Skip to main content

As the title suggests, I'm thinking of starting to record my own material but haven't got a clue which setup would be good for me.
From what I've read on these forums and around internet I've noticed that there are enormous amounts of equipment to choose from. So now I need the help of the enlightened on this forum. What to buy with 1000€?

1. Most definitely my budget can't fit in a good pair of speakers but wouldn't headphones be sufficient for the time being?
2. Setup must be built around PC-laptop and I'm planning on to record guitar biased music but want to add in some drums etc. (I'm a guitarist, hey :D )
3. This leads me to the second question: how to add the drums? I don't have access to a drum kit (school would have but..) so how do I do it? I think this is where the MIDI jumps in, right? I own 5-7 years old synth which can do some drum sounds. Can I plug that into something and rec it along with basic synth stuff?
4. Mics I need for acoustic guitar & other instruments (strings, flute..) and vocals. I was hoping that I wouldn't need to mic my guitar & bass amps (10watt amps :roll: )
5. Which recording software to use? Pro Tools, Cubase, Reaper? I have minor experience with PT via our school's audio engineering courses but I'm a fast learner so picking up a new software shouldn't be too hard.
6. How mobile can the setup get? I wouldn't want to be restricted to just recording at home because the equips weight a ton..

Can all this be pulled off with 1000€ or is my budget too small? Please add in your comments and opinions.

Appreciating it
-Calamari

Topic Tags

Comments

anonymous Sat, 12/08/2007 - 03:02

Hernia free?

Audiofires don't seem to have XLR-inputs at all, only TRS. How do I plug in the audio I record with microphones without XLR connection?
Also the equipment stated would bust my budget by quite a lot (the DI-box for bass alone takes 70-80% of the budget)
The eZDrummer seemed like a good idea though and it isn't too pricey either.

Could someone suggest some good headphones for mixing/monitoring in a price range of 100-250€?

Groff Sat, 12/08/2007 - 03:53

Calamari wrote: Hernia free?

You asked for lightweight setup aren't you?

Calamari wrote: Audiofires don't seem to have XLR-inputs at all, only TRS. How do I plug in the audio I record with microphones without XLR connection?

Just solder one side XLR and the other TRS. Type XLR to TRS in the Google

Also the equipment stated would bust my budget by quite a lot (the DI-box for bass alone takes 70-80% of the budget)

I mentioned that as a good future upgrade for recording bass.

anonymous Sat, 12/08/2007 - 04:52

For a firewire interface in that range, you could also look at units such as the Presonus Firebox (2 XLRs with pre-amps), FP10 (8 XLRs) and Alesis IO|14 (4 XLRs) or IO|26 (8 XLRs) or some of the Echo or Focusrite Saffire equipment. You can find a list of interfaces at this URL:[[url=http://[/URL]="http://www.tweakhea…"] Interface comparision chart[/]="http://www.tweakhea…"] Interface comparision chart[/] You might also look at the rest of the Guide on that site - it gives lots of valuable information about studio set-up.

Your budget is going to be on the low side to set-up a full studio. If you want to multi-mic your drums, and record guitar simultaneously, you will be looking at getting at least 6 mics for $100 (likely more in Euros) each (and those would be lower end mics). Unfortunately, it just gets expensive when you want to record multiple tracks simultaneously :(

Another thing to watch if the Firewire interface in the computer. MAny audio interfaces are very picky about the FIrewire chip set - the will only work with a TI chip set. Depending on your PC, you could get into troubles.

anonymous Sun, 12/09/2007 - 13:28

After yet more hours spent in the internet searching for the ultimate setup I came to the conclusion that I'll get just one mic for the time being and IF I need to do multi-mic recording, I'll just borrow them.

This leaves me more money to be spent on the interface. Would Presonus Firestudio or Digitech 002Rack be overkill? The 002 tempts me as I'd like to give PT a try (despite mixed reviews). My budget could stretch to an interface at this price scale. What other options like these are there worth considering? How expandable are these? How about others?

One suggestion in another thread was the Tascam FW-1082 but I'm not so sure how well it handles travelling (in a backpack).

I'd also be getting a small guitar preamp/DI-box thingy so that I don't have to mic my 10W speaker - Line 6 Floor Pod. With this little thing I don't need a DI-box, do I?

For the mic I was thinking of Rode NT1a (comes in a bundle pack from Thomann - cheap). Is this a good idea?

Questions, questions..
-Calamari