Total and Utter Newbie! Help!

[matt_sefton]

Hi -

first post here! I'm a guitarist who has been playing for 27 years and have done quite a bit of recording on standard analog systems and hard disk recorders. My only experience of computer-based recording has been with Line 6's Rifftracker software, which I enjoyed using but was very basic. I run a design company in the UK with a lot of Macs so I thought it was about time I jumped into the world of ProTools!

I have an MBox 1 system running on a G5 iMac under Tiger. No problems with installation, etc. The problem is... where do I start!!! I have been so used to (on my old systems) basically programming my drum track on an Alesis SR-16 drum machine, recording a song's entire drum pattern then overdubbing guitars, etc.

ProTools has baffled me with talk of sequencing, midi, loops, etc! Could anyone explain to me the basics of putting together a drum track for a song? Am I right in thinking that I do this by assembling together drum samples? If so, where do I get the samples???

As you can probably tell, I am completely clueless at the moment! I have a good knowledge of computers and pick things up pretty quickly once I've been nudged in the right direction, so if any kind soul would be prepared to show me the ropes I'd be eternally grateful.

Cheers!

Matt

[RussUK]

Matt
Welcome to the wonderful world of Protools, it really si a great tool especially for someone like you who has been playing with the stuff you have.

Can I ask have you loaded the demo song from the CD and played with that yet? That would help you figure out the basic concepts such as the 2 main windows, inserts, input and output and track types, you cna also play with the plugins too.

ALso there are some good books out there and the reference material in helpful.

[matt_sefton]

Hi Russ - thanks for the response! I've just been taking a good look at the demo - scary! Sounds amazing though. I've bought Steven Roback's ProTools Visual Quickstart Guide book which looks pretty good. I guess I just need to jump in and mess about with things? It's the concept of loops and samples that I'm having the most trouble finding information about in layman's terms.

Matt

[RussUK]

The beauty of Protools is that you don't need to worry about loops and samples if you don't want to, other programs major of those concepts, but Protools is like using a standard mixer and tape deck, but with all the benefits of digital.

If you want to start messing with loops and samples you can, there are plenty of software samplers and plugins which you can try.

For now try something basic like creating a new session with some basic tracks like guitar and vocals, then as you figure those things out then start to add in more complex tasks.

Have fun!

[CME]

Hello and welcome. I have been messing around with DAW for a relatively short period of time. From what I figured out you need a sequencer besides protools for the drums. iDrum is one of the least expensive out there. It's about $50 bucks in the states not sure elsewhere. I'm using Reason Adapted that came with my Mbox Factory. It does a lot more than just drums and now has me looking at MIDI controllers so I can program synth sounds also. Both programs can be used as inserts and will follow the tempo of the song. But anyways the best thing to do is start messing around, and I've also found it useful to check the Guide that is under the Help menu. It's like 800 pages so it's best to just search for what you looking for. Hope some of this has helped.