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Mbox with ProTools LE for casual amateur recording or something else?

Originally posted by Genie

Some of the vocals on the Wildflowers CD were through the Voxbox. Nowdays I record the voice directly from the L47 into the Martech Mss-10 mic pre and then into the A/D. I used to used a Manley Variable-Mu compressor but I am expreimenting with using no compression.

Oh- the Steinway O was rented, but the Steinway B (7') is now mine. Or my bank's, for a few years, I should say.:rolleyes:
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I ran a couple of DPA 4040s through Amek Purepath pre's on a Steinway (a D I think, do they make a D?) a few feet out from the case pointed horizontally at a 45 degree lid. Sounded awesome, recorded into HD1 at 24/96.

I'm a big fan of Bosendorfer pianos too, but the Steinways really cut.
 
Originally posted by WinterMute
It actually uses a proprietry format from TC themselves, the plug-ins that come with the unit are awesome, and most other manufacturers are providing versions of their plugs that'll work in the PowerCore.

Still, it's worth the price for the internal plug-ins.
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thanks for the tip. it's something i'll keep my eye on.

though my sol'n might be to buy a g5 next year...
 
Originally posted by WinterMute
I ran a couple of DPA 4040s through Amek Purepath pre's on a Steinway (a D I think, do they make a D?) a few feet out from the case pointed horizontally at a 45 degree lid. Sounded awesome, recorded into HD1 at 24/96.

I'm a big fan of Bosendorfer pianos too, but the Steinways really cut.
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Sounds like you have very good ears, and budget!
 
Originally posted by Genie
Sounds like you have very good ears, and budget!
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Can't buy 4040's for love nor money these days, they only made 100 pairs I think, and they were £6000 odd then. I happen to know a fellow with great ears and a huge budget who lends them to me occasionally. I do, however own the Amek and HD systems, and I monitor with Dynaudio M1's or M3's:D

The 24/96 really becomes apparent on monitors like those.
 
Originally posted by JFreak
in the end it's all about opinions and personal preference. choose what you like. but keep in mind that protools is the apple of all audio recording systems - it's THE pro's tool.

if you plan to make final tweaks to your project in a real studio, mbox is THE best buy for you simply because you already record your project in the pro format. you can transfer your project to big studio's system in 5 mins and not pay big dollars for nothing. i'd hate to spend half a day transferring some dp4-project to protools because moving protoolsLE project to protoolsTDM system is faster task than having a cup of coffee.

this is just one thing to think about. if you're simply recording 2trk stereo for little post processing (home movie soundtrack maybe?), then i'd say it doesn't matter budget-wise what you choose. but if you're planning to go from project studio to a real studio some day, better plan ahead and start on the right platform.

protools is for pros, there's no alternative. tdm systems are though in totally different league. you cannot even talk about them and logic/dp in a same sentence. however protoolsLE is capable of 32 tracks and that's plenty. needing more you should be in a real studio.

it doesn't matter if you have 2 or 8 or whatever number of inputs if you mainly record one track (be it mono or stereo) at a time. you only need more when recording drum kit, or plan to take a whole band live. you have to think what you want to do SIMULTANEOUSLY when deciding about the input count. if mbox's not enough, consider the 002 rack version. double the price, quadruple the inputs. plus, with 002r you double the sample rate also.

protools is the (only) way.
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Actually, Logic Audio Platinum allows you to save your project in the Pro Tools format. Whether Pro Tools is THE product used only by Pros or not, it really comes down to what you want to use. Seriously, download Pro Tools Free and give it a try. I use it on my iMac Rev A and it works great. It allows 8 tracks of audio and something like 32 tracks of MIDI (not sure the exact track count) but does give you a chance to use the software and see if it is what you want to use. Remember its support of MIDI is not thorough as in other programs. For instance, it does not provide any notation capability if that is important to you.

Good Luck in your search. BTW, I was in the same quandry and ended up with the Logic Big Box and the EZBUS. Not a bad combination.
 
Also, I'm told lots of professional studios use Logic software on Protools hardware... That seems to be powerful :)

Edit: That's what I like about Logic: You can use it with almost any hardware, from the simple Mac I/O to the most powerful Pro Tools HD... Nicely scalable...
 
it's baaaa-aaaack! :)

Greetings to all! I would like to restart this thread by thanking everyone for all the valuable opinions, insights, biases :) and contributions previously discussed!

Well, it has been several months and I have done LOTS of research. I decided to resurrect this thread rather than restart a new one, so as a quick reminder to everyone, I will shortly begin a digital recording and editing hobby. When I last left y'all last fall, I was leaning towards the EMI 6/2 Production Kit with Logic Gold. I then learned more about the MOTU 828mkII with AudioDesk, and while it really is an extraordinary piece of hardware for the price, it really is much more than I need now and more than I would like to spend at this time. So, I am back to the EMI 6/2 Production Kit, and need some final pieces of advice from y'all.

First, the connections on the 6/2 are RCA. I didn't find anywhere that this could pose a problem, but I would appreciate input from anyone with an opinion (no lack of that in this thread!).

I am no longer concerned about latency (I figure I probably won't notice or will be able to fix it with software if I do), but I am still not clear as to whether or not simultaneous live recording with multiple inputs will be a problem due to the 6/2 being USB. I figure I will usually need two of the six inputs simultaneously, but may need up to four or even all six. Any thoughts?

One of the many nice features of the 828mkII is that two of the inputs are preamped with phantom power. This is not a feature on the 6/2, and I would appreciate any input as to what I should look for in a preamp. Please remember that portability is important, so something bus powered would be great, especially if could still be plugged into a wall outlet when possible.

Finally, I have decided on the Sennheiser HD280 headphones for monitoring, but I have no idea what to look for regarding cables. Is a cable just a cable? Likewise, are all RCA to 1/4" adapters all pretty much the same?

I have posted similar questions on various forums on osxaudio.com and macmusic.org, but there's nothing quite like the MacRumors family for getting advice! Thanks again to all, and hopefully I can finally get this stuff rolling!
 
Connecting microphones is a problem with the emi6|2. For me, I only need one or two mics at the same time, so I can handle it using my small mixing console from Yamaha (MGM10/2).

Anyway, the Logic Gold Production Kit might not be available for a long time anymore. You might be aware that Apple changed the Logic product line to just two different variants in the meantime. If you still want Logic Gold, try to find a place that still has it in stock and get it from there (quickly!), emagic doesn't seem sell it anymore.

Otherwise, you will have to settle for Logic Express, which is cheaper, but also offers less functions (might be enough though) or fork out more money for Logic Pro. I think Logic Pro will be offered at $999, so you can get the Production Kit for about $600 and get the update for Logic Pro for $199 later, if you want.
 
Originally posted by crenz
Connecting microphones is a problem with the emi6|2.
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What is the main problem? I can get a pretty good deal on the production kit (about $475), but don't want to spend more than about $150 - $200 more on any additional equipment like a preamp or mixing console. More than that and I might as well go with the 828mkII / AudioDesk solution. Also, I have not looked at mixing consoles at all, so along the same vein of a preamp, what should I look for in a basic mixing console (besides portability)? I have about $100 budgeted for the headphones, and have about $150 - $200 budgeted for mics/cables/stands (I'm thinking two AKG D770 or D880), and maybe ~$150 for 512MB RAM from Crucial to max out my iBook. My total budget is right around $900 - $1000, and need to keep it there to avoid wrath from my wife. Is this going to be doable?
:)
 
So crenz, I found your Yamaha MG10/2, but I don't understand how it is different from a "preamp." It seems like the console offers more options while still providing mic preamps and phantom power. A console like this would be placed between the mics and the 6/2, I suppose, but would it exert any additional control over what actually gets into my iBook? I really just don't understand. . .
 
Friends,
I have decided upon the EMI 6/2. It should arrive next week some time. I have also decided to sell my G3 iBook on eBay, and I got a winning bidder earlier tonight. I am putting the proceeds towards a G4 iBook, but cannot decide if the price difference between similarly configured 14" models is worth the extra scratch. I'll be running Logic Gold, and the extra 67MHz will cost me an extra $155. I know that's not a lot of money, but every little bit "counts" - or at least is being counted by my wife! Anybody have any thoughts? I know some of you run several effects / software instruments at a time; would an extra 67MHz make that big of a difference to you and be worth an extra $155? Thanks!
Frank
 
phrancpharmD, sorry for not replying earlier. The problem with connecting microphones I referred to earlier is that you need a preamp (like e.g. the ones in a small mixing console) -- that's all. I don't think the extra 67 MHz would justify the price, but the bigger harddrive sure comes in handy (recordings take a lot of space...). In both cases, you need more ram though. Bump it up to at least 512 MB RAM.
 
crenz - thanks for the opinion regarding the extra 67MHz. And thanks for the additional info regarding connecting mics to the emi6/2. By the way, it didn't look like the M10/2 is bus powered - correct?

JFreak - I've already purchased the EMI 6/2 production kit, and based on advice from this thread I do not want to get locked into a nonupgradable ProTools solution. Thanks though!

zimv20 - while learning how to use Logic Gold I will be recording my brother; he uses a California Blonde which has two line level outputs on it, so I do not have an imminent need for preamps. Once I'm ready to go beyond two (microphone) inputs, I guess I'll have to look into pres or a small mixing board like the one crenz has. I know something bus powered will be more appealing than something that needs to be plugged in, but seeing as how I will likely need a plug for my iBook it probably won't make that much of a difference. . .

(sorry for thinking out loud and rambling; it's pretty early for me!)
 
Originally posted by phrancpharmD
Once I'm ready to go beyond two (microphone) inputs, I guess I'll have to look into pres or a small mixing board like the one crenz has. I know something bus powered will be more appealing than something that needs to be plugged in
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mic pres need lots o' juice to sound good, so i would recommend not going that route. you can get two excellent pres, in a small package, for $475. it's the best pre you can get at that price, imo: FMR Really Nice Preamp

the RNP is _way_ better than any pre you'll find in a sub $3000 mixing board. nothing else in the price range comes close.
 
Thanks zimv20 - that was a very informative read! That RNP looks ultra portable, and I definitely understand now what you mean about not going with something bus powered. Makes sense. . .
 
zimv20, you are definitely right. However, I didn't have that kind of money available for a mic preamp, so I decided to get the $110 Yamaha Console to start out. I know the preamp doesn't really compare with good mic preamps, but at least I have something I can work with. By the way, the console does have phantom power, so that is not a problem.
 
Originally posted by zimv20
mic pres need lots o' juice to sound good.
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that's why an mbox would have been great choice; its preamps are studio-grade, and the preamps alone are worth its price of 400usd. and given that protools is included, the price is a steal.

how much the emi interface and logic will cost together? as i recall even the logic express costs about 300 dollars.

(edit: spelling)
 
Originally posted by JFreak
that's why an mbox would have been great choice
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Depends on what you need. For me, two analog inputs are too limiting. And I also don't want to use ProTools. For my needs, Logic is more suited. So the Mbox doesn't really give me what I want.
 
Originally posted by crenz
Depends on what you need.
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yes, true, and i prefer protools. i chose digidesign's 002r because of protools and decent input count; with an external preamp through adat i have total of 16 simultaneous inputs and 8 outputs (plus a 2-channel spdif i/o), which is quite enough most of the time. there have been so little use for 16+ inputs that i haven't even considered upgrading to HD.

sometimes i'd even prefer taking an mbox on the road instead of the 19" rack where my gear is installed, but haven't yet justified the cost for only mobility's sake. some people find mbox enough for everything, but they are the people who don't record an acoustic drum kit ;)
 
Not to turn this into a ProTools vs. Logic thread or anything. . . ;)

I ordered the EMI 6/2 production kit for $480 (original retail was $700 or $750 I think, still available for close to $700). It includes the 6/2 USB interface ($300 from eMagic, ~$200 on eBay), Logic Gold 6 (no longer available, retail was around $300, I think), two software instruments, and a software sampler (no idea how much they cost separately). Pretty good value, and considering that I can run straight out of my brother's California Blonde until I figure out how to actually use all this stuff with any hint of proficiency, the preamps included in the MBox is a moot point. The driving difference between the 6/2 over MBox is that the 6/2 offers much better flexibility for recording "live" at clubs and such which is what I will eventually be moving towards. At that point, it seems like a preamp will be unavioidable, but going with something that I can input six devices into will be much more appealing even with a stand alone preamp than going through a mixing board and squeezing into the MBox' two inputs. . .
 
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