Save your money on the preamp and compressor. The Firebox comes with preamps and that cheapo unit won't be any better as far as quality goes. Any DAW you use should come with compressor plugs, hardware compressors are not recommended for newbies as you could destructively affect your recordings if you don't know how to properly use them. For your voice I am not so sure that I would recommend the NT1A, it has an accentuated high end and would not lend itself well to your singing style. I would recommend a dynamic mic instead. You could even use the SM57 with a pop filter if you wanted to really save some money (It is essentially the same as an SM58)

By cheapo unit are you suggesting the firebox or the StudioChannel?

So if I don't spend money on the StudioChannel what should I spend money on? What type of vocal mic would you recommend for that style of music in the 200-300 dollar range?

As you can probably tell there isnt very much depth to my guitar sound as well as the vocals. When compared to songs I hear that have been well recorded, they dont stick out as much.

Plus wouldnt the Studiochannel help the vocals stick out and add warmth as well as keep the volume manageable?

Thanks for the quick response.....and by the way that wasn't me singing hahaha, i couldnt sing half that good.

dylkow220 wrote: By cheapo unit are you suggesting the firebox or the StudioChannel?

Oh you mean this model? http://images.miretail.com/products/optionLarge/PreSonus/598779jpg.jpg

Without looking I thought you were referring to this: link removed

Eh, I mean you can get it if you have the money. I don't think that at this point you need a dedicated preamp, but that's up to you. Adding more stuff to the mix means more opportunities for things to go bad. I wasn't referring to the FireBox as being cheapo, I refer it to many people and they are always %100 satisfied with the results they get. It's great for budget home recording.

dylkow220 wrote: As you can probably tell there isnt very much depth to my guitar sound as well as the vocals. When compared to songs I hear that have been well recorded, they seem to stick out more.

Well it's not horrible, the thing that stands out is the fizzyness. It's the same sound that my guitar tracks made before I got a FireBox :D

dylkow220 wrote: Plus wouldnt the hardware Studiochannel help the vocals stick out and add warmth as well as keep the volume manageable?

I'm not sure what you mean by keep the volume managable, but since you mentioned that you were helped by GC's staff that makes sense. Sounds like a line they would give.

dylkow220 wrote: and by the way that wasn't me singing hahaha, i couldnt sing half that good.

Haha, I was going to say, you've got some pipes, I was going to ask you to teach me to scream because I want to learn. Whoever recorded the screams on the track On Wet Streets has an awesome voice 8-) I wish I could do that!

I'm gonna try and keep this in order

Yes i was not referring to the TubePre or whatever that thing is, I bought that once and returned it immediately. So the firebox will give me a little more clarity then? I really want that punch out of my guitar.

Any suggestions of vocal dynamic mics that I could purchase? It would be nice if it worked for rap too, since I have a friend I would like to record with some pretty sick beats. Would a software compressor really work just as well?

And the person singing is my good friend Myke, he is definitely a sick screamer. Too bad we cant get a decent band goin, theres not much talent around here.