Torben Hedstrøm Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 Hi... Need a few pointers on a simple setup for home recording. Right now I would really just like to create some drum tracks, and record a number of bass/guitar or whatever grooves on top of it. Also it would be nice to load MP3's, and filter out the bass to do my own basslines. Recommendations for soft/hardware ?. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lettsguitars Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 (edited) A simple in/out box such as Alesis i/o (which i use), cheap midi(usb) keyboard and a pc. The in/out boxes usually come with a free copy of cubase le. And away you go. Oh and some drum software such as ezdrummer or bfd if you want something a little more special with lots of cool patterns and kits. Edited July 16, 2012 by lettsguitars Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul_5 Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 If your PC soundcard is up to the job then you might want to have a look at Reaper as a DAW - really very, very good for the money ($60) http://www.reaper.fm/ That's probably about £45, no brainer really. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winterfire666 Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 +1 for reaper and ezdrummer its a classic combo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 Another plus one for Reaper, it's something of a bargain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winterfire666 Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 RE: hardware, the alesis i/o is great for the money but if you can stretch to it the Roland Quad capture is fantastic value for money, 96khz recording digital i/o and a pair of excellent quality preamps, in my opion nothing else comes close for the price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Torben Hedstrøm Posted July 16, 2012 Author Share Posted July 16, 2012 Reaper looks real nice indeed, and $60 is indeed a bargain. Looks a bit like the old Cool edit pro . Ezdrummer seems a bit steep though ?. As for the I/O bit... How advanced do you reckon one should get with it ?. Looked at a few options, and judging by the 2'hand prices it's easy to get a bit carried away . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
51m0n Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 Haha yeah, how many inputs do you need (1 per instrumetn at the same time) and two outputs, plus headphone out as a minimum. I'd say get an RME Babyface if you have the cash (not cheap!), simply because the drivers are rock steady, and the kit is very very good. Reaper gets a huge +1 from me. You can try [url="http://www.bluenoiseplugins.com/plugins/drummix/beta-edition/"]MyDrumSet[/url] for drums, its free, and simple, nut you need to know drum processing to get the most out of it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Torben Hedstrøm Posted July 22, 2012 Author Share Posted July 22, 2012 Ok... So getting wiser all the time. Haven't bought anything just yet, but I did go to my local instrument/music shop yesterday for their view on things. Ofcourse salesguys are salesguys, but I got a nearly two hour rundown on options/demo of software... Nice service, which definately will make me buy any stuff I need new from there. They recommended me to use Studio One (upgraded to full version), along with a Presonus 22 VSL soundcard. Salesguy also recommended speakers for monitoring, and after listening to a few I narrowed it down to either Genelec og Adam (liked the Dynaudios soooo much, but probably because my stereo setup are Dyn's, and I'm used to their characteristics...). Messing around with at Studio one (limitied time full version), and it does seem very easy and intuitive. These parameters are important to me, as I will likely be playing around with it a few hours here and there (when my schedule allows it), and if the learning curve is too steep, I will almost certainly give up on it. Further I was recommended to buy Native Instruments (Komplete 8 ?) for some nice drumkit-sounds. Looking at the initial quote on it all, it would seem that the software part of things counts for almost half the total price (app £600), which I think is quite steep ?. Not that I mind spending money on nice software, but it better be REAL nice at that price . Keeping in mind, that I am not going to go 'pro' with this, I am thinking of another solution... EzDrummer Reaper Apogee soundcard (some second hand monitors... Dynaudio ?). This could be done for less than the quote I got on the other stuff. Question is just, if Reaper will stack up to Studio One in usability etc.. Any thoughts on this ? . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BottomE Posted July 22, 2012 Share Posted July 22, 2012 I use Cubase (warning very steep learning curve) software for recording A Focusrite USB interface I use a drum sequencer that comes with the Cubase software. Suits just fine and has done all i want it to do. I probably only use about 5% of the features in Cubase though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mornats Posted July 26, 2012 Share Posted July 26, 2012 (edited) [quote name='Torben Hedstrøm' timestamp='1342959248' post='1743113'] EzDrummer Reaper Apogee soundcard (some second hand monitors... Dynaudio ?). [/quote] +1 for going along this route. I use a Guitar Rig Session interface (was £80 inc. Guitar Rig 4 LE) and used it for all of the recordings in my soundcloud link and I don't think that the budget end of the scale will seriously hamper anyone starting out in recording. I'd say that Komplete 8 is overkill at the moment (but is probably a nice earner for the shop...) especially if you're after it mainly for the drum sounds. I've got a couple of drum kits in Kontakt and don't find them anywhere as easy to use as EZDrummer. I did start a mini-guide to setting up quite cheaply (based on what I've managed to do) that may be of some help: [url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/176553-mini-guide-to-starter-gear-for-recording-cheaply/"]http://basschat.co.u...ording-cheaply/[/url] Are you using a Mac or PC to record with? If you're on a Mac I'd recommend going with GarageBand for now. It's really simple and just lets you focus on making music. Plus you'll already have it as it comes with all Macs anyway. If not, it's £8.99 from the Mac app store. Edited July 26, 2012 by Mornats Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
51m0n Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 Reaper is not at all hard to use, has a downloadable VERY comprehensive manual. In some ways it does stuff that make it very very easy to use (tracks are tracks are tracks, no real diff for midi v audio, or groups/folders v tracks). Reaper has an excellent very very active forum - which the developers regularly answer issues on in person. There are various sets of videos you can buy to get you up into the really complex end of things if you cant figure it out for yourself, and a fair few free vids going into similar areas. I doubt you'd have any problems if you give yourself a few hours with the software and manual to get going. I dont think any fully featured DAW can be learnt to any real degree fo proficiency without the odd dip into a manual or onto a forum. The in built Repaer fx are superb too, plus one license allows you to have any and all versions of the software at the same time (as long as you only uise one at a time) in other words, Mac, PC, 32 and 64 bit solution simultaneously - v cool if you have a desktop and a lappie and occasionally want to do some audio stuff away from the desktop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Torben Hedstrøm Posted July 27, 2012 Author Share Posted July 27, 2012 Thanks alot guys, for all your comments. The Reaper way it is... Don't really need too much fancy stuff cluttering things up I guess . Will be buying a PreSonus audio interface + M-audio keyboard sometime this weekend, if all goes well. Looking forward to playing around with it . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dark Lord Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 Try one of these and DI everything via the modelling sounds contained therein. Bass sounds better DI recorded anyway. You can create your own drum sounds on it too. Wicked. [url="http://goo.gl/PVpqT"]http://goo.gl/PVpqT[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
51m0n Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 Zoom R24 is a cool tool, does let you import your tracking into the PC (a USB memory card widget costs a couple of quid and the transfer times are as fast as USB - ie fast enough!) where you can then use Reaper to create a submix to put back on the R24 effectively giving you unlimited tracks off that interface. Still only 8 ins a t a time though, which if you are seriosly into tracking is a major limitation (That wont even cover a serious drumkit after all). You can hook up two of them to get 16 tracks input at a time - but you may as well look at a serious interface for the money you end up spending IMO. And mixing on a good DAW definitely gives you more options than one of these devices (a lot more options!). Great kit though.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
51m0n Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 And bass doesnt necessarily sound better DI'ed.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dark Lord Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 [quote name='51m0n' timestamp='1343401159' post='1750234'] Still only 8 ins a t a time though, which if you are seriosly into tracking is a major limitation (That wont even cover a serious drumkit after all). Great kit though.... [/quote] Err ..... the OP said "Simple set up for home recording" - not "Replacement for Pro Studio desk". If you want ALL you need for home demos - this is your device. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
51m0n Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 True, but, if he gets into it, it will be a short time before he wants to expand, if nothing else to better capture rehearsals. I've guerilla recorded bands with 4 tracks in the inital tracking phase and got great results at mnixdown (lots of overdubbing required obviously), its certainly possible, but there is a lot to be said for an easy upgrade path. And this device is well behind the curve when you get to mixing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Torben Hedstrøm Posted August 7, 2012 Author Share Posted August 7, 2012 Thanks for all your kind advice on this. Was indeed helpful Ended up with one of these: [url="http://www.presonus.com/community/blog/index.php/category/audiobox-vsl/"]http://www.presonus.com/community/blog/index.php/category/audiobox-vsl/[/url] and a pair of AKG K 271 MKII. If I come to use it alot I will invest in a pair of nice nearfield monitors as well . ... So now I just need to figure out how to use the damn thing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.jpg.7e18f76540598a8efc0e6ca9be453059.jpg)
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.