My Home Recording Studio Setup
Note: It is recommended to print this document
My home recording studio setup for digital computer recording and online recording is nothing fancy or special. Also it is a middle of the line setup as far as pricing goes too. And let me state up front that my opinions stated in this article are based solely on my own experiences, preferences, and knowledge.
In this article I will provide a general overview of a home recording studio in addition to discussing my specific equipment and how I have set it up. The reader must keep in mind that this is what I have found works best for me for the purposes I use my system for. My main use is for vocal singing online and also for mixing my vocal and keyboard tracks for CD recording.
The intention of this is to provide the basic user a general understanding of how to configure a system using an external sound mixer to produce your recording results. Many people use their computer sound card exclusively for their mixed recording and this is not intended for them if they are happy with their results.
The Basic Components
1- Microphone (s)
2- Digital Sound Mixer
3- A Computer
The Microphone (s)
I will discuss microphones only in general terms. There are basically two different main types of microphones to consider when looking at vocal microphones. They are “dynamic” and “condenser”. Of course there are thousands of different ones to within each type to choose from. Like anything it all comes down to your personal preferences and your pocketbook.
Dynamic Microphones
In general the dynamic microphones are used most often in live performances. They are usually very sturdy and produce good quality sound. Although my preference for home studio recording is a condenser microphone, I do have several dynamic microphones which I also use for home studio recording. Generally you can get a pretty good dynamic microphone in the price range of $50- $150 US Dollars. My personal favorite is my Shure Beta 57A. You can get a great deal online for it or any other microphones at ZZSounds. Just click below this section on microphones and it will take you to their secure website.
Condenser Microphones
In general the condenser microphones are used more often in home and professional studios for recording. They are designed specifically for home and professional studio recording and provide a cleaner, crisper, and higher quality sound than the dynamic microphones. They require phantom power (dynamic microphones don’t). Basically phantom power is a pre-amp boost. It can be a separate box or it also comes as part of most sound mixers. I won’t go into detail about it here. Condenser microphones are generally more expensive but at today’s prices you can get a good quality condenser microphone for between $125- $225 US Dollars. I personally use an AKG Perception 200 that ran me $199 US Dollars. The new replacement for that model is the Perception 220 and it’s cheaper at about $179 US Dollars.
Digital Sound Mixer
Simply a digital sound mixer takes in sounds from one or more sources, mixes it together, and then outputs it to speakers, recording devises, other devises, or a computer as in our case. Like microphones there are many brands and models to choose from. They can range in prices from under $100 US Dollars to thousands of dollars. For our purposes of home studio recording a good mixer with many bells and whistles will run between $100- $300 US Dollars. You can probably fine some pretty decent ones under $100 too that will work. The key, again, is your preferences and your pocketbook. Most singers will want some standard effects like echo, reverb, or the ability to change the sound to different room types and sizes. As examples I am talking about sounds like “…concert hall, live stage, small room, large hall, etc.” I looked at a lot of mixers and decided to choose the Mackie DFX-6 (New model is ProFX8) because it gave me quite a lot of features for a reasonable price. The things I particularly like about it is: six channels for various source inputs, each channel with individual controls, about 16 difference effects that each have variations of control, internal phantom power, and the digital sound output is excellent. As I stated before, there are all kinds of brands and models out there to choose from. If you want to look into the Mackie DFX Series or other similar brand models just click on the link below and it will take you to ZZSounds.
Computer
Since there are so many types, sizes, configurations, and brands to select from I will make no suggestions about particular computers. I would say the importance for a good recording home studio (audio and video) setup on your computer come down to four basic things.
1- Processor speed and RAM memory
a. I would suggest for audio and video recording that as a minimum your computer have at least a speed of 1.6GHz. The preference would be above 2.0GHz.
b. I would suggest for minimum RAM memory you should have at least 3.00 GB. Anything less will work but will slow down performance and impede quality of the video portion of recording and online streaming.
2- A high definition sound card
a. What you are looking for here as a minimum is the capability of producing good quality stereo. Normally most decent sound cards have surround sound stereo and 5.1 as a minimum.
3- A good video card
a. There are many video cards on the market and you should make sure your video card matches with your computer. Personally I would suggest a video card with a minimum of 128MB of ram capability. The gamers use 512MB cards for the most part. For general video I would suggest 256MB.
4- A good Internet connection speed for online steaming and recording.
a. I would suggest a minimum connection of DSL. Dial-up will be too slow, tedious, and result in poorer quality.
My computer information:
· HP Pavilion m7990n Media Edition
· Processor Speed- 2.0GHz
· RAM Memory- 6.00GB
· Hard Drive Memory- 500GB with additional 500GB Bay Drive
· Sound Card- Realtek High Definition with DirectX version 9.0 and audio driver version 5.10.0.5502
· Video Card- NVIDIA GeForce 7600GT driver version 2.1.270.00
· Connection- DSL Fast Access (AT&T)
My Personal Recording Setup
There are many ways to set up a home recording studio. Mine, as I said before, is a fairly simple setup that works well for me for both home recording (audio/video) and online karaoke singing. I will not go into the video side of the setup in this article other than to make the comment that if you have an internal microphone on your camera it is important to set your microphone not to the camera source but to the audio source you actually use (connect into) in order to get good sound quality. I use a Logitech camera and set my microphone in the Logitech setup to Line-In Mic.
Wiring Setup
If you refer to Diagram 1 you will see my basic wiring setup using and external Mackie mixer. There are different ways to wire and setup but this is how I did it. Basically my microphones or any other instrument plug into my Mackie mixer and then I run a wire to my computer Line-In Mic from the Mackie. To listen to my mixed sound while recording I run a wire from my computer back to my mixer and listen through the headphones on the mixer. If you have a similar mixer this I how you would wire it as I have.
1- Plug you microphones or other instruments into the mixer. The best quality sound for microphone connections uses a SLR connection rather than the standard 1/4 male plug in. However, you can use that if you prefer. If you do, plug into the Bal/Unbal (L) plug. See on Diagram 1 (1).
2- I then run a split line back to my headphone. The reason I run a split line is because I also connect my speakers here. That way I can first monitor my overall recording through my mixer because I hear the sound from the computer and then after recorded I can listen to the finished product on either the speakers or through the headphones. It also allows me to disconnect the speakers if I get any feedback during recording but still hear the music and vocal through the headphones plugged into the mixer. In order to make this connection for my Mackie it required 2- 1/4 male to 1/8 (RCA) female adapters, and a split RCA male L/R to a stereo phono plug wire. I plugged the 1/4 males into the L/R inputs of my mixer. I then plug the split wire (Y-adapter) RCA plugs into that. I then plug the stereo phono end of the split wire into the front panel headphone plug on my computer. See on Diagram 1 (2)
3- On the Mackie mixer Main Out I plug a ¼ male to 1/8 female stereo adapter plug. I then plug a stereo phono plug into that. The other end of the phono plug I plug into the Line-In Mic plug on the rear of my computer. See on Diagram 1 (4)
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