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  • Home studio recording

    If you are planning on recording yourself (purely for educational or with your band) there are a few methods available that you want to consider.

    I'll try to give a brief review on various audio recording methods.

    The first thing you want to know is if you want to record with or without the use of your computer.

    - If you don't want to use a computer, there are devices such as the TASCAM DP-004 that allow multi-track recording and mix-down.
    The advantage of these devices is that they are fairly small (unless when you go for a full studio setup, but that's out of the scope of this review) and portable (the DP-004 for example works with batteries and/or a DC transformer (I think these are sold seperatly)).
    Depending on the brand and type of device they might also have one or more recording options like line-in, build-in microphone(s), 1/4" instrument jack, ...
    The only time you'll need to connect the DP-004 that I use in this example is when you want to copy the music from the SD-card inside the DP-004 to your computer (or you use a card-reader but then you'll need to remove the batteries from the DP-004 to be able to takeout the SD-card).

    So, if you want to take this route be sure to compare the different brands and products to find something that fits your needs.

    - Now if you are planning on using your computer there are 2 ways you can do this.
    -- You can simply use a standard audio-recording program and a microphone connected to your PC (quality might not be as desired).
    -- Or, you can use an audio interface (both Line-6 and M-Audio have a whole range of these products, going from simple with just one 1/4" connector for Guitar/Bass to high-end professional products). For simple Bass recording the simple TonePort GX from Line-6 is good enough.

    An Audio interface has the advantage of a lower latency (the time between the moment you pluck the string till the moment it's heard through your PC speakers) than most "normal" sound-cards. Most interfaces also have a feature to directly monitor the sound before it goes to your PC so there is virtually no latency).

    To fully use an audio-interface you'll need a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) to record/edit. Some daw's are : Adobe Audition (if you have an older version like 1.5 or 3.0 you'll see that the new version (CS5.5 by the time of this article) has changed a lot. This is because Adobe also had a program called "Soundbooth" but they rebuild Audition from scratch and added some functionality from Soundbooth (soundbooth is no longer being developed)., Cubase (Cubase or Cubase Elements), N-Tracker, Ableton Live, Mixcraft (you might notice that when installing Mixcraft your anti-virus software warns you about a virus in Mixcraft but that's probably just a false positive and not all A/V's report this)., ...

    From the programs I've tried it personally prefer Cubase Elements (version 6 at this moment), the price is fair and compared with Cubase 6, Cubase Elements goes around €100 (100 Euro) and Cubase 6 goes above €600 (600 Euro).
    If you want to export to MP3 however you will need to get an additional MP3 license (around €15) but you can also export to WAVE or another format and later convert it to MP3 (with LAME for example).

    But you are free to choose what program you use (I think Mixcraft is the cheapest one I could find).

    An added advantage is that you can use various VST-plugins (like amp. modeling so you can use wide range of virtual amp's like Marshall (although the name Marshall is not used) and Fender. (Line-6 and IK-Multimedia have various packages).

    If you experience problems with recording there are a few things you can do :
    1. Increase the SWAP memory (and make sure the min/max values are the same).
    2. Disable ALL "eye candy", on systems like Windows Vista/7 this will make windows look like it did in Windows 98 but it lowers the CPU load.
    3. Do NOT use a wallpaper (these also give more CPU load).
    4. And the most important one, close ALL non-essential software (basically this is everything except you Anti-Virus and the DAW Software.)

    If this doesn't work it's possible that your computer is too old for quality recording

    Now a brief one of Video Recording :

    To make simple recordings (for example to post on YouTube) all you really need is a webcam (like the Logitech C210), the Logitec cams come with some software to record and they also come with a license for "MAGIX Video easy se" so you can also edit your recordings and upload to YouTube.

    If you want a better recording you can for example opt for the C910 which is a Full HD camera (note that this requires a LOT more from your computer so HD recording might be a problem on older computers).

    And as with the Audio recording, closing all unessential software and look-and-feel of windows might increase performance.

    Hope this helps anyone
    Oh, and as a Disclaimer : All brands and products mentioned above are just examples so before you buy anything get yourself informed about the products you want and make a decision based on what you want and probably what it will cost.
    Also I do not work for any of the companies of the products mentioned and I'm not affiliated with one of them.
    Comments 6 Comments
    1. Elmeaux's Avatar
      Elmeaux -

      Great read, Patrick. Thanks!
    1. Bruce Alan's Avatar
      Bruce Alan -
      Good article. Some very good options in there.

      4. And the most important one, close ALL non-essential software (basically this is everything except you Anti-Virus and the DAW Software.)
      If one is into computer recording and can swing the expense of a dedicated computer, my favorite method since about 2005 has been to use a machine dedicated to nothing but recording, running bare bones and nothing that does not relate directly to recording, and no connection whatsoever to any kind of networking. This allows for a fast machine with no virus scan running.
    1. Patrick's Avatar
      Patrick -
      Yes, the dedicated system is the best option (as you say there is no need for any anti-virus software unless you want to connect that system to the internet).

      But I guess most people here are not planning on setting-up a dedicated "bare bone" system.

      One of the problems is that some software (I think cubase is one of them) need a connection to one of their servers to verify the license (to be able to run the software). Now in the case of Cubase (the full expensive version) comes with a USB "e-Licenser" that replaces such internet verificaton, but then the software only works when the USB-stick is connected (for version that do not come with this USB eLicenser they are selling them seperatly so you can transfer your Cubase Elements 6 license to a USB eLicenser).
    1. Bruce Alan's Avatar
      Bruce Alan -
      You're right about the added complexity of license activation requiring a connection somewhere along the lines. EZ Drummer has required that on my rig. The workaround they offer is that you can create an activation request code (embedded into an HTML file created by EZD), move that file to a net connected computer, obtain the activation code from the manufacturer, and transfer that code back into the DAW. It might seem time consuming and awkward, but to me its worth the effort to keep the computer off the internet.

      Alternately, one could keep a network connection available on the dedicated machine and enable it only to download activations and such, disabling the connection at all other times. The key purpose here is simply to keep the machine as clean as possible so it remains as fast as possible.

      When we start getting into things like new gear here and there, or more basses, or more amps, or more mics for recording, getting a dedicated DAW is really not out of the ball park, expense wise, with expanding our other bits of the arsenal. It's frightening where we are, cost wise, in the ability to make quality recordings compared to 15-20 years ago. And a second machine exclusively for DAW use is certainly not something one has to jump into right away with huge costs. Heck, a machine 1-2 generations behind what's hot now can still be an inexpensive and respectable DAW.
    1. stantonl's Avatar
      stantonl -
      Being a Mac guy, I would throw in Garageband to the computer based recording software. It comes pre-installed on all new Mac's and is a great program to start with. If you're looking for something more Logic Express and Logic Pro are both full featured DAW's. Just my 2 cents
    1. Bruce Alan's Avatar
      Bruce Alan -
      I worked for years in Logic...until they abandoned me after version 5. I loved Logic back then.
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