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i'm fairly new to the whole home recording environment, so please bear with me here.

i'd like to start recording my own songs using my guitar and some type of drum machine software for starters.

i have an m-audio jamlab USB device for playing my guitar through my computer using the inTone Express Guitar software, which i've been using for casual jamming and basic recording of my guitar.

i also have access to Digidesign Pro Tools M-Powered 7 and SONAR Home Studio 7 software- neither of which i have any real experience in using yet.

so here's what i want to do:

i'd like to start by recording a basic guitar track, then be able to play the track while recording a new guitar track over top of it, recording both together as one track.

i'd also like to be able to add in a drum track, hopefully with the ability to create and edit my own drums tracks to be added to the compositions.

i'm hoping someone can point me in the right direction in terms of which software is best to use (with what i have available noted above) and possibly provide me with some general guidance on how to go about this process.

Comments

Boswell Fri, 05/14/2010 - 07:43

As far as I know, the M-Audio Jamlab USB is not a supported device for M-Powered ProTools, so that route is not open to you. What do you mean by "have access to" ProTools anyway?

You would be better off getting a two-channel USB audio interface that has at least a mic input and a DI input for your guitar, and run it with Reaper or some other low-cost multi-tracking audio software. Many entry-level interfaces come with a "lite" version of serious audio DAWs. Audacity, although free, will not work very well for you because of time delays between the tracks being replayed and ones being recorded.

You will also need a microphone, stand and lead. I suggest you get a Shure SM58 as a good, versatile vocal mic that will work with almost any audio interface that has a microphone input.

Kapt.Krunch Fri, 05/14/2010 - 09:22

Probably should have spent that few hundred dollars you spent on software for a proper recording interface with software bundled. It'll be better if you have the proper tools. You probably could have bought a decent interface, with software, for less than what you spent on software, and you'd also have product-specific manuals to guide you.

Kapt.Krunch

Boswell Fri, 05/14/2010 - 09:38

Matt26, post: 348197 wrote: i mean i have the software to use.

thanks for your suggestions, but i would like to know if i can do what i've outlined with the software/hardware that i have.

yes/no?

No.

You say you want to record some songs and drum tracks. Where are you going to plug a microphone in?

mrmelody Fri, 05/14/2010 - 09:55

Using the equipment and software you have, you might try this.
Personally I love Sonar (Never used Home Studio edition, but I'm sure it will do what you need) so I would install Sonar and setup the audio i/o to work with your JamLab (not sure the specifics here, no experience with JamLab) If you feel comfortable with inTone Express Guitar software then use it if you think you can setup the tracks and panning to work the following.

Looks like you will be monitoring through your JamLab. So if the JamLab will only monitor stereo play back, you will need to record your guitar on say track 1 panned to the far left. Then when you go to over dub (record a part over that) you will need to set that track panned far right. Make sure that when you are recording your second guitar part or drums that you do not have your first guitar track armed to record. (just a reminder)

If you want to keep overdubbing you can as much as you like, you just have to bounce your tracks together onto one track OR copy your additional tracks to separate tracks all panned to the same as long as they are not panned the same as the source you are recording at the time.

Recording this way, you will hear your recorded tracks in the left ear of your headphones and will hear the overdub guitar you are playing in the right. It takes some getting used to, but it works.

Maybe someone else can chime in here.
Hope this helps a little.
good luck.

anonymous Mon, 05/17/2010 - 09:52

TheJackAttack, post: 348207 wrote: Protools M-Powered 7.4 and 8 and higher do support the Jamlab device on WinXP or Vista. Provided it is a legal non-pirated/"borrowed" version.

good to know, thanks.. are there any resources available online (how-to's/tutorials) on how to use the jamlab device in Pro Tools to do what i'm looking to do?

Boswell Thu, 05/20/2010 - 09:41

Go through the basic tutorials on M-Powered PT. What you said you want to do is standard operation of almost any DAW - the JamLab is just a way of getting a signal into PT and does not affect the procedure for basic tracking. You can use the JamLab GT Player Express software as an insert in a PT track.

Have you read [="http://www.maudio.co.uk/images/global/manuals/060322_JamLab_QS_EN01.pdf"]this[/]="http://www.maudio.c…"]this[/] and [url=http://www.m-audio…?

anonymous Fri, 06/04/2010 - 14:24

before you worry to much about the software and equipment to use you might want to focus on your room..
if your room is not right even after you do your tracking (recording) you wont be able to do your mixing properly if your room is not right.. get all the info you can and get the room right first then get decent software,equipment and the like to get good material...
take a look at this, read the details,it might help you out:

ADMIN EDIT> SPAM REMOVED

anonymous Sun, 06/06/2010 - 01:44

I'd suggest using Reaper (everything prior to version 1 is freeware) and some free drum VST instrument from KVR. That should be enough for starting. Just record-enable a track, play your guitar, record-enable another track, play your guitar while listening to the first track and so forth.
Add a track for the drums, create a midi region and just click your drums into the pianoroll editor.

If you have any question about how to do something, feel free to ask after reading the manual for your audio workstation ;)

anonymous Sun, 06/06/2010 - 09:21

Have you ever used Pro Tools? You'll have to create a MIDI Track, route that via a bus to an aux input, insert your instrument there and route the output of the aux via yet another bus to the main out in order to listen to what you clicked into the piano roll.
In Reaper, you just insert the instrument into the track.

I don't think, Pro Tools is very beginner-friendly, so I suggested software that I consider useful for an audio newbie. And in order to save money (because he spent so much on Software already) I figured, Reaper 0.9.9 might be helpful.