idiots guide to tracking beats?

adru · Post by **adru** » Fri Jun 20, 2008 4:59 am

so i just got an audio interface to run into my notebook..i also got a copy of acid pro 7.0.I've never had the opportunity to track/mix my beats myself,or done any work at all on a computer,so this is completely new to me..
i know this has got to be pretty simple-but there doesnt seem to be a countoff or anything when you record a track,it just starts recording immediately when you press record--im planning on tracking my beats on 3 tracks-drums on one,samples on another,& bass on the 3rd(let me know if thats not a good way)-by just playing my sequences all the way through on the sp with each part isolated--so how do i get em all to match & line up?
i guess a more simple question would be to ask if anyone can just go through the best process for doing all this.it would really be appreciated,i'm really anxious to finally get my beats sounding exactly how they need to.thanks..peace

fauna · Post by **fauna** » Fri Jun 20, 2008 2:04 pm

hey bro - i can't recall if acid has a metronome function. if so, turn that on and it will give you a click to play over. if not, track yr drums first, add stuff on top, then mute or delete the drum sections you don't want (ie: if you want the piece to start w/ just bass).

alternately, i guess you could record a track of clicks (hi hats?) out of the sp- into acid, then use that as a ghost track to record over.

trial and error is your (frustrating) friend in this.
bon chance.

adru · Post by **adru** » Fri Jun 20, 2008 2:13 pm

yea it has a metronome..but i'm not actually laying anything down in acid,i'm just trying to record my sequences from the sp one track at a time...all i can think of doing is pressing record & waiting till its a bar in,then start the sp..then cut out the first bar, and if they're not lined up perfectly,make some minor adjustments.but i'm sure there gotta be a more precise way in tracking with software..?i got audacity too...seems to be pretty much the same though.thanks

Huph · Post by **Huph** » Fri Jun 20, 2008 6:45 pm

Just record a countoff of 4 or 8 beats-- use a Bass Kick or something-- then start the actual SP stuff. After you're done with the recording you can delete/mute the countoff altogether.

Also you can set the BPM of Acid's "grid". That way when you record, the lines on the screen should match up to the measures of music, which makes it a lot easier to edit.

Platypus Beird · Post by **Platypus Beird** » Fri Jun 20, 2008 9:04 pm

hook the midi out of your interface into the midi in of the 404, then you can use MTC (midi time code) to sync the 404 with your comp/soundcard assuming your card has midi in/out

sorry i haven't called you back, been mad tired, sick and depressed

Rob303 · Post by **Rob303** » Fri Jun 20, 2008 9:15 pm

yo. another way to would be, just record the tracks separate then just line them up at the end. and don't worry about matching them up while recording in. since your patterns going to be the same tempo anyway, theres not really a way for them to fall off beat if you line them up correctly.

adru · Post by **adru** » Fri Jun 20, 2008 10:14 pm

just woke up after being up all night fucking with this stuff,lol..but thanks for the replys..yea,i kinda had to go a little cheaper than expected -all this interface has is rca ins and outs,lol..it works well though-i think i'm just gonna go with turning the metronome on for a count off,and starting the s.p. a bar in..shouldnt be much of a problem at all to get them to line up,at most i would have to adjust something by a milisecond-it actually might give it some extra swing if things werent completely exact.thanks again..beird it out mike!

oolex · Post by **oolex** » Sun Jun 22, 2008 4:04 pm

Where did you get Acid pro 7? Is that out yet?

606man · Post by **606man** » Mon Jun 23, 2008 5:17 am

You can always use the 'bar 1 beat 1' method that oldschoolers have used forever (before midi you HAD to do it this way!). Of course it was done with bits of tape, but remember a DAW is simply a digital representation of tape anyway..

Some would say it's an outdated method, and maybe they're right, but it works well and is really easy to do.

Basically, you record everything from the first beat of the first bar. You do this for EVERY track, even if it has no sound for half the song! This way, when you line up your tracks in a DAW they will all be at the perfect part and in time. You can even record a 'start record' sound at the start of each track, which can be sliced off later, if you have any trouble getting it to work. Once you get the hang of this you'll be able to track anything to anywhere.

A little bit of analogue methodology in an overly digital world :shock:

Euclid Ov Oåklånd · Post by **Euclid Ov Oåklånd** » Mon Jun 23, 2008 5:46 am

That's how I do it, even in a program. I never really liked midi until I tried pad controllers which is still a very tactile way of employing midi.

adru · Post by **adru** » Mon Jun 23, 2008 10:55 pm

yea i don't know shit about midi synching,lol-but it doesnt seem to be neccessary-its working well with just turning on the metronome and starting the sp after 4 clicks..everything has been lining up fine,with no adjustments-and i'm usually doing 3 or 4 seperate tracks.but fuck,after i get done tracking these beats i had already made,from now on i gotta start writing down all the sample volumes and everything,its been a pain going back and figuring all that out...and i still can't even figure out how to move shit around on the grid.still,i almost feel like an official producer.thanks for all the help

adru · Post by **adru** » Mon Jun 23, 2008 11:40 pm

oh yea,oolex-i got the acid 7.0 for free from a friend-but it seems to be only a 30 day trial version..i'd really like to continue using it,but i'm not gonna be paying for any software,thats valuable cash that could be spent on records..& 606-i just realized that what you described is basically what i'm doing,i think..i have my beats completely sequenced on the sp,mutes and everything(like 7 or 8 sequences interchanged)and i'm just playing each track all the way through-been doing hats on one,then kicks and snares,then the samples,and last the bass...but is there anyone that can tell me how to move shit around?like on one beat the hats need to be moved up slightly..it has to be mad simple,but i havent wanted to try random things and fuck anything up..

606man · Post by **606man** » Mon Jun 23, 2008 11:43 pm

Too many people rely too much on midi. Music has been around for thousands of years and midi about 25 years. Midi is nice, and very useful, but you don't want it to be the only string in your bow. And you definitely don't need midi to make music...

SaintElsewhere · Post by **SaintElsewhere** » Wed Jun 25, 2008 10:36 am

Leaving an measure or two is definitely my way. Coming from recording myself playing instruments and/or vox, you gotta have time to cough, adjust the shoulder strap, get in time with the groove or click, etc...