sound recorder question

I use n-track studio. http://www.ntrack.com

I think you get a free demo and to purchase the full version is pretty cheap. It works great!

I got one program that you will love, and heres something else besides it's features and ease of use that you will love... you ready... It's totally free for the full version. Im talking about Audacity. It really is a wonderful tool to have for music. just go to http://www.download.com and search for audacity of if that doesnt work just do what i do whenever I cant find something... I google it!

Here is the link bstguitarist was talking about http://audacity.sourceforge.net

I use Cakewalk Pyro 2004, which was given to me as a gift so I don't know the price of it. But, if your interested in buying a program you should look into Cakewalk.

I use the free software that came with the soundcard, called 'Creative Recorder'. If you have a soundblaster you should have it. I then import it into Audacity (great program!) and mix it from there.

Also as an exploit kind of to record longer bits in sound recorder, record 60 secs of anything and then use the effects -> decrease speed to double the length that you can record. Having said that, I'd recommend a different program :)

Thanks. I'm going to give Audacity a try. Do you need the MP3 encoder and the VST enabler too? (What is a vst enabler anyway?)

Thanks. I'm going to give Audacity a try. Do you need the MP3 encoder and the VST enabler too? (What is a vst enabler anyway?)

The mp3 encoder lets you save mp3 files directly from Audacity, rather than saving a *.wav file and then using another program to create an mp3. Not necessary, but handy to have.

The VST enabler lets you use VST plugins to process the recorded audio. There's a ton of freebie plugins out there, of varying quality and usefulness.

<Dr.Nick> Hi everybody! </Dr.Nick>

Long time lurker, first time poster...

If you're looking for free recording software, I recommend the 'Kristal Audio Engine'.

http://www.kreatives.org/kristal/index.php

Every VST + their skins I've tried in it works and it can also apply real time effects as you play your guitar ( can't record while doing so though ).

You can find a vast array of plugins, so may I suggest SimulAnalog Guitar suite

http://www.simulanalog.org/guitarsuite.htm

Which contains simulations of :

- Boss DS-1 (Distortion stompbox)
- Boss SD-1 (Super Overdrive stompbox)
- Tube Screamer (Overdrive stompbox)
- Oberheim PS-1 (Phaser stompbox)
- Univox Univibe (Modulations stompbox) 8)
- Fender Twin 1969 (Guitar amplifier)
- Marshall JCM900 Dual Reverb (Guitar amplifier)

Hope this helps.

that progaram that is used with audacity to make mp3's is called LAME (no im not insulting you :lol: ). its free and it works nicely. with audacity your are limited to the lenght orf your recording by how much space your have on your hard disk. generally try having a couple hundred megabytes free for recording a couple minutes and still have leeway to work with.

i.e. remember that birthday remake I did for my spanish class? the audacity file for that with all the tracks and stuff took up about 150 megabytes. but only about 3 in MP3 so I converted it and saved the space!

I have a question for the more technically minded of you - how would I be able to record onto something like Cubase using a mixer and a USB port on a laptop? What sort of mixer would I need, etc? I don't need to be able to record a full band, as my band records in layers (guitar part first, then vocals, then we play everything that's been recorded into the drummer's headphones so he can drum along to it and then we record him while he's doing it) but it needs about 4 inputs.

Also, what input do you traditionally need to input sound into a computer? Is it USB or is it something else?

If you're looking for free recording software, I recommend the 'Kristal Audio Engine'.

Yes, it's a neat program. It's a bit more of a sequencer than a straight up recording program. You can position clips in different tracks, and I believe you can transform them a little. Audacity just records (well, it has good editing capabilities as well, but it doesn't treat little clips as objects you can play with), which is more what I need. Try them both, since they're free. I like to play through effects in Kristal occasionally.

Tucker, you'll need some kind of sound capture device. Chances are, the laptop already has one (a mic in jack on the back somewhere), but it's also a safe bet that it's not very good. I believe that M-Audio makes devices with a few inputs what will connect to a computer via USB and let you record. I'm sure there are other brands as well.

Since you're not recording to more than one track at once, why do you need four inputs? Just less cord swapping?

EDIT: To get sound into a computer, you'll need a sound capture device, as I said above. This can be in the form of an internal card in a desktop computer, but there's no space in a laptop for one. An external box is the thing for a laptop. USB or Firewire would be the usual connections for these.

Tucker:

M-Audio has a product called Quattro Usb.

http://m-audio.com/index.php?do=products.main&ID=81703e2203e2556c9d650c1b3d3a6e79

You could get a 10 channel mixer from Behringer for about $100.00.

http://www.behringer.com/UB1002/index.cfm?lang=ENG

So you could mix down 10 channels to 2 tracks at a time., 3 if you use the fx send as a seperate bus. Ideally you would want a 4 bus console but that would cost you some large coin.

Cool, thanks.

If you have Windows Movie Maker on your PC...By the way how can you connect your guitar to amp and then from amp to PC without a line-in socket on the PC? (if possible)