Are they any good?
I have a Line 6 Toneport GX that I have used extensively over several years. It is a covenient tool being able to plug your guitar straight in and have all the amp models and effects and not worry about ambient noises while recording and getting very good but not CD quality sound. I have tried recording my amp with a dynamic mic plugged in the Toneport but the sound quality is not that great and the input level was too low.
I thought a USB condensor mic like the Samson CO1U may be an easy way to get a crystal clear sound without needing to buy a better quality interface.
The problem I see is that N track V5 will refuse to run properly unless using the Line 6 ASIO drivers so needs to see the Toneport. I am assuming a USB mic will interface with the Laptop soundcard so wont that cause a conflict?
Is there a simple solution?
Quote: (One-way @ Feb. 16 2011, 6:13 PM)
I have a Line 6 Toneport GX that I have used extensively over several years. It is a covenient tool being able to plug your guitar straight in and have all the amp models and effects and not worry about ambient noises while recording and getting very good but not CD quality sound. I have tried recording my amp with a dynamic mic plugged in the Toneport but the sound quality is not that great and the input level was too low.
I thought a USB condensor mic like the Samson CO1U may be an easy way to get a crystal clear sound without needing to buy a better quality interface.
The problem I see is that N track V5 will refuse to run properly unless using the Line 6 ASIO drivers so needs to see the Toneport. I am assuming a USB mic will interface with the Laptop soundcard so wont that cause a conflict?
Is there a simple solution?
The Toneport will have a high impedance input. I bet the dynamic mic you used was low impedance hence the poor results when you plugged it in to the Toneport.
As for whether you should buy a USB mic, well I wouldn't. Too limiting. Having "normal" mics is much more versatile IMO. But at the end of the day it's your cash and you know what you want to use it for.
What kind of mic is the dynamic you have? If it is low impedance like Mark perceptively suggested, then couldn’t you get a little mixer and run that through the Toneport? I confess I don’t know much about the Toneport thing.
I agree with the two replies you’ve already got. Don’t go down the usb mic route as you will probably run into problems with your computer needing to simultaneously “see” two audio interfaces both the mic and the GX.
Buy an SM57 and either a small mixer (Behringer?) which will always come in handy one day or a standalone mic pre like the VTB1 which a lot of people seem to like and plug their output into your GX you will probably need to keep the output of the preamp or mixer turned down to avoid overloading the GX.
Get a mixer with phantom power in case you ever get a condenser mic in the future.
http://www.zzounds.com/item–STUVTB1
Nick
Another route would be, upgrade to the Line6 UX2. This would give the mic inputs, 2 or them, phantom power required for condenser mics. You mentioned “have all the amp models and effects and not worry about ambient noises while recording and getting very good but not CD quality sound.”.
As a thought on this subject,
I’m able to record at 24bit@96000hz with the Line6 UX2 and the sound quality, I think, is very good. The presets/amp effects however do require tweaking to personal tastes but good sound can be had given a little time adjusting tones. There are nice clean amps for mic inputs should you want to record an external amp. I’ve used this method, mentioned below, for my acoustic guitar, even though I can plug it in, In some sessions, I’ll use both mic inputs on the Line6 UX2 for this application, one for the small condenser mic which would be placed in front of the acoustic guitar and another wide field condenser mic above the acoustic guitar to capture the room acoustics the acoustic guitar sound gives off, even though my acoustic guitars has internal pickups. This creates very nice captures when these mics are positioned and balanced audio wise this way. Gives the acoustic sound that up close sound but yet has that nice roomy sound without the need for reverb. I assume that something simular could be done with an electric guitar/amp combination.
As mentioned in the above posts, I wouldn’t recommend a USB Mic either.
Just my thoughts.
PACO
The mic I used is an old D880S AKG vocal mic which was given to me as it didn’t work. I removed the on/off switch and wired it direct and it works perfectly now. I believe they have a similar range to the SM58.
After researching USB Mic’s there seems to be a problem with latency which of course makes them unsuitable for multi track recording.
Paco its interesting that you say you are getting high quality recording which leads me to believe the circuitry is far superior in the UX1/2 than the cheaper GX. A work colleague of mine also really likes his UX1 Pod Studio recordings. I can record at maximum 24 bit 48k which sounds heaps better than 16 bit 41.1k. I mix down to 24 bit WMA as I play most of my recordings on my computer.
Hmm maybe I need to splash out on a UX1/2. Don’t tell my wife!
Quote: (One-way @ Feb. 16 2011, 11:04 PM)
The mic I used is an old D880S AKG vocal mic which was given to me as it didn't work. I removed the on/off switch and wired it direct and it works perfectly now. I believe they have a similar range to the SM58.
After researching USB Mic's there seems to be a problem with latency which of course makes them unsuitable for multi track recording.
Paco its interesting that you say you are getting high quality recording which leads me to believe the circuitry is far superior in the UX1/2 than the cheaper GX. A work colleague of mine also really likes his UX1 Pod Studio recordings. I can record at maximum 24 bit 48k which sounds heaps better than 16 bit 41.1k. I mix down to 24 bit WMA as I play most of my recordings on my computer.
Hmm maybe I need to splash out on a UX1/2. Don't tell my wife!
I can tell you that the UX1/UX2 will do true 24 bit 48,000hz recordings, meaning there are no "up conversions", however, there are some limitation with the UX1/UX2. Though Line6 claims these units can record at 24bit @96,000hz it is converted through an internal conversion process. All Line 6 USB interfaces use sample-rate conversion process beyond 48,000hz this includes the GX and UX8.
You should be able to record at 24bit@96,000hz with the GX. From their website site:
"Studio-standard recording. 44.1/48 kHz 16-/24-bit recording (88.2/96 kHz with sample-rate conversion)" You should use the Line 6 ASIO drivers to achieve this.
The UX2 will give you more options, like phantom power, more inputs, digital out and better control then the GX.
PACO
Quote: (One-way @ Feb. 16 2011, 11:04 PM)
After researching USB Mic's there seems to be a problem with latency which of course makes them unsuitable for multi track recording.
Why does latency matter? I agree that USB mics generally suck... but always on a myth busting mission.
The latency for USB mics is apparently very large, like ‘seconds’ from what I have read. Ive decided against that idea now.
I dont really know whether to get a small mixer or just get a UX1 pod studio which has an XLR input. Im thinking that having a longer signal chain using a mixer will affect the sound quality but it is a cheaper option. Comments?
Paco, my GX only shows a 24bit 48k max option with the latest drivers. The strange thing is, that to record in 24 bit it will only work in stereo. I get just white noise if I try to use the mono option. Weird!
Quote: (One-way @ Feb. 18 2011, 1:36 AM)
The latency for USB mics is apparently very large, like 'seconds' from what I have read. Ive decided against that idea now.
I dont really know whether to get a small mixer or just get a UX1 pod studio which has an XLR input. Im thinking that having a longer signal chain using a mixer will affect the sound quality but it is a cheaper option. Comments?
Paco, my GX only shows a 24bit 48k max option with the latest drivers. The strange thing is, that to record in 24 bit it will only work in stereo. I get just white noise if I try to use the mono option. Weird!
Yes, you are correct it will only show the option to 48,000hz. When you setup n-track, set it to 24bit 96,000hz using the Line6 ASIO for input and output. You'll notice in the driver section of gearbox a small icon light on the left indicating "sample conversion". Gearbox will report 48,000hz but you will be able to record at 96,000hz. Just make sure to setup n-track for 24bit@96,000hz. The only indication you will get from gearbox that it records are 96,000hz is that small light icon will change color, I think green, and the other will be a successful recording at 24bit@ 96,000hz in n-track provided you are using the Line 6 ASIO drivers.
I record in stereo most of the time but there are times when mono is a better choice but I don't do it within gearbox, this is easy to do since you can delete one track, after recording in stereo, and flip it to mono within n-track. I don't think I've recorded just a single track with my Line6 so I can't reproduce what your saying.
PACO