# Recording to PC



## wfernley

What program does everyone here use to record their music to PC? I want to record some of my songs to my PC but I'm not sure what program to use. I heard Fruity Loops is good to use.

Anyone have any suggestions?


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## fraser

fruity loops is a drum machine, beatmaker kinda thing. dont think you can record really with it. Audacity is good, and free, easy to use, has lots of effects etc. 

http://audacity.sourceforge.net/

for multiple tracks and editing ive been using cooledit pro, and
recently started using reaper to facilitate vst plugins like ezdrummer,
but thats a whole nother headache


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## violation

Personally I've got Reaper, Cubase, Audacity and Cool Edit Pro all installed... and Pro Tools I think. Don't know why but yeah, when I'm about to record I just randomly pick the first one that comes to mind. Then I've got apps like ReValver Mk II, Amplitube and Guitar Rig 2 and probably other similar apps installed too... again, don't know why considering I never use them. 

Drums I use FL Studio with EZDrummer (+ DKFH) and bass I use Broomstick Bass (I think that's the name).


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## Kenmac

Reaper is what I use. It's a great multitracker and they're up to version 2.0 now. Audacity is also pretty good but it has a 16 track limitation. Download both of them and try them out to see which one you prefer. Fraser gave you the link for Audacity, here's the link for Reaper: http://reaper.fm/


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## wfernley

Awesome! 

Thanks for the links and programs. I will try fooling around with those.


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## noobcake

I use audacity for recording some crude demos and that kind of stuff, but I use Adobe Audition for anything serious.


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## a Pack of Wolves

Cubase is really simple to get into if you use something like whatever the base model is.


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## bluezombie

I use audacity


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## MaxWedge

I just installed Audacity a couple of days ago. The fun begins. :smile:


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## Maclean_skier

Some great programs worth checking out:

Pro Tools (The LE and M-powered are to check out)
Adobe Audition (Another Complicated yet powerful Adobe program)
Cool Edit Pro (A.Audition but less versatile vers. easier to understand)
Cubase (don't know it, but Professional sounding program)

If you're playing alone and would like to add drums to your tracks:
Acoustica Beatcraft (the way to go, easy, fast, effective)

If you need help with any of the programs exept Cubase, just ask!

Andy Mac.


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## Greg Ellis

Speaking of recording to PC...

I have reason to believe someone has bought me a Line 6 Toneport (probably the cheap one, GX) for Christmas.

Has anyone had experience with those? Good/bad/ugly?


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## dodgechargerfan

Thanks for the info on the programs.... how do you get the sound IN to the PC.

I've been eyeballing the USB guitar chord that came out last year... The Lightsnake. Anyone play with one of those? or what else is there?
I kow about the Line 6 stuff.


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## fraser

dodgechargerfan- well those programs are recording apps, so think of them basically like a tape machine. you could plug your guitar in using the lightsnake or other, but it would sound shitty. so you would need a amp modeller, like guitar rig or amplitube or something. they do work well, and sound pretty good. so youd run the modelling program, and the recording program at the same time.
but just to get the sound into the pc youd just plug into the line in of your soundcard- itll be one of the little holes near where your speakers plug in. then you have to enable it and set it up in windows mixer.
better, if you have a line out on your amplifier you run a line from it into the line in on the soundcard.
better still- get a mic, and plug it into the mic in of soundcard and just mic the amp.
theres really a shitload of ways to do this- it all depends on what your needs are, and how much its worth to ya.
i started out just with a mic on my soundcard, then got a soundcard with 1/4 inch jack on the front (soundblaster platinum xfi- its for sale now) and plugged in and ran guitar rig. then i got a soundcard with 10 inputs(delta 1010) and a mackie mixer with preamps and xlr outputs. finally i added a pod- so i can simultaneously record from a bunch of sources and am fully flexible. but i also record mostly acoustics-
if all i wanted to do tho was record electric guitar, id just get a lightsnake, or something similar, and guitar rig. thatll work well.


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## Greg Ellis

Fraser, don't you get latency issues when recording from the line-in of the sound card?

Mine was awful. Maybe your sound card is better than mine.


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## Guest

Me too. I was told it was a mater of setting the delay
to zero. I haven't figured it out yet. But any Cubase
owners out there who know the software, please respond.


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## Kenmac

Here's what I use: http://www.stealthplug.com/Main.php?prod-SP.php
I got my Stealthplug at Long and McQuade last year and it comes with a pretty impressive software bundle including the full version of Mackies Tracktion 2 multitrack recording application and Amplitube Live which is a somewhat cutdown version of Amplitube. They recently updated the software so now you can record at not only 44.1 and 48.0 kHZ but other sampling rates as well. I almost bought the Lightsnake myself but at the time it didn't use ASIO drivers whereas the Stealthplug does. The Stealthplug plugs into any available USB port and it comes with the ASIO drivers which makes tracking a lot faster than what you'd get with Lightsnake although I do have to say that maybe now they've updated Lightsnake so check that out as well but IMO for the price you can't go wrong with the Stealthplug. 



dodgechargerfan said:


> Thanks for the info on the programs.... how do you get the sound IN to the PC.
> 
> I've been eyeballing the USB guitar chord that came out last year... The Lightsnake. Anyone play with one of those? or what else is there?
> I kow about the Line 6 stuff.


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## fraser

hi guys-
latency can be a pain- however you can overcome it.
i use a fast pc with 1gb of ram- so that helps, plus my soundcard is a decent quality thing. so i can do anything really and encounter zero latency. i use this- was about 225$
http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_us/Delta1010LT-main.html

even if you dont have a fast pc or good soundcard, latency can be solved-
first you need an asio driver- quality soundcards use asio drivers, but this app here-
http://www.asio4all.com/ 
will force most any card to use asio.
also, make sure your pc is clean- no spyware or anything, and i run this regularly
http://filehippo.com/download_ccleaner/
make sure that the fewest possible programs are running on the pc
and the main one- reduce the sample rate of your recording- 
if your running at 96000 hz it uses a lot of power, and lowering it wont make a noticeable quality drop- 41000 hz is cd quality, and its fine.
make sure your using the latest drivers for your soundcard- and it may have a latency setting in your soundcard settings- if so set it to around 5 ms- play around with it, the higher you go the easier it is on your pc, but the more noticeable the latency becomes.
its been a while, but i started with a pentium 2 450 mhz 128 ram and a soundblaster live value card- latency happened but i was able to tweak it to a decent point.
also theres a big difference if your using the soundcard built into your motherboard(onboard) because it sucks more resources than a pci add on one. even a 20$ pci soundcard will likely be better thn the one built in.
ram is cheap, so if thats an option adding some helps a lot.
this place is really helpful too-
http://homerecording.com/bbs/
do a search thru the forum for specific issues.
but be careful- a lot of theyre solutions involve spending money, and i try to avoid doing that whenever i can get by without it. for most people it isnt necessary to have an expensive setup when a basic, cheap setup does what they want.
my setup is pretty low level by many standards, but i put some money into it, about $1200- but it does everything i want and more, but i can still make really crappy recordings lol.
sorry about the long rambling scattered post- im dredging this stuff up from the depths of my wounded brain and typing it out as i go- if anyone needs help just ask:smile:


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## fraser

larry- i found this for cubase on the net.
If you're experiencing latency (time-lag between playing a note on a keyboard and the sound being heard) make sure you have the ASIO driver selected.
Go to:
Devices Panel » Device Set Up
Select your audio-card ASIO driver
Then go to the Control Panel and lower the latency settings by adjusting the "Buffer Size Samples" settings until happy.
(Tip: Try starting out with a buffer size setting of 512 and experiment either side of this number).

also-

Press CTRL+ALT+DELETE » Processes
Find cubasesx.exe
Right click and set PRIORITY to MAX

and check this link- 
http://forum.studioathome.com/viewtopic.php?id=685

i have cubase, but havent used it-


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## fraser

wow- just noticed this is in the wrong forum- thats funny lol.


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## Guest

fraser said:


> wow- just noticed this is in the wrong forum- thats funny lol.


"Wha? Like funny ha ha or funny weird"

Glad you stumbled by. Very informative.


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## fraser

laristotle said:


> "Wha? Like funny ha ha or funny weird"
> 
> Glad you stumbled by. Very informative.


well right now everything is funny to me lol- 
:wave:


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## JC103

The best thing to do is get a small mixer, maybe a mackie, and mic up your amp---> no latency when monitoring outside of the computer! For a great inexpensive soundcard check out the maudio audiophile series. They are about $150 these days. Then try out reaper or get a basic version of cubase and start recording.


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## fraser

yes jc103 is right- that is sure the best way to go about it, and i think (well hope) i alluded to this fact earlier, i use mackie and m-audio stuff myself-
but i dont like telling people they need to spend a bunch of money- none of the guys in this thread said- "i want to put together a home studio and make high quality recordings", they just wanted to do some recording- even an entry level mixer, soundcard and mic will cost a few bucks, and the quality will not be great. thats why theres reams of equipment on the used market out there- it can quickly turn into a money pit-


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## Muikoma

is it possible to hook up my Boss BR-600 to be my input on my computer (if anyone can help)


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## dodgechargerfan

Good info.

I think I'll try a stealthplug as a first step...


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## Guest

Muikoma said:


> is it possible to hook up my Boss BR-600 to be my input on my computer (if anyone can help)


Yes and no. Yes: you can run the line out from the BR-600 to a line in on your computer and hit record on your computer and then play through the BR. Basically you're using the BR as a mixer. Doesn't gain you anything though which is where the no comes in: you won't get zero latency playback from your PC if you're trying to do overdubs this way.


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## bagpipe

I've recently gotten my system setup to where I can actually record my own tunes on my PC. I bought an M-Audio 2496 soundcard, and I use a POD to record guitars and bass. I also have a cheap Casio keyboard for the occasional keyboard and drum parts. I use Reaper as my recording program. I'm looking into buying a mic and a mixer (or pre-amp) to let me record my acoustic guitar also.

I have put some of tunes on Soundclick - follow the link below. And ... try not to laugh if you listen to them ....


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## fraser

hi bagpipe- i dunno if i matters to you, but i tried some fairly expensive condenser mics- and a couple of nice tube pre- amps- sounded pretty good for a single instrument like an acoustic- but then i needed a preamp as well to record voice, and another for my footapping thing. so i ended up going with a mixer- mackie 1202 vlz pro- certainly not high end, but it has loads of inputs,(4 of them xlr with phantom power) the preamps in it are on par with some of the nice dedicated pres i tried. its pretty well made, and rugged- i think i paid in the area of 400$ for it. i can monitor off it, or my pc with speakers, headphones or any combination, and i have my pod permanently plugged into one of its line level strips, so i can tweak the eq and volume right there. of all the stuff ive got the mixer was far and away the most useful and bang for my buck. it also makes the whole pc recording thing more like using an old tape machine, knobs to turn and levels to adjust right there- minimizing my use of the hated mouse.
i also ditched the condensers, i still have one but rarely use it- was pretty costly, and the sm57 and 58 im using actually sound better- and so of course i didnt need phantom power for those. and i got them for $100 each at a local store.


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## Telenator

I'm really suprised there are no Sonar users that responded to this thread. I've been using it for the past two years. Part of a long search for a recording application that fit and was comfortable for me. Reaper would be my second choice, this is without a doubt the best program out there dollar for dollar but does not have the midi capabilities I was after. Cubase is great too but I didn't like the workflow. Protools LE, not my cup of tea, a little too restrictive in terms of hardware compatability and plugin availabilty.

Been using a Presonus Firebox as an audio interface for three years. It has been very reliable with enough I/O for what I do. Don't necessarily think you need an outboard mixer to do this stuff. 

Here's a link to my last tune:

http://www.soundclick.com/player/single_player.cfm?songid=5801479&q=hi&ref=10


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## bagpipe

fraser said:


> hi bagpipe- i dunno if i matters to you, but i tried some fairly expensive condenser mics- and a couple of nice tube pre- amps- sounded pretty good for a single instrument like an acoustic- but then i needed a preamp as well to record voice, and another for my footapping thing. so i ended up going with a mixer- mackie 1202 vlz pro- certainly not high end, but it has loads of inputs,(4 of them xlr with phantom power) the preamps in it are on par with some of the nice dedicated pres i tried. its pretty well made, and rugged- i think i paid in the area of 400$ for it. i can monitor off it, or my pc with speakers, headphones or any combination, and i have my pod permanently plugged into one of its line level strips, so i can tweak the eq and volume right there. of all the stuff ive got the mixer was far and away the most useful and bang for my buck. it also makes the whole pc recording thing more like using an old tape machine, knobs to turn and levels to adjust right there- minimizing my use of the hated mouse.
> i also ditched the condensers, i still have one but rarely use it- was pretty costly, and the sm57 and 58 im using actually sound better- and so of course i didnt need phantom power for those. and i got them for $100 each at a local store.


fraser, thanks for the info. I've been on the fence about whether to go with a mixer, or buy a dedicated preamp - I've been looking at the M-Audio DMP3 preamp, which everyone seems to love at the homerecording forum. But, I agree with you that the mixer would be more versatile and have potentially more uses in the long run. Plus, I'm questioning if the increased "audio qualities" of using a dedicated preamp, rather than the cheaper mixer preamp, will have that much impact on my recordings, which for the most part use POD amp simulations for electric guitar anyway.


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## fraser

> fraser, thanks for the info. I've been on the fence about whether to go with a mixer, or buy a dedicated preamp - I've been looking at the M-Audio DMP3 preamp, which everyone seems to love at the homerecording forum. But, I agree with you that the mixer would be more versatile and have potentially more uses in the long run. Plus, I'm questioning if the increased "audio qualities" of using a dedicated preamp, rather than the cheaper mixer preamp, will have that much impact on my recordings, which for the most part use POD amp simulations for electric guitar anyway.


yes exactly where i was at- a dedicated preamp will sound better, providing it is of high quality- so your talking bigger money- the ones i tried where all between 2-300$, so not high end, however the mixer i bought in the knowledge that the pres that were on it are high quality for what its worth-i researched them and found they were highly thought of- if i spent 400$ on a single preamp, my sound quality would likely only be marginally better than what i get with the 400$ i spent on the mixer- it isnt worth it for me to spend thousands, because im just a hobbyist, and in the long run i needed the extra inputs- one thing i find i like best tho- i can have all my mics, my pod, my tape machine, my monitoring, and my pc all connected and ready to go, its always set up and each channel is all setup, (for example my vocal mic is on a channel already set for vocals, instrument mic on a channel set up for it, amp mic likewise, etc.)
i dont need to look for cords or plug things in and out, no set up needed- just flip the appropriate switches from off to on and im there- i was wasting hours routing things and getting pissed off lol-
but again you may not need all of this- just my experience, i woula hated to have to buy 3 or four mid-grade preamps to do all this.
if you go with a mixer tho- research the quality of its pres- if you dont need phantom power you may get better quality for the same money, etc.


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## Telenator

Hey Bagpipe are you looking to get better audio quality in your recordings, or are you looking for more I/O?


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## bagpipe

Telenator said:


> Hey Bagpipe are you looking to get better audio quality in your recordings, or are you looking for more I/O?


Telenator, thats the question I'm wrestling with. I really just need a way to connect a decent mic, or mics, to my soundcard, mainly to record acoustic guitar. I dont really have any need for "studio quality" recordings (this whole setup is mainly to record my own demos and noodlings) which is why I"m leaning towards the mixer. I also like the idea of not having to constantly connect and re-connect my POD, my keyboard, a pre-amp (if I get one) etc to the soundcard. Also, I never record more than one instrument at a time, so I dont need additional inputs (other than having additional ones to leave instruments connected to).


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## Telenator

Ahhhh....gotcha.
Doesn't really sound like your struggling at all. You got her figured out. The mixer just makes sense. If you are looking for noticeable improvement in audio quality one thing you can try, providing your computer can handle it, is jump from 16 bit to 24 bit recording. 

I agree with Larson, a quality pre will make a difference but you have to fork out the bucks to hear it, plus there are other components you can address to get improved results like quality plugins.

I think your on the right track based upon what you say your needs are.

My two pennies.


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## fraser

very nice tune in that link back there telenator- sounds real good here- nice job
i tried sonar but found it a bit cumbersome- all my midi needs are handled with the nn-xt sampler in reason 3.0- got a load of instrument patches-i dont even use any of the other stuff in reason lol- but once in a while i try learning a bit of piano, ive got a 49 key m-audio keyboard- i trigger drum samples on it too in the nn-xt but never happy with the results
with all the different programs its a learning thing, and i started with cooledit, everytime i try another program i get all messed up. ive been using reaper tho, but only to build drum tracks with ezdrummer- i will be switching it all over to reaper i think once im at a comfort level with it. 
like i say tho- i spend so much time fighting with it all that im never actually getting any tunes done..


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## Telenator

Fraser thanks for the nice words.
I'm a Reason 3.0 user too. The bassy synth parts in that tune are Malstrom patches, the drums were done with the RDK 2.0 refill, Guitar Rig 2 is in there, and the arp synth was the freebie String Theory.
I hear what you are saying, I get caught up in the nerd aspects to the detriment of creativity but I kinda like it that way. Sorry for calling you Larson, I'm not sure where that came from. Nice meeting you and kinda nice seeing someone who is right into this stuff here.:food-smiley-004:


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## fraser

nice to meet you too telenator-
i was never able to get my head around any of the other tools in reason, a friend turned me on to it a couple years ago- he was a guitarist but no longer plays at all- he makes all his music in reason- awesome program. 
im tracking about 6 hours a day here- soon ill have some stuff for you all to hear
:food-smiley-004:


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## bagpipe

Telenator, I'll echo Frasers words on your tune - very impressive. Very imaginative sounds and I would never guess that it was recorded by a home hobbyist. Maybe you could give a little bit more info on what you mentioned above - Malstrom patches, arp synth? Dont know what any of that is. I've been using this cheap Casio keyboard for a drum machine, but I've recently started trying to figure out drum loops etc and I'm working on my first tune using those. I'd also like to try and figure out a way to get more keyboard/synth parts into my tunes. I can play (very weakly!) keyboards, but it sounds like most people use some kind of soft synth to emulate the actual sounds?


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## fraser

bagpipe does your casio keyboard have a midi port, or is it midi compatible with a usb port? software synths are programs that emulate(often quit accurately) other instruments- i have a patch that does an awesome old time piano- like in a 1860s saloon- i love it-
telenator will know more about this- ill learn from him as well- :smile:


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## Telenator

bagpipe said:


> I'd also like to try and figure out a way to get more keyboard/synth parts into my tunes. I can play (very weakly!) keyboards, but it sounds like most people use some kind of soft synth to emulate the actual sounds?


Thanks Bagpipe. My response will be pretty lengthy so bare with me for awhile. I have a trick for weak keyboard skills but will leave that for another day.

Yes, all the background tracks are all softsynth based. You can get some excellent softsynths and effects for free. What I mostly use is a payed for software package called Reason that operates in a mode called Rewire and we won't get into that right now. Reason is a virtual synth rack. Malstrom is the name of one of the synths included in Reason.

The arp synth I mentioned is called String Theory. It's a free download and comes in the form of a VSTi or DXi instrument plugin, probably the most common instrument plugin format you will deal with, I'm not sure exactly what kind of synth String Theory actually is but it can make arppegiated sounds with it, hence "arp synth". I suspect I could have nearly reproduced that whole song with free software except for maybe the drums and maybe one of the guitar effects. 

The softsynths are pretty easy to setup within the program. I'm using Sonar but Reaper should be very similar. It's much the same as applying a vst or dx plugin effect to a track. When you open a softsynth/virtual instrument (VSTi or DXi) it will open a midi track (picture one of those old player piano cylinders - the midi track is just a whack of data that allows the softsynth to be played remotely or robotically), and audio tracks where the audio sound from the softsynth will get routed. 

So the key is getting data into the midi track (making the cylinder for the player piano so to speak). You can do this three ways. 
1. Real time input from a midi controller. This is absolutley the best way to work with softsyths. 
I use a cheap kids electric piano that has a midi out jack. Think it cost me 20 bucks at radio shack. When it's linked to my recording application, I hit a key on my radio shack keyboard and a message is recorded on the midi track. The message might say, "hey softsynth I just pressed the C key on the third octave for 3 seconds and released it, you do the same thing." Magically the soft synth will play its C key in the third octave and create its own audio that is outputted to one of the audio tracks created when the softsynth was initially opened in the recording application.

2.Sequencing (programming) the recording application's piano roll editor. This is not bad for drums or triggering sound effects. If you don't have an external midi controller you can program a midi track with your mouse inside your recording program's piano roll editor. This piano roll editor is basically a grid. The keys of a piano will be displayed up and down on the left hand side of the screen )like a piano tipped on it's side) and time increasing from left to right will be displayed at the top of the screen. You fill this grid in by placing notes (quarter notes, whole notes, 16th notes etc...). So if you placed a whole note on the C key of the third octave at 2 seconds, magically your softsynth will play a C note on its third octave at two seconds into the song and last for a whole note.

3.Pre-made midi files. These are similar to loops but can be editted on a note for note basis. Very common to have a whack of these files included with virtual drum synth/sampler. Just import the midi file to your soft synth's midi track and hit play.

This whole midi stuff is IMO, the most difficult concept to grasp but it's worth the payoff. Slow and steady is the way to go.

Hope I didn't get too nerdy on ya.


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## bagpipe

Telenator said:


> Thanks Bagpipe. My response will be pretty lengthy so bare with me for awhile. I have a trick for weak keyboard skills but will leave that for another day.


Thanks for the detailed response. I'll have to read it for a while to "assimilate" the information. My soundcard (M-Audio 2496) supports MIDI (1x1 MIDI I/O ?) and my cheap Casio keyboard also supports MIDI. So, in theory, I could do something similar. I'm guessing that my recording program also has to support MIDI? I use Reaper, but I think you posted something above that it doesnt support MIDI?


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## Telenator

It does support midi but not to the same extent Sonar or Cubase does. There are way more features related to midi in these other programs. Reaper does have enough midi support to do what we discussed. I don't think it will handle Rewire type applications like Reason, unless a newer version has come out but that's not a big deal. It definitely will handle VSTi and DXi formats for instrument plugins and these are the main type people deal with unless they are using Protools or Mac based applications.

So you have what you need except for the softsynths.


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## Telenator

EDIT: It does support rewire too so Reason will work with it.

PS ....... nice Star Trek reference


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## fraser

yes nice response telenator- lol- had it been me, bagpipe woulda been deciphering cave drawings-

bagpipe if you have the midi connections you need,(you can get the cables at radio shack for 10$ each- thesourcecc whatever)
do a google search for "free vst" youll get a boatload of plugins- everything from effects to instruments- grab a few and install them. then open reaper
create a new track in reaper, then click the little fx button in that track, thats where yu load the module- once yu get it to work- therell be no stopping ya


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## Telenator

Do you visit ww.dontcrack.com Fraser?
They have a real nice layout and links to just about all the freeware effects and instruments n the planet. I like them better than the KVR Audio website.

Link for Windows based VSTi instruments
http://www.dontcrack.com/freeware/software.php/id/7030/audio/Virtual-Instruments/plugins/VST/platform/windows/

Link for Windows based VST and DX effects
http://www.dontcrack.com/freeware/software.php/id/7009/audio/Effects/platform/windows/


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## fraser

hi telenator- yes! thats probably the best site out there for free plugins- i couldnt remember the name - but i tried to find it to link here and couldnt-
thanks, and now the link is here so anyone looking for this stuff, its the one to go to.
i havent played around with much, honestly the whole quest started when i needed a drummer- ive always been a three piece band kinda guitarist, and i can play bass, so i needed a way to add drums- and thats how i discovered the vastness of it all- i try to keep it simple, so ill open reason, and my default rack setup is just the nn-xt, the reverb, and the mixer- ill play my midi keyboard, and if im recording it, i just run the recording app as well.
now with ezdrummer, i load it into reaper and pick a set and groove, and start jamming along until something sounds decent, then i build a drum track based on that jam- and go from there. its starting to all come together now for me, my latest tracks actually sound pretty much like a band, however ive been out of that context for so long that creating words for the songs isnt happening lol- it will tho.


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## Telenator

Ya for me it was search for drums too. The use of synths never really appealed to me and was brought into my music almost by accident by buying the wrong stuff. Guru in particular. I almost punched a hole through the monitor after chucking out $350 bucks to find out this was built more for techno, electronica and hip hop. I wanted Peart and Bonzo not frigging Moby. Anyway all dissapointment aside it really forced me to play outside the box a bit. 

Here's one done over a hip hop beat with Guru and using the Strings Refill from Reason. Really good orchestral refill if you are looking for that kind of sound.

http://www.soundclick.com/player/single_player.cfm?songid=5046362&q=hi&ref=2


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## fraser

hi telenator, thats an awesome marriage of styles there really- i can hear sections of that tune that would work almost anywhere- well crafted indeed:smile:
picking the right software is hard especially with what it costs, to shell out 350$ for something thats not exactly what you want is akin to buying a prs when yu need a cheap strat-way too expensive, yet not good enough lol. you found a way to make it work- therefore you are not only a thinker, but a do-er as well- 
nothing productive coming out of my foxhole lately- bin drunk.:rockon:


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## Vincent

Im using mixcraft 3 which doesnt support midi yet however the next version they are working on may.

Just recorded a simple song example of mixcraft here if you want to hear it...it comes with real live drum loops and stuff.

Its under $50 to buy however you can try it for 7 days for free without paying anything...7 day free trial...just download TRY NOW and check it out.

My song sample is called "Call of the wild"...recorded it today with my new wylde MXR overdrive.
http://travtale.dmusic.com/music/

Mixcraft 3 is here
http://www.acoustica.com/mixcraft/


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## Telenator

Nice tunes Vincent. Do you mic your amps? What are you doing for the effects?

EDIT: sorry just read about you OD pedal


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## fraser

nice vincent- several of my nieghbours said it sounds good as well. 
maybe as good as an ozzie cd-lol- but nice work


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## Vincent

thanks guys...Ive only been recording for a short while...started recording in june and I hope to improve a lot in the next year...there is so much to learn recording wise.

As for recording I didnt use an amp...sometimes I record directly into puter via fast track usb interface and use mixcraft as the multitrack or sometimes I record on a little Korg D4 digital 4 track and then hook it up to the puter through usb and then import it into mixcraft and add drums and tweak it with VST plugins.

I just started using VST plugins like 2 days ago for effects and amp simulators and Im liking the free choices out there.

:food-smiley-004:


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## fraser

vincent- lissning to yur song it never occurred to me that it was not a mic on an amp- yu get good sound with yur method. but im not eric johnson- he woulda known.
ive been tracking guitars with a pod, tweaking the tones on the pc- not really happy with it as far as how it stands in the mix. but im not used to this- another learning cliff for me to stumble off of


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## Vincent

fraser said:


> nice vincent- several of my nieghbours said it sounds good as well.
> maybe as good as an ozzie cd-lol- but nice work


lol

I like a couple of ozzys albums however im not a zakk wylde fan...I like the sound of the pedal though...lol

I prefer Randy Rhodes and Jake lee as guitar players when they played with ozzy.

not sure why im telling you this...I guess i dont want to look like a fan of zakk wylde because im not.


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## Vincent

fraser said:


> vincent- lissning to yur song it never occurred to me that it was not a mic on an amp- yu get good sound with yur method. but im not eric johnson- he woulda known.
> ive been tracking guitars with a pod, tweaking the tones on the pc- not really happy with it as far as how it stands in the mix. but im not used to this- another learning cliff for me to stumble off of


You must be using the pod for effects and amp sims then are you?

What program are you using to record with...just wondering what everyone else is using.

My korg D4 has amp sims...i think I used one to record that sample I posted...I used one with like a blues overdrive then I used the MXR overdrive over it and kicked it up to a new level of sound...i just got the MXR pedal today and Im liking the MXR products so far...It has a nice warm tone.

What type of music do you play?...just wondering.


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## fraser

its ok man- bunch of ppl told me i looked like zak wild fr years- never knew who he was until a couple years ag wen i discovered the innernets. was arrested in 1988 at an ozzy concert-busted for smoking hash before the show started. i think the opening act was loudness- japanese heavy metal.i saw half theyre show.
2 guys in front of us were cops. i stopped lissning to ozzy then- bad karma.
love sabbath tho. fukking love them
sabbath bloody sabbath is my #4 desert island album


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## Vincent

fraser said:


> its ok man- bunch of ppl told me i looked like zak wild fr years- never knew who he was until a couple years ag wen i discovered the innernets. was arrested in 1988 at an ozzy concert-busted for smoking hash before the show started. i think the opening act was loudness- japanese heavy metal.i saw half theyre show.
> 2 guys in front of us were cops. i stopped lissning to ozzy then- bad karma.
> love sabbath tho. fukking love them
> sabbath bloody sabbath is my #4 desert island album


getting busted sucks...why dont the cops bust the dealers and pushers...i dont see how busting a casual smoker really solves anything...its like pissing on a forest fire...whats the point ya know.


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## fraser

mmm just saw yu last post vincent
i using the pod only because if i crank an amp in the middle of the night my nieghbours knock on the door thinking im having a party. never had a noise complaint but ppl are drawn to me like that if im loud.
i just use pod settings i scored from the net, tweak for my seperate guitars.
i play music obnly a girlfriend or a stranger from holland will love. i was once a frontman in 3 peice band, then i was a solo dude playing acoustic blues- now i heading back to where i was in the beginning
i lissen to nirvana, tom waits, cpn beefheart, alex harvey, the doors and a bunch of old school blues soloists- hope i answered yur queries m8


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## fraser

mmm at that time a little boy did acid at a pink floyd show- walked into the lake summhow and died. still dont get that. the arresting cops actually asked if i knew him- like we all in the same cult.


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## fraser

sorry vincent- yu asked what programs i use- i use audacity if it one take, cooledit if i building something, and learning to use reaper now so i cn use ezdrummer- sunmmtimes i use reason 3.0 and a m-audio 49 key keyboard- and man i really suck- yu suck more if yu spend more as i see it lol

i linked this elsewhere- and it sucks- but last night i made a girl cry with it-
so here yu go
make some angry lady friendly again with a tune from fraser
http://media.putfile.com/fraser-dirty-old-town-
like i say - ive been drunk


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## Telenator

My wife threw her panties at the computer when I streamed your version of that Pogues tune.

I've listened to some of Bagpipes stuff too and am really impressed by the guitar tone in his stuff. Vincent's stuff I can't believe is just a OD direct to computer, it sure sounded like a mic's amp to me, it sounded really alive.


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## Guest

fraser said:


> like i say - ive been drunk


Just missing a dog howling during the
lead somewhere. I like the Gasworks 
reference.


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## Guest

Checked out *Vincent*'s Call of the wild.
Sounds cool dude. I got to get my Cubase hap,n,n,n.


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## Vincent

Thanks man...I actually just recorded a new song this morning called "Half Your Life"...I think its my best sounding track so far...maybe not my best song however for sound quality I think it is...Over the past 2 days Ive finally have a decent sound I can work with.

Half Your Life 
http://travtale.dmusic.com/music/

Is there a section on this forum to post links to are songs...just wondering


:rockon2:


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## bagpipe

Vincent said:


> Thanks man...I actually just recorded a new song this morning called "Half Your Life"...I think its my best sounding track so far...maybe not my best song however for sound quality I think it is...Over the past 2 days Ive finally have a decent sound I can work with.
> 
> Half Your Life
> http://travtale.dmusic.com/music/


Vincent, thats really cool - its got a real "power pop" kinda feel to it. I could easily imagine that being the basis for a great song if you could add a melody and lyrics to it. I tend to listen to "the song" rather than the quality of the tone of each element, and the song itself and the guitar "hook" sound great on that one.


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## Vincent

I do have melody and lyrics for it however I cant really record vocals that well plus im not a powerfull singer...i can hold a note however its not powerfull enough.

The song needs vocals because that one guitar riff will get on your nerves without singing over it however thats the way it is for now I guess.


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## fraser

Telenator said:


> My wife threw her panties at the computer when I streamed your version of that Pogues tune.
> 
> I've listened to some of Bagpipes stuff too and am really impressed by the guitar tone in his stuff. Vincent's stuff I can't believe is just a OD direct to computer, it sure sounded like a mic's amp to me, it sounded really alive.


good lol! that tune was never meant to be heard by anyone, as its a cover, but its fun

bagpipes stuff is great- great tones and tastefull playing- very evocative music- it takes you someplace

vincent- Half Your Life is a very well put together tune, real catchy, really well played, great tones- like mine your tunes kinda need a vocal- i tend to put tunes together in a fashion that doesnt work without vocals. im trying to get away from that, cuz i would play better and sound better if i kept my mouth shut, but thats evolution for ya- slooooow.

i was thinking about your asking about a section for music- others post theyre songs in the "music" forum- really no reason not to do that, or to open a new thread in the recording forum- or really anywhere-


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## bagpipe

Thanks to Fraser and Telenator for the kinds words on my tunes.

I thought I'd follow up on my progress with getting MIDI working, as I got a lot of help from you guys on this subject. I did manage to get my Casio keyboard to trigger a VST which I downloaded ( I found a nice Hammond B3 Emulator). However, I think I'm at the limit of my PC's computing power. If I try to record some MIDI triggered keys onto an existing tune (using Reaper), I run into the dreaded "clicks and pops". It gets worse as I play more notes on the keyboard (ie single notes are usually okay) - 4 finger chords are much worse. Some of the softsynths show the percentage of CPU they are consuming, and when it gets up around 25%, it gets much worse. I can still use the synth sounds for background "character", which is what I was really looking for in the first place.

My PC is a 1GHz Pentium 3 and it only has a 10Gb hard drive - I've known for a while now that I'd have to replace it at some point. 

The other cool thing I discovered was using free drum loops as the basis for my tunes, rather than the cheap ass dum machine in the Casio keyboard. I found some nice "slow ambient" kinda beats which are perfect for the kind of thing I like to record.


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## violation

bagpipe said:


> My PC is a 1GHz Pentium 3 and it only has a 10Gb hard drive - I've known for a while now that I'd have to replace it at some point.


    

How do you use it?! 

Tiger Direct has a 1 day sale and they've got a refurbished desktop PC for $300. 

http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/searchtools/item-Details.asp?EdpNo=3322776&sku=E400-T5230

Decent system for everyday use. Somethin' to think about. :smilie_flagge17:


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## Coustfan'01

I use cubase . It's pretty simple to use , and works great.


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