How to get the best quality audio from Sonar?

[dnino03]

I have Sonar 1.0, a good PC, independent 80 GB HD just for recording, windows ME, Pentium III. A good Micropnoe: AudioTecnica AT 3035, an audio interface sound canvas SC-D70.

1. Working with midi is not problem, but when I record a VOICE, it sounds a little fake. I apply some effects, reverb, equialization, but still it does not sounds 100% satisfactory. I have read the entire manual, but it does not gives tips about how get the best quality audio from a recording. It just foucus on describing the funtions of SONAR.

Now I need your help, please flood me with advises.


2 . Another question: I would be interested in getting in touch with somebody to mix and masterize my SONAR projects. So, I would send the SONAR bundle files so I can get back an extraordinaty high quality CD. Can someone out there help?

[TeeCee]

If what you play back does not sound like what you record, I would first look at your record chain: mic, pre-amp, mixer, and sound card. If playback does sound like what you record, but you don't like that sound, you may still want to look at the hard ware end. If you have to do it in software, maybe someone else will throw some recording tips in. In either case, if it is a quality issue, it's probably not a SONAR quality issue. Rewording your question or subject may help you get better answers. For reference, there is a book on SONAR called SONAR Power.

[SteveC]

TeeCee pretty much nailed it. Sonar can't change your audio chain - mic/pre/converters. If what's going in is not what you want or expect, Sonar (or any other app) will be limited on what it can do. The reason this wouldn't be in the manual is that it has to be assumed you're incoming signal is good to begin with....

Try taking your signal, as-is, and record it using Windows' Sound Recorder. Does it also sound "fake"? If so, you know where you need to start.

On the software side, if the recording sounds "thin" then the best place to start is probably with EQ and compression. But that may also be a good place to start before recording.... How do your waveforms look within Sonar? Are they at a relatively good level? If you import any of the delivered wave files (in the example projects), and compare them to what you've recorded, do they have similar overall levels? If you're not getting a strong enough signal, you may never get the sound you're looking for, and may just be adding noise by increasing levels.

Do you have a short example you could post? That may be helpful.

There's lots of people and places to get a project mastered. For that matter, I could probably do it. But you have to consider what you plan to get out of it vs. what you plan to put in... If you're interested, here's some of my material:

http://artists.hubba.com/kromiumprison/
http://www.mp3.com/kromium
http://www.mp3.com/skeletal_prison
http://www.acidplanet.com/Lounge/ArtistDetail.asp?ArtistID=91315