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This topic has 3 voices, contains 12 replies, and was last updated by  buildingonfire 1659 days ago.

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June 1, 2007 at 1:06 am #5784

mcr1s

Dear Brad,
I learn about you accidentally.
I download the reaper audio software and when I run it
opened automatically a project song with the name
“making me nervous” that is a super hit.
I admit that immediately found about you and I
congratulate your whole effort.
Now I want to ask you some questions because I’m a
musician too and making my own demo songs with my
guitar using Cubase, Fruity loops (for drum machine)
and Sound Forge.
How difficult is home producing? How can I process
your sound and producing level? I admit that I don’t
have much knowledge in producing.

Thanks for your time
Emmanuel
June 1, 2007 at 2:31 pm #5785

Brad

Hi mcr1s. Glad you like the music.

Home producing isn’t too hard but it’s very time consuming. If you’re already making demo songs you’re already there. You just need to develop some more skills on recording/treating the sound.

The answers are different depending on what type of music you’re making, though I would say the keys to having a professional sounding recording are practice and compression.

The #1 characteristic in “amateur” sound I think is crappy dynamics, audio level compression will help you get that under control.
June 4, 2007 at 2:48 am #5786

mcr1s

Hi Brad,
I understand that the key is compression and I know that is the most important thing but,
1) Even if I use plug-in compressors I can’t approach your excellent sound. I guess that I have a lot of practice to do.
2) The kind of music that it comes out to me is pop rock with some resemblances with yours “making me nervous“.
3) Do I need a mixer even If I have a good sound card like yours m-audio delta 66 or delta 1010? I mean that if i record for example the guitar or the voice directly into the sequencer or mixing software and then mixing with the mixing software is it right? or the sound must be mixed before.
Thanks and sorry for asking so many questions.
June 4, 2007 at 11:12 am #5787

Brad

Hey no prob about the questions, lets just see if I can answer them.

The only things I use my mixer for is as a switch for my headphones/monitors and gain control. I should replace it with something smaller. You may need something along those lines unless your sound card has a headphone input. But I do all my mixing with software.

Do you have any examples of your music? I might be able to give better feedback if I heard it. Also there are a lot of other folks around with skills far superior to mine that may be able to chime in.
June 6, 2007 at 4:56 am #5788

mcr1s

Hi Brad,
You know I was in disagreement about the mixer with a friend who he is a musician too and he is producing his own songs with an almost similar to your equipment.
He was told me that the mixer is absolutely necessary because you can’t record many instruments or voices in one channel. I was believed that if you record one instrument at the time directly to pc with a good sound card and make the mix in software is right without using an outside mixer.
But why in all the “expensive studios” have so big mixers with 64 channels and more and they stand with pride in front of a mixer as big as a room? Just to put the monitors or headphones?
I guess that is for publicity and promotion. Probably is useful for live bands using many instruments or making music for movies. But this is not the bad thing. The worst is that even if you want to take your songs and go to a studio to record them they don’t care a lot about making you good job or they don’t know many things about producing. So you loose your time and money and the result is just a demo But
You are the living example of what I was thinking for a long time now and you did it with a very good idea good work and songs.
Anyway I want to send you something of my music to hear but I haven’t the right equipment yet to record something good.
To imagine how I record I use my guitar and an old notebook HP with onboard sound card. I have many softwares but no hardware. That’s why I’m going to take as a driver your equipment with a new athlon pc something that I wanted to do a long time now.
I’ll do as soon as possible as I can to get the equipment to record a song for send you.
June 6, 2007 at 2:02 pm #5789

Brad

Well, it definitely can be nice to have a real mixer. It’s quicker and easier to adjust your mix real-time instead of using your mouse to individually adjust everything. But you can’t easily keep a permanent record of your mix, so I’d be more inclined to use something like the BCF-2000 to control the software.

Also those huge mixing consoles have built-in effects and the ability to route to external effects, which is very useful if you have those things.

I used to use a mixing board back when I had a soundcard that had very few inputs (and I had different gear that needed more). My current one (Delta66) has four analog ins. I really only use two these days — one for my microphone and one for a DI for my guitar/bass.
June 11, 2007 at 4:35 am #5790

mcr1s

Hi Brad.
I have some questions again.
When you use compressors you use them for each instrument separately and then on master again for all instruments together? Is it right? I think that the studios doing this.
Also, what’s your opinion about the mobile recording Interfaces like m-audio Fast Track Pro?
June 12, 2007 at 12:15 pm #5791

Brad

I put compressors on most tracks. Specifically vocals and bass and drums. Then generally I add a little bit of compression on the master.

I don’t have much experience with mobile recording. I have a Firewire 410 for my laptop but I’m mainly trying to use it for live performance, not recording. Seems like it would work okay.
July 23, 2007 at 3:04 am #5792

mcr1s

Hi brad.
I want your opinion about some of the recording equipment that I’m ready to buy.

1) Studio monitors M Audio-Studiophile BX5a.
http://www.m-audio.com/index.php?do=products.list&ID=studiomonitors

2) Sound card like yours M Audio Delta 66.

3) Microphone M-Audio Aries or Nova.
http://www.m-audio.com/index.php?do=products.list&ID=microphones

Any suggestion or advice from you is respectable.
July 23, 2007 at 8:33 am #5793

Brad

Looks good to me, though I have no experience with M-Audio’s monitors or microphones. They’re probably fine though.

Unless you have a use for the SPDIF on the Delta 66, I’d save the $20 or whatever and just get a Delta 44.

How are you getting your microphone into the Delta 44? Got a preamp?
July 25, 2007 at 6:00 am #5794

mcr1s

I guess you’re right about the spdif and delta 44. By the way, where do you use spdif?
About the microphone of course I need a preamp and I’m thinking to buy PreSonus BlueTube or m-audio Buddy (economical)
http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_us/AudioBuddy-main.html
or m-audio DMP3
http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_us/DMP3-main.html
Now what about the mixer? I mean if I’m going to buy a mixer do I need a mic preamp? As I know the mixer is a preamp too and what’s your opinion about the Behringer XENYX 1204 Mixer?
http://www.zzounds.com/item–BEHXENYX1204
Thanks
July 25, 2007 at 11:26 am #5795

Brad

SPDIF is just a digital connection. My BOSS GT-6 has SPDIF out but I’ve tried it a couple times and it didn’t make much of a difference quality-wise and it was weird. Word clocks and odd syncing things I didn’t want to mess with.

I use a PreSonus BlueTube, it’s pretty decent. I assume the m-Audio Buddy would be fine to start with though. Can’t be worse than the Behringer preamps I recorded a lot of my stuff on.

I’ve never used the XENYX but I have a Behringer Eurorack UB1204 PRO and it’s fine. The preamps are a little gross to me now and the phantom power seems to be stuck on for some reason, but it was cheap and has done the job.
July 25, 2007 at 1:46 pm #5796

buildingonfire

Yeah, Behringer equipment is a good way to get started. It’s not the best out there, but it’s cheap and it works okay.
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