Old 03-27-2007, 07:51 AM   #1
manning1
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Default talking input signal chain.

i realise many here have pristine signal chains going into reaper. mic>>>preamp>>>sound device etc.
eg......sm7 say>>>great river>>>>lynx possibly.
but this is lotsa buks.
my question is...what are folks input sig chains for more budget conscious amongst us,
or folks on pensions like moi ??
cos i'm thinking of upgradeing later on in the year.
how about this sig chain....comments ??
cad mic>>>rane ms1b pre>>>>esi julie ??

the rane gets lotsa good press as does the other two.
in summary what input budget signal chain do u use that you are v v happy with ?? and get great tracks from ??
i just cant afford apogee n lynx etc etc.
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Old 03-27-2007, 08:22 AM   #2
trock
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hey manning, my RME is great, and i have heard great things about mytek, and they are less money

my go to signal chain

is

peluso 22 251 ->API lunchbox (512c pre) ->RME FF 800 ->PC

usually for vocals

for acoustic

shure SM 81 or the peluso -?Pendulum quartet ->RME FF 800

you could check out the FF 400 if you don't need all the inputs. i think RME's pre's and gear is great, and they did a blind shoot out on GS between RME and Apogee 200 and most picked the RME, even apogee people (man were they pissed)

anyway. it all depends on what your recording, how many inputs you need, your room especially etc

but you have heard all that before. remember bob makes incredible albums with good mic's and behringer stuff.
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Old 03-27-2007, 08:41 AM   #3
Jonas_Eriksson_Swe
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we (me and my band) use two affordable sound cards with built in mic preamps: Alesis IO2 (two channels) and Edirol FA-66 (six channels).

which microphone to use depends *strongly* on what you're going to record, but a safe bet is the well tried Shure 57 (use it on vocals, guitar, snares, toms...) or, if you're prepared to spend just a little bit more a, Studio Projects B3 (also suitable for vocals, acoustic guitars, room mic, drum overhead...).

combine any of those two sound cards with any of those two mics and you've got a decent input signal chain for $300-$400.

regards,
- Jonas Eriksson

PS: if you need more in/outs check out the presonus firepod (around $700) and (if you're going to record drums) the t-bone drum mic sets (around $200 for 5-7 mics) S

PS2: these are approx European prices (basically what we paid for them), I'm guessing it's all a bit cheaper in the Canada S2

Last edited by Jonas_Eriksson_Swe; 03-27-2007 at 08:48 AM.
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Old 03-27-2007, 09:23 AM   #4
Lawrence
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My default vocal chain is MXL V69ME -> Grace 101 -> Lavry Blue AD -> Traveler AES -> daw. I like a really clean vocal sound to start with.

Swappable (for vox) with DBX 586 / AT4050 - NTK

I might drop a tube leveler in there somewhere sometimes. between the pre and the AD.
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Old 03-27-2007, 09:24 AM   #5
manning1
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thanks chaps.
trock..v v nice sig chain, but sadly outside my budget.
ive got a number of mics includeing 57.
prob with 57 is sensitivity to mic pre impedence ive found.
i'd love rme or lynx but dam money.
jonas...cheers will look at that combo u suggested.
thnks for responding.
i'm hearing good stuff boutthe alesis.

by the way 4 inputs is enuf pur moi.

whose bob ??
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Old 03-27-2007, 09:33 AM   #6
Diogenes
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I love my EMU 1820M and Berry ADA8000 combo. 16 inputs total. 2 pretty decent pre's on the EMU. 8 fair to middlin' pre's on the Berry. Rest are line-in.

For VOX - Rode NT1A or AT2020 or SM58/57 depends...

I have a CAD 7 mic kit for drums which is decent but the SDC's for overheads suck so I use AT2021's for OH mic's. Nice drum sounds.

EMU - about 400 - 500 bux.
Berry ADA8000 - about 200 bux.

You can spend beaucoup dollars on mic's and pre's. I have found though that to gain REALLY significant improvements, you must be willing to part with LOTS of cash.

Making the best you can with what you can afford is the name of the game I'm afraid...

D
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Old 03-27-2007, 11:46 AM   #7
Youn
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i88x

some have said it's converters are close to lynx, maybe better then rme, and equal to kurzweil KSP8.

In my experience I think they are better then MOTU for sure and the preamps are very transparent - worth the $1000 bucks the intire unit was initially being selled for! Now you can get it for like 3-400. I never had any problems setting up the interface, but that's supposadly it's downfall.
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Old 03-27-2007, 12:10 PM   #8
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My whole chain consists of stuff I bought used on ebay (except the mics). I have Presonus TubePre > FMR Really Nice Compressor > Echo Mia PCI card. Retail is for suckers. Total cost: $225

I have MXL V67 and Sennheiser MD421 mics; guitar goes straight into the soundcard when I'm feeling lazy (often).
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Old 03-27-2007, 12:17 PM   #9
Gerry G
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Default Man1

I am just about to buy an Alesis io 26 400 US and only 500AUD. Nobody has got any at present as they have such a hot reputation but Sweetwater are getting them in soon. April some time.

The guy is looking into shipping options to Australia for me. I have Nicholas to thank for putting me in touch with a personable deal after wandering for 40 days and 40 nights in the desert of faulted daws.

I have looked at so much stuff in coming to this decision: latency, preamps (8) very good ones according to tweakheadz. I was making the mistake of looking at MOTU 8pre because it was more expensive but just like Reaper the less expensive one seems to have better features and way more options.
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Old 03-27-2007, 01:55 PM   #10
tspring
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Just updated my audio signal chain with an Edirol FA-101 firewire interface. Very clean sound, 10-in, 10-out, low latency. The FA-101 has been around for a while, and I've seen a couple of used ones on e-bay, and I'm thinking that that you might be able to pick one up for around $300 US. One minor drawback: only two preamps built in. I solve that by using the pres on an old analog Yamaha mixer I picked up on Ebay for $ 50 US. The Yamaha preamps are quiet and warm and interact well with SM57s.

T

Edit: My son just bought an Alesis io 26, which is a sweet piece of equipment. I reclaimed his FA-101 to replace my old M-audio audiophile USB interface. Ah, the sacrifices of fatherhood!!!

Last edited by tspring; 03-27-2007 at 01:58 PM.
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Old 03-27-2007, 05:13 PM   #11
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Which CAD mic did you mean? I'd recommend the M179, it's a bargain for vocals and acoustic, multi polar and it won our recent shootout for tom mics over the usual suspects quite convincingly...I'm not kidding, it'a great multi purpose mic.

I have to recommend the FF800, really really reliable and low latency...might be out of your budget even used, just wanted to say I'm very happy with mine.

That Rane pre is supposed to be great for the price, the other one to consider would be the M Audio DMP3, it gets excellent reviews too, stereo with VU meters, and close to the Rane price.

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Old 03-27-2007, 05:19 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Gerry G View Post
I am just about to buy an Alesis io 26 400 US and only 500AUD. Nobody has got any at present as they have such a hot reputation but Sweetwater are getting them in soon. April some time.

The guy is looking into shipping options to Australia for me. I have Nicholas to thank for putting me in touch with a personable deal after wandering for 40 days and 40 nights in the desert of faulted daws.

I have looked at so much stuff in coming to this decision: latency, preamps (8) very good ones according to tweakheadz. I was making the mistake of looking at MOTU 8pre because it was more expensive but just like Reaper the less expensive one seems to have better features and way more options.
http://www.frontendaudio.com/Alesis_IO_26_p/7936.htm

$400US Gerry, I can also recommend Warren from Front End Audio, he replies promptly and even tested my CAD mic before he sent it to me, a real gentleman
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Old 03-28-2007, 05:39 AM   #13
manning1
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thanks for the ideas chaps.
ive heard there are some new fw devices coming out in summer.
aaarrggghhh...driving me nuts...lol.
its mainly i need quality ADA.
whats the closest to RME quality ?? the alesis ??
mebe i'll win a lottery. lol.
if i DO your all invited to a smashing party,
and we'll all jam useing reaper.
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Old 03-28-2007, 08:05 AM   #14
Gerry G
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Default Easy really

Quote:
Originally Posted by gregh View Post
Be really interested in finding out how you buy from the US - stuff is soooo much cheaper there. Last time i tried the company said they would/could only ship internal because of various monopoly agreements with suppliers to Oz.
You just need to be able to talk back and forth by email. I have a Fedex Kinkos opposite where I often work in Bourke st Melb. That means shipping is expensive but reliable and I can pick up from there.

Just remember that orders >$1kAUD seen to attract customs duty.

Also throw a few synapses at the power supply differential question. I have no experience with laptop firewire but some say it will drain a laptop very quickly if you are doing field recording so being able to plug the interface into an Australian 240v supply is important. I am told that this, in the case of the Alesis IO 26 means just getting a cheap adaptor for the US style plug AND MAKING SURE IT IS SET TO 240V otherwise if it is set to the lower US voltage it will blow like Moby Dick.
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Old 03-28-2007, 12:07 PM   #15
P. Rene
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Default wow big money over here huh!

for me its senheiser e835> mackie 1202 vlz pro > rme adi-2 > rme 9652hdsp.

Thats it thats all, ohh yeah sometimes an v69me.
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Old 03-28-2007, 04:21 PM   #16
Alistair S
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I have budget stuff, but it is fine for me and is letting me learn.

I have a Phonic FW mixer, a DMP3 and various mics (MXL603 pair, MSH Omni pair, MSH Cardioid pair, Rode NT1a and a dynamic). Absolutely nothing stellar there, though I have to say the NT1A is very quiet in terms of self-noise.

The biggest factor for me I think is my room and monitoring. I think room treatment would improve things no end. Better monitoring will help me too.

The biggest improvement in my signal chain has been a new guitar. I bought a cedar topped Taylor 514 and it sounds great. I am also very impressed by the ES system, which sounds very natural to me (and has the advantage of cutting out my room).

I don't plan on upgrading any of my kit until I can get the most out of what I have (though I have to admit that the Alesis IO14 looks interesting to me).

I have been mainly trying to get a better acoustic guitar sound so far. Then I will look more at my electric. Right now, I simply play that through my amp that connects directly to my mixer. I have occasionally tried micing the amp too.

A better space to record in may help me most. Could yours use some help too?

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