Hello I'm New and this is post #1 for me.

[bluesmannumber1@yahoo.com]

Hi Guys and Gals,

I'm Jim. Have recorded analog for years. Been on a 10 year hiatus from music recoding and playing. I want to get back into it. Can run a PC pretty well but don't know squat about about this new digital recording stuff. I'm here to learn. So, please teach this old Dog some new tricks. I am a retired Blues Guitarist but fixin to get back into it so all the help on the digital recording end of things wil be greatly appreciated. It's nice to meet you all and it's nice to be here.

Thanks,
Jim

[jdaug]

Hi and welcome. I think the first decision you need to make is whether you want a PC based system or a standalone digital recorder. Most of us here use PC. If you are going the PC route, you need to determine if the specs on your computer are suitable for recording. then you need to decide which software sequencer you want and then which soundcard/interface. check out the wizards in this forum to help you figure out which equipment and software will work best for your needs. they should help you determine your needs pretty quickly.

[brandondrury]

Your in luck dude. I've been recording almost full time on a PC for the past 6 years.

Check out my getting started guides in my signature in addition to my soundcard wizard.

Don't feel shy about asking specific questions here on the forum! The modern digital stuff can get a little overwhelming with choices, but if you take your time and get the main concepts, you'll have it figured out in now time.

Brandon

[bluesmannumber1@yahoo.com]

Thanks Guys for the insight. I have plenty of PC's all with plenty power,ram and GB. All of them were the fastest working ( at the time I bought'em ) so I'll get the dedicated one up to snuff ( Duo Core etc. ) I'll probably have 2 HD's put in it. The HD in it now is a 7200 rpm type. So, here's a question. would it help or hurt to put (2) 10,000 Rpm drives in it or just stick with the tried and true 7200 Drive? Would that be of any benefit at all ? I just wonder if that considered upgrade is worth my time or money ? The one I'm fixin to set up for recording is an older Dell running XP home edition.

Beides the above I'm having a hell of a time figuring out which software to buy to start recording. I do know that I don't want Pro tools 'cause it seems that your then chained to their hardware to run their program and I haven't heard that much good about PT stuff except the very top of the line PT stuff that cost as much as a house. Hell, I don't need another house but I will settle for a comfortable travel trailer type software which can be upgraded later. But sounds good now. I've got plenty mics,stands and instruments. I just need to know what to use software wise that ie goo. I don't mindin spending a Grand on good soft ware. I just want the best bang for my buck that can be upgraded in the future. Sorry for the long post but it help you guys figure out what I really need to get going.
Thanks again Guys,
Jim

[jdaug]

Brandon will probably agree that Cubase 4 or Cubase Studio 4 is the way to go then, if you dont want PT and are using a Windows machine. Its pretty affordable and works well with many different interfaces, and there isnt any proprietary hardware requirements. If you dont need as many features you can go with Cubase LE and upgrade later, but the price difference is so small you may as well get the good stuff. Some interfaces come with LE, and then steinberg will give you a discount to upgrade to 4 or studio 4. thats what i did.

[brandondrury]

would it help or hurt to put (2) 10,000 Rpm drives in it or just stick with the tried and true 7200 Drive? Would that be of any benefit at all ? I just wonder if that considered upgrade is worth my time or money ? The one I'm fixin to set up for recording is an older Dell running XP home edition.

Stick with 7200 rpm drives unless you plan on putting 200 tracks on each song. I've never maxed out a 7200 rpm drive and I've had track counts in the 70s.

As long as your computers are clean you'll have no problems at all. Remember people were doing serious recordings with Pentium 2's back in the day. The only real drain to CPUs come in the form of plugins and VSTi (synths). Modern computers can record wav files without blinking.

having a hell of a time figuring out which software to buy to start recording. I do know that I don't want Pro tools 'cause it seems that your then chained to their hardware to run their program and I haven't heard that much good about PT stuff except the very top of the line PT stuff that cost as much as a house.

Your views are totally in line with mine.

I love Cubase SX3. They just replaced it with Cubase 4 in the past few months. I haven't used Cubase4 so I can't say much about it, but I would expect it to be everything you'd ever need in terms of recording software.

Don't forget that you can still take advantage of their half priced upgrade on Steinberg stuff.

I'm not sure what you are thinking about your audio interface (that's really the big one with this computer stuff), but there are quite a few audio interfaces that come bundled with Cubase LE, which you could upgrade to the big boy Cubase 4 for $400. Hell, depending on your needs you may be content with Cubase 4 Studio where the upgrade is only $200.

Massive Cubase LE Upgrade Deal!!!


Brandon