direct line-in

[uturnbass]

Is playing direct line-in a good means of recording bass tracks?
I've been wanting to record my bass playing for awhile now and a friend said to get a 1/8" jack to a 1/4" plug in order to plug directly into a computer, and then download a program, like audacity.
He was saying the bass recording could be a little quiet,
would this be because of the soundcard?
or because of the program?

What soundcards would produce some good quality recordings, also? Mine is probably pretty standard and I want to look into making some pretty decent quality recordings..
thanks guys, I appreciate the help.

 

[Brad Maestas]

To get the best quality, you'll want to have some sort of preamp or DI box before you get to your soundcard. Most soundcards aren't equipped to handle the high-impedance signal from your magnetic pickups and they tend to leave your bass sounding flat and uninteresting.

The recording level may also be low due to the quality of the card and its various components. The upside of having a card or interface with balanced connections is that you are pretty much guaranteed that it is capable of bringing the signal up to the standard professional +4dB recording level, which is crucial.

The analog-to-digital converters (AD) in the card are also very important. In general, you get what you pay for.
As long as you choose a professional DAW, most of the differences are aesthetics. Some are better suited to MIDI while others are better for straight audio mixing and mastering. Read up and do lots of research.

 

[EricF]

It certainly can be done the way you're thinking, but most standard soundcards are pretty low quality, and the quality of your recording may be less than stellar. If you want good results, you should look into a proper interface (soundcard, USB/firewire interface, etc.) that is designed for recording music.

As a noob to home recording myself, I've learned a TON here...
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