deadwing2112 Posted December 11, 2007 Share Posted December 11, 2007 I am completely new and kinda interested in making my own music. I've heard of all these 8-Track Recorders and such. What is a good and decently cheap way? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
launchpad67a Posted December 11, 2007 Share Posted December 11, 2007 What exactly is your budget? What gear do you currently own? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRocinanteKid Posted December 11, 2007 Share Posted December 11, 2007 Yeah depends on your budget, personally I prefer older "retro" equipment. Nothin' beats analog recording equipment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-13 Posted December 11, 2007 Share Posted December 11, 2007 QUOTE (TheRocinanteKid @ Dec 11 2007, 04:54 AM) Yeah depends on your budget, personally I prefer older "retro" equipment. Nothin' beats analog recording equipment. haha yeah except the $200-300 will stiff you for the tape! I agree tho! I have a Otari 2 track reel to reel sitting in my room. Can't do shit with it until I find some tape....and of course $$$ for the tape! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
launchpad67a Posted December 11, 2007 Share Posted December 11, 2007 (edited) If your new to recording I highly recommend an "all-in-one" stand alone recording unit. I am a huge fan of the Korg D1600 ( http://www.korg.com/gear/info.asp?a_prod_n...0&category_id=3 ). It has everything you need to make good recordings built right into the unit. It has 16 tracks and can record at 16bit or 24bit. Tons of effects and a touch screen interface for easy use. Simple to learn and they really don't cost much for what you get. They don't make the standard D1600 (which I have) any longer but they make the D1600mkll. You can probably find one of these on ebay for $500 (retail was $1100). I use mine as part of my new mobile recording rig and just finished recording a new song with it. Have a listen to my new song with the Korg D1600. (keep in mind that you are hearing much more than the Korg on this recording). At any rate, the point I'm trying to make is that you should seriously buy an all-in-one recorder. It is the best way to go without spending thousands of dollars. Edited December 11, 2007 by launchpad67a Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deadwing2112 Posted December 11, 2007 Author Share Posted December 11, 2007 Thanks for the suggestion launch. Well I guess my budget isn't the greatest. 16 year old kid working for 6 bucks an hour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deadwing2112 Posted December 11, 2007 Author Share Posted December 11, 2007 Another question. If I bought something like that, I would still have to get a microphone to record live stuff? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CygnusX-1Bk2 Posted December 12, 2007 Share Posted December 12, 2007 (edited) QUOTE (deadwing2112 @ Dec 11 2007, 03:35 PM) Another question. If I bought something like that, I would still have to get a microphone to record live stuff? Yes, you will need a microphone (or two, preferably). And a cable. Since you obviously already have a computer to use you might try a small inexpensive interface. Here are some available @ Guitar Center or Musician's Friend. There are many that are less than $500 and will do the job you need them to do and you will have more flexibility than a stand alone unit because of the available software. You can get anything as complicated as ProTools or as simple as Garage Band (if you are on a Mac). The Lexicon Omega is a nice system to start with @ only $200, they have another called the Lambda for just $150. Also Line 6 makes a "Tone Port" that goes for $130. Of the two I am sure that the Lex will have better audio quality. That with two decent mics and you will have a simple yet effective setup for less than $500, ready to go. Edited December 12, 2007 by CygnusX-1Bk2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mars_volta Posted December 12, 2007 Share Posted December 12, 2007 you have a computer and a sound card. you only need recording software and a mixer/mic to connect to the computer sound card. ntrack studio is cheap and easy for software. www.ntrack.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stormtron Posted December 12, 2007 Share Posted December 12, 2007 Save your money for a decent mic and preamp and just crack Adobe Audition. Wait, don't do that, that's bad..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ru5h F@n Posted December 12, 2007 Share Posted December 12, 2007 QUOTE (Storm Shadow @ Dec 11 2007, 06:42 PM) Save your money for a decent mic and preamp and just crack Adobe Audition. Wait, don't do that, that's bad..... Well if you're looking for software, just use Ardor or Rosegarden with Linux. That program is free and is awesome too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
launchpad67a Posted December 12, 2007 Share Posted December 12, 2007 All suggestions are valid BUT a stand-alone recording station will yield the best results for someone without thousands of dollars. Trust me when I say this. If you decide to try and record to your computer you are just asking for trouble unless you have the right hardware (sound card, mega RAM, fast CPU, ect...) not to mention you will need audio recording software. Spend $500 on a nice (used) stand alone unit that comes with everything already. All you need to do is plugin to it and hit record!! No troubles, headaches, extra gear necessary. Just an instrument and a microphone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mars_volta Posted December 12, 2007 Share Posted December 12, 2007 ^^ i will argue till the cows come home that a stand alone is NOT the easiest way to record. you cant 'see' what youve done and the music with eventually make it to your computer anyway. also, non tape standalones are not cheap. i wouldnt waste time with a 4 track either. unless he is running windows 3.1 on a 486 there isnt any problem. i produced a whole album with a pentium 150. linux is not a viable soution for recording audio. its far behind windows or mac. if you have a computer that is at least a few years old you wont have any trouble laying down 2 tracks at a time. ntrack studio or audacity is nearly free and will give you plenty of power for effects, editing, mixing down to mp3 etc... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRocinanteKid Posted December 12, 2007 Share Posted December 12, 2007 "Stand alones" are better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CygnusX-1Bk2 Posted December 12, 2007 Share Posted December 12, 2007 Yeah, I am not one for stand alone systems because of their inherent limitations, not only UI but sound quality and ease of use. The sound cards I posted are decent, especially the Lexicon and any modern computer is plenty fast enough and has enough memory to record several tracks at a time. My first recording machine was a P II 450 MHz and I did sessions of up to 52 tracks of 16/44 waves with little (yet noticeable) latency. That was 10 years ago. Any machine that is a 1 GHz or faster running XP or OS X can handle a surprising amount of audio. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
launchpad67a Posted December 12, 2007 Share Posted December 12, 2007 I'm only suggesting a stand alone for a novice who's new to recording. They do tend to be easy to use (imo) and again, they come with everything you need to get 'decent' sounds. It's a valid way to start learning to record music. That's all I'm trying to point out. *For the record, the stand alones I am referring to are 16 track digital recorders. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRocinanteKid Posted December 12, 2007 Share Posted December 12, 2007 QUOTE (launchpad67a @ Dec 12 2007, 08:18 PM) I'm only suggesting a stand alone for a novice who's new to recording. They do tend to be easy to use (imo) and again, they come with everything you need to get 'decent' sounds. It's a valid way to start learning to record music. That's all I'm trying to point out. *For the record, the stand alones I am referring to are 16 track digital recorders. Agreed. Easier and less likely to completey f**k up I reckon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CygnusX-1Bk2 Posted December 12, 2007 Share Posted December 12, 2007 (edited) I am familiar with stand alones myself. I grew up on a Yamaha MT-100 4 track cassette recorder and still use a Yamaha mini disk multi for some live stuff, but I think you get more bang for your buck with an inexpensive soundcard and a couple mics (like a pair of 57s) for the same price as a stand alone multitrack recorder. Also if your stand alone goes down you are f***ed. And they do go down! Especially if you buy used. Sound cards can be replaced (though I have yet to have one breakdown at all). Plus computer software and hardware can be upgraded should your needs and/or desire increase. Backing up on a computer is also very easy. Burning your music to CD is very easy. Also access to your music is easier. If it is already on your local drive then if you want to post it somewhere you just drag and drop or point and click it where it needs to go. No having to burn a disc from the stand alone and load it into the computer. Ease of use. Edited December 12, 2007 by CygnusX-1Bk2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WCFIELDS Posted December 13, 2007 Share Posted December 13, 2007 QUOTE (mars_volta @ Dec 12 2007, 09:32 AM) ^^ i will argue till the cows come home that a stand alone is NOT the easiest way to record. you cant 'see' what youve done and the music with eventually make it to your computer anyway. also, non tape standalones are not cheap. i wouldnt waste time with a 4 track either. unless he is running windows 3.1 on a 486 there isnt any problem. i produced a whole album with a pentium 150. linux is not a viable soution for recording audio. its far behind windows or mac. if you have a computer that is at least a few years old you wont have any trouble laying down 2 tracks at a time. ntrack studio or audacity is nearly free and will give you plenty of power for effects, editing, mixing down to mp3 etc... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
launchpad67a Posted December 13, 2007 Share Posted December 13, 2007 Alright, well I have said my peace and given my suggestions. I'm not going to argue with certain posts especially coming from people that have never posted anything they recorded themselves. good luck with your decision deadwing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CygnusX-1Bk2 Posted December 13, 2007 Share Posted December 13, 2007 Well, argue with me then! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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