Ok, I really want to do it. Setting up a studio to record.

[Jwar]

So, I need some suggestions, help and the most cost effective way to get things done. Not the cheapest, but the smartest.

I have the following at my disposal.

A fuck ton of pedals.

Two basses.

A shit guitar (I'm a shit player, so it fits).

Steinburg Interface

GK amp for DI or mic'in

A crap Shure mic



I want to do it all myself. Vocals, drums (electronic most likely), bass and may not even use a guitar because I'm not a guitar player and who needs that shit anyway.

How do I go about this? Be as specific as possible in regards to how you do it or how you would. Where you'd set up, what programs you'd use, DI's, mics...etc.

PLEASE HELPS ME!!!

[lordgalvar]

A good all around mic is worth the money. Shure sm7b, electrovoice re20 etc are worth it...the EV has many relatives that can be picked up cheaper (667a) and is a good all around mic.

Get any power/grounding issues solved which goes a long way with noise floor.

A good older mixer can be a good value. I have an older Mackie that is pretty good. Tapco is another one. They've helped a lot with my lower output stuff into my interface (some mics just need more gain).

ADAT...I always liked working with that if you don't like computers. Most of the demos/albums people did around my hometown are/were on adat and it always worked out well.

Mostly it's just practice with your stuff to get the best results. Checking gain levels, moving mics around, eq setting. I've heard bad recording with good equipment and amazing ones on crap cassette four tracks. I the experience is the most valuable thing.

Talk to Drop and that guy that kicks it with jrmy with Evel avatar. They'd probably have good tips (better than me). Drod did some exceptional recordings with minimal equipment (like some cover versions of songs live).

[coldbrightsunlight]

My advice is from someone who records a lot in their bedroom with fairly limited equipment, I'm not a pro by any stretch of the imagination but I make things I think sound OK.

Well you have enough to get started recording bass and vocals (and any other live sound source) already!

Bass (-> amp if you want) -> interface -> computer
Mic -> interface -> computer

You'll want a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) to put things together in. This can be had for cheap or for a lot of money

There's plenty of options for DAWs, I use Reaper because it's cheap and really pretty good for home recording, it's a bit basic but does everything you need especially with extra VSTs. You can also go more fancy! Logic is great if you have a mac. ableton live is good. No experience of protools but it's very widely used in the recording industry. There are definitely quite a few more but I know zero about them.

I'd suggest that for doing your own stuff at home you go for one of the cheaper options, but you do you.


So now you have a DAW, and interface and a mic. That's all you need to record bass and vocals. Try that out before buying extra mics or whatever. I pretty much only DI bass because it sounds great and is easier than setting up mics and playing loud. Pop on a cab impulse VST, maybe a bit of EQ and compression and you've got a good, fairly live sounding bass. Vocals and guitars are trickier to get right! Still, maybe it turns out that crap mic sound works in your music for some reason. Give it a go, identify what's missing then buy stuff to fix the problems you have. That said there are some all rounder mics you'd be hard to go wrong with like a Shure SM7b or something. I'm faaar from a mic expert tho.


Sidenote, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtual_Studio_Technology if you don't know what VSTs are. They're little programmes that can run in your DAW to do effects, play sounds and stuff. Very handy and you'll be using a lot.


Now, you can record ok sounding stuff from your bass and vocals. Drums next! I'd say VSTs/standalone programmes and MIDI are your best bet for drums for a solo garage thing. You set up a track in your DAW, put a drum VST (or standalone programme) in it and write some midi patterns. There are loooooaaads of options for drums, from free to expensive. Addictive drums is fantastic for live drum sounds, it's got lots of wonderfully recorded kits and you can change tons of parameters, but it's also a bit pricey. I'd suggest trying free stuff out first! For example https://beatmaker.xyz/sl-drums-3/ or http://www.powerdrumkit.com/ both of which I've used and which are OK.

Hope that all makes sense and helps? Happy to give more advice



EDIT: I also endorse everything lordgalvar said.

[Jwar]

What do you guys think of using a drum machine into a interface for the beat? I’m looking to do a kind of industrial doom type thing. I want this to be grainy, 90’s ish and not so polished. So I love the idea of a cheap mixer.

Thanks for all the info guys!

[lordgalvar]

I'm assuming more ministry/kmfdm and less cabaret Voltaire?

Drum machine into a cheaper mixer before the interface would be better. Some drum machines have a very very low output (looking at you dr55). You could use your send and returns for pedals. I got my Mackie 1202vlz for like around $100 including shipping. Not noiseless, but it works.

As for an industrial type drum machine...look into 1980s and early 90s digital stuff. I feel like drum machines are more about the interface and your interactions sometimes more than the sound. Alesis SR16 or HR16 might be a good place to start. Layering tracks would probably help too making drums more heavy while not eqing the whole mix. That's going to take some practice getting the sync right.

Samplers like sp202 or Yamaha su700 may be more useful overall for that style though.

Vintage synth explorer has a lot of industrial acts listed with equipment. Browse around there a while.

Bit crushing/srr and even a cheap four track can help add some artifacts.

Also, just playing stuff out of random amps/speaker and rerecording it with a mic is kinda fun. Like drum machine out of the bass amp or synth out of a danelectro mini.

If cabaret Voltaire...lots and lots of tape loops with samples, some synth sounds, drum machines looped until polyrhythms.

Good trick I saw years ago for a heavy kick sound was to mic a hardwood floor and then stomp on it...take the sample and filter distort until heavy and loud.

Also, practice feild recording found sounds for other percussion to call back to test deptarment, einsterzende neubauten, and pig. Something like those zoom handhelds might come in handy. Glass breaks, knife swipes/grinds, random thuds and stuff like that.

[Jwar]

Dude. Hell yes! You are a wealth of info and knowledge! Thank you so much!

[dubkitty]

love the HR16.

in their early days Depeche Mode used to go around town recording the sound of pounding on the side of dumpsters for kick drum sounds.

[rustywire]

I want a pair of these Earthworks mikes and think you might, too


Good pair of near-field monitors, set up properly for a listening sweetspot [where you sit most of the time]
Simple room treatment: acoustic panels to eliminate first reflections. Ceiling, bass traps as needed. Baffles are useful for controlling sound in a large space (which few people have access to, but curiously becomes available in a pinch)

You can go entirely ITB, but I recommend a board or mixer to provide tangible surface with faders. They help visualize and facilitate an effective workflow and routing of signals, especially early on the journey.

How many channels of input you need is up to you. A lot can be done with a single channel, much more can be done with a stereo pair. With 3 or 4 the potential is glaring, beckoning for collaboration. 16 is probably more than you'll ever need, remember a project like Abbey Road was done with 8tracks. The Zoom R16 is unironically something I used on-location for a week in late 2011 and have wanted one ever since. Need to finally get one already.

Reaper is a good DAW for a fair price. Audacity is great for sampling & editing sounds, fo free.

[Dr. Sherman Sticks M.D.]

yea those zooms are nice. R8 is cool also if u don't care about 2 track recording everything. i seen both go for the low low used.

a preamp goes a long way sometimes too for better recordings. even those cheap art ones can make a world of difference.

[PeteeBee]

It seems there is a cost/benefit analysis worth doing of working a bunch on your space to get it all sounding nice, or just going DI and getting nice headphones and really not worrying about the space. I've heard people here suggest that the later is a good starting point because it lets you work with a sort of easier starting point by removing variables. You could even record your bass with a mic and mix it with the DI, which would minimize any negative attributes of the room. Drum machine might as well go direct, and there are lots of tricks to make a little vocal recording setup.

I will very much enjoy the project of working on my space when it is time for it, but I know now that my biggest goal is putting out some tunes, and for that the first step is just recording as I can. Adding more things to consider and fret over to the equation will just make me slower. (Same reason I'm making a tiny pedalboard for this process.) After I finish a first little ep then I'll worry about taking my music up a notch and actually micing everything in a more proper studio setting.

I don't have nearly as much knowledge as the other people who posted, just sharing where I'm at after distilling loads of info from the internet. I'm still at the low level of difficulty of having a hard time getting my computer to recognize my interface as a sound source.

[Jwar]

For me, the space is crucial in the respect of having a place to create without disturbance. Right now, my PC is upstairs in our office. It's not an ideal place to sing or play because it opens up into the living room and it's right next to the front door.

So, my plan is to move all of my shit down stairs. The reason I'd rather mic my cabs is that I find that when I go direct, or even through a DI, my bass tends to clip most interfaces, especially with pedals. So, I need to get a mixer involved I believe to stop that from happening, since my basses pre isn't quite making the cut.

The drum machines do sound good direct, I've done that before.

Vocals direct are great but I need it to have something to prevent a lot of ambient noise. I like the idea of having vocals with rawness to them and not so processed however.

You all have given me a great starting point and I'm going to begin tomorrow. I would today but I don't have enough time.

[dubkitty]

my bass tends to clip most interfaces, especially with pedals. So, I need to get a mixer involved I believe to stop that from happening, since my basses pre isn't quite making the cut.

sounds like you need a rackmount compressor.

[coldbrightsunlight]

I've had good results using active bass directly to interface. I think if you plug in and watch the input level and reduce the bass volume you should end up OK.

[JTurbide]

If it's not what you already have you might want to get an SM57. It's the cheapest and most used mic out there. works for guitars, bass, probably good for other things too. I'm no expert at all but you will see it everywhere, SM57 is a great mic especially for the price

[lordgalvar]

Sm57 is a good mic...they have a midbump. I think jwar is going to need something with a bit more low end clarity. Vintage D12, re20, sm7b, stuff like that. An SM57 blended in with a better low mic and accounting for phase and stuff would work. Not that sm57 can't be used on bass...I've heard it do pretty dang good in the past, I'm just kinda going off of jwars intended style and love for pedals (sm57 is going to sound more punky and may get pretty dang muddy with lots of stuff).

I've never had good luck with sm57 and the like on bass. Bass, to me, is freaking hard to pull off which is probably why a lot of people go DI. I've always liked to close mic guitars and basses, with, sometimes, a room much on the guitar.

Rackmount compressor is a good idea (dubkitty!) And blend the di signal in for punch