Kid Calamity
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Edited Feb 08, 2010, 16:01
Re: CD manufacture
Feb 08, 2010, 15:55
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We've got two of these: http://www.samsontech.com/products/productpage.cfm?prodID=1917
From our blog:
How We Do It
Our tracks, as you've probably noticed, are a bit lofi. This is because they're just recorded in a single consecutive live take. We are intending, one day to do a proper studio recording. But, for now, all of the music that we keep replacing every week has been done as we jam and improvise. Live.
If you're interested in how we've arrived at our ad hoc methods; we have two Samson USB mics that plug directly into an old Apple G4 iBook, running the freeware application Audacity. Each mic has a separate input for a direct feed. Effectively that gives us an ambient room recording of everything and a clean D.I. signal that we take from a line-out socket on the back of an amplifier.
The two mics give us a total of four tracks to mix from: Mic A - picks up mainly one side of our little room, with a bias on guitarist Stuart's speaker cab and perhaps more of the right side of Nick's drum kit. This mic then also takes a clean separate bass guitar track.
Mic B - Another room recording maybe with a slightly different side of the drum kit and perhaps a bit more spill from Beatnick's keyboard amp and a separate cleanish input track of Laura's vocal - D.I.ed from her little PA system. Her vocal mic inevitably picks up everything else to some extent, but at least it's mostly vocal on that track.
The four tracks are then mixed in Audacity the next morning by our fuzzy headed drummer, Nick. No overdubs, just a bit of EQing and clipping to remove the chat from the beginning and end of the song.
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Squid Tempest
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Re: CD manufacture
Feb 08, 2010, 16:00
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If you use them before me, please would you let me know how you get on? Ta.
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handofdave
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Re: CD manufacture
Feb 08, 2010, 16:03
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I should git me one a' them thingymebobs.
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Kid Calamity
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Re: CD manufacture
Feb 08, 2010, 16:04
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Absolutely. You don't for a single nanosecond I'd descretly put an EP out there without at least mumbling something about it under my breath, do you?
I'm gonna get one of their samples sent out to me, in the meantime.
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Kid Calamity
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Re: CD manufacture
Feb 08, 2010, 16:06
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I think anyone - who half fancies the idea of recording at home - should. When The Sea cat gets back from the Emerald Isle, I must try and remember to bump this thread for his attention, too - as I know he's thinking of rebooting his mojo (or whatever hippyspeak he uses).
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handofdave
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Edited Feb 08, 2010, 16:19
Re: CD manufacture
Feb 08, 2010, 16:18
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I end up recording quite a bit using the built in condenser mike in my camcorder. That gets run into my iMac and dragged into Garageband. Then I axe the video track and apply some reverb, a little echo, perhaps some other tweaks. Generally it works OK for me.
I've also got my friend Peter's old tascam four track, which uses cassette tape.
What I'm lacking is a decent standalone microphone that works with my computer... I used to get good results with my old powermac stereo microphone, but it's got the wrong miniplug for my new iMac.
This item of yours looks like it's a good price too.
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Kid Calamity
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Edited Feb 08, 2010, 16:27
Re: CD manufacture
Feb 08, 2010, 16:24
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Really - I can't recommend that G-Track mic highly enough. It's range is staggering.
The distortion you hear on Laura's vocal track is either caused through me setting the her level too high on the original input or occasionally her using an inferior mic too close up and getting a 'popping' effect.
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redfish365
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Re: CD manufacture
Feb 08, 2010, 17:32
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I've long wondered what is the difference between a professionally made CD and a CD-R? Is the quality different? Is the laser different? Will the CD last longer than a CD-R? Surely there must be some difference between the pre-recorded CD one buys at the record store (remember those?) and a CD-R I burn on my computer. But what is it?
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Squid Tempest
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Re: CD manufacture
Feb 08, 2010, 17:38
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redfish365 wrote: I've long wondered what is the difference between a professionally made CD and a CD-R? Is the quality different? Is the laser different? Will the CD last longer than a CD-R? Surely there must be some difference between the pre-recorded CD one buys at the record store (remember those?) and a CD-R I burn on my computer. But what is it?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compact_Disc_manufacturing
If I understand it correctly, CD-Rs are the same as "duplicated" CDs from a company. It is when they manufacture the CDs from a glass master (a more expensive process) that the difference arises. I think these make for more error-free CDs, but I might be wrong.
Actually, I must read up on this myself as I'm not certain about it.
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Kid Calamity
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Re: CD manufacture
Feb 08, 2010, 17:46
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I've always assumed that the coating is more robust than CDRs made for domestic/PC burners. Making them less susceptible to getting ruined when they're scratched.
However, I've no idea what sort of quality blanks these smaller pressing companies use. They probably all vary.
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