Recording Advice

[championboxer]

hi dudes..
know this has been discussed over n over again..
but would like to have an updated opinion

(a) Computer - apple Mac G5
(b) Recording Requirements:
- vocals like in an interview done over radios
- Music/songs to be inserted as well... like backgrd music while talking
- i would need to split each segment into different tracks
(c) Think number of inputs should at most be about 4
(d) Other preferences:
- i have used Garage band but the problems are:
(1) there is no pre-amp to increase my mic input and it goes quite soft..
(2) i cannot adjust the volume of the clip at some portions.. like when the interviw is going on, the music is faded but increased to normal when interview is off...

yup... hearing yr comments...

8)

 

[soft]

championboxer, do you want to do it 'live' or pre-recorded?

 

[championboxer]

pre-recorded...

think this is much easier...

 

[iansoh]

then you should just use a multi-tracking software other than garage band i think.

try getting acid pro. there's a free version called acidxpress availalbe from www.acidplanet.com

so u just record the interview by itself, then add the music on a separate track and use volume envelope where applicable to decrease and increase the volume.

 

[championboxer]

eh...

believe acid xpress is PC based...
platform i'm using is Mac..
hence... dnu think that may work..

it'll be good if i can record the interview on the same software and platform too...

thks!

 

[soft]

championboxer, you should be able to 'ride the fader' by using GarageBand's automation function. http://www.apple.com/ilife/garageband/mix.html

you record your voice on 1 track and put your music onto another track. just add the volume curve to control the balance.

about your mic being soft. which mic are you using and how is it connected to the computer?

 

[5stringedsoul]

adjusting gain levels thru an interface? say firewire solo or sumthin.

 

[championboxer]

championboxer, you should be able to 'ride the fader'

thanks for your tip...
did that last night and works fine to what i required..

the only thing is the mic input... still kinda soft... i have to add "distortion" to make it louder...

the mic i am using is actually a boom mic from AudioTechnica.. cause its battery operated...
the other mic i have is a AKG one condensor mic... but i do not have any interface with phantom power to work with my MAC...
yup... any advice?

seond thing is that ... i recorded something last night and it turned out to be a mono track... i tried channel 1&2 but seems like channel 1 is only working... any thing i may have missed?

thks so much!

 

[Scream_ed]

I believe a mic preamp is necessary cos it's what amplifies the mic signal to a proper level. I enquired from Sinamex about a MIDIman preamp that's like one mic input and one line input, with phantom power I think. Costs about a little over a hundred. If you are usually a one-man recording operation, that investment would be useful. Hope that helps.

Does Digidesign still have a free version of their Pro Tools up on their site for download? If there is, u can give it a try. It's compatible with Mac & XP.

 

[Scream_ed]

Sorry for the blooper. The mic pre-amp is from M-Audio, not Midiman. The guy at Sinamex (Steven, I think) mentioned that it may also be available at the iMac Centre at Funan, but I haven't checked it out. You might wanna go there and take a look?