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Old setup still works well

stratovani

stratovani

Nov 18, 2007
3,653
1,131
Spencer, MA, USA
#1
The Petty tribute band I'm in is going to try to put together a rendition of The Waiting. Since I still haven't gotten my coronavirus money yet I'm forced to use some old gear I've had for many years now. An old Dell Latitude laptop running Windows XP, a Tascam US-144 audio interface, and Cakewalk Home Studio 2002 for a DAW. Know what? It all works fine for recording a single bass line. The problem I'm having is the sudden realization that recording is a completely different animal from playing live! Live I can make a mistake and sluff it off and carry on, but when recording the slightest mistake stands out like a sore thumb! No wonder it takes so long to record an album!

We'll see where this leads me, but this is an interesting way to pass the time while on lockdown.
 
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#2
Yeah, actually not much difference in a decade old USB interface to one made now. Sure the specs are better now, but a decade ago they were well below what any human could hear anyhow.

Cakewalk is free now. Pick up a new copy if your OS supports it. Look up "Comping" - it's a great feature. You set record and every time through a look a new subtrack will record. You can then pick the one you played best. Or copy/paste parts to make a good one. Usually best for when you do solos, lot of times in a solo something magical happens and you can capture it with comping.
 
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#3
seamonkey said:
Look up "Comping" - it's a great feature. You set record and every time through a look a new subtrack will record. You can then pick the one you played best. Or copy/paste parts to make a good one. Usually best for when you do solos, lot of times in a solo something magical happens and you can capture it with comping.
Click to expand...

Comping, nudges, and punch edits: making me sound like a studio pro on recordings since 2008. :p
 
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#7
garp said:
+1. My first DAW was a Mac G3 (OS 9) and a Digi001 running ProTools LE, and it still sits here in the studio, functioning flawlessly for most of the stuff I do.
Click to expand...

Now I'm taking my own trip down memory lane. My first interface was an MBox 2 Mini with ProTools LE 7.4 as well, way back in 2008.

I now use a Scarlett 2i2 and Reaper.

The finished product is probably about the same quality between the two, but in terms of simplicity and intuitiveness, the newer setup wins by a mile...
 
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#9
Kro said:
Now I'm taking my own trip down memory lane. My first interface was an MBox 2 Mini with ProTools LE 7.4 as well, way back in 2008.
Click to expand...
I've got an MBox 2 Mini too, and a Digi002, and... :meh:

But to the OP's point, depending on the job, the older technology can usually handle it just fine. In fact, sometimes when I'm too lazy to fire up a computer and just want to get an idea down quickly, I'll just plug into an old Yamaha minidisc multitrack recorder. If I still had my old Tascam Portastudio cassette recorder, I'd probably be using that instead.
 
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#12
seamonkey said:
Yeah, actually not much difference in a decade old USB interface to one made now. Sure the specs are better now, but a decade ago they were well below what any human could hear anyhow.

Cakewalk is free now. Pick up a new copy if your OS supports it. Look up "Comping" - it's a great feature. You set record and every time through a look a new subtrack will record. You can then pick the one you played best. Or copy/paste parts to make a good one. Usually best for when you do solos, lot of times in a solo something magical happens and you can capture it with comping.
Click to expand...

I can't. My Tascam US-144 doesn't work with any of my other laptops. I have to use my old Dell Latitude with Cakewalk Home Studio 2002. Once I get my coronavirus money I'll be upgrading my setup.
 
#13
stratovani said:
The Petty tribute band I'm in is going to try to put together a rendition of The Waiting. Since I still haven't gotten my coronavirus money yet I'm forced to use some old gear I've had for many years now. An old Dell Latitude laptop running Windows XP, a Tascam US-144 audio interface, and Cakewalk Home Studio 2002 for a DAW. Know what? It all works fine for recording a single bass line. The problem I'm having is the sudden realization that recording is a completely different animal from playing live! Live I can make a mistake and sluff it off and carry on, but when recording the slightest mistake stands out like a sore thumb! No wonder it takes so long to record an album!

We'll see where this leads me, but this is an interesting way to pass the time while on lockdown.
Click to expand...
It took the Boss sixth moths to get the final version of Born To Run.
 
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#14
MCF said:
It took the Boss sixth months to get the final version of Born To Run.
Click to expand...
That no longer surprises me. Just about all albums were probably like that. They lay down the initial recording, then agonize over it for the longest time, recording over and over again until they get it "right". So far I'm up to my sixteenth recording of my bass line, hopefully I'll get it right soon.
 
#15
It's actually quite easy to make a "perfect" take. I usually record 3 or 4 full takes. If there are some difficult spots I will comp a bar or bars and edit it together. This works especially well with vocals. The days of having the best full take are sadly gone.
 
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#16
1st off, there’s lot’s of mistakes in that giant Petty catalog. 2nd, you need to learn how to auto punch as I’m also forced to do. It should be somewhere in the index or search the web for info.
A great take doesn’t have to be a perfect performance. You know what’s good. Best ‘O Luck
 
#18
kevindahl said:
It's actually quite easy to make a "perfect" take. I usually record 3 or 4 full takes. If there are some difficult spots I will comp a bar or bars and edit it together. This works especially well with vocals. The days of having the best full take are sadly gone.
Click to expand...
Back when I was playing guitar generally before switching to primarily gigging bass, the band I was in at the time had a recording session. One of the songs I overdubbed a 12-string Rick backing track, jangly, difficult, arpeggiated guitar part. I worked like hell the week before the session practicing at home, driving my wife and son bonkers. It paid off. When I got to the session, I set up, tuned up, had one string slip. The drummer had been there all day dealing with the others f****** up their parts, take after take. Frustrated, he got on the talkback, "Come on - time is money." Stifling the urge to use a string as a garrote, I said, "Fine - one take." Just as tape started to roll, the guy at the desk stopped it to adjust something. Then roll tape, click track, count in, start: intro, first verse, second verse, lead guitar part, third verse out and fade to black. Man at the desk: "Um, that sounded pretty good - wanna do it again?" I said, "No. Isolate the track. You won't find a single missed chord, single string slip, single squeak, nothing. It's perfect. I'm leaving." And it was. And I left. And that is what is on the master tape, that unfortunately never got released.
 
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