Behringer recording stuff... Advice?

[Link]

Hey all, just wondering if anyone knows much about behringer mixers, USB interfaces?

Looking at getting a Behringer Xenyx 502 for the mixer, U-Control UCA202 for the USB interface and combining them with a 45 year old mc (Brand name uknown)


Basically the sound I want to get is the gutsier sort of sound, but with some decent tone. Using a Gibson Les Paul and Epiphone Double neck through a Marshall MG 250DFX.


Can anyone help me with any of this? Just new to recording and stuff (Most recording I've done is a bit of jamming using an Xbox mic) so need a bit of a nudge in the right direction.



Thanks in advance to anyone who can help!

[monkey man]

Ha! Hey Frankie. Great to see you on the board, man.

I got your message last night and will call you early this evening. I don't know much about the Behringer stuff other than the fact that it should be the cheapest option for getting into recording as the company's products are pretty much the least pricey across the board.

I've got the V-Verb Pro, the Ultrapatch patch bay and a Powerplay Pro headphone amp, all of which work flawlessly. I also recommended that my friend (that final one who snubbed/ditched me in September), and his band explore Behringer as an option when it started out. They ended up buying small mixers, a PA system and subwoofer, many mics and FX. This reminds me - if the old dynamic mic you have doesn't quite cut it, you could look at what Behringer has to offer; I remember seeing some ridiculous prices for their mics which seemed even more so when my friend brought a couple 'round and I felt their weight; they were quite solid, much to my surprise, and were purchased (I think) for $34 a piece or something ridiculous. The only real downside with Behringer gear is that if it fails, you'd best just go out and buy it again; repairs are famously difficult or impossible for many of their products due to the cost-cutting manufacturing methods they employ. You can't have it both ways in this industry, but with Behringer gear, you can come pretty close! LOL

It should be said that, as you'd know, the folks on this board are predominantly pros who wouldn't touch Behringer and indeed other budget gear for the most part. Many of them may well have bought the odd item to fill non-critical gaps in their arsenals though, as have I, so I hope folks won't be too dismissive of your plan.

One thing I intended to talk to you about when I rang you was Reaper. I've forgotten the name of the app you use, but from what I've heard, Reaper is the bee's knees and supremely affordable. Check it out:

http://www.reaper.fm/

I realise that many of the features will go right over your head, but it looks like a fine option for you due to its price, ease of use and features. It'll be ready if and when you decide to include/explore MIDI options for instrumentation later on as well.

Folks, say hello to my brother. Yay!

[bdr]

Hey, G'day brother of the great Simian.

Link huh....I assume Lancelot is your first name?

[monkey man]

He could well be the missing link between your and my kind, Brett. LOL

[Link]

Hey thanks guys, much appreciated! xD Link's just my nickname.


Sorry to be a pain and all being a total noob to recording, but everyone starts somewhere!


I bought a Peavey mic instead, it seems to have a nice sound, seems ot get my sound across nicely. I'm gonna try my dad's old mic soon, see how that works. Seems to be exactly the same as the peavy but really really old though.

Only thing that gets me is my distorted sound is sorta thin, not too thin though considering I have full gain, full treble, mid's set to 5 and no bass... Still, any way I can get a bit angrier sound?


Thanks again, it's you guys that keep music going *thumbs up*

[Link]

Probably should add that I have no money... Lol I have to make do with peanuts

[monkey man]

Probably should add that I have no money... Lol I have to make do with peanuts

Hmm... this affliction must run in the family. LOL

Hope the chat last night helped, Frankie.

[Link]

Very informative, cheers bro.


I'm gonna upload some youtube vids soon

Thanks guys.

[TKMJ Productions]

Here is the skinny on Behringer mixers. First of all Behringer gear is not cheap crap. However it is inexpensive. They use the same components from the same manufacturers as anyone else so the quality of the parts is the same.

Behringer uses three series of preamps using IC chips. The Xenyx series has a fair quality preamp. Not the best but enough to justify the manufacturer's claims. I would not use any Xenyx for serious tracking. The UB series uses a different style preamp. (IMP= invisable mic preamp) It's a better quality in design and sound and passable for midrange home studios. The best preamps are used in the MX series of mixers. These preamps are professional quality and I feel have a better sound then the Mackie 24/8 board preamp.

To listen to the quality of the Behringer MX series of preamp click here. http://www.myspace.com/tkmjproductions
This is my MySpace account.
Halo and Orange Blossom Special were done with a Mackie 24/8 and a Motu 24 i/o
Track 1 and Soundscape 27 were done with a Behringer MX series mixer and a Motu 24 i/o
All selections were tracked and mixed in Cubase on a Pentium 4.

[davedempsey]

Hey thanks guys, much appreciated! xD Link's just my nickname.


Sorry to be a pain and all being a total noob to recording, but everyone starts somewhere!


I bought a Peavey mic instead, it seems to have a nice sound, seems ot get my sound across nicely. I'm gonna try my dad's old mic soon, see how that works. Seems to be exactly the same as the peavy but really really old though.

Only thing that gets me is my distorted sound is sorta thin, not too thin though considering I have full gain, full treble, mid's set to 5 and no bass... Still, any way I can get a bit angrier sound?


Thanks again, it's you guys that keep music going *thumbs up*

Hi Link,
You might find being a little more generous with the mid eq and backing off the highs will aid with the tone - guitar is essentially a "mid" instrument. In fact I suggest you try full mids and then add some lows and enough high to make it sparkle a bit. Depends, of course, on how your amp behaves and I'm not familiar with that model. I used to think of my old 100 watt Marshall tone controls as volume pots with specific frequency ranges, which is essentially what they are, so the mids are where the true voice of guitar is and the others are for colour.
Dave

[monkey man]

Great call, Dave. FWIW, the reason he's got the lows turned all the way down is principally because he heeded my advice. I told him about the fact that (especially rock) guitarists tend to get into the habit of cranking the lows for impact, not realising that they're in fact making the mixer's job a headache. I explained the 32-band principle to him along with how instruments can be mixed better through the judicious use of HPFs to eliminate tubbiness/rumble. I suggested he try backing the pot off until the tone was savaged and then coming back a little. It turned out that his setup was inherently quite bass-proud, and he was therefore able to get away with backing it off completely.

I'm proud of the fact that he did this as he only just turned 16 (sorry Frankie LOL), and I've seen grown men get into arguments and hold unjustifiably-dogmatic attitudes to altering their ways in this regard. I can't tell you how relieved I was that he took my advice right off the bat. Kudos to the Linkster, I say.

[Link]

Haha thanks again to everyone.


Hm putting the mid up some more seems to give it a bit of... How to put it... A "generic" sound? I think it's just my amp being stupid But I shall trade it soon for a Line6 Spider III 150. Played a friend's 15w the other day, liked it very much.






Edit: Just found a pretty decent setting:

Gain: 10. Bass: 5. Mid: 7.5. Treble: 5.

Seems to sound good on its own and in a recording, almost the same as Slash's setup but he uses a bit less treble and a little more bass.

[davedempsey]

Excellent Link!
If you continue to ask questions around here and try out the various suggests you get in reply, you're sure to learn a lot of useful things.. and a lot faster than it was possible to learn when I was your age

[Link]

Thanks davedempsey, always keen to learn

[resolectric]

...and a lot faster than it was possible to learn when I was your age

And, that might not be a good thing either; the learning fast.

I still use several techniques that were complete failures when i was recording in the early 80's, trying to understand how to obtain what was then the "best sound". All the then wrong options have becaome so useful in the present time.
Hadn't i experimented with the "wrong" microphone, in the "wrong" placement with the "wrong" settings and i wouldn't be able to obtain the right sound now. Faster. And really understanding what i'm doing.

Experiment. Hear. Experiment. Hear. Experiment. Hear.

That's the only way to learn.