PC recording

JAMES BANKS · From: Mineola,TX USA

I'll bet this has been asked here before, but I did not find the answers I was looking for by searchning, so here it goes. I want to get into recording. I will be recording a 5-6 peice band with 3-4 vocals. I am leaning toward a laptop so it can be used at my home location or at church. What is best for this, a workstation like yamaha or roland or should I go with the laptop idea. If so, what software would be best and how would I get 10-12 tracks into the computer? This is all new to me so I need lots of info. Feel free to send me an e-mail if you prefer not to post all the feedback here. Thanks a million guys.
James

Les Pierce · From: Shreveport, LA

You're right, this is discussed quite often, but maybe not to your specific request.

I have a friend that uses a Roland recorder in his studio, and has taken it to remote record with success. The only drawback, is you must work the entire project on the Roland, as it's file system is prorietary, as I understand it.

The laptop with a USB soundcard with multiple in/outs would work. I think about the best you could do is 8 in/out. Use that with a mixer with 8 aux busses, and that ought to do it. I would think 24 inputs, with 8 distinct seperate tracks would really be plenty.

Put n-Track studio on the laptop ( http://fasoft.com ), and go for it.

I'm sure there are plenty of other ways to do it, but unless you have plenty of money to spend, this would be about the cheapest.

Les

[This message was edited by Les Pierce on 07 March 2006 at 11:54 AM.]

JAMES BANKS · From: Mineola,TX USA

Thanks Les, I have a Allen and Heath 2200 board and the church has a Midas board. I guess I could record instruments and I suppose transport them to one or two channels and then add vocals to them. I want to get into home recording, but I do not have a lot of money to spend. I am hoping to get started very basic and then expand as time and $ allow. I appreciate your input.
James

Joseph Meditz · From: Sierra Vista, AZ

Well, for $4 you can get started. All you need is a cable with two RCA plugs on one end and a 1/4" stereo plug on the other. You will also need some software such as Audacity which is free. You will then be able to make a stereo recording of the output of your mixer. I believe that you can do overdubbing with Audacity as well.

I do use n-Track studio which has a good set of features. It's inexpensive and works well for overdubbing but is not bulletproof. If I were to buy another program I would probably give Steinberg LE a try.

Next you can dramatically improve the quality of your recording by using a USB interface such as the Line 6 Tone Port or Tascam US-122 which has 24 bit words.

That ought to keep you occupied for a while

Best regards,
Joe

Leon Grizzard · From: Austin, Texas, USA

I am very happy with my Korg D1600 studio in a box. Portability was a big factor in my decision. It fits in a large American Tourister suitcase. I have done live location recordings, and take it to band practice to record there, (which also lets me take it home and not have to mix by committee). It does not take long to set up since all the mic preamps, limiters etc are already connected. You can buy outboard gear, and probably will, but you don't need to. The current model is the D-3200, for about $1300, which lets you record 12 channels at once, and you have a total of 32 for overdubs etc. There is also a great user forum - KorgStudios.com for enthusiastic help.

Ron Victoria · From: New Jersey, USA

This is not my area of expertise, but I have had discussions with my students. They have done some recording and used Garage Band. Is this something that would work for this post?

Ron

Joseph Meditz · From: Sierra Vista, AZ

Hi Leon,

Do you use that for mix down or do you load the tracks onto a PC? At one point I considered getting the D1200MKII but since I couldn't get any info on it from users, and because I thought that perhaps mixing on a small LCD might be a hassle forcing me to use a PC anyway. So, I decided against it. Also, even that Korg is a bit overkill for recording myself.

That said, I find using a PC to be a rather draining experience. And the mixer, USB I/F and PC and associated wall warts make for a messy setup. I'm actually thinking about the new Yamaha AW1600 which are going for $1100.

Joe

JAMES BANKS · From: Mineola,TX USA

Joe, Ron and Leon, thanks for your input. I can actually make recordings now. I have a CD recorder and have access to a MD recorder, problem is, there is no editing or overdub capabilities. I made a pretty decent recording of my band last year by using the Mini disc and them running it thru the board to cd and adjusting the eq and reverb on the board to tweak the sound. I will be checking out the Garage band software as well as the Korg unit. That n-track sounds pretty good as well. I am trying to find the least expensive way to make quality demos of the band. I need a new computer anyway and I think I want the laptop. Thanks again for all the input.
James

Mark Vinbury · From: N. Kingstown, Rhode Island, USA

I don't think you can get a better program for the money than n-Tracks
I got it over a year ago and did a lot of checking around at that time.
It has all that I've needed for straightforward home computer recording.
It does seem to gobble up memory but I'd imagine that will be the case with any of the programs.
I found it easy to use while sitting there with a guitar in my lap.You don't have to do a lot of shuffling through menus to run it.

Leon Grizzard · From: Austin, Texas, USA

Joseph - I use the Korg for mixdown. It has automated mixdown, up to 100 different "scenes" per song. Also, I like the physical sliders. It has also has mastering effects, normalization, etc.

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