Kit for Digital Recording

My appologies, I think this has been discussed a trillion times before. Just a few quick questions.
I have a guitar, an amp and a zoom 505 II. It's my understanding that I can record from my zoom to my computer using a 3.5mm (regular small size) cord from my zoom to the sound card in the back of the computer.
Right?
The computer is fast, like 1.5GHz (approx) and it's kitted out pretty good.
So is that all I need?
Thanks.
*shrug*

you'll need some kind of software to arrange some of those things into tunes...(Cubase is the standard because of the VST effects)

You might want to have a mixer too, to bring down the volume of the 505 to a reasonable level (If you put it straight, you might hear digital distortion, the worst kind ever).

If you plan on doing a lot of tunes, you'll need a big hard disk (20 giga is a minimum nowadays) who has to be quite fast too (usually 7200 TPM)

Of course, connect your 'line out' to a good stereo system, because most computer sound systems suck.

Enjoyyyy...

If all you want to do is record riffs for guitartricks though, you can get by with a lot less. On a Mac all you need are the rca inputs or built in mic on older models and use a freeware app to record.
You can set up a really cheap system with a multieffects box for your guitar, plugged into a cheap 4 channel RadioShack mixer and straight into the rca inputs of the computer. (or forego the mixer altogether and just use a 1/4" to rca adapter to go direct) If you want to go all out you could use a shareware midi player to drive a cheap GM sound module and mix that onto the other 2 channels. All you'd need is the mixer, midi converter, sound module and a couple of cables and you've got a half decent setup without needing to spend hundreds on software and the latest mega fast PPC.

Originally posted by PonyOne
It's probably best to get a MIDI/USB converter; I think I've seen them as low as $50 or so. I'm pretty sure that Zoom has a MIDI out.

I think you are mixing things up. Midi is a digital signal without sound (basically on/off, velocity from 1 to 127 and what sound should be played) while audio that's carried by jacks is a sound signal. If the zoom has a midi in/out, it's to be connected to an expression pedal, not to hook it to a computer sound card, you need the GK2A and something that does the translation job to do so.

Midi/Usb converters are useful for midi keyboards, when you need the joystick port to be free (for games or whatever)

I understood about half of that. I'm stupid.
What I'm working on now is this -
I have a regular ol' guitar cable, then the end, it's cut off. know what i'm saying? and there's two sets of wires... one inside the first layer of (black) plastic, and another wound set inside the second layer of plastic (white). the last 'v' there represents the TWO wires inside. they're just plain ol' copper.
<==(||||]------------<
then i have a 3.5mm (the small head) jack which is also cut off. it has two 'sets' of wires... one for the left side of a headset, one for the right. and inside each of these, there is two wires. so there are a total of FOUR wires. two of them look like regular copper (one per set) and there is one each of reddish and greenish tinted. so-

__/ <-reddish wire
| \ <-copper wire _____<-outer wires large head
| _____}-----------------[||||)==>
|__/ <-reddish wire <- inner wires
| \ <-copper wire
|
[==> <- small (3.5mm) head

i haven't been able to pair them up in a way to create a connection. i also have an adapter, small head to large, and by sticking the INNER wires inside (where the small head would go) and grounding the OUTSIDE wires against the outside of the large head, I have been able to make a suitable connection. of course, this does not accomplish the large to small conversion that i want.

any suggestions? somebody must know. sorry for the bad pictures.

*shrug*

well i guess picture didn't post so well... if you bump the 3rd line ahead about a zillion spaces so that it is inline, it is a passable drawing.
again, my apologies.
thanks.
*shrug*

Just by a freaking cable, it's 2 dollars.... I almost cried when I saw those cables gut...

yeah... buy a recording a cable it's got the regular small plugs at both ends, and then just stick on a converter which converts from the little plus to the guitar plug size (you can get these little converters quite easily.. they're really common for converting normal headphone plugs to hi fi head phone plugs, they also do the job here)...

heh.. do what I did and go get a part-time job at an audio store. You'll get all the free cables and adapters you want.

thanks everyone!
i was actually just trying to make one for myself out of boredom. and that 6ft guitar cable i diced was dead anyway, as was the 3.5mm headphone cable. just harmless experimentation.
tonight i'll just go pick up a 3.5mm male-male cable. i have four or five nice gold-plated lil-big adapters at home anyway.
thanks!
*shrug*

A good shareware program to use is Cool Edit. Another good one is Sound Forge. You can add effects, increase the volume, and many other things with them.

WARNING: This next part is complicated

Ok, I have to tell you about this little trick I learned about shareware sound editing programs. Most of them have a one month trial. After that you can't save. What you have to do is get 2 Y adapters and put them in your Line In and Audio Outs on your sound card. Get 2 1/8 inch connector cords. Get one of those cords and plug it into the Y adaptor of your Audio Out and plug the other end into your LINE IN Y adaptor. By doing this you can record anything you recorded with Cool Edit or any of the other "good" shareware programs. You have to load up Sound Recorder (which comes with your computer) to record what you made with the shareware. To record with Sound Recorder you have to Goto File---> Properties----> Convert Now button. Select the audio quality you want. Guess what? You have to do that every time you want to record with it if you want to change the audio quality :(

You have to set up the Line IN to work. Goto that yellow speaker thingie that's at the bottom right corner of your screen. Double click on it and goto Options ---> Properties. Click the Recording Circle. Make sure that Line IN has a check on its checkbox. Click OK. Make sure that Line In has a check in its checkbox that is in this new window. You're all set to record with it.

Get a 1/4 to 1/8 inch adaptor and put it into the Output on your AMP. Plug the other 1/8 cord into it and connect to your computer.

Whew, you're all set and all you had to do is shell out a few dollars for adapters and cords. Heck of a lot cheaper than the $100 you would have to pay for the software. But it's pretty complicated with all those cords and adapters all over the place :/

lol Zack... Do want to know something?
There's a far easier way to it... You can get programs (for free) that let you record basically anything you hear on yer pc... So you set the program to record and play your sound file... Hope this has helped...
(we used to link out soundcards to them selves untill we found this, it also lets you record streamed audio:D... I'll try to get the name of it)

That would certainly help. There's a problem when you record that way. It lowers the volume slightly. This method is good for certain types of recording, though. If you want to simultaneously record to a tape player and the computer at the same time. Maybe use your amp to output some guitar you just recorded and change the settings of it from the amp, then send it back to the computer. It's also interesting to output your sound of your guitar while playing to multiple amps simultaneously.

Recording my way has that problem. Not that software you're talking about.