Minimum Gear Needed For Recording?

DanFo

Member
I really want to get into recording. Problem is I have no idea where to start. So as the title states, what's the least amount of gear I can have to get a decent sound. I've heard of people getting good recordings with one mic (and I know your room and your surroundings are a big part) but is a one or two mic setup feasible?

Just remember I'm a total noob when it comes to this. Websites or suggestions are appreciated.
 
Im relatively new to recording too so i dont know much about top equipment and loads of techniques to get the best sound. But ive found that a zoom h2 handy recorder is a good place to start. I can get good quality recordings from this both of just drums and a whole band too. And its simple to use i literally have just the h2 and nothing else. It comed with a usb so you can connect to a pc to edit the files. You can so some editing on the h2 its self and everything is stored on an sd card. It has loads of settings and i just put it on a mic stand and move it around to find the best sound
 
i have a zoom h2 and i'll second that it does a great job recording drums and anything else. i use it all the time to record rehearsals and live performances.

you can also use a computer with a single microphone connected to the mic input port and record with the windows sound recorder program or the free sound editing program "audacity" (what i use). that a pretty minimal setup, but it works. i even did a soundtrack for a commercial video with a basic setup like that and everyone loved it.

like you pointed out yourself, the quality of the results depends on the room, how good the mic is, and where you place it.
 
Cool thanks for the info. What's the average price of the Zoom H2?
 
you can get a really good sound with a cheep usb audio in box, and 2 overhead condensers
you should join a recording forum and they will tell you how to set it up for fazing ect.

its all about equal distance from the snare.

and you can get an amazing sound with 4 sm57's i mean a good sound, its all about knowing
how to set them up and compress them and mix them.

i record bands every week and i started out with 3 sm57's and learned the ropes,
and ended up learning how to get a great sound before upgrading.
 
you can get a really good sound with a cheep usb audio in box, and 2 overhead condensers
you should join a recording forum and they will tell you how to set it up for fazing ect.

its all about equal distance from the snare.

and you can get an amazing sound with 4 sm57's i mean a good sound, its all about knowing
how to set them up and compress them and mix them.

i record bands every week and i started out with 3 sm57's and learned the ropes,
and ended up learning how to get a great sound before upgrading.
Yeah I know about the 57s, and by an audio in box do you mean something like an MBox for Pro Tools?
 
I found these mic's from gls audio called es-57 and they are sm57 clones. They sound identical to my sm57 and they are alot cheaper. You can find them for less than $30, and in 3 and 10 packs for even better prices. They are just as durable too with sturdy metal housings.

I also have a tascam dr07 portable recorder that I purchased for $129 on sale and it works really well for recording drums, live shows, practices etc. It is the same kind of thing as the zoom h2. This is probably the cheapest option to record.

You can get a great sound with just two overhead condenser mics but that is going to cost a bit more. It is actually common for professional recordings to be done with 2 overheads in a stereo pair and possibly a large diaphram dynamic microphone for the kick. after that you might add a 57 or similar dynamic mic for the snare.
 
The GLS mics sound more like Betas than SM's, which is not such a bad thing. I have a handful. They have a lot more handling noise than real Shures so they don't work for handheld vocalists or on flimsy drum risers, but if you have a solid stage they are great for snares and higher toms. Also great for guitar amps like the traditional SM57.

You could do a lot worse for a basic recording set up than a pair of these and an AT kick mic.

Lots and lots of entry level computer interfaces these days from M-Audio, Tascam and others. Usually these come with some version of Cakewalk or some other recording tool. Plenty for getting started learning how to move drums around the room, move the mics around the kit and getting basic tracks together.

A lot of very important music was recorded on less.
 
Yeah I know about the 57s, and by an audio in box do you mean something like an MBox for Pro Tools?

well that is an in box, but not exactly what i meant, those are pricey, M audio makes some
cheeper ones, and also if you are thinking about recording seriously or even just your self
and your in the market for new computer at any point in my opinion you need to get a mac.
they really are problem free with recording, like magic compared to most pc's.
 
Yeah a Mac might be in my future soon actually. My parents are gunna give me some cash towards one for school next year and I just pay the rest. It's kinda like a birthday thing also but Macs are amazing. They are so efficient. And when I go to my Long & McQuade I'll check out the M Audio stuff.
 
to answer your question, the zoom h2 usually goes for somewhere between $150 to $200.

here are some live recordings of my old band i made with it recently:

http://www.ilike.com/artist/Needham+%26+Weep

i think you'll have to admit, the recording quality is not bad at all.

Just got a chance to listen to those (haven't been near a computer) and those are quite decent. Where abouts did you have it placed when you were playing?
 
you need semi decent computer, audio interface, and a microphone or two.

currently, i'm running a mac pro at 2.26 Ghz, 160 gb hard drive. my audio interface is the presonus firebox (which i regret purchasing). my mics are a rode m3 and a shure sm58.

most audio interfaces will come with a recording program of some kind, and you can always download audacity if it doesnt.
 
Whoever said that you Need a computer to be able to record, lol.

Dennis
 
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