input, mutitracking and other stuff...
Ok...again this is just my $.02 worth here....I seem to do that allot
What it sounds like your doing is just trying to get yourself started with recording. And while having something like a Delta 10/10 would be great (the goddess knows that I want one!), to start out, you really don't need it. I am using a basic SB compatable on my studio system and it works pretty well for what I'm doing. I"m not trying to correct what others have said in this thread as much as maybe clearify a few things that would have been confusing to me as a newbie. With a decent basic sound card, you can only record two tracks at a time...this means that you can only record 2 tracks -simultaniously- at a time. For things like guitar, bass, vocals etc., for someone starting out this is usually just fine. The only place that you really have to watch is recording drums. There seem's to be -many- schools of thought on recording drums...but one thing is for sure...you usually need more then just 2 mic's hooked up to get a decent sound unless you have a really big room with the proper acoustics to record in (not too mention a well balanced drum kit!) The way I work around this is to just run your drums through a stereo mixing board and then the stereo outs on the board to your sound card. If you don't already have one, you can pick up something like a Behringer 2004A (I'm a big fan of Behringer equipment...the price vs. performance aspect just can't be beat) for under $300 and it's a great board for the person just learning. The specs are decent and more important the mic pre's are really good. Of course, the trick to this is the actual setup...you really do need to take your time and make sure that you have the sound you want before you hit the record button....take your time...play with mic placement and levels etc.. Before I actually start the song itself, I always record a couple of minutes of just the drum's with fills etc., to make sure the sound is right and well balanced, -then- I start the actual recording. If you choose to do it this way, once you find the right sound, it's very helpful to write the settings down for future reference so you'll know where to start next time! For the other stuff like the guitars, bass, vocals, etc., I use
a Behringer 802 board...their about $100...4 mic inputs, phantom power etc., and again those decent mic pre's. Again, unless your trying to do something kinda funky like running 4 or 5 mics on your guitar tracks to get somekind of unusual sound, you don't need 8 to 10 inputs for recording just one guitar track. There are issues such as the quality of the DA/AD converters on you sound card and such that as you get more experienced will become an issue, but again it really sounds like you just want to get started here...something like recording your bands demo's yourself and such (if I"m wrong here, please forgive). You can get a really decent sound working this way without blowing gobs of $ on higher end equipment...again just to get you started. If your going to blow a wad of money on anything to get started, I would highly suggest blowing it on decent monitor speakers for the control room (not to be confused with stage monitors of course). If your the one going to be doing the engineering, go to your local music store and listen to a variety of them and make your decision based on the sound of the speakers. If you have any of your own recordings at this point, take those with you so you will hear how "you" sound over these speakers. Good monitor speakers seem to be a major...if not the major link in getting a decent sounding recording.
The way that I record is this; first I will get the drum sound "tweaked", then I will go in a lay down a couple of "scratch" tracks...i.e. a basic rhythm guitar track, basic vocal track, and a drum machine for the timing...this sets up the structure of the song. After I have the scratch tracks layed down, I will then proceed with recording the drums. I listen to each track after it recorded to make sure it's right and that I like the sound that I hear. If I"m recording with the band, the next track I lay down is the bass...if I"m working by myself then I do the 1'st rhythm guitar next (I often use multiple rhythm guitar tracks...I just like the sound). After this I will usually lay down the lead guitar track(s), the keyboards or other instruments, and then the "fluff" (aka the little things like extra riff's, fills, things like chimes on the percussion tracks etc). After I have all the instrumentation down, I start the vocals. Vocalists seem to be the hardest to work with and there are many schools of thought in regards to this as well...each vocalist you work with had -their- own style of working and the engineer usually has to adapt acordingly. Most people will tell you not to lay down any effects or anything untill you have -everything- down...I don't tend to do this. I usually start laying some effects and eq before I do the vocals...I find that the better the over all sound is, the better the vocalist performs. At least the vocalists that I've worked with seem to have problems with their performance if the over all sound that they hear in the cans is still chunky and raw. From there you proceed to the mixing etc.. One little note that I've learned over time is...if your not happy with a track...then re-record it....if you don't it -will- come back to haunt you. Another thing on mixing...and this seems to be a common concensus...don't do -any- mixing after a long recording session! Always start any mixing sessions with "fresh" ears and take breaks often so that you don't burn yourself out. Some of the songs you may end up listening to many many many times...keep your ears as fresh as possible.
On the note of the software end...
I am personally using Cakewalk Pro Audio 9. My version was given to me by a friend who had upgraded. It's fine for recording audio and midi, but by default is a little more geared to doing midi. As with many -pro- software packages...including stuff like video, graphics, etc., it's not the most user friendly beast out there....but it does pack a pretty heavy punch in it's abilities. Since the introduction of Sonar, if you look around, you should be able to find CWPA 9 at a very reasonable price...I think I've seen it in a couple of stores for under $100 now. The whole key to using CWPA 9 for audio is just convincing it that it wants to do audio (LOL!!). As I said, everything by default seems to be geared towards midi, so you have to go in and set each track to your sound card instead of midi etc.. If you go this route, allow yourself -at least- a couple of days to sit there and "play" with the program before you try to do anything serious with it...grab a guitar (or whatever you play) and sit down at the system and try recording some basic stuff to get the feel of the program....depending on how quick of a learner you are (we are all different), it can take a little while. One last thing on Cakewalk. Should you again go this route, it may also be worth your time to invest in something like Sound Forge or a similar -editing- program and get all the extra DX plugs you can find for it/them. I found the editing cababilites in Cakewalk to be a little limited....not too mention somewhat confusing as well. And the native package of Cakewalk doens't have that many effects to work with and I also found them a little difficult to use (compaired to other DX plug's available).
Their are many other software packages available out there for doing recording...Cubase, Logic, N-track (being the easiest, but also the one with the most bugs), etc.. I have found CakewalkPro Audio 9 to be pretty much the most well rounded. With a few "add-on's" it is a pretty potent tool to work with.
One last thought...
If you have the $ for all the -nice- toys/tools, then yes...by all means go out and get them! If I had the cash, I would definately go out and get either a Delta or a Mark of the Unicorn (aka Motu), not too mention a $100,000 Allen & Heath automated console...but I don't....I -have- to work with what I have. Sometimes it requires a little extra inginuety, but it works and can provide some pretty decent results if you take the time and patience to set everything up right. I know I've seen this mentioned on this forum in the short time that I've been here, but again, so much of it comes down to the engineering. A good engineer can use the very basic tools of the trade...even a good 4-track cassette and get -MUCH- better results then someone who has $500,000 worth of gear but doens't have a clue as to what to do with it (again assuming the performance is there in the first place!). Just as an example, my bands "first" set of demo's were recorded on a Roland VS studio...decent quality machine and the final mix was done at a local project studio with allot of the "nice" toys etc.. ($4000 Mackie board, compressor's out the wazoo, pro designed control room, etc., etc., etc.,) and by guys that have gone to school for audio engineering. I have had many people, both pro's and just your average listener's compair those old demo's to the one's that I recently recorded here on the equipment that I mentioned....-every single person- said that the new ones were -much- superiour and considerably more "listenable". I've never been trained and have never gone to a recording school for this stuff...I just read, read, read....everything I can get my hands on...books, websites, pamphlets in stores, seminar's, etc.. There's allot of conflicting info out there, so in the end you have to figure out what works best for you, but remember...there is no right or wrong way...music and recording are art's...and each respective person in the chain is an artist unto themselves. No two recording engineer's do things the exact same way (although there are of course excepted standards), just as no two guitar players have the exact same style and sound to their playing. It's not always what you have, as much as how you use it.
I'll finish this by saying...I am rather new at this myself and have had to over come allot of the hurtles that I see posted on the forum, by myself (I -wish- I had of found this forum allot sooner!!!). Considering that I haven't been doing this for several years, you should probably take my advice with a least a grain of salt...so to speak. I'm happy with the results that I get...and the people I play my stuff for seem to like it as well...for me at this moment of my "career", thats whats important. The last/best peice of advice I can give you in regards to all of this is...and I take this with me whenever I go into the studio, both as a musician and as an engineer...to quote the immortal Louis Armstrong, "If if sounds good...it -IS- good!". You may all now let the flaming begin!
I hope this helps someone out there at least!
Good Luck and Gentle Breezes to you all,
Jim Walczak
(wow...did I just write all that?????? Sorry...I do tend to be long winded...its just the way I talk/write!)
I currently run Sonar (HS2002) on my Sony Vario 1.6Gig laptop using XP and it p****s all over my DAW in performance terms.
Oh, and not forgetting the talent either
