Who wants to help me?

Krepticor · Post by **Krepticor** » Sat May 20, 2006 4:02 pm

I am in the process of rying to create a very small scale recording studio in my room.

MY idea is to have a few mics positioned in optimum places so i record anything that makes a loud enough sound

Also I want to have the ability to take whatever recording i take and convert it to MP3 on my computer

Any suggestions?

sgtpepper · Post by **sgtpepper** » Sat May 20, 2006 4:24 pm

Step 1: Buy a Mac

Post by **bicostp** » Sat May 20, 2006 4:25 pm

1. Soundproof your room. Put down some area rugs, do whatever to make the room not echo.

2. Use mic stands. Thay could be real stands, tripods, or even broomsticks in Christmas tree holders. Just keep the microphones still.

3. Use Audacity. http://audacity.sourceforge.net/ Great multitrack sound editing software with plug-in capability. If nothing else get this.

4. If possible, use real lines to get sound into the computer, not mics. If for example your friend is using a keyboard, connect its line output to the computer and record with that.

5. (Goes with #4) You may need to use more than one computer. As far as I know Audacity will only record from one input at a time. And if you want to be able to mix the sound at all, you will want to record each instrument seperately. You can get around this by using more than one computer to record. (You can set them up on a simple ethernet network to copy the files from the recording PCs to the one you will be mixing on.)

@ sgtpepper: I guess I should have started numbering at 2 then.

Yeah, there's some kickbutt Mac software for doing what you want to do.

Krepticor · Post by **Krepticor** » Sat May 20, 2006 5:06 pm

ok well I kinda want to use a PC...

I have a corner in my room that has my amp and stuff and I can soundproof that

I planned to suspend my mikes from the ceiling and use real mic stands for more specialized areas

Also I mainly wanted to know about good hardware and recording basics

I want to record multiple tracks and combine them, Kinda a one-man-band thing

Any Help (PC related please) (I can't afford to buy a new Mac an learn it and use a PC at the same time, too messy, Yes I do know it kick windows in da fanny for so many things but still)will be appreciated

Post by **Sparkfist** » Sat May 20, 2006 5:16 pm

If you want a professional sound sound proof your room. I would say go to a place that sells foam. You'll want to pick up some and shape it so that it looks like the egg-crates form, but with bigger spikes. That will absorbe sound you don't want. I've been in a room with that stuff in it and no echo is really noticable.

Second you'll want atleast a $75 mic. Best to goto GuitarCenter, they have a good selection. If however you want to skip the analoge to digital conversion thing, look for a USB mic. A USB mic will be more expensive but you'll be able to avoid the possibily of quality lost in the conversion phase.

If you want to convert audio files to MP3 I would say get Audacity and the Lame MP3 codecs. Both are free, open-source and very easy to use.

Also if you're looking to do professional work, which I would say experiment first as the pro stuff will get expensive fast. Buy a Mac Mini (G4, Intel Core Solo, or Duo) and use Garageband. Once you think you need something more, you can add sythisisors and a better audio program.

Start small though and build on it, otherwise you will get confused.

Krepticor · Post by **Krepticor** » Sat May 20, 2006 5:40 pm

hows about this

It is digital and stores to a flash card and for $500 that sounds pretty cheap for a starter rig

I know what i need to do for sound proofing (I might build a small enclosure for individual recordings mabye 5x5x6 feet... that would be sound proof and have what But I'm still thinking

Electric Rain · Post by **Electric Rain** » Sat May 20, 2006 5:55 pm

Oh man... I've done SO much research on home studios... Give this guide a good read, then ask any questions you may have in their forums. Those forums are AWESOME, and that guide is extremely thorough and easy to understand. It taught me a LOT. Oh, and you're going to want to get your gear at http://www.zzounds.com. They have everything with good prices, cheap shipping, and a great interface.

P.S. For multitrack PC recordings, you'll want a mixer. This one is a pretty sweet deal. But if you read Tweak's Guide you should already know that.

Krepticor · Post by **Krepticor** » Sat May 20, 2006 6:09 pm

thanks Rain that really helps!

That is also a nice product Beringer makes quality stuff

I think that Tweak's page answers questions I haven't asked yet

Electric Rain · Post by **Electric Rain** » Sat May 20, 2006 6:19 pm

Yeah... I love that guide.

And you're welcome.

Post by **SpongeBuell** » Sat May 20, 2006 6:36 pm

A friend of mine is planning on doing something similar. Because his sound card only has one mic input (maybe a line in, I'm not sure) I may make a box that would split the one input into 3. To make optimum individual levels, each line will have a potentiometer on it to quiet down some stuff

joevennix · Post by **joevennix** » Sat May 20, 2006 9:42 pm

@Sponge: Line Mixer. Easy to expand

@Krepticor: Try and use mics only for vocals, and for electric instruments go straight through to line in.