Newbies Need Advise

[Rmaxxx]

Looking for advise on how to set up some basic recording interface for Windows 7. Starting from the ground up, we have PA system, bass, vocals, keys etc...
What is the best approach? Hardware and software.
We are literally just starting, talk to me like I'm a 5 year old.
Appreciate your expert opinions. Caution: acronyms are lost on me
Thanks!

 

[Scookers]

What you probably will want is some sort of multi-track recording software. Multi-track means you can layer different recordings on top of each other. This lets you record instruments 1 at a time and mix them all down in the end. This is the trick to getting polished recordings like you hear on the radio. There are a whole slew of choices out there. Here's one that I use that is free (yes I said free): KRISTAL Audio Engine
It works great. This is coming from a guy that has used pro-tools and such. You can't beat it for starting out. I would also look into one of these nifty USB 2.0 or Firewire interfaces for your computer. I like to have at least 8 tracks of input, so I got this: M-AUDIO - Fast Track Ultra 8R - High-speed 8 x 8 USB 2.0 Interface with 8 Preamps and MX Core DSP. M-audio can use the Pro-Tools M-Powered (Pro-Tools is high end multr-track recording software used by the pros). They make less expensive models that have less inputs as well. The reason to have so many inputs is to record, let's say, a drum set. You can place mics all around the kit to record individual pieces of the kit, such as the bass drum or snare drum. Also, you probably would want to record over the cymbals to catch the kit plus the cymbals. These are called the overhead mics. There are a bunch of drum mic options out there. A decent set of drum mics I used for cheap was made by CAD. They were about 200 bucks for the set and sounded great. Another way to get a recording into your computer is to use the input on your sound card. I had 4 sound cards put together for a recording one time since I had them laying around. All you need a mic pre-amp to go from an xlr mic signal to the line signal required by the sound card. I used a pre-amp off a powered mixer I had, I believe. Or a cheap ass mixing board. You may also need a wav editing program for compression and such. Compression is when you take the quieter parts of a recording and boost them up higher to be closer to the volume of the louder parts. It takes away from the dynamics of a recording, but with some music dynamic isn't what you are going for. This comes in handy with vocals and drums. You will also use it for effects, such as reverb and delay. These can be used in the Kristal program as well. For wav editing I use a free software called Audacity. If this is a project studio and you are getting into it, keep it as simple and cheap as possible. You won't regret it. If you want to expand, do it when you get more knowledge. If you need more help, just ask. The basic thing is to use your head and play around. That's how I learned. Most of us don't have a recording engineer at our proposal so we end up wearing the hat ourselves. Take it easy.

 

[Rmaxxx]

Appreciate all the input, being so new I have a million questions. If you don't mind I'll throw out a couple more.
As far as my laptop I have a Toshiba 3GB Dual Core Intel Pentium, using Windows 7.
I tried out N-track Studio 6 and it sounded horrible. Been looking at M audio interfaces, do you think my laptop would handle it?
Any other advise would be appreciated.
We are using guitar, vocals, bass, drum tracks and keys. Looking to expand like you said but affordable and fun.

Thanks!

 

[Scookers]

Appreciate all the input, being so new I have a million questions. If you don't mind I'll throw out a couple more.
As far as my laptop I have a Toshiba 3GB Dual Core Intel Pentium, using Windows 7.
I tried out N-track Studio 6 and it sounded horrible. Been looking at M audio interfaces, do you think my laptop would handle it?
Any other advise would be appreciated.
We are using guitar, vocals, bass, drum tracks and keys. Looking to expand like you said but affordable and fun.

Thanks!

Last year I was using a desktop with a pentium 4 on Windows 2000. I think you have a good enough computer to run it. Just remember to keep a good chunk of your hard drive freed up and to keep most background programs from running. Also, turning off your network or internet connection helps. You will know when your computer isn't cutting it when you get the bad digital clips from tasking your computer too much. As far a bad audio quality, mics make a huge difference. If you are using cheap Magnavox Wal-Mart mics, it's going to sound terrible. The biggest thing to remember is crap in=crap out. The old saying "you can't polish a turd" rings true big time in recording. I would suggest making sure you are using proper mic placement techniques. I won't go into detail here, but I have found many articles on this doing google searches on the internet. What exactly sounded bad? I can help with certain questions but I can't really do much with a broad general rule. One thing to remember is to get alot of mids on your recordings. Easy to EQ it out later, but hard to add it after the fact. Another thing is to read as much about your software as possible. And play with it as much as you can. The more tools you can utilize, the better. But only use what you need. Over complicating is also a bad thing. I have never used that program. They all work pretty much the same, though. Usually the program isn't the problem, but the equipment you are using. Don't expect something insanely clear and polished with less than great equipment. Good mics make a huge difference. This is where I would place most of my investment into a project studio. A decent mic set for the drums. Some thing good for recording guitars, like SM57's or something like that. Sennheiser makes a good guitar mic. You can also use one of your tom mics from something like that CAD drum mic set. The particular set we used was the CAD percussion pack PMP742C. I see it on google shopping for $220. A good vocal mic is also a great thing to have. A large diaphragm condenser mic works great. And they make some good cheap models. I used the Rode NT1A. Crystal clear for about $230. There are cheaper models by MXL and such. I don't have experience with those. Condenser mics are usually studio mics since they are much more fragile than a dynamic mic. Ribbon mics are also extremely fragile. Dynamic mics don't have the transient response that condenser and ribbons have. Transient response is how fast the mic reacts to the sounds. The faster, the more accurate the recording. Dynamics are extremely durable though. When Shure came out with the SM58, I believe it was, they were asked how durable it was. The presenter pulled the mic out, hammered in a nail with it, plugged it back in and was like, does that answer your question? Do that with a condenser and you will have an expensive paper weight. As for bass and keys, go for direct injection or DI. You can get some decent DI boxes pretty cheap. These instruments don't require the amplifier/speaker coloring that the guitar does. They do have th POD's for the guitar and bass as well. I have no experience with these items but hear good things about them. Also, alot of bass and keyboard amps have a direct out. These are line signals that go straight into a board. If you want me to go further into this, please let me know what you have as of now and what you are doing. It's hard to cram experience and knowledge into forum post. My biggest advice is to research as much as you can. I've read quite a bit of good pointers on the net. Proper mic placement and selection is huge. I would say the biggest thing to consider in front of interface, effect, or software selection. Take it easy and let me know. I'll do what I can to get you on the right track.

 

[Scookers]

Oh yeah, I forgot. Condenser mics require 48V phantom power. Make sure that your mic preamp can provide this. And don't fry any equipment when you have it on. Look this up on Google. This is explained many times over on there.

 

[Rmaxxx]

Thanks so much for the guidance. Just purchased a M Audio 410 interface and "DUH" my laptop doesn't have a firewire plug. I'm assuming i can buy an adapter. It didn't come with anything other than the firewire plug and the outdated software.
I downloaded the driver without difficulty now I need to figure out how to power and plug the damn thing.
Any advise?

 

[Scookers]

Look up something online. I just did on google. There will be something you can get to make it work. As for powering it up, looks like that one takes 9V AC. Don't use an AC adapter. Make sure it says output: 9V AC. This is just a step-down transformer. Don't use a 9V DC one like on effects pedals and stuff. Make sure you read stuff carefully for compatibility. Even on AC adapters you have to make sure the polarity is the same and AC and DC don't mix. And never put line level into mic level. This will destroy your equipment. There are generally 3 different levels when it comes to audio signal. These are mic, line and speaker. Speaker level is the highest. This is what goes from an amplifier to a speaker only. Line level is from, lets say, a stereo's pre-amp or a DI box or anything that says line out. This level usually comes from an pre-amplifier. The pre-amp's job is to bring a source level from a guitar, mic, etc to line level. The inputs on the front of the interface use either mic or instrument. When using the phantom power for a condenser mic, don't mix with unbalanced. That's a no-no as well. If you use xlr mics, phantom power can be on either way. Just read up on this stuff as much as you can before you start ruining equipment. If you can, download a manual for this thing as well. The two inputs on the front go into a pre-amp and don't require a stand-alone pre-amp. The two inputs on the back are line-ins, so they do require a pre-amp. The outputs are line outs, so they are at line level. The outputs are good for routing around external effects units and then using the line-ins for going back into the interface. Anyway, have fun and don't be afraid to experiment. Especially before you have a band ready to go and you don't know how to use the equipment. Good luck and take it easy.