Last minute shopping advice.
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Posted on May 11, 2006 02:56 pm
jimmyboy
Member Since: Sep 08, 2005
sorry for kicking a dead horse here (or whatever the expression is!!). I am making a pretty large purchase this weekend but as some sure people cant appreciate i want to be 100% that im making all the right choices before i part with my cash!
Im picking up some headphones,mics,monitors (all have been decided) but I can seem to happily settle on a usb interface.
Im am somewhat of a budget so i cant go too far reall. $400 is about as much as i can afford right now.The line-6 tone port definatly seems the best option for guitar/bass/vox recording and as people helpfully informed me here it can take my drum mics via my mixer. I would gladly go with the tone port BUT the issue that im having growing concerns with is recording drums..
Im wondering if i would be better off investing in a soundcar that can take my drum as individual tracks (for examlple on track for the snare mic,one for bass mic ectect) so as I can edit the drum some more intensively (like if the snare needed compression but bass drum didnt or something) as opposed to the drums being recorded and mixed as one track.Is such a device even available?!
Sorry for the long winded post but im sure you have all had second thoughts about purchases.
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May 11, 2006 02:59 pm With a 400 limit, well, I'd say you are never going to get a perfect setup...
The question I would consider would be what would get me the best situation for the money I have, and just make do with the rest, and for that, the TonePort does seem like a good option, if you choose to upgrade a card for drums later the TonePort would still be useful and in the mean time should be able to handle your drum needs...
May 11, 2006 03:05 pm thanks for the advice bro.
I kinda save for a while and buy gear, but as im only begining out recording i dont want to buy anything top of the line yet
May 12, 2006 04:31 am can the tone port record from 2 or 3 of its inputs at the same time?
Like if was was to record guitar (through the guitar input) and vox through the mic input.
pjkPrince CZAR-mingMember
Since: Apr 08, 2004
May 12, 2006 11:13 am Looks like 2 inputs, so 2 tracks at a time.
pjkPrince CZAR-mingMember
Since: Apr 08, 2004
May 12, 2006 11:17 am I'd agree with dB, I don't think you'd ever be sorry for the toneport, as it'll do lots of modelling other stuff wont.
You could sport for a delta 1010lt, which would give you 8 analog inputs, but you wouldn't have the modelling. You'd have to get something else if you wanted to go the modelling route.
But the 1010lt has it's converters in the PCI card, plus there's no breakout box, plus they're RCA connections. None of these are deal-breakers, but it's something to consider.
In the future you could get something like the delta 44, and record 4 tracks of drums, then later record guitars, bass, and vox with the toneport.
Just thinking out loud . . .
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
May 12, 2006 08:44 pm Yep, it will only do 2 tracks at once.
May 15, 2006 03:33 pm do this record as two seperate tracks or as one?
May 15, 2006 08:43 pm Two seperate tracks
May 16, 2006 02:34 pm so, for example, would it be possible for me to record my toms,kicks+cymbals through my mixer into the line-in ports as one tracks, and my snare mic (which would be hooked directly into the mic port on the toneport) as another separate track? That way i could edit+ mix the snare seperate to the rest of the kit..
May 16, 2006 02:35 pm don't see why that wouldn't work...
May 16, 2006 02:41 pm sweet :):)
next step...... triggering!
it there any sort of plugin preset that i could put on the snare to have it triggered or kept at a constant volume so as the it no change in sound between the light and hard hits. I know this takes away from the "feel" of the kit but im gonna be recording a death metal band soon that want the snare triggered.
May 17, 2006 09:18 am ?
pjkPrince CZAR-mingMember
Since: Apr 08, 2004
May 17, 2006 09:47 am Triggered as to an actual trigger on the snare, and triggering via midi?
For that you'd need the actual trigger, then a midi controller of some sort. The controller then plays the correct sound when the trigger is triggered.
I think there is a software that replaces the sound being played, with another sample you specify. I can't remember what it is right now though.
Google might help.
Or if you just want the snare to be uniform volume, use lots of compression. That should bring all un-level levels to the same level =).
May 17, 2006 10:10 am thanks for the advice man :)
pjkPrince CZAR-mingMember
Since: Apr 08, 2004
May 17, 2006 10:17 am That middle part of my last post seems muddy.
There is some sort of plug-in, or program, that, after you record your track, say, the snare, you can put your track through this program, and it replaces all the snare hits with a sample you specify.
Kind of like a search and replace, but for wave files.
I know nothing more about it, but just seem to remember hearing about it somewhere.
So for instance, if you have a drum track, recorded with a crappy cymbal, you could play your wave file through this proggie, and it would replace the crappy cymbal sound, with a sample you specifiy.
Thinking about it, this may be a difficult task to pull off well, seeing as how there's such different dynamics. But for a snare, in a heavy metal track, it may do the trick.
May 18, 2006 01:17 pm another thing....
could someone tell me if the headphones input on the toneport will work for listening to all sounds from my computes through headphones. Like if im listening to mp3s on windows media player will i be able to hear them through the headphones if they are connected to the toneport?
pjkPrince CZAR-mingMember
Since: Apr 08, 2004
May 18, 2006 02:15 pm yep, just tell windows to play using the toneport.
Somewhere in the windows sound devices applet is where you tell windows which device to play it's sounds (and it's program's sounds) through.
Control Panel -> Sound and Audio Devices -> Audio tab.
May 21, 2006 06:14 am gotit yesterday. Man its such a great bity of gear! I gotta mess with the tones a bit though to make my own ones.
I was wondering how do I get my recording software to record the 2 separate track that i asked about earlier.
I know how to have the tone port select the 2 ports (using gearbox) but i cant figure out how to get my software to choose which port to record from.
Any ideas?!
May 23, 2006 05:29 am BUMP!
pjkPrince CZAR-mingMember
Since: Apr 08, 2004
May 23, 2006 09:17 am Just thinking out loud, somewhere in your program you should have to tell it what sound interface you are using. You should be able to select the toneport as the input device, and the output device.
Now somewhere in your recording area, maybe in the tracks, input mixer, etc. there may be a spot to 'arm' or tell the recording software from where to get it's signal from. This you would need to activate the two channels. Or if you're using ASIO mode, then I think you can only activate 2 at a time, so the first (and only) two should be active.
In N-track, there's two little green lights under the input VU meter, showing that they're armed.
And now, you'll want to make sure the software is creating two mono tracks, not a stereo track. Stereo will glue the two tracks together and put them on the screen as one track (probably with two signals inside of it). You would want two mono tracks, so you can edit each separately.
I don't think audacity would be my first choice to multitrack with, i'd start with cakewalk, or cooledit pro and try to get them to work.
Also, the manuals with each should show you quite clearly how to activate two tracks for input.
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
May 24, 2006 07:59 pm Yep, pjk has it pretty spot on. Simply select the TOneports drivers as your playback and record drivers. Then in your track view you will need to arm a track to record and either select stereo input or select either right or left for the tracks inputs.
May 25, 2006 04:51 am thanks guys. As usual everyone has been really helpful :-)
May 25, 2006 09:39 am i was briefly reading on the line-6 forums that Di-boxes are useful for splitting signals. Would this be of any use to me for what i mentioned with separating the snare track? I have a d.i that came free with some stuff i ordered a few months back but i have no idea what to use it for!
pjkPrince CZAR-mingMember
Since: Apr 08, 2004
May 25, 2006 09:54 am I'm thinking the toneport is doing all you will need to do. 2 mics, into the toneport, then into two tracks in your software.
Not much more you can do with what you have.
If you did split the signal, I don't know what you'd do with it, as you already have the two channels filled up.
I think splitting the signal is useful if, fer instance, you're in a live environment, and want the acoustic guitar signal to go to the main board, plus to a recording device. Then the two signals would be processed for each of their own reasons.
May 25, 2006 10:07 am like i said, i was just hoping to put my mixer through the line-in's and the snare mic directly into the toneport. This way i can compress the snare alot without over compressing the rest of the kit.
Also could someone tell me what the "pad" guitar input is? whats the difference between this and the normal input? I cant seem to figure it out!
pjkPrince CZAR-mingMember
Since: Apr 08, 2004
May 25, 2006 11:11 am pad will be a lower gain input. So if you have active pickups, and are putting out a really hot signal, you can use the pad input, so you don't overdrive the preamp on the toneport.
