General Pro Tools LE 8 Question - What kind of interface should I get?

[slavestate]

Hello there,

I am new to this forum and I am excited in joining.

I have a general question about my Pro Tools LE 8 and M Box Mini set up.

Currently I am using the M Box to record live in my rehearsal space. I have an 8 channel mixer sent from the line out via 1/4" jack into the line in of the M Box via 1/4" jack.

This is only allowing me to have the overall mix (8 channels/tracks) mixed down into 1 overall track on Pro Tools.

My question is what kind of physical recording interface/mixer do I need in order to have separate mixed tracks go into Pro Tools.

I am not familiar with recording other than my little bit using the M Box, so I don't really know where to look in regards to an answer or product.

My goal is to be able to record more than I am now in that I am only able to do scratch tracks of live recording. I would like to have say 5-6 tracks designated for each part of the drums, and another 5-6 tracks recorded separately of various other instruments on their individual track.

Any suggestions or places to direct me?

Thank you!

[nst7]

If you're on PT8 and want that many inputs, your only choice will be the 002/003.

[albee1952]

Yup^^^ With LE8, the 002/003 is a pretty solid setup and can go out to 18 inputs with some external add-ons(8 channels on lightpipe, plus 2 channels on SPDIF). Pro Tools 9 and 10 open up a whole new world of options(but 8 only allows for Digi/Avid hardware as the main interface).

[slavestate]

Would the Digi Design 003 Rack do me justice? I don't have a ton of money to spend, I'm looking to be able to record at least 4 tracks at once within my budget.

Any replies would be greatly appreciated!

[albee1952]

My 2 cents, but I think the 003r is just fine. Especially if you get a good deal(should be under $500). Now you never mentioned anything about your computer, so be aware that you need a firewire port and a separate recording drive. Then, if you do go with the 003r, your mixer can feed more signals into the line inputs(5 thru 8) in a number of ways(like channel direct outputs, channel insert sends, group outs, aux outs.....)

[slavestate]

I have a MacBook that is a few years old.


Model Name: MacBook
Model Identifier: MacBook7,1
Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed: 2.4 GHz
Number Of Processors: 1
Total Number Of Cores: 2
L2 Cache: 3 MB
Memory: 2 GB
Bus Speed: 1.07 GHz
Boot ROM Version: MB71.0039.B0B

What exactly is a firewire port and are you suggesting that I have a separate hard drive?

Thanks again!

[YYR123]

Originally Posted by slavestate

What exactly is a firewire port and are you suggesting that I have a separate hard drive?
!

Google 1394 and FireWire port on a Mac Book
- Click on images at the top and there you go

And yes you will need to have a separate hard drive

003r works great with the ADAT you should have 16 x 8 - Which is 16 inputs simultaneous and eight outputs headphone mixes

[slavestate]

Great! I'll start looking for one in my budget. I really appreciate all of your tips and knowledge. I will update this thread as I move forward in my applications.

Thank you.

[sunburst79]

Also besides the 8 analog outs there's also a ADAT out. If you can find a used Alesis Ai3 which is a ADAT optical to analog converter you can have an additional 8 outputs. Few people need that but its nice to have the expansion. Once you start mic'ing stuff up you can go through inputs fast.

003R should be fine for your needs.