Recording Gear?

[charmicarmicat]

I wasn't sure where to post this so feel free to bump it to the appropriate place is there is one.
I have an Apple PowerPC G4 laptop with Garage Band. I need a simple set up so I can record ideas. My bass has a RS II pick up that I run through a D-Tar Solstice preamp.
Any suggestions you all may have would be welcome.
Thanks!

[Kam]

If you don't care about quality...my G4 powerbook has a "decent" microphone built in that I could get ideas onto if I put the notebook in the corner and basically played the bass right into said corner.

Another cheap and so/so sounding option is to get the iMic from apple, which is a USB interface that allows you to connect an audio input, which is in the form of a 1/8" headphone jack. If your pickup sounds good straight, you can get a 1/4 to 1/8 adapter from radio shack and plug directly in.

A simple and not-so-cheap option would be to get a good digital recorder (see Edirol's R-09, etc).

[Chris Fitzgerald]

Or get a Samson or MXL USB mic and record directly into GB. This works well and isn't too expensive.

[fdeck]

If it's like my Dell, you plug a 1/4 to 1/8 adapter into the output of the Solstice, then a 1/8 patch cord into the audio input of the Mac. If it's further like my Dell, the audio quality of the built-in hardware is superb.

This is how I do all of my audio signal analysis.

[jobo4]

I have a Mac with an M-Audio MobilePre USB. It has two 1/4" jacks and two XLR inputs with phantom power. I use it with Garage band and it works fine. I believe they also make a one channel, no phantom version.

Check out myspace.com/basscat1 and listen to Minor Strut. It was recorded with the afore mentioned set up.

[charmicarmicat]

Thank you all for responding. I'll try the cheap way that fdeck suggested. If that doesn't work or I'm not happy with the results I'll try jobo4's suggestion with the M-Audio set up.
Again, thank you all for your advice.

[Silversorcerer]

I like a Tascam US 122. It has phantom power for L&R condensers. I have a cheap pair of MXL (990,991) mics. This system is great for recording the bass into Garage Band. You can also run a bass right into the Tascam from a pick-up if you want. One feature I really like about the US122 is that you don't get latency when recording multi-track. It has a direct monitor feature so you monitor the current track in real time. Sweet. Check the Tascam website for the right driver for you version of OS X. The drivers are different for Intel chip models. The unit works with any Mac OS back to 9.0 with the right driver.

[Mr.Chucklebunny]

I just think it rocks that you use the name "charmicarmicat".

[CamMcIntyre]

I too have a Tascam US122. I use my Realist into a SansAmp RPM into the Tascam. It isn't the best sounding, but it sounds pretty good for just experimenting. If i was concerned about sound quality-i'd get a mic.