level recording help!

[chal7ds]

Hey All,

Ok..here's my deal. I live in a split house, and a grandma lady lives on the other side. This means that I'm seriously limited when I record my guitar and bass into my home studio's bedroom.
When I mic my guitar amp and turn it up so that it isn't too loud for old lady next door, the level meter in Pro Tools is really really low..like barely audible. So, my question is, is there something I can do in Pro Tools to bring up the level to a normal level, without having to turn my guitar amp up? I guess I don't mind if some of the tone and quality is compromised, as long as there's something there that sounds 'decent' and can be heard.

Is this possible, or am I stuck in non-rocker hell?

chal7ds

[Chris Cavell]

Try more gain on the mic pre...or a pre with greater gain capability. If you're tracking at 24 bit, you really DO NOT need hot levels to make a good take though.

[chal7ds]

Can you explain the 24 bit thing? I know you can record in different bits, but what does that all mean? a little 101 for a newbie would be cool..

[Chris Cavell]

24 bits means you can capture (if it was a perfect world) a maximum of 144 decibels of dynamic range: far more than any guitar, mic, or mic pre could ever really create. 16 bit only holds 96dB of dynamic range...which you can easily exceed with low levels...so track at 24 bit and call it a day.

[will the moor]

do you have a closet on the opposite side of the house from her? it might sound horrible but if there are enough clothes in there it might sound fine to great. get a few decent long cables and rawk.

will