New To Recording, What To Buy?

[TeeWX]

Hey everyone!

I'm looking to get into recording. I am thinking that I'd be using a mic on the actual amp/cab itself; I play tube heads and don't have anything with a Direct Out. So I'm pretty sure I just need an interface, a mic, XLR cable, and a boom of some sort, preferably one that could bolt onto my 4x12 cab?

Does anyone have recommendations on where to begin? I play metal so I'm pretty sure I need a Shure SM57, other than that I don't know much of anything else.

Thanks!

 

[PBGas]

A lot of this would depend upon what platform you are using....mac or windows.....

for interfaces, focusrite makes some decent products for the price. The mic pre's are good, not stellar but for the prices, they are hard to beat. The post above gave some great interface choices.

If you are using a Mac, you can simply start with Garageband and work up to Logic Pro X

On a windows machine, one that a lot of people use and the price on it is fantastic is Reaper.

If you want to record your guitars direct without disturbing everyone and get super-realistic tone...I'd highly suggest the Two-Note Torpedo Live. I've had mine since April and it is utterly fabulous! Not the cheapest solution but tone-wise, it is great.

Another cool option is if you have an iPad, to get the new Bias app from Positive Grid. I recently did a gig with it this weekend and the results were spectacular! Strange not having an amp behind me but the house monitors sounded fantastic on the stage so I wasn't missing it. You can record right into the pad with a decent interface.

 

[MetalDestroyer]

If you are using a Mac, you can simply start with Garageband and work up to Logic Pro X

On a windows machine, one that a lot of people use and the price on it is fantastic is Reaper.

This is false. Garageband is a terrible program that anyone who has used a real DAW will cringe at. Reaper can be used on mac as well so I would recommend that, however Logic pro X is pretty logical.

 

[fwd0120]

This is false. Garageband is a terrible program that anyone who has used a real DAW will cringe at. Reaper can be used on mac as well so I would recommend that, however Logic pro X is pretty logical.

Yeah, start with Reaper, and once you get good with that you can move up... That is, if you want to. Many people are perfectly happy to stay with Reaper. But I agree, GB is not adequate for much other than quick demos.

 

[Daybreak]

Why start with something and then move up? The more "advanced" DAW's aren't exactly harder to learn. Would only cost you more money to first buy Reaper THEN Pro Tools (as an example), than only buying Pro Tools.

Also, +1 for Focusrite Scarlett 2i2. It's sweet, and it looks sweet too, haha!

 

[fwd0120]

You can try Reaper indefinitely... That is the reason for suggestion. Also, pro-tools has many deficiencies. It also has some strengths, but it's best to learn what you want out of a DAW by starting with Reaper, which has an unrestricted trial period (and continues to run normal after such period has expired).

 

[Poho]

Logic was the first DAW that I was really able to use functionally. I've tried cubase, pro tools, reaper, audition, and garageband, and Logic is the only one that I've said "yeah, this kicks ass!" about.

 

[NickLAudio]

If you have the funds, definitely buy an interface and a DAW. If you have the patience, a Mac, and no extra funds, GarageBand is a very capable program for beginners. Yes it sucks compared to all other DAWs but it'll get the job done.

In college, one professor gave us a music production assignment. All students had a Mac, Logic Pro, and half the class including me had ProTools. The catch was...we could only use GarageBand which came on our Macs. He did this to prove you don't need a high end DAW to make great recordings. You just need that drive in you to WANT to make good recordings. And man, some of the tracks came out killer. Others not so much lol

But I mean hey....if you got the funds, skip GarageBand lol. If not, don't sweat it.

 

[TeeWX]

I use both Windows and Linux machines. It sounds like Reaper is worth checking out if it's free indefinitely. Pro Tools is $699? I think, and that's pretty steep for not knowing anything about them if the competition is similarly priced. I like the idea of fiddling around in Reaper until I know what I want.

I'm still not entirely set on what interface to start out on. What are the main differences? After the ~$200 range of interfaces, where do people move?

 

[Given To Fly]

I use both Windows and Linux machines. It sounds like Reaper is worth checking out if it's free indefinitely. Pro Tools is $699? I think, and that's pretty steep for not knowing anything about them if the competition is similarly priced. I like the idea of fiddling around in Reaper until I know what I want.

I'm still not entirely set on what interface to start out on. What are the main differences? After the ~$200 range of interfaces, where do people move?

I haven't used Reaper but its probably worth checking out in your situation. Theoretically it can be free indefinitely, but after the trial period is over I believe the ads arrive...

Here is an overwhelming amount of software to look at:
DAW Software | Sweetwater.com

Notice, if you are a student there is usually an education discount which is pretty substantial. Pro Tools 11 is $699 which is in the more expensive price range. However, most professional DAW's are somewhere between $400 - $700.

Interfaces are complicated. After a $200 interface, some people may move up to a $3000 interface or a $650 interface; it all depends on what you need your interface to do and how much you are willing to spend. In general, an upgrade will give you higher quality converters/preamps. The number of channels also plays a big part in the price. Normally, people do not upgrade their interface from a $200 model to a $400 model to an $800 model, etc, etc; figure out what you need and buy/save for the best you can afford.

 

[fwd0120]

I haven't used Reaper but its probably worth checking out in your situation. Theoretically it can be free indefinitely, but after the trial period is over I believe the ads arrive...

Just for clarification, the only 'ad' is a 5 second window when you open it, explaining why you you should get a license. Not a big deal.

 

[Konfyouzd]

Cubase is another fairly simple DAW to use/learn. They all have their little quirks, though. I haven't much experience with Reaper as I'd learned Ableton fairly well by the time I'd even heard of Reaper and I was too lazy to learn another DAW.

I've used:

-Audacity
-Kristal
-Mixcraft
-Cubase
-Ableton

I liked Kristal and Cubase and I'm currently still using Ableton. I was a complete noob when using Kristal so that DAW may actually suck but it was really easy for me to use having just gotten started recording.

When I VERY first started recording I didn't even have an interface. I had a Korg Toneworks Pandora PDX4 (or something like that) going directly into the 3.5mm line in on my computer's built in sound card.

The sound wasn't amazing but it got the job done.

What's also interesting is that since my computer sucked horribly there were some latency issues and I learned a lot about editing (at least as far as how to shift tracks so they match up when they don't) as a reasult of having terrible equipment. It was nice to know now that I have better stuff and no longer have these issues, but you should probably aim for a setup better than mine.

When I finally got an interface I went with the M-Audio Fast Track Pro at first and I'm now using a TASCAM US1800 (which I actually no longer need since I'm not recording acoustic drums anymore).

I think it might be a good idea to have a computer with at least 4GB RAM as well. That was my main issue when I first started recording. I was using a super old computer from the 90s with 1GB RAM.

 

[TeeWX]

I haven't used Reaper but its probably worth checking out in your situation. Theoretically it can be free indefinitely, but after the trial period is over I believe the ads arrive...

Here is an overwhelming amount of software to look at:
DAW Software | Sweetwater.com

Notice, if you are a student there is usually an education discount which is pretty substantial. Pro Tools 11 is $699 which is in the more expensive price range. However, most professional DAW's are somewhere between $400 - $700.

Interfaces are complicated. After a $200 interface, some people may move up to a $3000 interface or a $650 interface; it all depends on what you need your interface to do and how much you are willing to spend. In general, an upgrade will give you higher quality converters/preamps. The number of channels also plays a big part in the price. Normally, people do not upgrade their interface from a $200 model to a $400 model to an $800 model, etc, etc; figure out what you need and buy/save for the best you can afford.

Thanks for pointing out the student discount! I graduate with a bs in may, so it'd be only $299 which seems a lot more tempting...

As for the interfaces could you use something like the Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 to record an album? I guess what I'm asking is where is it going to limit me? I'm just planning on recording guitar and bass tracks at this point with a single mic on speaker.

 

[Given To Fly]

Just for clarification, the only 'ad' is a 5 second window when you open it, explaining why you you should get a license. Not a big deal.

Fair enough.

 

[Angus Clark]

May I ask what the specs on your computer are? I was doing all my audio work on an old laptop I got 5 years back with 2GB of DDR2 RAM and a Core2duo that I couldn't even find a benchmark for. With anything more than a couple of VSTs on each track, the whole system would glitch up, and the general workflow was a total pain.

Just a couple of days ago, I finished building a DAW rig, and it's making life so much easier. I'd say that if you've got anything less than 4GB of RAM, an upgrade would be essential. An SSD for your DAW and plugins (and OS) is an upgrade I would highly recommend too.

 

[TeeWX]

May I ask what the specs on your computer are? I was doing all my audio work on an old laptop I got 5 years back with 2GB of DDR2 RAM and a Core2duo that I couldn't even find a benchmark for. With anything more than a couple of VSTs on each track, the whole system would glitch up, and the general workflow was a total pain.

Just a couple of days ago, I finished building a DAW rig, and it's making life so much easier. I'd say that if you've got anything less than 4GB of RAM, an upgrade would be essential. An SSD for your DAW and plugins (and OS) is an upgrade I would highly recommend too.

I'll be building a separate rig for this; more than likely. But for now I have a couple of machines that have more than 4GB Ram and modern enough CPU's that should suffice for these early levels of recording experience. I am aware of the resource demand when working with large files like this.