I have been reading through some of the get started recording threads and because I am not a computer guru was wondering if someone would look at this list and tell me if I am on track. Some of the threads get a little too technical for me. At this time I really only want to record my electric guitar and what I call singing (g)! The main purpose is to have a record of progress, listen for errors and be able to ship files to a friend who plays with me sometimes so he can practice when we are not together.
1. inexpensive mixer (Behringer most often recommended)
2. cord from mixer to sound card
3. Mike preferably a Shure sm57 (cheaper available but might as well get a decent one)& stand
4. Download free copy of audacity from net
Will that get me going? I understand that I may later want to upgrade sound card. I believe that the mixer will let me plug in the mike, guitar and more instruments if needed as well as control levels of inputs. Thanx for any help.
Robbie
Good job! You did your homework.
Yes, with the SM57 (dynamic mic) you can hook into the mixer.
If you are to buy a condenser mic (vocal mic) in the future, you will need a mixer that has "phantom power". Phantom power is a power supply for a condenser mic. So if you plan on doing that, you should look into a mixer that has it now.
I own the Behringer Eurorack UB1222FX-Pro and have been more than happy with it, so I would recommend the Behringer mixer. The UB1002 for $59.99 would be a good start, but if you want more inputs down the road..... you might want to consider a larger one, but for now you are fine.
You didn't say what kind of sound card you have so make sure it has an input compatible with the mixer. Needs to be some kind of a line in. I don't think a mic in will work unless it doubles as line in.
Mike, I will keep the phantom power idea in mind, also will take your suggestion re mixer but will also see what I can get re upgrades for not too much extra cash.
Nils, I have no idea what my sound card is: The only clues I have is that it is a HP Pavilion 6500 series. The machine is 500 MHz which I assume is fast enough. On the back adjacent to the speaker jack is a jack which is labelled phone and similar one beside it which is labelled Line, I assume that is line in, it doesn't say in or out. Is there an easy way to determine the sound card type without ripping the cover off?
Thanx Guys
Robbie
It does sound like line in but I am not real familiar with HP. There should be something in the use guide as to what each jack is. If you don't have the guide then you should be able to find something on the HP site.
And yes, 500 MHz should do it for you.
Well after checking through the CD Rom users manual I find a series of smaller Jacks labelled Microphone, line in and line out. I had initially looked for a hard copy of a manual with no luck but found this CD in a pile of never used before stuff.These jacks are referred to as 3.5 mm stereo jacks( me being a Canuck). I assume they are what is described elsewhere in this forum as 1/8 " jacks. I am guessing from this that I should be OK for hookup. Thanx
Well after checking through the CD Rom users manual I find a series of smaller Jacks labelled Microphone, line in and line out. I had initially looked for a hard copy of a manual with no luck but found this CD in a pile of never used before stuff.These jacks are referred to as 3.5 mm stereo jacks( me being a Canuck). I assume they are what is described elsewhere in this forum as 1/8 " jacks. I am guessing from this that I should be OK for hookup. Thanx
Your right and ready to go. At some point you may want to upgrade the card but for now you should get a decent recording.
To date I have ordered a Behringer 1202FX mixer but being impatient I have tried some recording by plugging my guitar into my Fender 900 deluxe amp. From the preamp line out on that amp I go to the line in on the sound card.
PROBLEMS TO DATE:
-Sometimes the audacity program locks up when I try to record. I do not know the type of sound card. Is there a Rip Tide card? as mentioned before it is an HP pavilion tower
-The audio level when I record my guitar is very low with no apparent way to increase the sound level. I have the record level at max on the audacity toolbar. When I try record a mike through the mike in, levels seem OK.
Any ideas appreciated
Robbie
Mike, I will keep the phantom power idea in mind, also will take your suggestion re mixer but will also see what I can get re upgrades for not too much extra cash.
Nils, I have no idea what my sound card is: The only clues I have is that it is a HP Pavilion 6500 series. The machine is 500 MHz which I assume is fast enough. On the back adjacent to the speaker jack is a jack which is labelled phone and similar one beside it which is labelled Line, I assume that is line in, it doesn't say in or out. Is there an easy way to determine the sound card type without ripping the cover off?
Thanx Guys
Robbie
I have a feeling you'll find that a 500 MHz PC may be a little slow. You may find a large amount of delay or latency while recording. I'm curious to know how much RAM you have. Also, just as a side note, those two jacks you have ie...phone and line are your modem connections in case you use any sort of dial-up.
For sure use your sound card with the colored rims around the jacks. That would be your sound card. The lime green is a speaker/headphone out, the pink/red is your microphone in (both the green and the pink are generally intended for a mic/headset device. If you have them any black or blue connections would be line / aux input jacks.
I've just recently started recording into my PC with Audacity and some other recording tools and it's a lot of fun as well as a great learning experience. Nevermind the hair loss in the interrum. :oops:
Bish
"I play live as playing dead is harder than it sounds!"
Mike, I will keep the phantom power idea in mind, also will take your suggestion re mixer but will also see what I can get re upgrades for not too much extra cash.
Nils, I have no idea what my sound card is: The only clues I have is that it is a HP Pavilion 6500 series. The machine is 500 MHz which I assume is fast enough. On the back adjacent to the speaker jack is a jack which is labelled phone and similar one beside it which is labelled Line, I assume that is line in, it doesn't say in or out. Is there an easy way to determine the sound card type without ripping the cover off?
Thanx Guys
Robbie
I have a feeling you'll find that a 500 MHz PC may be a little slow. You may find a large amount of delay or latency while recording. I'm curious to know how much RAM you have. Also, just as a side note, those two jacks you have ie...phone and line are your modem connections in case you use any sort of dial-up.
For sure use your sound card with the colored rims around the jacks. That would be your sound card. The lime green is a speaker/headphone out, the pink/red is your microphone in (both the green and the pink are generally intended for a mic/headset device. If you have them any black or blue connections would be line / aux input jacks.
I've just recently started recording into my PC with Audacity and some other recording tools and it's a lot of fun as well as a great learning experience. Nevermind the hair loss in the interrum. :oops:
As for your audio levels....You may need to get into the sound setup of your sound card via your operating system and tweak the settings there. You have two areas to get into. The playback side and the recording side. You need to check both for volume levels. Then check your output levels to ensure they are set properly.
Bish
"I play live as playing dead is harder than it sounds!"
Make sure everything else is shut off, including anti-virus (just make sure yo're not on the net)
Check your volume control from the PC toolbar, mine is at the bottom right. There should be a line in and a volume slide. You might need to go into properties or something. Basically what Bish said...
Unfortunately the label has fallen off my old 6475, but I don't think I would ever try recording with it. It's barely holding on as it is.
"Things may get a whole lot worse/ Before suddenly falling apart"
Steely Dan
"Look at me coyote, don't let a little road dust put you off" Knopfler
I don't think basic recording relies on cpu-power that much. A basic 500mhz/256mb system should be able to record properly assuming the soundcard can handle itself.
Robbie: http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?lc=en&cc=us&dlc=en&product=58221&docname=bph07114
Thanx for the help so far guys. I have gone in and set record /playback levels as high as I can following suggestions.
Bish asked about RAM , the front of the tower states that there is only 64 MB of Ram.
Arjen thanx for the link. I believe that I do indeed have the Rockwell RipTide sound card. Any time I bring up windows re sound record / playback I see RipTide driver info etc. So I assume then that is the type of sound card I have. You say a 500/256 system should be OK but I assume that you mean 256 MB of RAM so maybe that is my limiting factor that is causing Audacity to crash priodically.
Robbie
As a guide the M-audio Mobile Pre interface lists Windows 98SE Pent, II 350 MHz w/64 RAM and DirectX 9.0b or higher.
So I think you're probably okay there, it maybe the soundcard can't handle it or there's some sort of software conflict.
"Things may get a whole lot worse/ Before suddenly falling apart"
Steely Dan
"Look at me coyote, don't let a little road dust put you off" Knopfler
You gave me a thought and I should have checked this before , the audacity site lists recommended RAM of at least 64 MB and a 300 Mhz cpu. So I am just Ok there, however I guess more RAM wouldn't hurt. Will make sure nothing is running in the background in the future and try it again. Will advise results.
Robbie
