Cayden wrote:I am looking toward purchase of a new laptop, one that will give me the ability to process excellent quality audio clips, has the required power, memory, etc., for musical production applications,
Cayden wrote:I would prefer to stay between $500 and $1000 for the system if this is realistic.
On one hand I would say that that is not realistic and too low a limit for what you are saying you would like to do. You can have excellent. You can have inexpensive but it's tough to get both for $1000.
You haven't said what you want to record or where you will do your recording. That could effect my suggestions for sure. There are so many ways to skin this cat.
So being a realistic kind of a person anyway here's my thoughts. Most any current laptop will make very good recordings. I would look for something with a minimum of a dual processor CPU, 2GB Ram and a 500GB 7200 rpm hard drive. More is better. It will have multiple USB ports and the usual other inputs and outputs. Any DVD writer in a current laptop should make single CD's. That's going to describe most of what is on sale these days. You should have no trouble doing that for under $400 (I bought a laptop Friday with a quad core CPU, 6GB Ram and a 640GB drive for that much) I have not seen any Windows 8 support in recording suites as of yet but it shouldn't be a problem.
You will want a decent recording interface. You want to stay away from using the line-in or mic-in on the laptop for a variety of reasons. USB connectivity works well (firewire too). You want an interface to be able to support lo-Z mic inputs, Hi-Z if you record guitars and line level inputs if you want to use any outboard sound sources or effects. Makers like Tascam, Focusrite, Mackie, Yamaha, M-Audio/Avid, Roland and Lexicon offer these for around $150-200. Some retailers have them on sale now too. These should all come with a "get-started" version of a good recording software package like Cubase, Cakewalk, etc. You could also buy a small audio mixer with a USB output as well. Behringer, Yamaha, Alesis and others offer those.
So if you buy an interface you will get decent software to start off. There are other software solutions. THese are usually referred to as Digital Audio Workstation packages or DAWs. I am a fan of Cakewalk products (part of Roland). I personally use Cakewalk's Sonar Producer. I also use Avid's Pro Tools (when I have to), Cubase, Tracktion, Reason and several other packages too. A couple other well used suites are Ableton Live and FL Studio. These are aimed more at loopers, re-mixers and DJ's so I don't recommend them for what you have stated so far. If you want to become a self-produced Afrocelt Sound System type of act you could try them. There is enough looping support in the others to satisfy most musicians. These packages are expensive ($100 for a starter version and $500 and up for the pro versions) and have to be upgraded periodically to keep them current. Periodic point release updates are usually free of charge. Don't under estimate the costs of keeping things current though. But these packages will all support the best range of professional plug-ins out there including VST, DirectX, RTAS plug-ins. A good plug-in suite can run you $500 easily. If you buy plug-ins a la cart you'll likely spend more than that. The pricier versions of the recording suites will come with a plethora of plug-ins good for most things you might want to do though. So don't buy the plug-ins until you see what came with your DAW suite. There are decent budget DAW packages out there with less professional bells and whistles but they work well. Cakewalk now offers Sonar Essentials for $99. PGMusic offers Power Tracks Pro for $49. Reaper sells for $100 (you can dowload a free demo version that seems to work forever). What you might use depends on what you need to do.
You can go with freeware software to get started. Audacity is a good recording and editing package that is free. It's not a great multi-tracking package. It is not anywhere near as flexible or as easy to use as a good DAW recording suite from a commercial provider. But Audacity also allows you to use freeware plug-ins which are available to provide the usual effects. That is a good plan to start with and to see what you will need in the longer run. And most freeware plug-ins will run with the commercial DAW's too. There have been very good freeware multi-track software offerings in the past. N-Tracks was one. I'm just not current with what works on current operating systems. Here's a couple to look at.
http://audio.tutsplus.com/articles/buye ... rth-using/
You will want a decent microphone. This is where I would spend good money but not crazy money. I do not recommend buying a USB mic. I like large diaphragm side address condenser mics. You should be able to find a decent large diaphragm side address condenser for $200 and maybe a bargain for closer to $100. The Audio Technica AT2020 is a decent starting mic (not the USB version), the AT2035 is better ($107 at Amazon). You could also go with a Shure SM58 or SM57 dynamic mic which are always on sale this time of year for around $100 each. There are more mics out there than you can imagine and some are just plain crap so watch your step. You'll need cables, mic holders and a stand too.
That's one way I would suggest that would get you the best editiing and production capabilities.
You can get good recordings from hand held recorders like those offered by Zoom, Roland/Edirol, Tascam. Alesis, Sony, Olympus, etc. I use a Zoom for workshops, concerts and sessions. Desktop multi-track recorders are also useful and more capable than the hand held units. I use a Fostex myself. They generally require you to buy your own mics. But neither of these will be much use for easy production and editing. That's why I recommend PC based recording.
That's my how to get started spiel for now.
To remove the whistle from pre-recorded material you can look at several software packages. Personally, I think this is borderline un-ethical though. But there is a lot of sampling and manipulating and unlicensed re-mixing and re-using of recorded material being done in certain corners of the music business these days. Packages that are used to create loops and beats get used a lot for that. Roland recently offered a product called R-Mix which is good for that kind of work. R-Mix sells for $200 a copy.
You could also consider manufacturing your own backing tracks instead of ripping off other peoples recordings. Band In A Box with Real Band is the best package on the market for doing that. You pick a style, set the key and tempo, type in the chords and voila you have an actual live band performance generated for you to play along with. The current version has some decent although modern jig and reel styles. Band In A Box sells for $469 with all the available Real Band styles included.
Sorry, I have no experience with WavePad.
Good luck.
Feadoggie