Re: [LAU] A short story: from zero to recording the drums in a budget

2014-07-22 8:36 GMT+02:00 Carlo Ascani <carlo.ratm@email-addr-hidden>:
> 2014-07-21 21:52 GMT+02:00 Robin Gareus <robin@email-addr-hidden>:
>>
>> Thanks for sharing. That's good info.
>
> I think that the most interesting part here is the computer.
> It is a P4 with 512MB of RAM and it does a great job as a digital recorder.
> And it is extremely silent.
>

Carlo, from here also thanks for sharing your experience.

>>
>> What software and plugins did you use to record and mix?
>>
>
> I recorded using Ardour 3.
> I mixed on my laptop, sharing the whole session using git.
> The plugins I used are eq and compressors from calf and gverb.
> In details:
> the kick has eq and comp
> the snare has comp
> the toms have eq
> the overheads have nothing
> the whole kit has gverb
>
> Under Ardour 3, there is a plain archlinux installation.
> Stock kernel, and a very inexpensive window manager.
> On the mixing machine, which is a Thinkpad X201,
> I have exactly the same setup.
>
> I am not a big fan of "multimedia distros", just because
> I am using the same software setup for recording, mixing and do my daily job
> for almost 10 years now, (just changing the hardware).
>

I've used Raspberry PI for jamming live and recording, a P4 with 512MB
for rec/mix/master/..., and other PC/laptops with more power, and it
all went OK, just with Ardour2/QTractor for many years now, using
Raspbian and Musix distros mainly. Haven't yet tried Ardour3 until we
compile it for Musix or have some repos for it.

I mean, you can record a decent drumkit sound with a pair of mics, In
your case you used 8 (which is not easy at all, considering leaks and
phase issues) and a P4 and you achieved a great raw sounding that you
can later sculpt to your taste.

>>> So guys, what do you think?
>>
>> Sounds very good to me. I've heard pro studios do worse with much more
>> expensive equipment. I prefer the dry raw sound [2] here for the demo.
>> Though things will be different in mix with other instruments.
>>
>>> If I would improve the quality of my recordings, where should I spend
>>> more money?
>>
>> I don't think you have to. Tweaking mic positions and adjusting the mix
>> will have greater impact in this stage.
>>
>> If you really really want to waste some cash: one can never have good
>> enough Mics and analog preamps :) but you'll have to go up an order of
>> magnitude on the price-list for it to make a significant difference - if
>> any.
>>
>> You're fine on the digital side. the Echo Layla has only 20 bits but
>> that's plenty here. Don't worry about this.
>>
>> The weakest part of your setup are probably the KRK Rokit 5 monitors.
>> I've heard those in comparison and was not convinced for
>> mixing/mastering in general, but I cannot judge them for drum mixing on
>> a budget.
>>
>> Note however, that this directly affects the processing
>> (compression/eq/etc) that you'll be doing and it may or may not be
>> possible to 'get used' to these monitors and learn how to properly tweak
>> details of the mix with them.
>>
>
> Thank you for the tips guys!
>
> A bit OT:
> I would like to emphasize how good is the Revox M3500, the mic I used
> on the snare.
> I find it far better than the SM57, which is a mic you can compare it to.
>

I try to put in practice that of "less is more" (you'll find that most
of the publicity of most products tell you almost the opposite). A
good source is the key, and I think that with some knowledge, good
taste and a relative good pair of ears, you can achieve at least
acceptable results with any equipment.

You did it, so congrats. And would be great to hear this in context:
song, album...

---
C. sanchiavedraZ:
* NEW / NUEVO:     www.sanchiavedraZ.com
* Musix GNU+Linux: www.musix.es
_______________________________________________
Linux-audio-user mailing list
Linux-audio-user@email-addr-hidden
http://lists.linuxaudio.org/listinfo/linux-audio-user