More on recording

[mdlbear]

I need a quieter box, or a soundproof box to put it in. With close micing and directional mics I didn't really notice it, but I didn't do a baseline recording to measure the noise floor, either. What I really need is a silent machine -- no fans and no hard drive. Not clear how badly NFS affects the latency.

Recording solo is going to be something of a challenge, as is getting in and out of bed past the mic stands and other impedimentia.

Comments

[johno.livejournal.com]

How about a couple of big CF cards.

1 card is the OS
1 card is for the recordings.

512mb are under $100
1/2/4gb are easly available.

[mdlbear]

I suspect that almost all of the noise is from the fans; I'd probably get more mileage out of a quiet case. I'm keeping it in mind, though.

[johno.livejournal.com]

Sorry didn't complete the thought.

HDs are a chunk of the noise and heat. Remove/replace them, and the cooling needs of the system go down.

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Hmmm, since you can X the control console, can you put the CPU in another room/hall and run cables from Mic & Headphones to CPU.

Are you using that external sound box? How long of run of USB/Firewire cable can you have before lossyness/latency becomes a issue?

[mdlbear]

Yes, the "other room" trick would probably work -- it's not a USB connection: it's analog between the preamp box and the PCI card. But I have a 10' cable, which should do the trick. Alternatively I could leave the whole thing near the "engineer's console" and just run long mic cables.

[mithriltabby]

Have you checked out endpcnoise.com? I got a machine from them that isn’t silent, but is very quiet.

[mdlbear]

Interesting. I've had my eye on that little Antec cube case for a while now, and was just contemplating repackaging my recording box (based on a VIA EPIA 800) in one. My favorite local computer joint (Central Computer) has them for ~$110.

[mrlogic.livejournal.com]

I run the mic cables and headphone cables (using extensions) into a completely separate room from the one containing the computer. With two doors in between, I achieve complete noise separation this way. You might see whether there's a way you can manage this. (I see that's what John was suggesting, too.)

You can then either have an assistant manage the recording while you're in the "recording booth" room, or else run back and forth between the rooms yourself.

[mdlbear]

The bedroom and sewing room share a wall, right next to the bedroom's computer desk. Would work fine for a two-person operation.

For solo operation, which I'd like to be able to do any time I feel like it, I'm probably going to build a little soundproof enclosure that I can just put in the corner.