Home recording studio help: please respond

[Alpha Crucis]

I use Cubase SX and i have a Terratec DMX 6fire 24/96. It has a break out box which has loads of in/out puts on the front of the PC so it makes everything nice and easy and it only cost me £160! it's a great soundcard.

Regarding software, you can get pirate versions of pretty much anything you want, Cubase cost like £400, so it's worth having a cracked copy of that.

I've recorded all of my solo Blackmetal project with this setup, so if it can handle me screeching my guts into it and obscenley trebley guitars, i would have thought it could do most things.

If you want some really pro instrument sounds like drums or strings and stuff, get a copy of Reason. It works a bit like Cubase except it uses real samples rather than triggering MIDI voices from the soundcard. Cubase and Reason work really well together, you can load Reason drum loops into cubase as audio files and then use Cubase's EQ's and processors to fuck with them. This is what i spend 1&1/2hours of my week in college doing.

Sorry if i've said stuff thats been said already, but i really cant be arsed with reading 20 longish posts.

EDIT: "Don't touch soundblaster cards at all", thats what i was told by several companies while i was searching for a pro soundcard. I wanted the Platinum ZX-special-meaga-hyper-go-faster-stripes one, and I was told it was crap for recording and sequencing. Mine cost £40 less and is apparently twice as good......just passing on advice.....take it or leave it

 

[Oxidised Razor Masticator]

I personally use Cool Edit Pro 2.1 in combination with Sk@le tracker for all sequencing.

I too do not have the facilities to record drums, although I do have access to a pretty decent kit. However being an old 'Tracker' from way back I can get a pretty convincing drum kit out of Sk@le tracker (Fasttracker 2 clone/sequel).

Due to lack of finances, I am using a RP50 for effects and amp/cab modelling. It actually isn't too bad once you get to a mastered mix down!

Anyone else do sequencing on an old school styled tracking app?

 

[TheDarkProject]

I sometimes use Modplug Tracker, but recently I've found FruityLoops to be easier to work with. I like to be able to have different bass sequences playing over the same drum sequence for example, and traditional trackers can't do this. And the VST effects in FruityLoops are also so much easier to use as well.

 

[Life Sucks]

I just got a Tascam V-amp. Can anyone direct me to a site where I can download some recording/editing software for free.

 

[MFJ]

I don't know if this was said already... but if you're cheap...

You can get an adapter for a 1/4 plug (come on many headphones) to plug into the PC, find somewhere to download ACID PRO music and you're set. The effects suck, but its cheap and easy.

 

[Necroscythe]

Me and my friends record using ProTools LE 6.3 (at least i think its 6.3.. i know its 6.something), and a DigiDesign MBox fed into his PowerBook, plus an external 80 gig hard drive for storing all that shit.

Of course, I would not reccomend ProTools to someone who just wants to do home recording. Only reason we use ProTools is because we each pitched in about 100 bucks to pay for the thing. I think overall it cost about 525 bucks (USD) or so.

yeah, the Ptle is up to 6.2 on mac and 6.1.1 on pc which is what I use...I also have the pod 1.0 w/2 rom chips I think they're 2.0, 2.3 each time I called Line 6 I had to lie to them about my registration.

also, I just got the digitech metal master stomp box(pretty cool but it doesn't like the pod or the pod doesn't like...it?) I put these thru a mackie 1202 vlz mixer which goes into my AM3 soundcard.

btw, Digidesign has a free Pro tools version which works on any soundcard.

also for the linux folks there's a Pro tool type of program called ardour.