Demo CD

for demo purposes saving thew tracks as .mp3s should be more than fine, IMO.

I'm guessing you're stateside, so I'm really not sure about the best hardware price-wise. one thing to check though - what mics are you using? I'm going to assume that he/you own(s) these mics already, and have therefore used them. if not, bear in mind that some condenser mics require phantom power, which may or may not be provided as part of the hardware you use to get the audio tracks onto your computer.

reaper is free, as is audacity, for software.

I urge you to wait until some americans post suggestions re hardware, but I'll throw this one into the mix - http://www.thomann.de/gb/alesis_imultimix_8_usb.htm - purely because it has got some good reviews in some UK mags on recording. It lets you record straight to an ipod too, so if one of you have said music-gadget, that may come in handy e.g. for recording jams. oh, and it comes with Cubase LE recording software bundled as part of it. many hardware devices nowadays will come with some basic recording software bundled witth them, and cubase LE is (probably, though I have not tried it myself) going to be better than audacity and reaper. emphasis on the 'probably' bit.

and, having managed to write all that while still not really answering your question, I apologise and hope its at least vaguely interesting.

Cubase LE is miles above Audacity, really the difference between night and day. Getting a decent soundcard or interface with such a program shouldn't cost too much and will do wonders for the recording quality.

I'm guessing you're stateside, so I'm really not sure about the best hardware price-wise. one thing to check though - what mics are you using? I'm going to assume that he/you own(s) these mics already, and have therefore used them. if not, bear in mind that some condenser mics require phantom power, which may or may not be provided as part of the hardware you use to get the audio tracks onto your computer.

Yes - stateside. The MIC is a Shure SM58 and I've used them before. He has MIC's also but I'm not sure what they are. Yes - MP3 is what I thought but wanted to make sure. Thanks, Bob Jessie

SM58's and SM57's will both be fine without phantom power.

from Ignar's post, I'd really suggest getting an interface or soundcard with Cubase LE bundled as a package. I've used both Cubase and Nuendo and find them a lot easier to use than Audacity is (despite Audacity being free). I've not tried Cubase LE (mainly because when I got it I already had Nuendo, so had no need to change), but I would imagine its a lot better than Audacity, and Ignar seems to have used it, so.....

hope this helps, let us know how you get on! 8)

Might look at one of these:

Lexicon Lambda

I have it's little brother, the Lexicon Alpha and am liking it. Comes with Cubase LE.

I use SX3 but also have LE (a bunch of them actually) and the differences are none for most of us. Unless you want to mix in surround or have the urgent need for more then 48 MIDI tracks and such. :lol:

Might look at one of these:
Lexicon Lambda
I have it's little brother, the Lexicon Alpha and am liking it. Comes with Cubase LE.

Thanks! I've already ordered it from MF.

Bob Jessie

kewl, let us know how you get on. 8)

re the ASIO4all driver - the interface should come with the necessary drivers, if not, you can download the asio4all later if you find it necessary. re the computer, three tips - as much RAM as possible helps loads; you also want a fair bit of hard disk space free so the software runs smoothly; and if at all possible, keep the PC off the net (or make sure your security setup is as good as possible).

hth

OK, I had a couple of tests and have the system working... somewhat. I have a Lexicon Lambda interface with Cubase LE. I can get a good vocal and guitar track (problems here but I'll get into that later). What I don't understand is: in Cubase I can only use only one IN for any track?

I'll have the guitar is LINE 1 and the MIC in line 2 and they both work but I have to switch back and forth in Cubase? I was hoping that I could record a track with one input for the MIC then another input for guitar but it's not apparent how to do this?

The other problem is a CRACKLING noise (not a HUM) for the guitar track. Like when your Radio gets interference. However, this is something I can work on and I've been reading up on this. It has to be some kind of interference, I used 3 different guitar cables. I set the pre amp as low/high as I could - still the same.

Any help appreciated.
Bob Jessie

I ran a test and I get the CRACKING noise on the MIC also. I didn't notice it the first time.

Bob Jessie

DOGBITE, someone else described this same problem on CUBASE.NET, he described it as a HISS, which is another good description (instead of crackling) . Except I have a desktop.

Bob Jessie

I'll have the guitar is LINE 1 and the MIC in line 2 and they both work but I have to switch back and forth in Cubase? I was hoping that I could record a track with one input for the MIC then another input for guitar but it's not apparent how to do this?

That should work Bob. It should just be a matter of arming 2 tracks for recording. One from the Line 1 input and the other from the Line 2 input.
I use different software. Here's how it looks in my app:

Both tracks are armed for simultaneous recording from the 2 input sources. I named the tracks accordingly so you could see how it works.
:)

Edit: Looks to work exactly the same in Cubase LE. See Step 14 on the URL link below:
'...(If you wish to record multiple tracks simultaneously, simply turn Record Enable on for each track you wish to record.)...'

Link is too long to paste here it seems....

google: cubase le multitrack recording
and click on the link at the very top starting 'www.emu.com....' it takes you to a Cubase LE Tutorial.
Enjoy!

Boxboy, thanks! That's what I thought (2 tracks at the same time). I have not tried it yet but will soon.

To all others, I got rid of the HISS (Crackling) by adjusting the buffer size and then doing the opposite of what the manual said and increased the CPU (the manuall said to decrease).

In CUBASE, DEVICES> DEVICE Setup > VST Mutitrack > Control Panel
Bit Depth to 24 and slid CPU UP until the HISS went away.

Tested and it works for both the MIC and the guitar. YEA BABY.... now I'm ready!!!

Bob Jessie

First off – thanks everyone! I got it going, the HISS is gone, BOXBOY, I can record on 2 tracks. Time for me to get with Charley so he can make a DEMO CD. Oh, I'll try to post one or two on the DEMO tracks somewhere.

You guys are great! Nick – you can remove this thread – I will never have another question about recording from the PC.

Then again…. Just in case….

Bob Jessie