What I got. What else do I need?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Sydney
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Sydney

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I have.....

2 Roland Synthesizers
1 Electronic Piano
Cakewalk PA9
Reason
a MIDI cable, and 2 quarter inch audio cables

I'm not sure how to hook this all up so that I can record the keyboards and reason, and I'm not really sure how to optimize MIDI capabilities.

Any tips would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
Sydney
 
Before anyone can offer any tips, It would be handy to know more precisely what you want to be able to achieve. There are many possibilities, but nearly all of them involve more than just three cables.
 
Presuming you want to record your actual keyboards, you'll need an interface to get the audio into your PC. There are other options, however, using a sequencer to record MIDI instructions from your keyboard(s) and using VSTi sounds.

First path, you need an audio interface, second you need a MIDI interface. You can get one that does both functions.

Need to know more about what you're intended to do, however, as gecko above has said.
 
Thanks for your quick replies.

This would be my ultimate goal: To record everything into Cakewalk (sounds from the 2 synths and my electric piano, sounds from Reason (2.5), and maybe even some electric guitar and voice at a later point). Mainly, I would like my computer to be the main device where all sound is gathered. I have CWPA9, but if there's something better you'd recommend, I will get it.

Two things that I'm unsure of

1) For my intentions here, what audio/MIDI interface would be sufficient/ which would you recommend?

2) HOW do I rhythmically sync up all of these different types of audio into a computer. How can MIDI facilitate this? This is the thing that has always baffled me.

Thanks,
 
MIDI is your friend, and you will need to become familiar with how it works. In essence it is a series of commands that tell the synth which note to play, when and for how long.

There are a number of ways of achieving what you want.

At the minimum, you need to get an interface that has audio and midi capability. Most USB or Firewire interfaces will do this, and there are some very reasonably priced ones available these days. You could probably get away with (at least for the time being) with an interface that provides MIDI in and out and has a couple of mike inputs and a couple of line inputs.

You:

* connect up a synth to the MIDI in and out (hence you need two MIDI cables), and connect up the synth's audio ouput to the line-ins of the interface.

* load up Cakewalk, select a track to record a MIDI input.

* hit record, then play something on the keyboard. This is recorded as a MIDI track in Cakewalk.

* when you've recorded a MIDI track, you can go into it and fix up any mistakes.

* play back the MIDI track. This will play the synth via the interface and its MIDI out (and the synth's MIDI in). The synth's audio will go via its audio outputs into the interface, then into the computer.

* record the synth's audio by setting up an audio track in Cakewalk, arming it and hitting record.
 
Yep, you need an interface to sit between the instruments and your pc and get them to talk to each other.

I would suggest you have a look at something like the m-audio fast track pro which will allow you to record MIDI, and two channels of audio which is good because you can then take a stereo out from your keyboard.
Or maybe the Presonus Audiobox, which is a bit cheaper.

If you want to invest in something a little chunkier, maybe if you want to record some vocals with the keyboard for song writing or something have a look here Multitrack Equipment – Computer Audio Interfaces | Cobalt Audio for some more info
 
"optimize MIDI capabilities"

Buy a dedicated MIDI-over-USB interface with 2 or preferably 4 I/O. This way you don't have to constantly re-patch your MIDI I/O. Just set it and forget it. Also, be aware that there are issues with trying to use multiple USB MIDI devices at once, at least in XP Pro and Sonar. I gave up trying to use an MPK49 and a MIDIsport at the same time because Sonar only wanted to recognize one or the other and not both at the same time. Now the MPK is routed through the MIDIsport and powered with a Radio Shack adapter.

Use MIDI-OX and MIDI Yoke to configure your MIDI ports into your DAW software. MIDI OX will also do virtual keyboard splits and allow you to save setups where you can control either soft synths and/or other MIDI devices in real time while ignoring other devices you don't want sounding, without constantly changing MIDI send/receive channels in either the controller or the device you want to control.

You don't mention if the electric piano is MIDI capable or not. The extra MIDI ports would also allow for an outboard drum machine or other future MIDI devices.

The DAW software will sync all your MIDI devices if they are properly configured to receive MIDI Time Code. The DAW becomes the master and the MIDI devices are the slaves.

MAudio MIDIsport 4x4 is a solid piece of gear with stable drivers. About $150US.

Also, for Reason you want to max out the amount of RAM in your computer, and also max out the virtual memory available. If you're running two HD's always put your soft synths/samples on the same drive with Cakewalk, and record your audio tracks to the second drive. It's too much work for a single HD to find the samples and play them back while streaming audio at the same time. It's do-able, but you'll have latency on the soft synths and/or audio drop outs.
 
thanks EVERYONE. I'll be taking ALL of your advice and get things set up, hopefully within the week. Possibly more questions to follow..
 
I picked up the midi to usb cable cheap on ebay - works great even though I don't use it much anymore since I started playing more guitar centered music and adding keys afterwards... midi guitar never really caught on <snicker>
 
I'll just add that if you're just starting and MIDI scares you like you said, try getting everything you have going smooth before you incorporate Reason which is really a whole other story by itself and can make things way too confusing if you don't have a good handle on it and are trying to figure it out within the things you are currently trying to learn...
 
Hello all - I'm currently using a Soundblaster Live soundcard that came with a front panel, but it only has one 1/4 inch line in. Therefore, I'm unable to record from my keyboard in stereo.

I successfully set up a MIDI in and out connection to and from my keyboard / computer.

I don't do very complex recording, mostly just adding one track at a time, and then layering on more as I go. So, with this kind of really basic recording that I'm doing, I believe all I really need to is something that will allow me to record stereo from my keyboard into the computer (which I believe would be a device that has two 1/4 inch inputs, and then connects to my computer via a USB cable). Is this correct?

There have been a couple of suggestions above, like the M-Audio Fast Track Pro. I've looked at pictures of it online, but I can't see the audio inputs. Does it have two or more? What does 4 x 4 mean?

Also, do I really need multiple MIDI connections? It seems like just one would do the job. Or, does MIDI also need two for stereo purposes?
 
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