most efficient studio

ayentee · Post by **ayentee** » Tue Mar 21, 2006 11:14 pm

I am a hiphop producer in search of the perfect set up (for me)as cheap as i can do it. I need to be able to record samples from vinyl and cd and record vocals. I think i've figured out the most efficient set up and wanted to get some feedback.

stanton turntable digital out into novation x-station 25 digital in. record sampels into soundforge. open samples in live. record vocals in live via novation x-station pre amp. mix in live. master in soundforge.

this set up lets me bypass getting a sound card. can anyone tell me if there are any flaws in this set up that i am overlooking?

would i be better off getting an mbox2 and a cheap controller instead?

rbmonosylabik · Post by **rbmonosylabik** » Tue Mar 21, 2006 11:22 pm

Sounds perfect

andrewlogan · Post by **andrewlogan** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 1:28 am

you might consider a dedicated i/o card/box and an external controller. The M-Audio O2 is pretty good, I have one. you might consider the Numark TTX, it's rock solid so it eliminates any hum, and it has digital out.

DeadlyKungFu · Post by **DeadlyKungFu** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 2:01 am

Occasionally people post about the difficulties of recording vinyl, the way it can drift (quartz lock or not), variable drag on the platter as the needle moves across the platter, a single skip, all these things make sampling long sections of vinyl difficult. You may not have this problem, just a heads up.

ayentee · Post by **ayentee** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 2:10 am

the stanton turntable i have now already has an A/D converter inside of it. So it has a digital output and an rca output. Ive been running it into my mpc's digital in for a while now. I cant really tell if Im better off using the stantons A/D or if I should run the RCA's into a soundcard and let the soundcard convert.

ayentee · Post by **ayentee** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 2:12 am

by the way, this is for studio use only. im not using it in a live setting at all. so i dont think sampling from vinyl will be a problem. My biggest concern is getting the sound i want (that i used to get with my mpc) at a reasonable price. If i buy a soundcard for 200, will my samples come out flat compared to a $1000 sound card?

andrewlogan · Post by **andrewlogan** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 2:32 am

well, you probably want 24-bit, 96Khz. Apogee A/D/A converters are supposed to be awesome, but most consumer interfaces will work out just fine for you.

ayentee · Post by **ayentee** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 3:36 am

may i ask why you would recommend a dedicated i/o card instead of using the audio interface on the novation x station?

andrewlogan · Post by **andrewlogan** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 3:58 am

Not sure exactly what type of inputs or what bitrate/sampling rate you can get with that, also, I'm not sure if it's fw or usb, but I think you gain a lot of versatility by getting two seperate parts, especially since you're unconcerned with live performance (aka toting shit around) and usually it'll save you money in the long run, i.e. if one of them breaks.... an amalgam of factors. I'd be happy to discuss this some more as it really is an interesting question.

ayentee · Post by **ayentee** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 4:04 am

heres the audio interface specs for the novation x station

Audio
Audio inputs: 2 x combined 1/4” jack / XLR sockets
Phantom power: On/Off 48 Volts
Gain control: -60dB - +10dB signal range
A to D converters: 2 x 24 bit Delta Sigma
Audio outputs: 2 x 1/4” jack sockets
Digital output: S/PDIF - phono

pretty much all i need really. I just dont know how functional it is as a dedicated audio interface. Like, would i be able to switch between listening to my turntable and listening to my computer audio without going through a big hassle.

ayentee · Post by **ayentee** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 4:07 am

btw its usb. and you can record the internal synth sounds to the computer DAW through the usb as well. another plus is that its usb powered. so basically i would use the output on the x-station to monitor any sound from my computer. bad idea?

andrewlogan · Post by **andrewlogan** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 4:27 am

one thing you might consider, does the x-station have hardware monitoring? this is a (basically) latency-free monitoring system that allows you to listen to the inputs via the outputs, regardless of what the computer's doing. It's quite handy, and especially for recording vocals it'd be indispensible. I'm not totally opposed to using the x-station for i/o needs and it's probably the more price effective solution.

kineticUk · Post by **kineticUk** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 5:37 am

Hello I have used an Xstation for ages now
So to answer your questions ...
Yes it has hardware monitoring (Latency free) which is great
But ...
It does NOT have digital IN - Only digital OUT
This is really my one and only complaint but a big one for me as I needed digital IN
Drivers are class, Midi Control class, Keys Class, Actual XStation Synth Not Bad (Have not used it loads for hardware synth but heard others like it)
I found the preamps on it to be not as good when compared to my other interfaces(Which is why I really would have preferred a digital In in order to use it as my sound card)
Its basically a class controller and its bonus that it has soundcard/synth built in
I would get a remote SL (For Control) and Audio Interface With Digital IN If I were looking now (I would Definately try to stay clear of MAudio, Driver Issues with alot of their stuff and alot of problems in different programs)

onnomon · Post by **onnomon** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 7:28 am

Does that stanton have a line-level or phono RCA output? You need to know because if it's a phono output then you'll probably need a phono preamp. The RIAA phono output requires some equalisation, which is built-in to stereo hi-fi receivers and something like the Mackie BigBox, but typically not sound cards.

I'd suggest you continue to use the Stanton's digital outs, particularly if absolute hi-fidelity is not a problem. I don't think anyone is going to tell the difference, especially if you're using samples embedded in a track. And, of course, you can tweak the warping in Live, tightenting the rhythmic phrasing.

I've got an RME multiface+cardbus for my laptop, this is probably the most physically compact arrangement.

-dz

dj superflat · Post by **dj superflat** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 6:58 pm

i like my xstation, but wouldn't trust it as my soundcard. when demands are placed on it, i've found it can have problems (using with both mac and PC drivers).