Recording at Home for fun, what are you using?

Posted: Mon Mar 04, 2013 5:37 am

I thought it would be fun, and a possible learning tool for some, to find out what people are using at Home to make recordings. I'm not interested in your multi million dollar music studios and such, I just want to know what people are using to record for fun. Stuff most people can afford. For example, Ableton 8 or Audacity (free). Maybe some people have tips to share.
What are you using?

Joined: 25 Mar 2006 Posts: 5763 Location: Joisey

I'm trying to get this s#%t figured out, but apparently I'm too much of a dope to understand VST's, IR's, impulses and what-not. SO, as of right now I'm using an AMT B1 (or) E1 plugged into a UX1. Using Gearbox and Reaper. The tone sounds like ass in a coffee can though 'cuz I have no idea WTF I'm doing. I'm surprised I made it this far. Laughing

Posted: Mon Mar 04, 2013 7:04 am

MikeHock wrote:

I'm trying to get this s#%t figured out, but apparently I'm too much of a dope to understand VST's, IR's, impulses and what-not. SO, as of right now I'm using an AMT B1 (or) E1 plugged into a UX1. Using Gearbox and Reaper. The tone sounds like ass in a coffee can though 'cuz I have no idea WTF I'm doing. I'm surprised I made it this far. Laughing

Well hopefully somebody will be able to help you, I can't because I'm in the same boat as you. Reaper looks like a pretty nice little program, although I've never tried it. I'm sure somebody on here can give an idiot like me some solid advise, tips, do's and don'ts, or whatever knowledge they can share. I'm sure a solid sound card is a must. Anybody have a suggestion on a solid, affordable sound card?

Joined: 27 Feb 2006 Posts: 13396 Location: Earth

At home I use a Presonus 1818VSL into my MacBook and I use Studio One for my workstation. For guitar sounds I use either AmpKit (made by Peavey) on my Mac or mic an amp. For mic'ing amps I have an EV RE320 and for vocals I have a Blue Encore 300.

Posted: Mon Mar 04, 2013 10:09 am

Lanning is Killdozer wrote:

At home I use a Presonus 1818VSL into my MacBook and I use Studio One for my workstation. For guitar sounds I use either AmpKit (made by Peavey) on my Mac or mic an amp. For mic'ing amps I have an EV RE320 and for vocals I have a Blue Encore 300.

Nice, the Presonus 1818VSL is a great piece of equipment from what I've read and heard. A bit expensive if your on a budget, but if you're looking for quality, this thing is awesome.
Sounds like you have lots of cool stuff!
I just picked up a Line 6 POD. I've used it for recording a little bit, but still have tons of experimenting to do.
Thanks for sharing Lanning!

Posted: Mon Mar 04, 2013 11:48 am

Shure SM57 > Shure X2U USB interface > Garageband

Decent little setup considering I'm only using it for band demos. I must say I'm a little dissappointed by the X2U though; it makes a horrible hissing noise that can't really be removed.

Joined: 15 Sep 2010 Posts: 972 Location: Rock Hill,SC

I use Reaper as well but don't record much right now until I can get superior drummer. I use my Peavey Vypyr for the interface. It has a USB out on it & whatever tone I have on there directly transfers over. Only tip I have is when recording for a thick guitar sound pan one guitar all the way right,pan another all the way left & keep one more center.

Joined: 13 Feb 2004 Posts: 5598 Location: phoenix az.

acid pro 8 sony music studio.super easy to use works great dont need a phonebook manual to use it! akai eie interface also totally great interface.for guitar marshall jmp-1>ada microcab>zoom rack effects.I dont think you need a bunch of crap to get a great sound.I recorded this with my akai interface(200 bucks)1 sm 57 and my old ev mic for vocals.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Orin63ahjW4

back in the day they didnt have pro tools vst ect and there are some great old recordings out there.I think people are way over concerned about expensive gear these days.The biggest thing I think is to have a good level with as little noise as possible record everything flat(eq).most important learn(on youtube)how to compress different things vocals,guitars drums.if you use sony acid the wave hammer rules!I learned a ton of stuff just watch studio how to vids on youtube.
If you have a good sound from the git go u wont have any trouble getting a good recording.
I had a presonus usb interface i took it back and got the akai eie way better and much more clear.
I use reg logitek computer speakers they work fine for monitors if u turn off the sub

Joined: 27 Feb 2006 Posts: 13396 Location: Earth

Rocky_Rhoades wrote:

Thanks for sharing Lanning!

I forgot my monitors. I have 2 KRK VTX4s.

RobBouchardDeanml wrote:

back in the day they didnt have pro tools vst ect and there are some great old recordings out there.I think people are way over concerned about expensive gear these days.

That's very true, good gear is only as good as the person operating it. For home/demo recordings you don't need to shell out big bucks. it's like buying an expensive guitar. If the player is bad then the guitar can be worth $10k and it won't matter. That being said, you can't discount a full pro studio with a seasoned engineer. You'll never get that quality of sound from home with a skeleton rig. Running a small interface into a DAW on your computer will never sound like an SSL or Neve consol no matter what you do. A Beta 87A will never sound like a Neumann U89. It's all relative though.

What I think is most important is a few good mics and a decent interface and decent monitors. Sh1t in equals Sh1t out. If you can hear then you can record and mix. You may not be the best player in the world but you can at least hear what you sound like.

Joined: 29 Nov 2003 Posts: 12247 Location: PEORIA ILLINOIS

Lanning is Killdozer wrote:

Rocky_Rhoades wrote:

Thanks for sharing Lanning!

I forgot my monitors. I have 2 KRK VTX4s.

RobBouchardDeanml wrote:

back in the day they didnt have pro tools vst ect and there are some great old recordings out there.I think people are way over concerned about expensive gear these days.

That's very true, good gear is only as good as the person operating it. For home/demo recordings you don't need to shell out big bucks. it's like buying an expensive guitar. If the player is bad then the guitar can be worth $10k and it won't matter. That being said, you can't discount a full pro studio with a seasoned engineer. You'll never get that quality of sound from home with a skeleton rig. Running a small interface into a DAW on your computer will never sound like an SSL or Neve consol no matter what you do. A Beta 87A will never sound like a Neumann U89. It's all relative though.

What I think is most important is a few good mics and a decent interface and decent monitors. Sh1t in equals Sh1t out. If you can hear then you can record and mix. You may not be the best player in the world but you can at least hear what you sound like.

probably not but pretty damn close at the end with the right person doing the dialing. Of course not during playback though. But maybe after mastering. its difficult to actually fathom a couple grand of home recording gear to sound like expensive SSL gear in the first place. There are a few good ears out there these days doing great recordings with minimal gear though. many of Andy Sneaps cd's were done on his laptop with a set of krk speakers. the Exodus cd he did was done in a garage, couch pillow fort around a mesa cabinet, macbook pro, krk speakers and an interface with one sm57, Engl savage and a Peavey xxx. the pix used to be on his site.

good piece of trivia. Peter Gabriel owns SSL
I ran across that trying to find what mixing console it is at Bryan Adams studio in Vancouver (The Warehouse). His studio supposedly has one of two cherrished consoles in existance.

Joined: 27 Feb 2006 Posts: 13396 Location: Earth

How many of Sneap"s recordings are winning Grammys or in the top 10 of any market? If it was just about the ear rather than the gear (consol, mics etc) then I think the recording industry would be different. You can still spend half a million dollars on a record. There is a reason.

Joined: 29 Nov 2003 Posts: 12247 Location: PEORIA ILLINOIS

Lanning is Killdozer wrote:

How many of Sneap"s recordings are winning Grammys or in the top 10 of any market? If it was just about the ear rather than the gear (consol, mics etc) then I think the recording industry would be different. You can still spend half a million dollars on a record. There is a reason.

yea but you know what I meant.

Joined: 27 Feb 2006 Posts: 13396 Location: Earth

Fo sho bro.

Posted: Tue Mar 05, 2013 6:27 am

Jam-Mate "RockFrog" USB - Guitar Interface
Just saw this on Ebay, looks like an inexpensive way to record at home. This also come's bundled with Native Instruments Guitar Rig 3 GO (Full Version), so this could be a great deal. I googled this, and it's priced anywhere from $50 to $100. I realize this isn't top of the line stuff (LOL), just thinking this could get somebody with a very low budget, recording for fun at home.
Anybody tried this?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/281073092882?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

Joined: 27 Feb 2006 Posts: 13396 Location: Earth

When I worked at GC years ago we used to sell that and the Stealth Plug and they are really horrible to be honest. The quality and the sound is very bad. You're better off spending $150 and grabbing and M-Audio Fast Track Pro. That's actually a decent interface and you can do a lot with it at home.

Posted: Tue Mar 05, 2013 9:50 am

Lanning is Killdozer wrote:

When I worked at GC years ago we used to sell that and the Stealth Plug and they are really horrible to be honest. The quality and the sound is very bad. You're better off spending $150 and grabbing and M-Audio Fast Track Pro. That's actually a decent interface and you can do a lot with it at home.

I'm sure this is not quality stuff, like you said, but for $9.99 it will get some newbie at least a start to recording.
I went ahead and ordered one just to try it out.
I'll let you know how it works, or if it does work, LOL.

Joined: 21 Sep 2010 Posts: 436

I'm using a windows based computer->Sonar XP->MOTU pci 424 card->MOTU 2408 interface x 2->alesis studio 32 mixing console. All of this could be had for under a grand if you shop around for deals. It provides GREAT sound and flexibility, records up to 16 channels at one time with the ability to to 24 with another 2408 unit. Setup is pretty easy. You just have to play around with it for a while. I was definately no computer whiz when I started putting this stuff together. Once you get the hang of it it's elementary.

Joined: 04 Mar 2009 Posts: 104 Location: Cambridgeshire, UK

Guitar > pedal board > rig > garageband on iPad lol .. But if not amps on garageband.. Id use a cab with my shure SM57 micd up to iPad instead .. I use a nifty lik thing called the iRig .. Awesome bit of kit

Joined: 20 Nov 2006 Posts: 7418 Location: Backenforth, USA

Nothing for now. My buddy is supposed to be giving me a reel to reel setup though. Could be fun.

Joined: 21 Sep 2006 Posts: 1278 Location: Blackpool, UK

Alesis 8 Track USB Mixer > Mac Mini 1.66ghz running MOTU Digital Performer.

Also using Cubase Elements with the Addictive Drums VST plugin for drum tracks.

This took me around 30 minutes:

https://soundcloud.com/mat-viv-smith/nightrain-intro-gnr-cover

Joined: 20 Aug 2008 Posts: 2182 Location: New York City

Shure SM57 -> Focusrite Saffire 6 USB -> Cubase 5

The place where I learned about everything related to recording is right here: http://tweakheadz.com/

It's an incredibly useful website that explains the importance of everything related to recording. How to setup your microphone, room acoustic, etc. everything! So most people can learn a thing or two from there I reckon.

Joined: 27 Apr 2009 Posts: 109

I use my trusty Vandetta plugged into an Eleven Rack and on to cubase, no mic/amp.
Sounds brilliant !!

Posted: Mon Mar 11, 2013 3:16 pm

for fun:

krank the 5.1 surround

krank the amp

record that s#%t with a cheap olympus camera \m/

for extra br00talz always use 240p!!

Posted: Mon Mar 11, 2013 7:30 pm

I am using my pc with a Creative Audigy 2 zs sound card and external hub i plug into.and 5.1 surround.I get very good quality using FL studio 10 and I have also been playing around with TH2 and also Guitar Rig.I just watched a vid about another product called "Waves GTR3" and it is endorsed by PRS.It looks promising but i have not tried it yet.
There is also another software product called Amplitube that is endorsed bye Fender,Marshall,Vox. etc..If you have a few dollars to shell out i would try amplitube,It seems to have the most to offer and licenced products.

1969 Gibson Goldtop Deluxe
1942 Gibson L-7
2004 Dean Performer/VS archtop
2004 DEan Evo SS Quilted Maple