What Next?

[bfsuk]

Hey,
I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice on what gear to buy next for my slowly expanding homestudio.
I currently own:

- Tascam 788 Digital 8 track

- Mission 717 Monitors
- Power Amp

- Realistic Graphic EQ
- Behringer Bass V-Amp (Im a bass player you see)

- Shure PG58 Mic
- Sennheiser e818s Mic
- Realistic Stereo Electret Condenser Mic
- SP B1 Mic

I use my set up mostly for recording my band (Punk / Rock Music) but have been doing a little bit of recording for friends bands. Alot of the recordings so far have been live recordings, with guitar and vocal overdubs afterwards.

If anyone could reccomend what I need next to get the most out of my recordings and make them that little bit better, I would be very gratefull. Money limits what I can buy as I'm only 15, but with my birthday coming up soon, and adding money of my own, I will have about £200 to spend next time I add to my homestudio.

Tanks in advance,
James

 

[Stealthtech]

How bout software for editing. An excellent tool to expand your arsenal.

 

[regebro]

I only have general recommendations for what to do. And basically, that is to not buy anything unless you have found something that prevents you from getting better sound.

Maybe one of your pieces of equipment isn't good enough, or maybe you lack a certain effect, or something. And of course, only you can say what this thing is.

Until you have found a deficiency like this, save up the money.

WHEN you have found a defieciency like this, fix it with new equipment. Buy something that is so good that you expect to keep it longer than what you keep the rest of teh related equipment, so to speak. That is, if you are buying a new mic, buy one that is so good that you think it's the mic preamp that is the next limit. And if you buy a new multi-track, buy one that is better than your mixer, and so on. That way you won't have to buy a new compressor, just to realize in two months that it wasn't good enough, and that way you also won't spend a lot of money on equipment whose potential you can't use.

There are basically three exceptions to this:
1. Monitors. First you need good monitors, or else you can't find the deficiencies, because otherwise you don't know what you are doing. But the rule of not buying too fancy stuff remains. Buy monitors that are so good that you expect to keep them for as long as you can visualize (typically 3-5 years). I don't know how good yours are, so this is not a recommendation to buy new now.

2. Synthesizers, and microphones. There quality recommendation here doesn't apply, instead this is more about getting a wider range of sounds. Never sell a mic or a synthesizer. This also applies partly to good outboard equipment. You may want to end up with a range of compressors and preamps, not just one good of each.

 

[bfsuk]

yeah, but the thing is, I've only just started getting into recording and all that, so i have no idea really what my possibilities are. I know whats available, but I really have limited knowledge of whats usefull to me and what isnt. I dont need anything like keyboards or synths as I have no interest in electronic music, as all my recordings are band based.
As for software, I want a stand alone system that does not require me to use a PC. My pc and soundcard are not up to recording, and I also needed something i could take to record live gigs with aswell, hence the reason for spending £400 on the Tascam 788.
One thing that has limited me has been only having one headphone out on my recorder, meaning we have to record live, without headphones. Would a headphone amp be usefull? Or would i just need a headphone splitter?

Thanks,
James

 

[The Green Hornet]

Yo BF in Jolly England:

I'll have a Laphroig neat next time I'm there.

But, you might consider getting an RNC [Real Nice Compressor]; I just got one for 175 USD here in the Colonies.

Another item you will enjoy is a mic pre. I use the Grace 101. It only has one channel but it is a nice piece of gear. A bit pricy and Grace makes dual channels that cost even more.

If you can get an edition of TapeOP -[free here in the Colonies], you can review many mic pres.

I like to run my Grace into the RNC for vocals -- nice and clean.

Cheers,

Green Hornet