Help! Home recording Bass

[Bart B]

Hi guys,

The thread title says it all, I want to record my bassplaying here at home.

Oli has recorded some great samples of stingrays and, being a complete noob in the area of recording, I wonder what stuff I need to do this.

So I'd like to know what gear and what software I would need to have a decent quality recording, and if possible, some software to produce drum tracks.

I don't have a Mac so I suppose no logic pro for me
EDIT: I don't want to pay tooo much money for this

Thanks!

Bart

 

[keko]

I soldered a new cable with standard 1/4" jack on the bass side and 3.5 mm stereo jack soldered into a mono to connect directly into the line in input of computer's sound card!
(don't forget to select Line In for recording in audio properties and set the right level)

I've done some samples with Audition Pro software, but it's pretty complicated.
Another samples I made with old fashioned software Audio-Grabber with line in sampling option! (really simple, kids could use it)
Both records (samples) made in 44.1 kHz 16-bit Mono and sounds great!
No preamp used, only bass preamp built in mine Sterling!

I had a problem when I wanted to make a quick video clip at home, 'cause don't have web cam, so I was improvising with vintage VCR camera and DVR recorder..., but that's another story!

In the future I prepare to make some decent video recording with drum machine over mixing console and with my friend's professional video camera, something what Ed Friedland do, even with "bug" microphone attached on shirt, so I could mix in some comments of mine , but that will wait for a while! (missing some free time )

P.S. ...I use some professional multi channel recording custom order made software at work, but I can't use this gear and software for private purpose, anyway the software is licensed and copyrighted, I could lose a job if I try to distribute that stuff!

 

[AREA]

I would recommend a USB Audio Interface to record your Bass. You´ll get them for small Money or maybe used via eBay or something. You´ll get a Recording Software like Cubase LE, Pro Tools Essentials, Ableton etc. with them and that will deliver good Results.

 

[njhammer]

I use "Reaper" (by Cockos) as my recording software and, until recently, a "Tascam US-122" digital interface which can be picked up used on ebay relatively inexpensively. Both give fantastic results.

For drum samples, check out "Drums On Demand".

 

[Bart B]

Would you guys recommend to put a DI box in the chain to have more sound control options or will the USB interface do the job?

Thanks for the replies!

 

[AREA]

Having and using a DI Box is always helpful. I use the DI Box from my Radial Engineering Tonebone Bassbone but it will also work without, so that you put your Bass into the Instrument Input from the Interface. BTW: I use the Tascam US-144.

 

[adouglas]

+10000 on Reaper!!! Download it NOW.

REAPER | Audio Production Without Limits

Cross-platform, at least as good as any high-buck commercial package out there, available as a NON-CRIPPLED demo, a very active development team, and the license price (which you should definitely pay) is only $60 if you use it for non-commercial purposes.

Save yourself some hassle and go get an inexpensive recording interface. USB, Firewire, doesn't matter. These things are VERY easy to find for not a lot of money. If all you're doing is recording yourself, a bottom-of-the-line one will do.

I record the whole band, so I went for an interface with 16 inputs.

You don't need a DI if you're plugging straight into the interface. If you want to use your amp while recording, either get a DI or use the amp's line out (if it has one).

 

[cd_david]

Pro Tools all the way, STUNNING audio editing, not the best sequencer however 8 is much more user friendly than 7.
I have used Logic for 10 years and love it, great instruments and effects but the audio engine is not a patch on PT and it is THE industry standard and SOOOOOO flexible.

Digidesign MBox 2 Mini, - Online Music Store | Sounds Live

 

[njhammer]

I wasn't sure it was OK to post links. For drum loops, check out Drum Loops | Drums On Demand

It stops playing when you tell it to, doesn't interupt, and won't drink all your beer or upset the girlfriend......

 

[fly]

Pro Tools all the way, STUNNING audio editing, not the best sequencer however 8 is much more user friendly than 7.
I have used Logic for 10 years and love it, great instruments and effects but the audio engine is not a patch on PT and it is THE industry standard and SOOOOOO flexible.

Digidesign MBox 2 Mini, - Online Music Store | Sounds Live

gotta agree with the pro tools.........we use the mbox often and they just sound deadly.

 

[CFA]

Audacity is a good free program for recording, in my opinion. Also, for actually getting a signal into the computer I usually just use a 1/8th inch cable with a 1/4 inch adapter on one end. Obviously this won't get you a studio quality bass sound, but it will get you something.

 

[Bart B]

Audacity is a good free program for recording, in my opinion. Also, for actually getting a signal into the computer I usually just use a 1/8th inch cable with a 1/4 inch adapter on one end. Obviously this won't get you a studio quality bass sound, but it will get you something.

Jup, I have audacity and tried this, but I am not really happy about the sound quality, on my pre-EB I have to turn the input down alot and it still sounds a bit overdriven.

 

[njhammer]

Jup, I have audacity and tried this, but I am not really happy about the sound quality, on my pre-EB I have to turn the input down alot and it still sounds a bit overdriven.

Download and check out Reaper. As our friend adouglas says, it's the best bang for the buck/euro out there and won't even COST you a buckaroo for 30 days (and only after that if you purchase the license for $60, which you should). You can record to Reaper from your soundcard. Might solve your problems.

I've been using it for 3 years now: Easy to use and constantly upgraded. Great forum too.

My 2 cents.

 

[Calaveras]

I have worked as an audio engineer so my 2 cents.
Pro Tools is great if you aspire to be a producer or if you want to record basic stuff at home then flesh it out at a pro studio. However PT is not the easiest program to learn. I liken it to photoshop. Photoshop is THE image editing program. Is it the easiest? NO. Is it the best? NO. Will you be able to get a job doing graphic design for print or web media if you dont know photoshop? NO. Both programs are pro level with a pro level learning curve and legacy features that still dog them.
Since you are just recording at home for kicks I would stick to free apps like Audacity and Reaper. Reaper is pretty good but a lot of folks (me inlcuded) find it to be an eyesore and kind of a pain. Sonar is really good, Cubase is as well.
As far as connecting. Don't bother with making adapter cables from 1/4" to 1/8" this is the road to ruin. Any sound card that only had 1/8" jacks is gonna blow. It's not gonna have instrument level inputs. (bass level is not line level, its is also not line impedance).
I would say you are probably better off getting a USB or firewire interface by Presonus, MOTU, Tascam etc that has mic and instrument inputs. These will be the right impedance to record your bass without distortion or artifacts.
I use a MOTU 828MKII with an audio chip upgrade by Black Lion Audio. Cost about a grand total. You can pick up used 828MKII interfaces for $3-500 these days.
In the past couple of years I have tried the Native Intruments Kontrol one, which sounded pretty darn good, but the latency was hard to get around. I also have a Zoom H4n. Wait thats a portable stereo recorder! Well its also a multitracker and when plugged into a PC it is an audio interface! It actually sounds really good on bass and guitar.
Things to check when buying an audio interface. Go to the companies forum site (like this one!) and see if there are any issues plaguing users. I cannot count the number of times I have bought some piece of computer gear on a whim then later found out that it had incompatabilities. Problems I could have educated myself about if I had spent 5 minutes at their website beforehand. Also be aware that not all audio boxes work with Mac (and some dont work for PC, thanks Apogee!)

Finally, some advice on recording correctly. There is a lot of misinformation about this so here we go. When recording digitally you cannot exceed 0 db. That is the top of how loud a signal can be. Any signal louder than 0dbfs will just make computer gibberish awful noises.
Some recording advice is to record as loud as you can without clipping (hitting zero). Th reasoning is that you want to use all of your 16 or 24 bits to get the most fidelity. This is bad advice. If you record in this way you will not preserve headroom for transient detail. It is better to record so that you don't see the signal ever cross the -10 db or -12 db mark. This way all details of the sound are preserved, even the fast transients that do not show up on the relatively slow audio meters. Also when all of your recorded tracks start at -12 dbfs you can combine them without running out of headroom at the mix buss.

I would add that a good passive DI often times sounds better than an instrument level input on a sound card. The transformer in the audio path certainly helps! If you are really interested in getting the best sound out of your bass and into your computer than look at some Jensen transformer equipped DI boxes such as the JDI by Radial.

 

[Bart B]

Thanks for your replies,

As I view it, I would need:

-USB audio interface (tascam us 122 II seems to have good reviews everywhere, comes with cubase and isn't too expensive) but I think I can try reaper as well, since it's trial is free to try.

OR/AND

-DI box to have the right impendance as well and to have a better sound of my bass

right? and can the DI and interface be linked before they go into my computer?

 

[adouglas]

I'd try just plugging into the interface first before you spend money on a DI.

If it doesn't sound good, then invest in the DI.

The low-end version of Cubase is bundled with most interfaces. I've tried it and wound up using Reaper. It's MUCH better than the free Cubase.

 

[njhammer]

That's way more than 2 cents from Calaveras. More like $1.50. Great advice.

 

[njhammer]

You don't need a DI with the US-122 interface.

 

[Jim Roseberry]

You don't need a DI if you're plugging straight into the interface. If you want to use your amp while recording, either get a DI or use the amp's line out (if it has one).

Reaper is excellent... even if you were looking for a more advanced audio editing/recording software.

BTW, Many audio interfaces don't have a proper Hi-Z input in which to plug DI electric bass and guitar. If the audio interface has a Hi-Z input, you don't need a direct box. If not, then you'll want to use a direct box... otherwise your fidelity will be compromised (due to impedence mis-match) which robs the bass tone of "balls" for lack of a better word.

 

[oli@bass]

I don't have a Mac so I suppose no logic pro for me

OK, so this answer is not for you but for any potential Mac users starting out on redording and reading this thread: Use GarageBand! It's either already on your Mac or is available at a low price (bundled with iLife), it uses the Logic engine and comes with a good library of professional samples, sounds and effects. Since you have an active instrument, you can actually go direct into the input jack, but a dedicated interface is easier to use on the long run. Get a low cost USB interface that can handle guitar signals (Hi-Z input) like the Stealth Plug.