I have no hope of being a professional and I make music that’s supposed to sound dusty so I don’t really care about pristine audio quality.
If I’m using my mini synths then the path is IK Uno Synth and Modal Skulpt going into the left and right input of my Zoom Sampletrak or sometimes my Circuit Rhythm. That’s going into my Digitone, which is then going to my Digitakt.
Whatever the configuration, the audio is just a straight shot and I record it through the regular USB audio.
It works for me.
I have a similar setup. The Mackie has alt outs (3/4) which you can send straight to monitors or you can use a small half normalled hosa patchbay to “split” the signal to both the interface and the monitors.
I leave my Mackie xlr going through the Octa and Boum into the Scarlett 4i4 and then the main 1&2 Scarlett outs into the monitors
But I split the post Boum signal between the Scarlett 4i4 1&2 ins and my 1010 blackbox input, which then goes into the Scarlett 3&4 ins
I don’t know if this helps because my laptop is always powering my interface and it does have monitoring constantly through the focusrite windows mixer app, but it doesn’t need to be going through the daw constantly or anything
I record loops many times just into the 1010 blackbox. Super easy.
Or I plug into my hardware into my patch bay and record it one track at a time. The thing is that I don’t make super long parts on my hardware anymore,I just get the idea and then arrange in the DAW regardless.
For recording into the DAW I use an E-RM box. Works perfectly.
I set up both main and alt to be received on the input channels 1&2 and 3&4. On the Mackie I could then group the channels for recording. Monitors were connected to the 6i6 main out.
Today I have 2 setups:
Allen & Heath MixWizzard Direct outs (Post Fader&EQ) -> Ferrofish Pulse 16 & Audient ID44. Monitors on the MixWizzard.
This enables me to shape the inputs with the analog EQ, jam without Computer and still have them multitracked if needed.
But this setup is not built up at the moment because I prepare a setup that invites to perform live:
Mackie 802 (1202 is boxed because too big for the rig) control room out -> Monitors
Mackie 802 rec out -> Tascam DR-40
I really like the Mackies. They are so cool and clever designed.
This is great. I haven’t thought of that yet. So you could send some channels to an external effect like OTO Boum via the alt out but still choose to send them also dry to the control room out.
Yes. You should be able to record pre or post Boum by selecting Alt or Main as CR source. If you’ve routed Boum back in that is.
Appreciate the detail you’ve gone into in this post but would love a fuller run down if you can be bothered. Is the SD recorder (is it one of the rack mount ones?) on a send or the master out?
And other than ableton and overbridge options you talk about, do you have other hardware recorders dotted about the place?
It’s a rack mount one, yes, Denon DN-300RMKII.
The A&H Xone 96 has 2 separate Master outputs (with independent output levels), so one goes to my monitors and the other goes to the Denon. As I said previously, everything in my studio hits the Xone 96 (all my synths/devices, turntable, computer audio, mic preamps, other mixers, cassette 4-tracks), so I can record anything to the Denon with one-press instantly.
I always used to have a habit of coming up with parts/ideas that I really liked and losing/forgetting what I was playing by the time I’d set something up to record… or it would be done to an iphone where I couldn’t use the audio later… not any more. I leave the Denon on WAV 24bit/48khz too, I got a a bunch of 256gb SDXC cards off Amazon for around £20/each, so there’s no real compromise in the recordings, they can be used down the line if needed.
Yes, I’ve built it up over time around my way of working, but in addition to the Denon I have;
That’s about it at the moment!
Thanks for that, it sounds like overkill but it’s easy to build up a collection of this stuff over time hey. And I know that feeling of having something cool and losing the mojo when trying to get setup to record, it always happens to me when I set out to just have fun a not record anything… obvs that’s when the best ideas come. Sound like you’ve got it sorted.
Do you ever use the Xone 96 as an audio interface?
Yes, all the time. There are 2 independent USB ports/channels on it too, so I’ll have my main computer connected to USB1 and USB2 gets used with my MPC Live 2 as it’s Class Compliant.
I also have a separate laptop that I use for Traktor/DJing, so that’ll usually go into USB2 too.
[So my Tascam Model12 went for warranty repair, and the shop was taking forever with it and ended up giving me a refund instead.
There are quite a few things about it that I miss, but I think I will take some time until I get another mixer, and it won’t be a Model12 again I think, I might go for OTO’s new mixer.
But one thing I really miss right now is the simple one button master recorder (not so much the MTR)]
I would like this, I really want to prioritize recording! And, as a plus, I also really like the idea of easily playing back the recordings, and other tracks, compare mixes (or even enjoy a short studio break with some music). I don’t want to bring the laptop to the studio.
How is the Denon recorder working out for you after a few more months with it? Still working well? No complaints?
I’m not enjoying the idea of paying 290€ (that’s the price I find at thomann) for what is is: a SD card recorder and player (where even the volume knob is missing) - It seems very overpriced.
(For around that money you can get very good portable recorders with preamps, mixers and many other functions. I already have a portable recorder though, and like you, I don’t want to frequently set it up)
Truth is I can’t find anything else like this Denon: a simple and fast SD card recorder and player (And I don’t need more preamps)
Nonetheless, and after reading some not so good reviews, I can’t help getting the feeling it might be my most ridiculous GAS indulgence.
SP-404MKII is awesome for recording your gear unless it’s over 16 minutes. Also skip back recording is amazing, no more missed opportunities.
Absolutely. It’s one of the best purchases I’ve ever made.
I’ve said it previously, having something permanently routed to record anything I’m doing with ONE press of a button is absolute gold to me.
Don’t get hung up on it being expensive for an SD Recorder, that’s just the medium, you’re buying a 2-track stereo recorder.
Funnily enough, this weekend I’ve stripped back my home/spare bedroom studio and got it down to only what I need, and I’ve realised I could do with another Denon recorder… even though I’m using a 1010 Bluebox, an MPC Live 2, and a MBP running Ableton (with a Scarlett 18i20), all of which have recording capabilities, I found myself playing new keys ideas having to setup a new Ableton session to catch it… I want that ONE button record approach in that space too now.
Line out of the Syntakt into a Focusrite interface. Then a slight mastering process and release. I like the slight warmth you get from actually recording.
Although my new shit is gonna have vocals so I might have to actually overbridge out the individual parts to make sure there’s enough space in the mix
For the longest time I had a mixer until it died, i downloaded „clock“ a m4l device from gumroad which takes care of clocks for external gear and now I play and record everything through Ableton‘s external instrument device. Everything is beautifully in sync, be it hardware or Softsynths and I can also use Ableton’s fx on audio I monitor through live, it’s actually awesome to work this way.
If you can find it, this fella is awesome, but unfortunately discontinued and hard to find:
I have my Peak and Digitone going in to my Octatrack and from there into 2 ins on my focusrite 4i4 interface. the 2 other ins are for my guitar (through some pedals and an amp sim, stereo out to the interface). I always record into Ableton. I don’t do any ‘hardware jams’ that i would wanna record in one take so this setup really works for me