berkeley Posted February 21, 2006 Report Share Posted February 21, 2006 Hello Community! I'm new around here and I'm trying to learn the best practices for some serious live recording I've recorded a concert and now need to transfer it from the md to wav and then to cd.My Hardware: a MD MZ-R55 connected to an external SoundBlaster MP3+/Digital soundcardMy Software: Creative MediaSource Player (it has a function called ARVL - automatic record volume levels - that decreases rec levels when they get too high. what do you think about this function?). I could also use Audacity or Nero Wave Editor.My question is?What samplerate should I choose for recording the MD output? 48khz - 24bits, 48khz - 16bits or 44.1khz - 16 bits?I know CDs work at 44.1khz-16bits and the MD MZ-R55s specs indicate: samplerate frequency 41hz, samplerate converter: 32,41,48 khz.But, concerning the soundcard, I've read in other forums things like this: "...For my basic recording this soundcard suits me though it's best to record at 48khz and use software to change to 44.1khz rather than use the onboard sample rate conversion (which is a feature of Creative cards due to the fixed 48khz sample rate)." I could not confirm if this issue is true for the SB MP3+.So should I record the md output at 48khz - 24bits (assuming that the SB works best at this rate) and then convert it to 44.1khz -16bits using audacity or other software? Is it worth it?Why not to convert straight from 44.1khz?Also, I've read that normalize could be "destructive" to the recorded sound. Is this true? Do you recommend normalizing the record?Hope I made sense. Please tell me how you usually do it. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A440 Posted February 21, 2006 Report Share Posted February 21, 2006 Assuming you like the sound of the recording you have, don't apply any processing to it when you record it: Automatic Volume, Normalizing, etc. Set a good level so that the peak of the original recording doesn't overload, and just let it roll. I usually use Audacity, but I'm sure Nero is fine and probably the Creative too, if it doesn't automatically add anything. You can always make a copy of your computer recording with any effects you want. But the first recording you make should be as unfiltered as possible. You can normalize it when you burn it to CD if you think that's necessary. As for the sampling rate, personally I believe that most humans won't be able to hear any difference between 48 and 44.1 Khz. (Perhaps dogs can.) It's just that the numbers seduce people. The best way to tell what works for you is to record a short sample, convert the 48k version down to a CD, and see if there's a difference for you when you play it back through your equipment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
berkeley Posted February 26, 2006 Author Report Share Posted February 26, 2006 Thank you for your answer.I tested the 2 samples (48khz-24bit vs 44.1khz-16bit) and didn't notice any difference, so i will probably stick to 44.1 khz.About setting a good level:I think the creative software ARVL feature doesn't add anything to the sound, it just seems to manage the volume controls of the soundcard. Is there any chance I could do this with audacity? Because in audacity I have to pay attention to the rec levels all the time, until the process finishes, right?Normalizing:I like the sound of my record just as it is, but what does "normalize" do? I got the impression that people are using "normalize" as a standard procedure before burning to cd. Why would they want to do that? What is the purpose of "normalize"? I thought that I should only normalize when burning tracks from different sources... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bjsilva Posted February 28, 2006 Report Share Posted February 28, 2006 I think the creative software ARVL feature doesn't add anything to the sound, it just seems to manage the volume controls of the soundcard. Is there any chance I could do this with audacity? Because in audacity I have to pay attention to the rec levels all the time, until the process finishes, right?Anything that manages the recording level automatically will change the original volume characteristics of what you're recording. If this doesn't bother you, then go ahead and use it. If it does, the best way to ensure the recording doesn't clip is to find the loudest section before you record (which can be tedious) and set the recording level accordingly.I like the sound of my record just as it is, but what does "normalize" do? I got the impression that people are using "normalize" as a standard procedure before burning to cd. Why would they want to do that? What is the purpose of "normalize"? I thought that I should only normalize when burning tracks from different sources...Here's a link to some information about normalising.http://www.record-producer.com/learn.cfm?a=3015 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dex Otaku Posted February 28, 2006 Report Share Posted February 28, 2006 Thanks for the link, bjsilva - it's a good one. [Finally, someone talking about normalising in a way that I agree with! heh.] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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