Taking it to the next level...

[rickbarclay]

...which for me as a hobbyist is--recording!

I've got two SM57's for the speakers, and an SM58 for vocals, and I'm waiting on a Roland Octa Capture for
the interface. I've had Reaper installed for at least a year but rarely used it because of the lack of equipment.
Now I'll soon be ready to record. I recently discovered the amazing sounds you can get when you build your presets using two amps and cabs and setting them apart -100 on the left and +100 on the right. Really sounds much better than one amp and cab playing combined through two speakers (no brainer really). So finally, to get to my question: Has anyone here recorded using such a setup as I've just described, and could you please share some of your experiences with me. For example, how would you set up your tracks in Reaper? I plan
on doing some singing, and I would like to get some stereo simulation coming out of Reaper, too. Would I record both mics at once? separately?
Just some general tips for a beginning wanabe recording artist would be much appreciated.

I have much more confidence in the folks responding here than I do in the Reaper forum, but that's only because I use this place much more frequently than I do Reaper and so it more familiar here. Thanks for any
advice you can offer. Happy Labor Day to all and God Bless the heroes down in Texas.

 

[FTR-greg]

I've never used Reaper, Logic Pro for me but, try recording both ways. Depends on the sound your trying to achieve. There are times when I want just a nice wide tone but want it to sound a little more locked in timing wise and I'll record both at same time. Other times I like the variation and nuances you get from recording 2 tracks as different takes. You may not want to pan hard L/R all the time either. Just experiment and you'll find what you like best for the moment. Hard for me to admit but some of my best ideas were mistakes that turned out really nice or inspired another direction. There are no rules in music. If it hasn't been done yet does not make it wrong.

 

[rickbarclay]

Thanks for that, FTR. I really appreciate the encouraging response. Right now I'm just browsing the user manual for the basics, like looping and such. There's a slew of interesting videos everywhere concerning Reaper. Some I understand a bit. Some I don't. Recording and learning about DAWs isn't something you do from point A to Point B. At least for me it isn't. I take the guerrilla approach--choosing a time and place
I feel comfortable with. That's not often, but if I want to learn I gotta do what I gotta do. Thanks again, friend.