Step by Step Recording Thread.

This has been a great read :thu:

And yeah, we do have some really different approaches for a few things biggrin
I do compress a whole lot more than you'd think though, fwiw I'm quite good at making it sound not that compressed :wink:

Right now I'm thinking of doing a similar thread on a more full-size production (as in "fucking huge mixing project"), with lots of layering and synths and stuff, I think I have a song that might fit the bill.
Will take quite some time to complete, but I'll get to it eventually :)
 
Chihlidog said:
For some reason, even though they arent even close, this song reminds me of a Rush tune.
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That's weird.

I don't even like Rush all that much. I probably haven't heard a single song of theirs that isn't played constantly on classic rock radio. :embarrassed:
 
Question

Ok so I usually just record stuff through my interface (Tascam US 144) and use an amp sim for the tone. A few months ago I found that I had a Sennheiser 609 mic laying around so I figured I would try it on the cabinet. The issue I have is the volume is always really low when I play it back. I watch the meter (Reaper) and its about -6 to -4. Am I just doing something wrong or is this just something you take care of when you master the track? I guess if you recorded everything yourself it would all be relevent. Thanks for the recording thread Prages..

J
 
jmfoley said:
Ok so I usually just record stuff through my interface (Tascam US 144) and use an amp sim for the tone. A few months ago I found that I had a Sennheiser 609 mic laying around so I figured I would try it on the cabinet. The issue I have is the volume is always really low when I play it back. I watch the meter (Reaper) and its about -6 to -4. Am I just doing something wrong or is this just something you take care of when you master the track? I guess if you recorded everything yourself it would all be relevent. Thanks for the recording thread Prages..

J
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Does the mic need phantom power to work?
 
jmfoley said:
Ok so I usually just record stuff through my interface (Tascam US 144) and use an amp sim for the tone. A few months ago I found that I had a Sennheiser 609 mic laying around so I figured I would try it on the cabinet. The issue I have is the volume is always really low when I play it back. I watch the meter (Reaper) and its about -6 to -4. Am I just doing something wrong or is this just something you take care of when you master the track? I guess if you recorded everything yourself it would all be relevent. Thanks for the recording thread Prages..

J
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How loud of a signal are you running to "tape"? I would try and get your sound at the right volume and then use your ears and not the meters to determine how much input gain you need to crank before you get distortion....the e609 doesn't need phantom power. Is there a "pad" button on the interface's channel that you are using? That might also be a factor. If there is make sure that it is in the off position...
 
Also, if you record it a little low, in the digital environment, the noise floor is so low that you can always go back and normalize the track to make it louder without having a drastic effect on your noise.

The e609 should sound great in front of an amp.
 
markwein said:
How loud of a signal are you running to "tape"? I would try and get your sound at the right volume and then use your ears and not the meters to determine how much input gain you need to crank before you get distortion....the e609 doesn't need phantom power. Is there a "pad" button on the interface's channel that you are using? That might also be a factor. If there is make sure that it is in the off position...
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Thanks for the info Mark. I don't remember seeing anything about a "pad" button on the interface, but then again I don't really know what half the buttons and options do anyway :embarrassed:
 
Prages said:
Also, if you record it a little low, in the digital environment, the noise floor is so low that you can always go back and normalize the track to make it louder without having a drastic effect on your noise.

The e609 should sound great in front of an amp.
Click to expand...

Thanks Prages, I'll try messing around normalizing the track and see how that goes.
 
Alex_DeLarge said:
Hey Prages, how much did it cost you to build that home studio??
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Keep in mind that I've been accumulating this stuff for about 15 years.

I paid $500 for one of the Firepods and $300 for the second one.
Monitors were $600 for the pair.
Power conditioner was $80.
I got the headphone amp in a trade, but if you're just recording by yourself you don't really need one anyway.
I've probably got about $1500 tied up in mics.
Another $3-400 in stands and cables.
$100 for my snake.
Most of the software I use was given to me by a friend, so I think the only thing there I actually paid for was the T-Racks mastering software, which is about $100.
The headphones I use the most only cost about $30, but I've got several sets of cans that cost between $20 and $100.

As far as the actual room, I probably spent $1000-$1500 converting it from an unfinished attic into the finished room. This includes wiring, insulation, fixtures and outlets, and panelling. I did all the work myself on evenings and weekends over the course of about a year.

Then there's all the instruments and amps.

There's a lot of money tied up in it, but like I said, I've been accumulating this stuff for many years, so it wasn't like I spent $10k all at once on it.
 
Alex_DeLarge said:
Thanks Prages.

And how does your rack transfer the sound into your pc, through usb or firewire??
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It a firewire audio interface.

It's actually two of them. I've got the two interfaces daisy chained together, and then running to the PC. I can record 16 mics or 1/4" line-ins at the same time.
 
Prages said:
Keep in mind that I've been accumulating this stuff for about 15 years.

I paid $500 for one of the Firepods and $300 for the second one.
Monitors were $600 for the pair.
Power conditioner was $80.
I got the headphone amp in a trade, but if you're just recording by yourself you don't really need one anyway.
I've probably got about $1500 tied up in mics.
Another $3-400 in stands and cables.
$100 for my snake.
Most of the software I use was given to me by a friend, so I think the only thing there I actually paid for was the T-Racks mastering software, which is about $100.
The headphones I use the most only cost about $30, but I've got several sets of cans that cost between $20 and $100.

As far as the actual room, I probably spent $1000-$1500 converting it from an unfinished attic into the finished room. This includes wiring, insulation, fixtures and outlets, and panelling. I did all the work myself on evenings and weekends over the course of about a year.

Then there's all the instruments and amps.

There's a lot of money tied up in it, but like I said, I've been accumulating this stuff for many years, so it wasn't like I spent $10k all at once on it.
Click to expand...

This is cool information. I have always dreamed of doing this, and you give me some guidelines were to start and how to go about it. Thanks Man!
 
Rise from the dead! Can we get this updated? All the pics are gone.
I use (or want to use) Reaper but I'm open to anything cheap or free. Anyone want to do a screen share situation and help a newb get set up and walked through a simple recording process?
I think I have everything I need. Laptop, software, interface, amps and guitars. I wouldn't be able to mic anything but I don't really need to.
 
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