Audio editing programs for home music recording - problems, solutions and chat

[souljacker]

editor I've not done exactly what you are trying to before but it seems to me a USB external sound card is what you want. Then you can take the quarter inch output from the yamaha into the sound card as an input into Adobe that is recording to a new track. Then get Adobe to output your drums, the voice and click track out the headphone output of the sound card.

External sound card will give you a much better quality recording and will also sort out your latency issues.

I'd recommend a focusrite scarlett 2i2 or similar for the interface. If that's too pricey, a Behringer M-Audio should do the job and is about £50.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

Ram isn't the issue. It's the Focusrite along with a reasonable CPU that fixed that for you. More ram is more helpful for big sample libraries.

No, I don't think so. There was quite large latency problems when recording with lots of plug ins on the go, and still a noticeable latency without. Long before I got the focusrite I had to upgrade my ram to do a very heavyweight graphics job and suddenly all the latency problems in logic were gone. I also don't plug midi through the focusrite interface, I do it straight in the back of Mac via USB.

Maybe the ram just helped with the processing in general and made it seem like a latency problem? Anyway, there was a delay, and after the ram upgrade there wasn't.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

editor

I'd recommend a focusrite scarlett 2i2 or similar for the interface.

That's what I have, it's great. It also seems to be the new industry standard for edit suites. You may still be able to pick up the previous version for much less than the updated model, I personally didn't notice much difference between the two. Certainly not for the price difference.

 

[xenon]

No, I don't think so. There was quite large latency problems when recording with lots of plug ins on the go, and still a noticeable latency without. Long before I got the focusrite I had to upgrade my ram to do a very heavyweight graphics job and suddenly all the latency problems in logic were gone. I also don't plug midi through the focusrite interface, I do it straight in the back of Mac via USB.

Maybe the ram just helped with the processing in general and made it seem like a latency problem? Anyway, there was a delay, and after the ram upgrade there wasn't.

Ah fair enough.

But yeah, for what Editor wants to do, his PC should be up to it. I've a now, 12 year old desktop that could do it no problem. IT was sold as a gaming rig back then, so decent for the time.

editor I've not done exactly what you are trying to before but it seems to me a USB external sound card is what you want. Then you can take the quarter inch output from the yamaha into the sound card as an input into Adobe that is recording to a new track. Then get Adobe to output your drums, the voice and click track out the headphone output of the sound card.

External sound card will give you a much better quality recording and will also sort out your latency issues.

I'd recommend a focusrite scarlett 2i2 or similar for the interface. If that's too pricey, a Behringer M-Audio should do the job and is about £50.

The affordable audio interfaces are really quite good these days. Unless you get to compare side by side, expensive stuff with the cheaper, you're not gonna notice the difference in preamp quality.

Tascam US2X2 another one to throw in as a suggestion.

 

[mojo pixy]

I haven't read the whole thread, sorry .. but you might consider a zoom portastudio. I have a Zoom R24 and it's a gem.

USB load in whatever you need to play along to, plug in lines from the drum unit into the recorder, record to the SD Card, set any drop in points and do those, save to usb and send to the studio. It uses wavs, probably aiff too. And super portable.

I know the thread is about software, I just love hardware where possible and this (or smaller R16) would work well, whether for a fully mic'd acoustic kit or a decent electric one

 

[RubyToogood]

That's what I have, it's great. It also seems to be the new industry standard for edit suites. You may still be able to pick up the previous version for much less than the updated model, I personally didn't notice much difference between the two. Certainly not for the price difference.

Interesting. I currently have an M-Audio Fast Track Ultra but it's only compatible now with my painfully slow old laptop as there isn't a Windows 10 driver so I probably need to buy a new interface.

 

[Shippou-Sensei]

I also have a a focusrite scarlett 2i2.
I got a solo but found I really wanted seperate volume control for my headphones and speakers so I upgraded.

I was actually kinda shocked at how much better things sounded. I thought my onboard sound card was decent but man it was a revelation when I upgraded.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

I know the thread is about software, I just love hardware where possible and this (or smaller R16) would work well, whether for a fully mic'd acoustic kit or a decent electric one

I have an R16 and it's what I used as an interface with logic before I got the Scarlet Focusrite.
They are incredible value for a portable (that can be battery run) machine that can perfectly record multiple tracks of WAV in tandem. Absolutely brilliant.
What they are not good at is mixing. The EQ, FX, Dynamics etc . . . all really terrible, and not easy to use (nothing bad about the zoom as such, just the nature of a portastudio).
I use it all the time for multi tracking (totally separate from my computer). Record on separate tracks, then just take the card out and drop the tracks into apple logic.

It's actually currently set up with my drum kit. I play to a click or along with a recording on headphones and drop the multitracks on the memory card into apple logic and sync it up.

 

[editor]

So I worked out a way to more or less achieve what I needed and thought I'd share it here:

1. Open multitrack file in Audition and set the levels/tracks for me to play along to
2. Export MP3 to my phone
3. Plug my phone into the drum module and get the drums/music mix I like
4. Play along to the tracks and record just the drums on my laptop as a WAV
5. Fire up Audacity (for its simplicity) on my main computer and import the MP3 file I drummed along with and drum track I recorded
6. Line them up so everything's in time and export as MP3 to send to the band

Although it looks like a lot of steps and I'm sure it can be done with less faffing (over time I'll probably work that out), it's pretty straightforward and does the job and I haven't had to splash out on a USB interface - and it sounds pretty bloody good too!

 

[pesh]

why is MP3 involved? don't you want something lossless?

 

[editor]

why is MP3 involved? don't you want something lossless?

It's only for sharing rough ideas but the drum tracks are saved as WAVs.

 

[Flavour]

My set-up:

KRK Rokit 5 monitors

A computer

A turntable with phono preamp.

A Focusrite Scarlett 6i6 audio interface (recently upgraded from Tascam US-122L, whose line inputs were RCA, rather than 6.35mm)

Here's the question: can I play music from the turntable through the speakers, potentially without the presence of the computer? or do i need to plug both the scarlett 6i6 and the turntable into a mixer?

Honestly the main reason I got the Scarlett 6i6 was because it was stated elsewhere (inclduing on the Focusrite support forum) that the 6i6 could be used as a standalone unit, without the need for the the computer in order to work (it also has its own power supply, which the older Tascam sound card did not, which made me think it might be able to work on its own).

I want to be able to play the turntable through the speakers wtihout having to fuck around messing with cables all the time. But maybe that's not possible?

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

Here's the question: can I play music from the turntable through the speakers, potentially without the presence of the computer? or do i need to plug both the scarlett 6i6 and the turntable into a mixer?

Are you saying you just want to play a turntable through some speakers?

Honestly the main reason I got the Scarlett 6i6 was because it was stated elsewhere (inclduing on the Focusrite support forum) that the 6i6 could be used as a standalone unit, without the need for the the computer in order to work (it also has its own power supply, which the older Tascam sound card did not, which made me think it might be able to work on its own).

Yes you can use the focusrite as a pre amp but you already have a phono preamp right?
The scarlet is really an audio interface for computers, giving you inputs and outputs making your computer the mixing desk.

What do you want the focusrite to do? Do you have an amp or are your speakers powered speakers?

I want to be able to play the turntable through the speakers wtihout having to fuck around messing with cables all the time. But maybe that's not possible?

There is not that much extra messing around with cables apart from a single usb/usbc (or whatever) to the laptop/computer.

I'm slightly unclear as to what you want to achieve beyond playing records through a some speakers. What is it that you ultimately (musically) want to do?

 

[pesh]

My set-up:

KRK Rokit 5 monitors

A computer

A turntable with phono preamp.

A Focusrite Scarlett 6i6 audio interface (recently upgraded from Tascam US-122L, whose line inputs were RCA, rather than 6.35mm)

Here's the question: can I play music from the turntable through the speakers, potentially without the presence of the computer? or do i need to plug both the scarlett 6i6 and the turntable into a mixer?

Honestly the main reason I got the Scarlett 6i6 was because it was stated elsewhere (inclduing on the Focusrite support forum) that the 6i6 could be used as a standalone unit, without the need for the the computer in order to work (it also has its own power supply, which the older Tascam sound card did not, which made me think it might be able to work on its own).

I want to be able to play the turntable through the speakers wtihout having to fuck around messing with cables all the time. But maybe that's not possible?

i'd try connecting the line out of the phono pre-amp into the line ins on the back of the Focusrite and the outputs to the speakers, should be fine... then you should be able to use the monitor level knob on the front as a volume control for the turntable. I don't think it would matter that there isn't a computer connected.

 

[Flavour]

Are you saying you just want to play a turntable through some speakers?

Yes you can use the focusrite as a pre amp but you already have a phono preamp right?
The scarlet is really an audio interface for computers, giving you inputs and outputs making your computer the mixing desk.

What do you want the focusrite to do? Do you have an amp or are your speakers powered speakers?

There is not that much extra messing around with cables apart from a single usb/usbc (or whatever) to the laptop/computer.

I'm slightly unclear as to what you want to achieve beyond playing records through a some speakers. What is it that you ultimately (musically) want to do?

I don't have an amp because the speakers are powered (KRK monitors) -- I want the turntable and the computer to be connected to the same set of speakers at the same time. I may also want to record music from the turntables to my DAW (for which I'm guessing I'd need XLR cables)

i'd try connecting the line out of the phono pre-amp into the line ins on the back of the Focusrite and the outputs to the speakers, should be fine... then you should be able to use the monitor level knob on the front as a volume control for the turntable. I don't think it would matter that there isn't a computer connected.

This, sadly, does not work. Hence why I think I need a little compact mixer

 

[pesh]

I don't have an amp because the speakers are powered (KRK monitors) -- I want the turntable and the computer to be connected to the same set of speakers at the same time. I may also want to record music from the turntables to my DAW (for which I'm guessing I'd need XLR cables)

This, sadly, does not work. Hence why I think I need a little compact mixer

I think you can route it this way, but you need to use the included software to set it up initially… once done I’d expect the routing to stay the same even after the computer has been disconnected… (I could be completely wrong but its worth a try )

You also wouldn’t need anything else to record from the turntable into the computer, it would just be a case of selecting the right inputs on the focusrite to be recorded in your DAW

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

Yes. This just sounds like its exactly what the focurite is for. I only have a two channel one, but its essentially the same as what I do. Plug your focurite into the computer USB. Two inputs into the focurite from your record player left and right (you may need a phono to jack adapter), select the inputs on your recording software (1 and 2) and set your stereo outputs to also be the focurite. When I plug mine into logic X it asks me if this is what I want to do, but it's very easy to change in the audio settings anyway (sometimes I want bluetooth headphones as the output). . . I'd actually really like to be able to do both for live performances, but I haven't really looked into it properly.

 

[Flavour]

fixed it! thanks pesh -- it was indeed a software problem. i had "focusrite control" installed when i should have had "scarlett mixcontrol" instead. all good now and I don't need to buy any more equipment.

 

[Magnus McGinty]

So I've managed to get myself a copy of Adobe Audition, but my initial attempt at making sense of it all has met with dismal failure.

Why did you go for Audition? I have Audition but its purpose is to interface with Premiere to help with audio for film. It wouldn't be my choice for a DAW. That would be Ableton.

 

[Buddy Bradley]

I'm planning to do some music-making stuff this year, what's the best DAW for me if I basically want to record some acoustic guitar and vocals and then be able to add more tracks of other fake instruments (drums, strings, or whatever)? I have Cakewalk which seems pretty good (and is free), is there any compelling reason to move to a different one?

 

[shifting gears]

I'm planning to do some music-making stuff this year, what's the best DAW for me if I basically want to record some acoustic guitar and vocals and then be able to add more tracks of other fake instruments (drums, strings, or whatever)? I have Cakewalk which seems pretty good (and is free), is there any compelling reason to move to a different one?

I’ve never used Cakewalk but general advice would be to stick to what you know and save yourself getting bogged down learning the workflow on a new DAW.

I’m using Logic Pro but that’s mainly because I’ve got a Mac and it was considerably cheaper than Ableton.

 

[Magnus McGinty]

The industry standard for audio recording is pro tools I think. No point in leaping anywhere if you’re happy with what you’re using unless you start hitting limitations in what you want to achieve. Mixing might become an issue with free stuff or the amount of tracks you can use.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

Another shout out for Logic Pro if you have a mac. I prefer it to Pro Tools, though I have not switched back to protools since so I don't know how much it has changed. Protools is now run by avid though right? Which doesn't make me feel good about it.

Anyway Logic is good if you want the fakey instruments. It's a nice bridge between compleatly amateur and advanced. You can quickly lay fake instrumentals in very easily, but then later take it to a much higher bespoke level by taking the automatic settings away.

 

[beesonthewhatnow]

I'm planning to do some music-making stuff this year, what's the best DAW for me if I basically want to record some acoustic guitar and vocals and then be able to add more tracks of other fake instruments (drums, strings, or whatever)? I have Cakewalk which seems pretty good (and is free), is there any compelling reason to move to a different one?

If you have it and know it, stick with it until it no longer does what you require.

 

[Buddy Bradley]

If you have it and know it, stick with it until it no longer does what you require.

I wouldn't say I know it, per se - I watched a few YouTube tutorial videos and can manage the basics, but I'm far from comfortable or an expert.

Not on Mac, otherwise I'd probably just be using GarageBand.

 

[Magnus McGinty]

I wouldn't say I know it, per se - I watched a few YouTube tutorial videos and can manage the basics, but I'm far from comfortable or an expert.

Not on Mac, otherwise I'd probably just be using GarageBand.

What is more important than 'learning the DAW' is learning the concepts of music production. Much easier to move from one to the other after that. Like others have said, stick to what you have and learn that before shelling out on fancier toys imo.

 

[beesonthewhatnow]

What is more important than 'learning the DAW' is learning the concepts of music production. Much easier to move from one to the other after that. Like others have said, stick to what you have and learn that before shelling out on fancier toys imo.

Absolutely this. Get your head around basic signal types, signal flow, gain structure, microphone types and placement, how to route and group signals in a mixing desk (even if in a DAW it’s a virtual one!), how to use different types of processors/effects and so on. There’s a lot to learn but getting the fundamentals right from the start will pay off later and stop you getting into bad habits.

 

[beesonthewhatnow]

https://music.arts.uci.edu/dobrian/w14/music151/thesoundcraftguidetomixing.pdf

This is what I recommend to anyone starting out. It’s old now, based around a physical analogue desk and hardware, but the core principles will always still apply. It’s a great starting point to learn the basics.