Home Recording to PC

polarred21 · #1 02-21-2015, 01:54 PM

Looking for entry level suggestions. Want to record my acoustic play on what would be the next step up from my smartphone.

Looking for a mic for the PC and maybe some type of music recording software. This appears to be popular on Amazon, any suggestions appreciated...

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...f_rd_i=desktop

Psalad · #2 02-21-2015, 02:20 PM

I have experience at the high, medium and low end for audio recording.

At the low end, I needed to buy a microphone because I had to do some voiceover recording at the last minute.

So I bought a Samson USB mic (C1). It sounded surprisingly OK... except it was too noisy. I had Isotope RX which allowed me to dial out the noise.. but I wouldn't recommend the Samson for that reason. It is a condenser but I think the high noise eliminated some of the bad room from the recording. Not a great tradeoff.

The Rode Podcaster is much better. It's a dynamic mic and has a pretty narrow pattern, which is good for most of us (since we don't always have good rooms). It also has the advantage of having a headphone jack built in (so it has both a/d and d/a converters). But I have only had the opportunity to try it with voice and acoustic guitar. I wasn't overwhelmed with it in either case, but a little EQ and the sound was quite serviceable.

I haven't tried the CAD mic in your link. It's a condenser which is good and bad. It will pick up more room sound than a dynamic, but it will have more high end sizzle generally speaking. It has gain control which is really important when you're recording both soft and loud sounds. Based on the reviews it's hard to see how you can go wrong, plus it's so cheap... the only downside is shipping will cost a third of the price of the mic unless you're Amazon Prime. The downside is it doesn't have d/a converter on board so your latency will depend on your computer (if you're overdubbing... recording at the same time you're listening to previously recorded tracks). If you don't need to overdub, just don't have headphones on and you're OK.

Mr Fixit eh · #3 02-21-2015, 04:30 PM

If you're looking for a simple pc solution, I've been very happy with my Blue Yeti and Audacity free software. The Yeti has gain control on the mic, which saves a lot of fiddling with adjusting sound level settings on your computer, and it sounds pretty good for a USB mic.

Steve

polarred21 · #4 02-22-2015, 06:23 AM

Thanks for all the feedback I have researched all the suggestions above and still learning so I want to make the right purchase.

Sounds like a may need a dynamic mic since the condenser mic is very sensitive. I would be recording in a small office only to hear my practice sessions.

When recording with my phone, I have to use the low volume recording setting only because the high setting is full of distortion. I know this is a crude way of doing it, but I don't want to order a mic that gives me the same results without a way to tune it out....

delaorden9 · #5 02-22-2015, 06:52 AM

Hi @Polarred21 ; I would definitely go for the practical ... a Zoom recorder . I've got the entry level H1 and I'm satisfied with it.Some folks here in Show@Tell record with them so you can dig in their songs etc... If you can get a newer model from ZoomH2 and above, much better. Those gadgets are really really good. Go to YT and watch some videos about it. Good luck.

P.S.: as for the recording software I would recommend REAPER, easy, fine, low CPU use and unending possibilities.

polarred21 · #6 02-25-2015, 03:41 AM

I am reading on the Audicity forum that some USB mics have issues with low recording volume. I guess no type of pre-amp, just plugged straight into the computer.

Has anyone experienced this?

MikeBmusic · #7 02-25-2015, 08:19 AM

USB mics have built-in preamps (as well as A-D converter, of course). I don't know of any with a built-in gain control, though.
I'll think you'll get your best bang-for-the-buck - as well as something you can use at home or move forward with - by getting separate audio interface and a mic.

Joseph Hanna · #8 02-25-2015, 10:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by polarred21

I am reading on the Audicity forum that some USB mics have issues with low recording volume. I guess no type of pre-amp, just plugged straight into the computer.

Has anyone experienced this?

Just to clarify

A microphone is either good or not. If it has an on board pre-amp the same applies. Same goes for the converters.

USB has utterly nothing to do with the misconceptions flying around about "USB Mics". There's nothing sonically inherent about USB nor does USB contribute to a good vs bad choice of mics.

jaymarsch · #9 02-25-2015, 02:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr Fixit eh

If you're looking for a simple pc solution, I've been very happy with my Blue Yeti and Audacity free software. The Yeti has gain control on the mic, which saves a lot of fiddling with adjusting sound level settings on your computer, and it sounds pretty good for a USB mic.

Steve

I just purchased a Blue Yeti and am going to try it out tonight. I have Audacity on my laptop. Thanks for posting. I will post something in the next couple of days and let the OP know my experience.

Best,
Jayne

polarred21 · #10 02-25-2015, 06:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaymarsch

I just purchased a Blue Yeti and am going to try it out tonight. I have Audacity on my laptop. Thanks for posting. I will post something in the next couple of days and let the OP know my experience.

Best,
Jayne

Yes I would appreciate your feedback. I'm looking into buying this setup or maybe a digital tecorder.