Build a good cheap home recording studio.

[Mark Wein]

Whats the cheapest but highest quality setup you can come up with? We always have these questions come up so I thought maybe it might be cool to have this thread as a starting point or reference.

[Kerouac]

If you just want a small but decent home studio one of those Zoom 8-tracks is a great option. The owner at the academy has had three of those. He sells them to move on to something better and always comes back with another one. :D

Highest quality is where it gets troublesome. Obviously I'm an Apple fan, but Garageband is a terrific software and if you own a Mac it's right there. If you're on a PC I like Sonar, but it's pricey. Reaper keeps getting better and better and I think a license is around $70 bucks? Interface would depend on how many channels you need but buying used will get you a lot more.

[Kelly]

My setup that i'm planning involves a Behringer 1204USB mixer, a Shure SM57 for amps, and an Audio-Technica AT2035 for vocals/acoustics.

That being said, i'm sure you could do a lot better, particularly on the 57.

[Mark Wein]

My setup that i'm planning involves a Behringer 1204USB mixer, a Shure SM57 for amps, and an Audio-Technica AT2035 for vocals/acoustics.

That being said, i'm sure you could do a lot better, particularly on the 57.


Actually, there is a reason why the SM57 has been around for decades :)

I'll also use a Sennheiser e609 for guitars, too and it's not too much more expensive:

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We sue the AT2035's for the webcast audio in the studio and overheads for the drum kit...I think they're a pretty good buy for the money, too...

[Johnny N.]

I have a Line 6 UX1 that I paid $60 for and a mic I paid $30 for. My headphones are the same that Prages has and they were $25-30. The UX1 came with Ableton Lite but I am trying out Reaper right now and though I havent had much time with it, I like it a lot.

I have been getting by with just that but am keeping my eye out for a great deal on a condenser mic and should really be considering a set of monitors for mixing. I mix with headphones right now and it works but I am guessing I could probably do better with something more accurate. I am hoping I can find something cheap in that area too or I will do without. I wouldnt actually mind some suggestions for inexpensive monitors.

Out of the box new, you can get some good mbox interfaces for $100 and mics for $100 or less. $30 for headphones, $20 for a mic stand and you are off and running. So $250 for pretty damn good stuff. I suspect a cheap condenser or sm57 is fine until you change your perception of quality. It seems to me that without a good room, expensive mics and preamps are probably not as effective. So for bedroom recording, the inexpensive stuff should be fine. If you need more inputs, the cost of the interface goes up slightly but then you likely need more mics.

[Prages]

Decent home computer, Lexicon Omega, SM57.

Then you'll need a set of headphones. I use a cheap pair of Sennheiser eH150 for tracking. Cost something like $25. I use them over my $100 Sony MDR-V600s because they isolate sound better and sound good. If you want to get picky, you'll need some studio monitors too, but I really don't have much experience with anything on the market. I've 5got a pair of Event TR8s that I love, but they are/were $600/pair when I got them.

I had the Omega for a year or so and the only reason I moved to a Firepod is for the extra inputs/preamps. The Omega worked and sounded great. The SM57 sounds pretty good on everything, and great on a lot of things. I use it for snare drums and guitar cabinets even though I have a few much more expensive mics.

[El Borrachito]

I don't keep up with the consumer hardware much but, here's something to think about:
Spend money on analog/input gear - mics, preamps, eqs, compressors, monitors, these things never become obsolete. Much new analog gear claims to emulate designs that are decades old.
When buying these items, assume you will have them forever. Think value first.
On the other hand, the digital/computer stuff becomes obsolete quite quickly. That is where to save money

[Mark Wein]

I don't keep up with the consumer hardware much but, here's something to think about:
Spend money on analog/input gear - mics, preamps, eqs, compressors, monitors, these things never become obsolete. Much new analog gear claims to emulate designs that are decades old.
When buying these items, assume you will have them forever. Think value first.
On the other hand, the digital/computer stuff becomes obsolete quite quickly. That is where to save money


Thats a pretty good point.

[Kerouac]

I don't keep up with the consumer hardware much but, here's something to think about:
Spend money on analog/input gear - mics, preamps, eqs, compressors, monitors, these things never become obsolete. Much new analog gear claims to emulate designs that are decades old.
When buying these items, assume you will have them forever. Think value first.
On the other hand, the digital/computer stuff becomes obsolete quite quickly. That is where to save money

That's why I want to start snagging 500-series modules.

[Johnny N.]

Thats a pretty good point.



I have heard a similar piece of advice that basically is that it is ok to get started on the cheap but if you ever decided to upgrade, do it right. Dont get the next hardware up, and then the next, and so on. Go ahead and save to get the "good" one and upgrade once. Like the drunk guy said, plan on having it forever, and if not, it is something that will hold it's value.

I am still on the cheap startup level and not even close to upgrading other than possibly a condenser mic, which I have almost talked myself out of.

[cuffdc]

I use an M-Audio Mobile Pre hooked into my laptop using audacity. My major complaint is that the Mobile Pre only allows two inputs, which is a pain when trying to record band practice. I'm thinking of getting a mixer with USB out so I can run more mics into it.

[Modern Saint]

Love the SM57. Musicians Friend has them with a stand and cord (FWIW) at $109. Plus Shure has the $10 rebate going on as well for a net worth of $99 - Whow.

http://img3.musiciansfriend.com/dbase/pics/products/3/5/9/647359.jpg

http://pro-audio.musiciansfriend.com/product/Shure-SM57-Mic-with-Cable-Stand?sku=485304

[Mark Wein]

Love the SM57. Musicians Friend has them with a stand and cord (FWIW) at $109. Plus Shure has the $10 rebate going on as well for a net worth of $99 - Whow.

http://img3.musiciansfriend.com/dbase/pics/products/3/5/9/647359.jpg

http://pro-audio.musiciansfriend.com/product/Shure-SM57-Mic-with-Cable-Stand?sku=485304

Actually worth it. Even though I'm a dealer I couldnt get that for my cost t that price.


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[Prages]

Actually worth it. Even though I'm a dealer I couldnt get that for my cost t that price.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yeah, definitely worth it.

It seems like I paid $89 for my SM57 without a stand and cord...back in 1995. Of course, I'm still using it. Those things not only sound good, but they really are virtually indestructable.

[jaxn slim]

How many tracks?

I recently got the Echo Audiofire 12 to interface into my iMac. It's been great. 12 channels input, 12 channels output.

IMO it's a great value way to get a very versatile, high quality (subjective, I know) setup.

[AlanVanwinkle]

I would start with 3 things -

Some studio software - for example, Sony Acid Music Studio 8.0
Some good mic - Sennheiser E825-S Handheld Cardiod Dynamic Microphone
Some good headphones - Sennheiser HD428 Closed Circumaural Hi-Fi Headphone

[jelloman]

mine...

Lexicon Alpha...59.95
http://www.americanmusical.com/Item--i-LEX-ALPHA-LIST

Cakewalk Guitar Tracks Pro...99.99
http://www.americanmusical.com/Item--i-CAK-GTRTRKPRO4
(I actually have SONAR 7XL...but this would have been a better choice...it comes with a better guitar plug in)

OSP DL-330 mic...39.99
http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-OSP-DL-330-DYNAMIC-MICROPHONE-DRUM-INSTRUMENT-MIC-/190488423942?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2c59feae06
(SM57 clone...gets good reviews)

add a good pair of headphones and you're in business...

[sunvalleylaw]

iMac, with Garageband included (I feel no need for anything more at this point)
Line6 Toneport (mine is a UX2) with Gearbox
SM57 and stand
Audio Technics AT2035 and stand
Instruments. (guitars, amps, and a Yamaha DGX-620 weighted key keyboard with USB, from Costco)
I have some decent Behringer Headphones too.

I am not sure this is the absolute cheapest, or the absolute best, but it is a nice setup for me that I can use to a much more full potential than I have so far.