Essential Stuff? Options

[macshark]

Hello all. My name is Scott, and I am a newbie. Hello, Scott...

Okay, now that's out of the way, let me say that I have dug thorough this entire site as well as others, and I am still a little (lot) confused about the necessary equipment.

I have used/demo'd - Ableton Live, Bias Peak and Deck, Spark ME, Storm, Reason, and Metro. Haven't tried PT or Logic yet. I am on a G3 slot-loading iMac, OSX 10.2.4. I may be upgrading the computer w/in the next year if necessary.

All I want to do is record electric guitar and vocals into my imac, and do multitrack and editing on the computer. Also, I need some type of drum machine, beats, etc. Basically just looking to record my own songs for my own use (for now).

I don't have any other hardware (keyboard or midi-controller), but would consider getting an inexpensive one.

After all that, finally to the question at hand. What do I need to effectively do this? Live, Deck, and Metro seem to be the same to me in that they will let you multi-track. I like Spark a lot, and don't see where Peak is any better as a pure recorder. I could not figure out Storm or Reason. Not sure I really need all the midi-synth stuff. But I do NEED drum tracks.

Any suggestions, on software and hardware that I should look into?

Sorry for such a long request. Thanks.

Scott

[xingu]

Hi Scott,

I don't know enough about every program to comment, but here's a few random thoughts:

As you probably figured out, Peak and Spark won't get you anywhere for multitracking. Your decision depends not only on what you want to do now, but also what capabilities you might want in the future. If you really won't have any use for MIDI sequencing, Deck seems a reasonable way to go. Can you still boot into OS9 with your iMac? If so, you really might want to consider downloading ProTools Free, which will give you up to 8 audio tracks, but doesn't work in OSX yet (but it's free!). Metro 6 SE seems kinda cool - and cheap. Plus, Metro is the only existing DAW that supports both Audio Units and VST plugs (but that won't matter unless you are going to require third party effects, etc.). There are no Logic demos, but it might be overkill for your needs anyway.

I use Reason, primarily as a drum machine (at least for now). It's a little intimidating at first, but if you buy it, the manual will get you going. The Redrum module within Reason allows drum patterns to be programmed like a step sequencer. You don't absolutely need a keyboard controller to do this, and it will run in both OSX and OS9 (in case you take the PT Free route). I don't know anything about Storm, or other drum machine apps for that matter.

I would also suggest looking into Cubase SL or SX - considerable multitrack capabilities, full on MIDI sequencing and the like - but Cubase also features a built in drum machine. OSX only.

Now, correct me if I'm wrong - the older iMacs have audio inputs, right? I guess you could get away with that using the built in sound controller, but if you want better sound quality, and particularly if you want to track guitar and vocals simultaneously, you will need an audio interface. There's tons of threads on this site about recommended interfaces for various needs. You'll need to think about how many inputs you require (or will in the future).

Meanwhile, there's a lot to think about, and quite possibly a lot of money to come up with! Hope this helps some.