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We started putting together our first recording kit in the year 2000 when we were living in a tiny rented trailer and needed a computer quiet enough to be running right next to where we played. This meant we couldn’t go for the cheapest one that worked and instead ended up buying a somewhat expensive but almost silent, “Stealth” computer from ARM systems.
However since we were counting our pennies, we settled for a midrange consumer grade sound card, a Sound Blaster Platinum Live 5.1 that didn’t do as good a job digitalizing as current onboard sound, but which at that time was the best we could afford.
For our mixer, we chose a Mackie with 6 preamplified channels, a dependable but less than exalted machine more often used for mixing loud live performances than recording soft music.
In the same spirit of frugality we bought Shure SM57 dynamic and AKG C-2000 condenser microphones, both of which are far from top of the line models. We’re still using these mics even though we’ve upgraded the rest of our gear, so for more about them check out the microphone section of the Our Updated Kit page.
While for software, we used the light version of Steinberg’s WaveLab, a program that came bundled with our sound card.
These were all decisions that just kind of happened. A little advice from here and there, some poking around a bunch of sites looking for information, a choice, and finally a quick purchase on the web….
It’s fortunate that back then we didn’t understand by making these decisions the way we made them, we were locking ourselves into a primitive digital recording style involving just 2 channels, “left” and “right”.
Because it turned out four years later when we wanted to record a second CD we had even less money and no choice but to do it with this identical kit. Still though we were working with exactly the same equipment, by being cleverer with microphone placement and our mixer settings, we were able to record files for Sweet Heresy with less noise, more ring, and a richer sound than anything we’d managed to get down for Huhnandhuhn.
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