Recording

[carolinatunes]

OK. I am the newbie of newbies. I currently have an HP with cakewalk that I use to record keyboard and guitar with. It stopped working. My daughter mentioned that she has an IMac 24 inch that I can have. I know nothing about the IMac and am confused what I will need to record, My old system has an EMU card in it which I plug my mixer cables into. Do I need that kind of card with the Imac? Is there recording software already installed? I just do simple recordings layering tracks. I am truly computer challenged and still lost by the "midi" term. I have heard Mac is the way to go, so I dont want to miss this opportunity. Thanks in advance for any help!

 

[JustMartin]

Well, you do need some way of getting the sound into your Mac. You could use the line in socket on the back, but would need a box with a line-out that you could plug microphones etc. into. That's possibly overkill if you're effectively building up one track at a time.

For my very simple needs. I use a USB interface from M-Audio Fast Track. I can plug a microphone and a guitar into that and record both simultaneously onto separate tracks using Garageband, that works quite well as a guide track. Then I record the pieces separately onto other tracks and go on from there. You could probably plug a keyboard into there as well. But, I have a USB keyboard that I can just put straight onto the mac.

That setup cost me about £100 (from memory), there are other similar solutions on the market at varying price points. But, it works well for me and a variety of instruments and performance is ok on my 20" mid 2007 Mac.

 

[canadax14]

This is what you should do:

1. Get the iMac

2. If you want to record audio from a microphone or guitar, buy an external sound card. The focusrite 8i6 http://www.amazon.ca/Focusrite-Scarlett-Interface-Featuring-Preamps/dp/B004W6KR7E is a great option for beginners. Your microphone XLR cable and 1/4 inch guitar patch cables will plug right into this!

3. If you want to record midi...you could just by a USB midi keyboard and plug it directly into your imac.

4. Garageband comes preloaded on OSX. It is great for beginners and sounds like it would be perfect for your needs.

 

[carolinatunes]

Thanks so much for the reply. I was told that the IMac 24 inch had firewire ports on them. Never used them before but is this an option if I bought a firewire box or firewire mixer? Thanks again for taking the time to reply.

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Thank you Canada! I will look into that. Is there any reason I should use firewire or doesn't it matter?

 

[canadax14]

For firewire a great option would be the the TC Electronic Konnekt 6. It's an amazing piece of hardware, that's very reasonably priced.

http://www.amazon.com/TC-Electronic-Desktop-Konnekt-Interface/dp/B0015XIAYY

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I would say for your needs, the USB Focusrite would be totally fine. I used it and never had any lag/jitter issues. It's up to you though! Both are great.

 

[carolinatunes]

Great! I will look into it. Like I said I know nothing about Macs but when the daughter had the IMac 24inch and told me I could have it, I figured it would be worth investigating.

 

[canadax14]

np. how old is the imac do you know? If it's a 24 inch, it would have to be 2009 or earlier...

 

[carolinatunes]

I am presently trying to call her to find out. I am almost sure it is pre 2009. Thanks again, and you can be my road manager with a 500,000 a year salary when I make it big.

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Her husband is on his way home now. She measured the screen and said it's 19inch. She said she made a mistake on the size. She said there are two firewire ports on the back. Is there a 19 in?

 

[canadax14]

never heard of a 19inch imac? Was she measuring it diagonally across the screen?

 

[forty2j]

Her husband is on his way home now. She measured the screen and said it's 19inch. She said she made a mistake on the size. She said there are two firewire ports on the back. Is there a 19 in?

Depending on how adept she is at using the measuring tape, and how precise Apple was, there was a 20" sold at the same time as the 24". Really, if she can go to <Apple Menu> -> About this Mac, that would be much more helpful.

 

[carolinatunes]

OK. First a BIG THANKS to all for the help. Just got off the phone with the son in law and it is a 20 inch. He also mentioned that he has a new in the box USB interface that he paid 300.00 for he is giving me also. They are coming down to South Carolina to visit me next week, and he said he would set everything up for me. I'm siked because he is employed in Chicago by a large church doing nothing but video and audio productions. He will most definately bring out the dummy in me. Thanks again.