DAW incase of full lockdown help

[Slappindabass 391]

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Focusrite-Scarlett-2i2-Audio-Interface/dp/B07QR73T66

 

This seems to have good reviews.

[skidder652003 697]

38 minutes ago, Slappindabass said:

Thanks for all the great replies, i currently have no interface so the world is my oyster i guess. Alsoo it is a pc not mac . Good advise to chexk what they are using.

 

They have just informed me they use reaper, so just what interface to buy now!

oh boy, whole new can of worms! Just go and get a Focusrite 2i2 and be done with it! pretty much guarantee that will be the vast majority consensus

https://focusrite.com/en/usb-audio-interface/scarlett/scarlett-2i2

Edited October 16 by skidder652003

[Slappindabass 391]

Thanks

[DaytonaRik 313]

Or if you already have a Behringer X series desk (XR12/XR18 or X32) or similar digital desk then you can use that

 

[lowdown 767]

5 hours ago, thodrik said:

Reaper is cheap and once you get the hang of it is very flexible and as good as anything else out there once you get the hang of it. . The only downside is that it has a bit of dated Windows 95 look to it when you open it up for the first time, however that can be fixed.

I find Studio One to very intuitive and will be buying that when I get started again. However, you have to buy the Pro version at £300 in order to use third party plug-ins on Studio One, which is a bit crap. In comparison you can pretty much use any plug in on Reaper. I find Studio One to be fairly intuitive and idiot-proof though, which is why I like it. 

Frankly, I found the learning curve on Pro Tools to be too great. 

Of course, if you have a Mac then Logic. 

Most DAWs have a free demo version, definitely try downloading them and seeing what one you like best. 

Third party VST support for the 'Artist' version is now available in version 5.

https://www.presonus.com/products/Studio-One/compare-versions

[yonni 49]

I use my Boss GT-1B multi effect pedal as my interface. I also believe that if you want to mic your cab and have a good USB mic, you can bypass the need for an interface. I haven’t tried that myself but it was in one of the tutorials in the link I posted earlier.

[thodrik 490]

17 minutes ago, lowdown said:

Third party VST support for the 'Artist' version is now available in version 5.

https://www.presonus.com/products/Studio-One/compare-versions

That’s brilliant! Didn’t know that. Cheers!

[RussFM 27]

I've been using Cakewalk. I found it easier to use than Reaper, and it's completely free!

[Skybone 886]

Presonus: https://www.pmtonline.co.uk/presonus-audiobox-usb-96-audio-interface

Focusrite Scarlet: https://www.andertons.co.uk/recording/audio-interfaces/usb-audio-interfaces/focusrite-scarlett-solo-3rd-generation (good price too!)

M-Audio: https://www.andertons.co.uk/recording/audio-interfaces/usb-audio-interfaces/m-audio-air-192-4-2-in-2-out-24-192-usb-audio-interface (used M-Audio kit for ages, have an old M-Track interface)

The Presonus one is the only one with MIDI at that price point. And Studio One Artist is pretty Good too.

Edited October 17 by Skybone

[Dad3353 6,839]

16 hours ago, RussFM said:

I've been using Cakewalk. I found it easier to use than Reaper, and it's completely free!

I've been using Reaper for a few years now, but tried Cakewalk fairly recently. It was a beggar to download and install, and once it was up and running, I could make neither head nor tail of it. I've since uninstalled it. Just sayin'; we're all different. 

Edited October 17 by Dad3353

[RussFM 27]

Maybe I should give Reaper another go 🤔 😄

[Jakester 246]

8 hours ago, Skybone said:

 

M-Audio: https://www.andertons.co.uk/recording/audio-interfaces/usb-audio-interfaces/m-audio-air-192-4-2-in-2-out-24-192-usb-audio-interface (used M-Audio kit for ages, have an old M-Track interface)

 

I have the M-Audio and it’s been faultless since I bought it. Easy to use and sounds good. 

[Al Krow 4,348]

How is Reaper for video editing? Are you guys using a separate video editor? 

[Dad3353 6,839]

4 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

How is Reaper for video editing? Are you guys using a separate video editor? 

Reaper doesn't edit video. I use separate software for that (VideoPad or Resolve, depending on mood...). It's easier for me to edit audio in Reaper and slot it into the edited video. I have not had any synchro issues.

[fretmeister 2,237]

Reaper.

Its fantastic and there’s a superb series of vids for instructions.

Easy to use.

Add a cheap interface like a Focusrite and you are all set. 

[Al Krow 4,348]

23 minutes ago, Dad3353 said:

Reaper doesn't edit video. I use separate software for that (VideoPad or Resolve, depending on mood...). It's easier for me to edit audio in Reaper and slot it into the edited video. I have not had any synchro issues.

Ok thanks for confirming that. In which case Mixcraft is worth mentioning as this seems to do both well - on my shortlist. 

Useful if any folk are wanting to do both but not keen on getting up to speed / investing in two separate editing packages. The latest version Mixcraft 9 has been getting some very good reviews from the likes of Music Radar. There's a cut down "Studio" version as well as a pricier full fat version and I guess the earlier Mixcraft 8 will be very good value. 

[musicbassman 857]

Interesting discussion.

I only dabbled with a DAW briefly about 15 years ago, so I'm now completely out of touch with what's going on.

For an absolute zero knowledge newbie like me, could someone explain why no one's mentioned the PC specs necessary to run something like Reaper?

This was a big deal back then, so could I assume that these days any standard supplied soundcard would be up to the job?

[yonni 49]

43 minutes ago, musicbassman said:

Interesting discussion.

I only dabbled with a DAW briefly about 15 years ago, so I'm now completely out of touch with what's going on.

For an absolute zero knowledge newbie like me, could someone explain why no one's mentioned the PC specs necessary to run something like Reaper?

I was the same. I’d used Soundforge a long time ago and only for recording a bit of commentary or creating sound effects for IT projects (button click sounds etc.). I started on Reaper on Monday spending a little bit of time each day on it. Probably no more than 6 hours so far including YouTube tutorials. I could now record vocals, bass, keyboards and mic’d acoustic. I haven’t looked at effects yet but I can edit and render a track. It would have taken less time in Audacity as that is closer to Soundforge but Reaper has more to it. I’m running it on a laptop I bought in 2013. If I was doing big projects it would struggle but it seems ok on simple projects.

ASUS VivoBook S200E

• Processor. Intel® Core™ i3 3217U Processor. ... 
• Operating System. Windows 8.1
• Chipset. Intel® HM76/HM70 Express Chipset.
• Memory. DDR3 1333 MHz SDRAM, OnBoard Memory 2 GB / 4 GB.
• Display. 11.6" 16:9 HD 
• Graphic. Integrated Intel® HD Graphics.
• 2.5" SATA. 500GB 5400. ... 
• Card Reader

[skidder652003 697]

I know everyone will recommend what they're currently using (and why not?) if it's good, so I can also recommend alongside the focusrite gear,  the Audient iD4, the pre amps sound terrific and the DI line in for guitar and bass is amazing

https://studiocare.com/products/audient-id4-2-in-2-out-high-performance-usb-interface-with-scroll-control?variant=31460406460462&currency=GBP&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=google+shopping&gclid=CjwKCAjwz6_8BRBkEiwA3p02Vf1pYOZdPsDffsC23BWH1eRB_RCwrJR9ut9ZadVL6_uBsebUZtuLpxoCYhwQAvD_BwE

[Drax 448]

Blimey poor OP. What a barrage of choices and lingo!  

I use neither but Scarlett and Reaper, job done.  
 

 

[Dad3353 6,839]

1 hour ago, musicbassman said:

... the PC specs necessary to run something like Reaper?

This was a big deal back then, so could I assume that these days any standard supplied soundcard would be up to the job?

Reaper is not very hard on PC's, even a modest one will be OK When composing with more and more virtual instruments, extra memory is your friend. I used, for several years, a Pentium PC; I now use a desktop HP 8200, with i5 processor and 12Gb memory. No issues whatever, with some fairly hefty instruments such as Superior Drums 3 and a Pearl piano, full orchestra and Spectrasonics Trillian bass.
An internal soundcard will work fine, but usually one has to add an audio interface, for recording one's own instruments, or vocals (or both..!). This interface usually serves, then, for audio output. Not indispensable, but very useful.
Hope this helps. 

[No. 8 Wire 147]

On 16/10/2020 at 17:16, Al Krow said:

When working out what you're going for, worth considering a DAW that also has decent video editing capability as well as sound editing, and do away with the need for a separate video editing package. 

Out of interest, what daw are you using for sound and video editing?

I'd like to be able to record audio and video at the same time without endless syncing issues and cutting and pasting between daw and video editor.  Garageband is the only one I've seen that does it quickly and easily but I dont have access to a decent mac.

[Al Krow 4,348]

21 minutes ago, No. 8 Wire said:

Out of interest, what daw are you using for sound and video editing?

I'd like to be able to record audio and video at the same time without endless syncing issues and cutting and pasting between daw and video editor.  Garageband is the only one I've seen that does it quickly and easily but I don't have access to a decent mac.

Yes, completely agree. It's an additional hassle (and cost) factor. Confirmed earlier in this thread that Reaper not suitable for doing both together, however:

13 hours ago, Al Krow said:

... In which case Mixcraft is worth mentioning as this seems to do both well - on my shortlist. 

Useful if any folk are wanting to do both but not keen on getting up to speed / investing in two separate editing packages. The latest version Mixcraft 9 has been getting some very good reviews from the likes of Music Radar. There's a cut down "Studio" version as well as a pricier full fat version and I guess the earlier Mixcraft 8 will be very good value. 

 

[skidder652003 697]

5 hours ago, No. 8 Wire said:

Out of interest, what daw are you using for sound and video editing?

I'd like to be able to record audio and video at the same time without endless syncing issues and cutting and pasting between daw and video editor.  Garageband is the only one I've seen that does it quickly and easily but I dont have access to a decent mac.

Garageband isn't a video editor. As far as I can tell you can only load a video and then add sound to it (from garageband). You can't edit the actual video, ie cut scenes, add transitions, have multiple camera timelines etc.  For that you need a dedicated video editing program like adobe premiere pro, Final cut or, as I use, Da Vinci Resolve (which is free). The advantage of Da Vinci Resolve as well as being free is that it also has it's own built in DAW called Fairlight should you wish to use it, it even lets you load in your own VST plug-ins. It's head and shoulders the best free video editor out there and I've tried loads. Personally, I do my audio capture with Garageband, mix the audio in Reaper and then transfer to Da Vinci Resolve, it sounds a hassle but it really isn't, everything gets saved on a usb stick anyway and it's just a question of loading from there in each program.

Edited October 18 by skidder652003

[mike257 211]

Another Reaper user here. Main attraction for me is that it's very resource-light (will happy chug away on a fairly basic spec computer) and very stable. My main use for it is capturing live recordings, where it needs to just work, and that's exactly what it does. 

As far as editing video - you won't find much in the way of software that does both well, because they're different tasks with different demands and workflow. Video editing is much more demanding of your computer than most audio tasks. If you're trying to do both at once, especially if you're doing a lot of processing/plugin useage on your audio, you'll be taxing your system. I'd be inclined to use the right tool for the job - finish your audio and do a final mix in a DAW, and throw that mix in to a video editor where you aren't asking the system to do anything extra other than playing a single file with no live processing. 

Edited October 19 by mike257