originals are discontinued they have a new version out.) But you can get into a decent set of monitors for for under $500.

My guess is you can do monitors and room treatment on $1k and that leaves you some real decent money for pres and mics and such. Hope this helps.