lushuk Posted January 30, 2013 Posted January 30, 2013 Hey guys, what's the easiest/cheapest way to play my bass through my iMac, I.e so I can play along with tunes etc, thanks! Quote
RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE Posted January 30, 2013 Posted January 30, 2013 Well, you need to vegan interface . Or you could get a lead which has standard guitar jack on one end and a USB at the other. I use a toneport ux1 by line 6. Somebody else will be along shortly Quote
RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE Posted January 30, 2013 Posted January 30, 2013 Poxy spellcheck! Vegan? I meant interface ,) Quote
Pukie Posted January 30, 2013 Posted January 30, 2013 Never tried it cos I don't have a Mac, But... Donovan at fretspot explains how he records the samples for his basses here... [url="http://www.fretspot.com/2012/11/how-i-record-audio-and-video-together/"]http://www.fretspot.com/2012/11/how-i-record-audio-and-video-together/[/url] Quote
bluesparky Posted January 30, 2013 Posted January 30, 2013 [quote name='RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE' timestamp='1359546575' post='1956309'] Well, you need to vegan interface . Or you could get a lead which has standard guitar jack on one end and a USB at the other. I use a toneport ux1 by line 6. Somebody else will be along shortly [/quote] +1, but I use the Line 6 Tone port GX when I'm travelling. At home I plug into a DI box, which goes into a mixer along with my mac's output into some generic speakers / headphones. Quote
mart Posted January 30, 2013 Posted January 30, 2013 [quote name='RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE' timestamp='1359546633' post='1956310'] Poxy spellcheck! Vegan? I meant interface ,) [/quote] I was thinking that a vegan interface won't help you get a very meaty tone. Ok, I'll get my coat. Quote
borisbrain Posted January 30, 2013 Posted January 30, 2013 If your Mac has an audio-in jack, there's now't to stop you plugging the bass in directly, so long as you have a mini-jack converter. Whichever way you connect though, you'll need some recording/playback software of some kind - GarageBand, or a gazillion others, depending on your budget. BB Quote
PTB Posted January 30, 2013 Posted January 30, 2013 I use a simple adapter - 1/4 inch jack socket with a mini-jack plug. It was a few quid from Maplins. I did have a Focusrite unit but it was overkill for me. Quote
lushuk Posted January 30, 2013 Author Posted January 30, 2013 Thanks for the replies guys, I need to look at the back to see what inputs it's got, is there a program that it will play through, I've got audacity? Cheers Quote
JamesBass Posted January 30, 2013 Posted January 30, 2013 Garageband works, or if you have the cash to spare Logic is always brilliant to have as most other people use it. What I use is a simple USB 4 track recorder/interface with DI inputs and jack sockets, then rig up and record, I use both mic and DI, if people are interested in a decent mic for not much money check out Superlux. The mic I've linked is exactly the same as a Sennheiser but with a different housing, sounds great! http://www.thomann.de/gb/superlux_pra_628_mkii.htm Quote
PTB Posted January 30, 2013 Posted January 30, 2013 Hasn't it got GarageBand ? I think it's standard depending on how old your Mac is. GarageBand is a cut down version of Logic and suits me fine. Quote
MiltyG565 Posted January 30, 2013 Posted January 30, 2013 Well, i've recorded my bass a couple of times. Luckily, both my amps have a DI out on them, so it's pretty easy, here's how i do it. I plug in my bass and amp as normal, set it up normally, although keep the "input" volume low- this is the volume of the preamp, the part of the amp that is actually being used when DI'd. So then i plug my XLR lead into the DI out on the amp, and it goes right into the audio interface, which has a female XLR on it, so i plug the XLR lead in there. Then there is a lead that runs from the interface to the USB connection on my Mac, this powers it and also allows the information to be transferred. Then i go into audio/midi set-up (it's in the applications folder) and change the drivers to the one for my audio interface. That's it in a nutshell really. If you don't have a bass amp with a DI out, then you should pick up a DI box. Very handy to have, you can get decent ones from £20/£30, or really good ones for £250, and pretty much everything in between. It depends on what you want it for. Just recording? Just get a fairly decent cheap one. Quote
bluesparky Posted January 31, 2013 Posted January 31, 2013 [quote name='PTB' timestamp='1359585385' post='1957255'] Hasn't it got GarageBand ? I think it's standard depending on how old your Mac is. GarageBand is a cut down version of Logic and suits me fine. [/quote] Sorry to go off-topic - I have only used garage band to do ringtones for my phone and nothing more. if it's a cut down version of Logic, is it possible to use it as a notation program? i.e. for manual input of transcriptions? or am I barking up the wrong tree? Thanks Quote
WinterMute Posted February 2, 2013 Posted February 2, 2013 If you want to spend a little cash, grab a Bass Pod off eBay, it connects to the Mac via USB, and will turn up as an interface in Logic and the like. Means you get a chance to make a good tone without having to connect audio outputs from amps etc. Modelled amps and cabs plus effects... Bit more money I appreciate, but it's a really easy way to get good bass recordings. Quote
PTB Posted February 2, 2013 Posted February 2, 2013 [quote name='bluesparky' timestamp='1359634803' post='1957909'] Sorry to go off-topic - I have only used garage band to do ringtones for my phone and nothing more. if it's a cut down version of Logic, is it possible to use it as a notation program? i.e. for manual input of transcriptions? or am I barking up the wrong tree? Thanks [/quote] Sorry, I do not know whether you can use it for notation. It does what I want it to do! Hopefully, someone more knowledgeable about these things will be along soon. Quote
MiltyG565 Posted February 2, 2013 Posted February 2, 2013 [quote name='bluesparky' timestamp='1359634803' post='1957909'] Sorry to go off-topic - I have only used garage band to do ringtones for my phone and nothing more. if it's a cut down version of Logic, is it possible to use it as a notation program? i.e. for manual input of transcriptions? or am I barking up the wrong tree? Thanks [/quote] I've avoided this one because i just don't know. You should have a search around Garageband, and if you can't find anything use the search bar on the help button along the top of the screen while in Garageband. Quote
xgsjx Posted February 3, 2013 Posted February 3, 2013 I have a 3.5mm stereo jack that has a long cable which is 2 mono cables stuck together & has a mono 1/4 jack on each one. Turn your volumes down (important bit). Plug a 1/4 jack into either your bass or line out/effects send on the amp & plug the 3.5mm jack into your iMac. Put the other jack safe so it doesn't short. Open your DAW & create an audio track, turn your volume up a little on the bass/amp & on the DAW's input selection, just select the channel that has audio coming through it. I made a comparison with me playing this way & then using a USB interface, posted it on here & everyone preferred the non USB sound. Quote
bluesparky Posted February 4, 2013 Posted February 4, 2013 Ok Ta, I don't have garage band with me at the mo so I wasn't able to investigate. Quote
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