[amerikangod]

Null

[verme (prevaricator)]

why usb? don't.


if i remember correctly, terminal pharmacy has in-depth knowledge on this topic, you should ask him.

[Glice]

If you're not bothered, get whatever you can.

If you are bothered, rent your arse and the respective arses of your family and you still won't be able to afford decent cables, let alone a decent soundcard.

I'm sure there's more constructive advice out there though.

[nicfit]

I'd say save some more and go for a decent used portable recorder (edirol r-09 / zoom h2 or something) so you have a semi-decent mic, you can put stuff on the pc with 0 effort, you have something useful even with no usb plugs around that you can carry with you when needed.

try reaper.fm for editing

p.s. yes, TP knows things about recording etc etc .

[SONIC GAIL]

My husband plays guitar and I sing. We fuck around some with our own compositions and just wanted something to record, seeing as how you always seem to forget what you just played that sounded so good. We bought an Apex shock proof usb mic from a music store and it works great. It only cost around $100.00. I just bought this cheap (think it was $50.00) recording software for my computer. I think it is called Sony Sound Forge Audio Studio. You can mix tracks and all kinds of other shit. We haven't quite worked out all of the kinks, but the sound quality is awesome for the price.

[Torn Curtain]

I don't know the subject very well but I don't see the point to a 100$ USB mic, especially as you can find a Shure SM-57 at around the same price.

[Derek]

I use a £5 basic computer microphone and it sounds great haha.

I stick a pc microphone to the amplifier, and generally get a good recording, depending on how and where I place it. I think it cost me about £ 20.00.

[verme (prevaricator)]

Originally Posted by Glice

If you're not bothered, get whatever you can.

keep in mind that when glice says this, his inherent thought is "it will be rubbish anyway".

[Florya]

I use a Zoom H2. It's good, but quite expensive.

[max]

nicfit's solution makes a lot of sense, given your budget and the fact you don't wanna mess around with a software.

if you want more flexibility (and acquire useful gear in the process), you should get a TASCAM US122 soundcard which has 2 XLR inputs and phantom power... then you can plug WHATEVER kind of mic you can think of to it and record like a pro.

CUBASE is my software of choice but anything will do... there's COOL EDIT PRO 2 around for real cheap...

[terriblecanyons]

I've got an audio technica at 2020 usb condenser mic, it works really well, but I paid about $130 for it. I bet you can get it cheaper though.

As for a recording program... I use Ableton Live, I, ahem, legally bought it from a retailer. It's kind of complicated to use at first but if you take the little lessons it's quite easy and it has tons of synths and effects built in.

[terminal pharmacy]

rode make a semi decent usb mic and after all it is doing the same thing as a regualr mic, as long as it passes signal through to your computer and you aren't overly concerned about the quality that will be fine.

and as nicfit said try reaper.fm it is a billion times better than that audacity bullshit.

http://www.reaper.fm/

http://www.rodemic.com/microphone.php?product=Podcaster

[terminal pharmacy]

Originally Posted by amerikangod

Thanks terminal pharmacy, I appreciate it!

no probs. i can vouch for the audio quality of alot of rode microphones as i have used quite a few of them live on nationally acclaimed acts in australia. i have not used the usb one though, however the capsule and circuitry are made by the same people so i dont see why they wouldnt be decent.