Need Advice RE:Editing/Recording Programs

[spacecowboy]

so i'd like to start recording some music and playing around with it on my computer. now the question is.......what program(s) should i use? I don't know too much about using the computer to do sound recordings so id like a program that is effective but not too hard to learn.

Any Recommendations?

I've played around with Cakewalk before and I kinda like it.......just wondering if there are any better ones out there. Is Cubase good?

thanks

Paul

oh and id like to do some multitracking as well.

[\/\/illy]

Paul,

I'm not sure what works well either but I'm interested in the same thing. I've got a computer sitting in my living room that would seem perfect to record late night jams with. Actually, I'd rather use my reel-to-reel and then transfer to the computer. However, the 'Sound Recorder' that comes with Windows doesn't seem to be able to handle it. I'd like a program that I can just set to record, then let it fill a hard disk for the next several hours. Was Cakewalk good for that sort of thing?

[bradm]

For straight transfer of stereo stuff (as opposed to multi-track recording/overdubbing), CDWave works pretty well. You run a line-out from (say) your tape deck into the line-in on your soundcard, and let it record. Once the whole (or as much of it as you want) tape is transferred, CDWave can then be used to split the file up into individual tracks.

It's shareware, but still works after the trial date has passed.

Aloha,

Brad

[secondtube]

cool edit pro seems to be the standard for transfering and recording music. I know soundeforge works too. Just do a search on kazaa_lite, and download both, try em out, and see which one you like.

I started using cool edit pro around four years ago, and i'll never change .... its a great program...

eh willi, what ever happened with your mp3 test? Did you end up converting all your cd's? Were you able to detect the difference in sound degredation?

[Mr. Musicface]

Hey Paul! Personally I find Cakewalk works fine if your doing a small combination of MIDI tracks and audio. I use Cakewalk Home Studio, as the name implies it leaves out lots of pro features like simultaneous multitrack recording or sync'ing to an external source and such, but I find it works fine for demo work at home if you're doing a track at a time.

For just straight audio editing (no MIDI) I really like CoolEdit 2000 (as opposed to Pro).

http://www.syntrillium.com/cooledit/

It lets you do some fairly funky stuff for a cheap program, it can open and save to MP3 and lots of other formats, it has good normalization and compression built in and it's quite fast for doing cuts, fades etc. It's also expandable if you want to do multi-tracking or add other niffty features. Personally I wouldn't recommend CoolEdit Pro unless you're doing true multitracking where you're recording multiple sources at the same time with some kind of pro audio hardware.

My two-cents, hope it helps!

Peace,

Mr. M.

[Dennis]

Hi Paul.

I too prefer using Sonar (aka Cakewalk). Probably because I am used to it. Cubase is good, as is Nuendo. You may want to get a few applications, as CoolEdit is great for fixing/altering a specific .wav file outside of your multitrack environment.

Depending on what you are trying to accomplish, you may want something to create beats. Fruity Loops is pretty good, and allows you to import any sounds you want. I'm not much of a drum programmer, and I manage to create drum parts rather easily.

If you are interesting in producing somewhat of a finished product (mixed, etc...) you will need to get some outboard gear. Tweeking virtual knobs justy isn't the same as wrapping your fingers around a real one. Also, many of the effects that come with the applications (or as plugins) aren't really that great (again, difficult to adjust settings without real knobs).

If, like me, you just want a multi-trak environment to record original compositions (for the purpose of hearing what it sounds like), then the out-of-the-box solution will probably be just fine.

There is a yahoo group on homerecording. Lots of great advice for novice/home engineers there too. I highly recommend joining that group.

Good luck, and be prepared to spend many long hours in front of your monitor!

Dennis

[Tungsten Gruvsten]

Sound Forge Vegas is super easy to use and learn, and powerful should you need features. It's audio only, no MIDI to cloud everything up, and you'll need a multitracker like Vegas(or Sonar, Nuendo, Pro Stools etc) if you want to record something, then play overtop of it while recording something new.

However, that being said, if you have a standard Soundblaster or likewise card, you better get intimate with the word 'latency'....it'll drive you crazy.

[spacecowboy]

Anyone have a manual for Calkwalk Sonar 2.0 or Cubase VST 32 or Fruity Loops 3 that I could possibly get a copy of? Hard Copy or Electronic

[spacecowboy]

^ anyone?

[Tungsten Gruvsten]

surely you don't use kazaa or direct connect or the internet for just music?