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stripes wrote:here's the setup that i started out with that's really as cheap as it gets short of using a USB microphone (which I also did for a while) and pretty close to $500...

focusrite saffire 6 usb (used on ebay) - $80
2 used sm57 off the bay - $120 (i'm pretty sure)
blue spark (good room/overhead mic) - $200
A pair of Rokit 5 monitors - $300 (this is something i did without for a while while i had an interface... if you just get a pair of good $100 studio headphones for mixing, the monitors aren't crucial).
$100 Behringer Mixer (this lets me mic a drum kit and run the stereo mix into the two inputs on my interface). Unless you plan on doing live band recordings, this is a good and cost effective method.

so take out the monitors and you're right at $500. granted finding those used prices could take time. my philosophy on home recording was always to start with what you can get at the time, make do with what you have, and continue to build your studio piece by piece. it's also fun to acquire new pieces like a special occasion. $500 seems like a good start up cost to me, but you're definitally not going to be getting everything all at once, but that's a good thing.

mattar wrote:If I the saffire route what am i looking for in a mixer, 3-4 mic preamp channels? also when you run a mixer into the saffire I guess that would give me two audio tracks in my daw for drums. total recording noob, should have asked more questions to people who recorded my older bands. I also read that people have issues with the saffire and modern usb inputs, anyone know anything about that, the site says it needs usb 1.1 compatibility but i would think modern usb ports would be backwards compatible.

mattar wrote:The more I learn the more complex it becomes. As I fall deeper down the rabbit hole, would I be able to use a mixer like the mackie profx12 to record a mixed drum track to my daw without additional interface and then use it to record other tracks thus eliminating my need for an interface? ... I mean i might just get a basic mixer and the saffire( i found out the modern ones updated to usb 2.0) but if hundred dollars is gonna make a giant difference i would like to know rather than spend money with out knowing what I am getting and how much the price difference makes.

erector wrote:

mattar wrote:The more I learn the more complex it becomes. As I fall deeper down the rabbit hole, would I be able to use a mixer like the mackie profx12 to record a mixed drum track to my daw without additional interface and then use it to record other tracks thus eliminating my need for an interface? ... I mean i might just get a basic mixer and the saffire( i found out the modern ones updated to usb 2.0) but if hundred dollars is gonna make a giant difference i would like to know rather than spend money with out knowing what I am getting and how much the price difference makes.

I rocked the mixer-cum-audio-interface (not sure if there's a proper term?) for a while (Behringer Xenyx1204USB). The Behringer wasn't great—drivers sucked—but yeah, the basic idea of having a mixer that also doubles as an audio interface is pretty great. Does the Mackie send all its inputs to the computer, or does it only send a stereo (left/right) signal? I'd imagine it's the former, but you should check that. I went back to a separate mixer and audio interface setup partly because the Behringer kinda sucked as an interface, but also because I occasionally do live laptop sound and I just didn't feel like carting the Behringer around. I also don't think it had the ability to recieve (my terminology may be slightly wrong here) any of the DAW channels for mixing on the console either (unlike a friend's Mackie Onyx and, I would presume, the ProFX).

Also, about the "modern" Saffires, are you sure you're not looking at the Scarletts? I have an 18i6, it's good, but the instrument-level inputs are really hot and active pickups will clip the input like mad. No -10dB pad, either, which I can't believe I overlooked.

shred wrote:If I were going to start over with what I know now (not all that much really) I would get the biggest audio interface I could. I have an echo audiofire4 which I do most of my solo stuff on - super simple, affordable, reliable, and perfect size for me, myself, and I.
But when I play with my drummer friend and we record we'll take 4-5 mics from his kit and send them to a mixer (mackie 802 in this case) and then send the master outs to the audiofire 4. Sounds good like this but it means that we have to multitrack instead of being able to just plug everything in (drums, guitar, bass, keys, other various mic'd instruments) and play. If you have a big audio interface (something with a lot of inputs) you can plug everything straight into that, set up the appropriate channels on whatever DAW you're using, adjust the levels and eq for each instrument and just go.

So my advice would be to get something with functionality beyond what you currently need.

Are you going to be spending this money on more than just an interface? Sad to say $500 won't get you very far. Definitely go hunting for some deals to try and make that last a little farther like stripes suggested.

stripes wrote:

shred wrote:If I were going to start over with what I know now (not all that much really) I would get the biggest audio interface I could. I have an echo audiofire4 which I do most of my solo stuff on - super simple, affordable, reliable, and perfect size for me, myself, and I.
But when I play with my drummer friend and we record we'll take 4-5 mics from his kit and send them to a mixer (mackie 802 in this case) and then send the master outs to the audiofire 4. Sounds good like this but it means that we have to multitrack instead of being able to just plug everything in (drums, guitar, bass, keys, other various mic'd instruments) and play. If you have a big audio interface (something with a lot of inputs) you can plug everything straight into that, set up the appropriate channels on whatever DAW you're using, adjust the levels and eq for each instrument and just go.

So my advice would be to get something with functionality beyond what you currently need.

Are you going to be spending this money on more than just an interface? Sad to say $500 won't get you very far. Definitely go hunting for some deals to try and make that last a little farther like stripes suggested.

i have to disagree with this.. you can do a lot with a little if you get creative. you can also learn a lot about recording beyond the gear that you need (navigating interfaces, using plug ins, gain staging, etc..) with little equipment. the most of my experience came from making a little go a long way, making something "cheap" sound good. if you learn how to mix things well and give them the right limits, effects, and compression, all you really need is a microphone and some spare time. doing this will also benefit you in the future when you will inevitably invest more money into more expensive mics, mixers, interfaces, preamps, software and what have you, because you will already know how to make just about anything sound good. it will only sound better because you're now using equipment that is, well, better. trust me, being a novice at recording and blowing money on really expensive equipment will only get you more expensive equipment, not better sounding recordings.

it's going to be expensive both now and later down the road, so i wouldn't worry about getting the better and more expensive things now because you're thinking about the future that you have with recording. starting small is something that people still do for a reason when they're getting into something. it can also be overwhelming to have a lot of complex gear that you don't really know how to use. tackle it one step at a time. get a small interface and a mic, record a song with a couple layers of guitar or vocals if you sing, learn your program, get a feel for what everything sounds like. then work your way onto something else. and above all else, just do whatever sounds good to you!

stripes wrote: i have to disagree with this.. you can do a lot with a little if you get creative. you can also learn a lot about recording beyond the gear that you need (navigating interfaces, using plug ins, gain staging, etc..) with little equipment. the most of my experience came from making a little go a long way, making something "cheap" sound good. if you learn how to mix things well and give them the right limits, effects, and compression, all you really need is a microphone and some spare time. doing this will also benefit you in the future when you will inevitably invest more money into more expensive mics, mixers, interfaces, preamps, software and what have you, because you will already know how to make just about anything sound good. it will only sound better because you're now using equipment that is, well, better. trust me, being a novice at recording and blowing money on really expensive equipment will only get you more expensive equipment, not better sounding recordings.

it's going to be expensive both now and later down the road, so i wouldn't worry about getting the better and more expensive things now because you're thinking about the future that you have with recording. starting small is something that people still do for a reason when they're getting into something. it can also be overwhelming to have a lot of complex gear that you don't really know how to use. tackle it one step at a time. get a small interface and a mic, record a song with a couple layers of guitar or vocals if you sing, learn your program, get a feel for what everything sounds like. then work your way onto something else. and above all else, just do whatever sounds good to you!

shred wrote:
mattar - using xlr-trs adapters for the other couple mics. Doesn't seem to make a difference to our ears.