difference in mic pre amp and usb audio interfaces

O

ondesMartenot

New member
hi guys i would like to know the major difference between recording you vocals/instruments through the mic pre amps e.g artube to your soundcard or through an usb audio interface like the lin6 toneport ux1 or ux2.

another thing is i would want to record obscure instruments like sleigh bells, harmonica,bongo,maracas and claves with my bass ,electric ,acoustic guitars along with keyboards and also with my vocals. my vocals would be light singing with reverb to make dreamy trippy vocals ala experimentative music like radiohead and sonic youth.

i know that condenser mics are expensive. im not looking towards freaking professional recording . just doing it as a hobby in my comfort of my bedroom. if i were to go ahead with the ux1, there is no phantom power so i cannot power it up by plugging it into the XLR point. so im looking towards the dynamic microphones.

would the SM57 Instrument Microphone be enough to record all the above without major disruption of recording quality. i have a friend who does all his recording thru the mic of his laptop and it was audible enough. haha.

or other any budget alternatives for mics? oh yeah would a pop filter be very crucial for recording vocals?

thanks guys.
 
audio interfaces generally have built in mic preamps. the toneports are geared more towards guitarists, i suggest you pick up a cheap recording interface (behringers etc,there are plenty of cheap ones nowadays) and use that instead..

if you already have that ART preamp you could possibly go direct into your soundcard via a 1/4" to 1/8" adaptor..but it really isn't ideal..most standard computer soundcards suffer from noise and hiss..crappy line/mic ins etc.

not all condensor mics are expensive..shop around you can find decent stuff for around $100-200. they aren't the best but if you're just doing it as a hobby it'll be fine.

for the stuff you're intending to record, a condensor would probably work better, but dont discount 57's either.

a pop filter isn't ABSOLUTELY crucial for vocals, it really depends on your singing style and whether you put out alot of plosives when singing. in any case you can make a ghetto one from a coathanger bent to shape/sewing hoop and a roll of pantyhose..
 
ondesMARTenot :

"difference between recording you vocals/instruments through the mic pre amps e.g artube to your soundcard or through an usb audio interface like the lin6 toneport ux1 or ux2."

UX1/UX2 already has 1/2 preamp, you'll be spending unnecessarily on another since you already mentioned you're just a hobbyist.

"if i were to go ahead with the ux1, there is no phantom power so i cannot power it up by plugging it into the XLR point. so im looking towards the dynamic microphones."
1) get a UX2.
2) get a UX1 + http://www.behringer.com/PS400/index.cfm?lang=eng

"would the SM57 Instrument Microphone be enough to record all the above without major disruption of recording quality."
almost any mic with XLR would. remember, you're just a hobbyist. it's all about purpose to start with.

"i have a friend who does all his recording thru the mic of his laptop and it was audible enough. haha."
well, if the recording's soft, you can increase/amplify the volume in the audio editing software.

"or other any budget alternatives for mics?"
http://www.samsontech.com/products/productpage.cfm?prodID=1901&brandID=4
$400+/- 2 condenser mics, with Guitar D.I functions, your XLR inputs has phantom power in case the 2 condensers not good enough.mobile too.

"pop filter be very crucial for recording vocals?"
if you can afford one. get one. should cost around $40 for the cheaper ones. if not use hanger/hoop and stockings. if you lazy to make, and broke to buy, ask the vocalist to smile while singing.think happy thoughts, imagine you just had a great F*** before recording.

60¢ worth
 
Hey thanks for the advice. it really had made me alot to understand the variables of basic 'personal bed-room' home recording.:)

The ux1 is definitely a wise choice for me. i was thinking to get a normal dynamic mic along with the ux1 for a start. the reason is firstly the cost. it would probably cost me 200 (+/-) to get both the items stated. a ux2 is much more expensive and i wouldnt be needing to much to record my own stuff . the downside of the ux1 is i cannot use a condenser mic because there is no phantom power. only the ux2 has phantom power to power condenser mics up.


Secondly, it already has a mic preamp and ,amps/cabs simulation ,effects for instruments and vocals and a recording software albeton live. And i could also use the amp/cabs simulation along with my own rig of effects. both are my secondary motives. i would want a vox ac30 with a 4x12 cab sound clean through my own effects. yummy. though its never the same as the real deal. i hope it would sound decent enough.

i have heard comments that ux1 is geared to guitarists and the sounds from the amps/cabs are very sterile and recording is digitilized. ive yet to differ as i havent tried the ux1 yet. :)

If all else fails, i would probably get a micpreamp like the artube or a behringer 200mic and a dynamic/condenser mic. but then i wouldnt have the choice of amps/cabs to play ard with along with. i could get a multieffects board like the korg ax1500g which i have heard and tried . the amps/cabs simulations there are not bad and the effects are not bad sounding either. but it would cost me 250 plus to 300 inclusive of the micpreamp and the microphone.

so i guess ux1 is the best bet. im gonna chk out how much it cost 2morrow.
thanks alot guys. please feel free again to pass some comments or advice on what i have said.
 
"difference between mic pre amps or usb audio interface like lin6 toneport ux1 or ux2"
To some people's ears, there isn't any difference. To mine, there is. ux1/2 are solid state preamps in-built, art tubeamps are tube. Normally, a mic preamp will sound better than those usb audio interface, smoother and warmer. Especially if it's line6, i bet it will lose out a big deal, unless vs Behringer. ha!

"would the SM57 Instrument Microphone be enough to record all the above without major disruption of recording quality"
If SM57 is enough for everything, then the shops will only have one mic for sale, that is SM57. Recording studios will only have SM57s, every microphone you see in TV, magazines etc will only be SM57. Think about it!!! God!! Why does everyone thinks SM57 is enough for everything, if SM57 is enough, than any mic is enough. People who thinks SM57 is enough are people who have no idea about mics at all. I had a debate with someone who thinks that SM57 can capture everything. He says it can capture bass, mid and treble frequencies, so it's alrite. Come on, think about it, almost every mic in the world can capture bass, mid and treble frequencies. Even those karaoke mics can capture all frequencies. So are they enough???
The difference between getting suitable mics is that each mic may capture all frequencies, but captures more of certain frequencies than others, just as each instrument resonate more of certain frequencies than others. No mic in the world is enough for everything, to capture with accuracy, the most appropriate mic would be that which captures more of the frequencies that the instrument is resonating, and not capturing too much of unwanted frequencies.
If you don't want a good sound, then forget about getting SM57. Just get one of those cheap $15 mics, they also capture everything....

"would a pop filter be very crucial for recording vocals?"
Question again is how far you want to bring your sound level up...
 
hey guys. i have chked out the price for the ux1. it is $192 after discount. not too bad actually.

thanks for the advice parablue74.

Quote from parablue : "Especially if it's line6, i bet it will lose out a big deal, unless vs Behringer. ha!"

so you are saying that behringer products are cheap and they sound crap aye? what if it is for starters? if i choose a behringer mic200 would it be that bad???. im just doing simple recording not those complex ones. sound quality wont be a high priority. as long it captures the sound and doesnt sound too 'sterile' would be fine. my friend does his recordings throught a laptop inbuilt mic. check it out here :

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=159831077


im still having mixed doubts. a micapremp or a ux1. i'll probably be using alot of the micpreamp features as i would be recodring acoustic guitars, bell, chimes, tin whistles, indian /arabian percussion and flutes. for the instrumentation wise i would use a keyboard thru a multieffects board a korg ax1500g and also thru my own 'experimental' rig.

do you know where can i get the art mic preamps?they are better sounding than the behringer how about microphones? for starters any recommendations and where do i get them?

thanks.
 
for what Parablue said about behringer. seriously, I can say stuff like "www.blueprintstudios.org , listen to 20 Dischanger - Solitary (Demo) , that one was recorded with behringer ADA8000 preamps" and all sorts of statements of defence , but end of the day it's to each his own opinion. indeed, Behringer is "crap" like most ppl say, but if you ask me, china brand / no brand stuff is probably the worst? Behringer is yet the best friend to many many people with slim wallets. it's the first time I'm hearing that "line6 preamp sucks". I've yet to test it out myself. but I'll be looking forward to either prove wrong or be proven wrong hehe.

the new SOFT 8th DrumXchange videos miked up recording, the cymbals were recorded with Behringer C2 condenser mics. if you ask me they sound fine. no matter how "crap" behringer brand is. you even hear me joking in video "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5h37Qdiog0I" at the end of it when the drummer hit the C2 mics by accident I was like "yeah it's meant to be hit on" , cos that's how cheap,sturdy (I believe,hasn't broken down so far.) and cost efficient it is.

so yeah we can go on and on with questions like "Mac Vs PC" / "Hardware VS Software" / "Behringer Sucks Or Not" and of course the ever famous "which came first, the chicken or the egg". in the end, what works, what makes us happy, and happiness is the most important of all things in life. Even emo kids are happy by feeling sad.

OndesMartenot : guess what? this is going to make things frustrating - I heard from one of my very experienced friends that ART preamp sucks. so what's it gonna be? behringer / ART / Line6 ? it still sounds like UX2 is the best option for you in my opinion though.

50¢ worth
 
ART preamp sucks? i strongly disagree.

im using one and im loving it. i've sold one to a fren of mine and he likes it so much.

im using ARTMP Studio V3 and its really quiet. I agree with parablue that u can hear the different between tube preamp and usb/firewire audio interface.

if u have line6 pod, try connecting it to ART instead of using the usb. its like adding tube warmth in line6 modelling.
 
well, I had a Presonus BlueTube DP http://www.presonus.com/bluetubedp.html
description : pretty/clean/warm. and phat bass D.I.

even sounded better/warmer when I used a Rode NTK (tube mic) > Presonus Bluetube preamp > my old soundcard.

this one was good sh*t, but due to previous financial constraints, I sold it to one of the studio-softies here.
 
Hi. I just recently have a Beta58A. How about i get some EMU like EMU2020 compare with i get a mixer or a preamp for fun recording at home?
 
misconception

Difference of mic pre amps and audio interface.. its like comparing duck and chickens. Mic pre amps are created to boost signals from microphones to a higher level.. probably line levels. Audio interfaces is where u can connect your instruments like guitars or basses..if your audio interface doesnt have a mic pre amp built in, you cant connect a mic that uses xlr balanced connection. U have to boost the signal by using a pre-amp. Some interfaces that have built in mic pre-amps cost more, but then again its not really the best pre-amps available. a good mic pre amp cost a bomb..but then again we must see if the price benefits the type or project you are doing. Anyway not forgetting to mention, audio interfaces usuali has an A/D convertor. Meaning to convert analog signals into digital form as so that the computer can track watever you are recording. In conclusion, if you are short of budget, get the interface that can sustain your future upgrades, get an interface with as much I/O as possible and if your even on a tighter budget, get ones that has many mic pre amps, or at least a decent pre-amp so u dunt have to look for another interface when you are progresssing. Some good interfaces to consider with mic-pre amps are MOTU Ultralite, Pre sonus range of interfaces, like the firebox just to mention a few. Line 6 is good value for money for the specs too.. if you are on a budget.
 
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