What do you use for RECORDING?

[slimcharm]

I am so fed up with mbox and protools..(and the lack of support when I called Tech support) I am thinking of exchanging the system for the Prosonus with cubase..someone told me that was an easier system and the reviews look better...Thoughts please?

[davewalton]

Hopefully an Acid user can direct you to the specifics, but a mic isn't a midi device.A loop based program like Acid seems like a good fit for you guys. You'll find yourself spending extra $$ on loops but it's a great way for you (Jessica, whoever) to develop some really cool backing instrumental tracks and then only have to write and record the melody and lyrics. You still call the entire song your own. Regardless, it's a learning process that requires a bunch of small steps before running. One of the biggest eye openers for me was the fact that in addition to being a musician, that I was going to have to become somewhat of a sound engineer as well. You can fight it but you can't really avoid it unless your bank account is unlimited and you can hire out for everything. You'll start having more fun when all these things that don't make sense now start coming together.Dave

[ernstinen]

Hi Slimcharm!!I use Pro Tools LE, and it took me awhile to figure it out, too.But I've been recording on different mediums since the late 70's.It takes a lot of patience to learn the "art."I'm still a novice on Pro Tools, but it is an "amazing" program if you just start with a few tracks, and them add one at a time.I use it for mastering (stereo), and I STILL can't figure some of this out, so you're not alone! Best regards,Ern

[53mph]

Have you looked on the Pro Tools site for demo videos?I watched a few short demo showcases for Sonar, after buying the upgrade to the Producers Edition, and discovered a whole world of things I never knew I could do before.Often the manuals are so dense with information that you get info blindness (like looking at the sun too long). I find watching a pro using the software is a thousand times better than the written word.My 5 cents

[johnnydean1]

Quote:Oh my gosh! I got it to record! Now I have to figure out if I can get a good enough quality recording out of it for our purposes.Thanks to all for your help!Now the fun...................and the expense really start! J.

[mani]

Acid is great fun! I'm talking about the program not the other...er nevermind!

[mani]

Quote:Mani,Since you are familiar with ACID is it possible to play your song, record and then have separate vocals and music?Yep.Quote:The problem I had with the recording aspect was my preferences were set to ASIO Driver or something like that..because I thought thats what it was..also I thought the condensor was a MIDI device.Its tough being clueless in this environment.If at all possible you should try to use the ASIO drivers with Acid. They are generally more efficient than most other drivers and allow for better latency settings. Broadly speaking, latency is the time it takes for the audio signal to be processed by the computer. If the amount of time is too big (hence LATE-ncy) it can confuse the singer who's trying to stay in time with the track while being recorded. On the other hand, if the latency is too small for your computer to handle it can upset the stability of the program as well as the quality of the sound.Confusing eh?!In short, you want the smallest latency setting possible without negative effects. Latency is sometimes referred to as 'buffer' settings and is usually measured in miliseconds (ms). Can't remember where in Acid you'll find the 'latency' or 'buffer' settings. Haven't used it in a while! Probably under the Preferences menu.Just so you know, MIDI is not sound or audio. It's a music protocol that allows information to be transferred between devices or programs. This could, for example, be music performance information, ie: the notes played, how loud each note is, how long each note is, the tempo of the piece etc. All this MIDI information can be played and stored in a music program and used to trigger the sounds (piano/strings/loops/whatever) in a synthesizer or sampler or virtual instrument.Quote:Regardless..I am determined to figure it out. I do like the ACID program for ease of use..but have not had a chance to work with it since I got it to record..the quality of the recording was not super high..but that may be because of volume and stuff..then again that just may be the program and if that is the case I will have to learn protools..(gasp and cry)Acid is, without a doubt, the most intuitively laid out music program I've ever seen. It's really, really easy to use and makes music making pure fun. The thing is, as Nick pointed out before, if you want to work audio on a computer, at some stage, you're gonna have to do trouble-shooting. And probably sooner rather than later! That's why I recommended the Roland stuff to you earlier. All that stuff just works. No conflicts. No drivers. No not knowing why there's no sound! I hope Acid works out for you but if it doesn't, I would seriously look at one of those boxes.Quote:BTW Manni I thought the Mbox was limited in what you can use it with?I'm pretty surprised that it does to be honest. Nowhere on the Digidesign site does it give this info away. Typical I suppose. They want everyone to use the MBox with Protools LE as a gateway to upgrading to one of their ridiculously overpriced systems! My approach to buying gear has been to never presume that something has a particular capability unless it's absolutely specifically stated by the company. Most companies, in my experience, tend to forget to mention the little 'loop-holes' with their gear. It takes a lot of careful research to ensure you don't get burned by incompatibility problems or other shortfalls. With computer related stuff, the danger is even greater. So far, I've been lucky!!

[mani]

Which Rode model is it?Are you using a mic cable (these are 3-pronged cables also known as XLR cables) and plugging into the mic input on the MBox rather than one of the other inputs? Check and make sure!The fact that Digidesign doesn't appear as an option in the voice recording section of your computer sound properties is a tad worrisome to me. It leads me to think that the mBox in fact won't work properly without Protools except for monitoring the sound. What exact audio settings have you made in Acid? Again, you'll find this under a menu titled Audio/Preferences/ Settings or some combination of those words.Btw, which version of Acid do you have??It's kinda unlikely that everything you got is malfunctioning unless you bought it from Music 123 or something! It's far more likely that your the culprit!

[mani]

Well exsqueeze me! Congratulations!! I'm delighted to hear you made up with ProTools. As longs as it works with Protools I wouldn't worry about the mBox not showing up in the voice recording section of your computer setup. The more I think about it, it's probably just because it's a usb interface rather than a standard PCI card interface. Either way, who cares? It works, right???!! Btw, seeing as you're buying Christmas presents I could do with a new guitar. I was thinking a G&L Legacy with a bridge humbucker would be nice. Thank you.

[nickbatzdorf]

Slim, do you have a license to use that rig? And insurance?