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anonymous 21 May 2006

I have been recording over the past year and a half and I've tried many techniques and approaches. I tried directly into a soundcard, through mics and nothing seemed to come in clear. Recently I aquired all of the following equiptment:

Tascam DP-01/FX 8 Track Digital Recorder
Digital Reference DR-CX1 Studio Condenser Microphone (link below)
AKG D 2300 S Dynamic Microphone
GHS Soundhole Mic (A133)
B-52 (LG-100A head and LG-412V cab) 4 X 12 Half Stack

and the following software:

Acid Music Studio v6
Waves Diamond Bundle (v5)
Waves Musicians Bundle (v5)
Waves Transform Bundle (v5)

I had trouble finding much info at all on the DR-CX1 so here is the link with any info at all:

http://digital-reference.com/products/dispProd.cfm?t=wired&sT=studio&sel=0

The above software is recommended to me by a friend who has been recording for several years. So I got the software (and have no idea how to use the Waves Bundle yet, but Acid I do know how to use.

The Tascam claims it records CD Quality, but obviously you need the mics. I've tried 4 different rooms, recording directly into the Tascam with all 3 mics, tried recording with the Condenser on a boom stand in front of the half stack and the sounds are just telephone quality. They are "ok", but I know a guy who recorded a studio quality recording with only maybe $200-$300 worth of equiptment. I spent over $1000 and I'm getting "barely better than radio recorded quality".

What do you recommend I do? I've looked into soundproofing but it can be quite expensive. Would a pre-amp or a mixer go along with my current setup to get a much more impressive result?

** Please note, that the recording I am doing is an Acoustic track and a Vocal track. The following link provides (a very quick) sample of the low quality.

http://www.purevolume.com/solaceharbor

play the song "come around".

Thank You

Comments

Jedi Mon, 05/22/2006 - 02:19

Hi ,

everything is important but fist your amp and guitar sound to fix without any mic : good playing + good guitar + good amp well tuned together.

never heard the mics you use except the akg , i suspect it to sound like crap by itself

no bass , thin sound etc.

the akg mic should be ok but get another condenser mic.

this tascam little box as surely very cheap preamps .

also have a pair of good speakers .

the soft is not so important but acid i think is not designed for recording

best

RemyRAD Mon, 05/22/2006 - 18:52

My dear young men, first off, lots of distortion. You have over recorded. Acoustics is not your problem. Operator error is. Like so many other people you are looking for the magic pill that will make you sound like a genius. You don't need to change out any of your equipment, you only need to learn how to use it correctly.

Yes, you should try to record as hot a level as possible without digital overload. I still work within 16 bits, 44.1kHz because I know what I'm doing. If you are in doubt, I might suggest that you try recording at 24 bits? This will give you a greater dynamic range with which to work in. Otherwise, you need to learn how to properly adjust your microphone preamplifier's gain setting, first. If you are using a condenser microphone, you may even need to switch on the pad switch. This will keep your microphones electronics from overloading while providing you with more headroom from the microphone.

Otherwise, I found your sound to be a little harsh sounding. It was probably harsh due to the overloads but I don't think it's just that. Extremely clean and broadband microphones are not necessarily appropriate on everything. Dynamic Mike's can frequently invoked the feeling of more warmth due to their bandwidth limited nature. Large diaphragm condensers can also relay that larger feeling of warmth.

For all of the Waves plug-ins you possess, I didn't really notice much of any of them? An interesting song nonetheless that I'm sure could be greatly enhanced by better gain staging during tracking and mixing.

Acoustically convulsing
Ms. Remy Ann David

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