help design a rig for live recording

Hi Colin,..

you have several options..
(I am ignoring your audiointerface as I am not familiar with it)

I use i.e. the RME Fireface 800 with Ocatmic D - expansions..
I've done several recordings and used different setups each time..
Variant a.) I connect every instrument/mic to the inputs of my a/d-converters.. and directly route them to the individual outputs.(cue mix, "0" latency) Those outputs feed the inputs of a mixer..->amp->speakers
(my rack has ~24 physical inputs and 24 physical outputs)
The RMEs have a flash-bios which keep the settings even when your laptop crashes.. (I think they even pass the signal when they run out of power.. not too sure about it though)..
So this setup is very safe.. no latency... and if the pc/laptop fails you can still do your performance without even noticing that there's a fault.
You can use any audiointerface with multiple in- and outputs.. they only have to support "direct monitoring", which is probably supported by all of them..

Variant b.)
I am still experimenting a bit with it.. but so far so good..
You connect all your instruments/mics to your audiointerface (multipe inputs necessary)
You enable input-monitoring within Sonar.. you mix within Sonar (use eqs, compression, reverb,..) and send it to your stereo-outs!
the stereo outs feed your power amp and speakers..
Now you have more downsides due to latency and failures..
the lower you set your latency the more you push your cpu..
so it's very essential to have a quite powerfull system (notebook)
same applies to your plugins.. the more plugins.. the more power you need..
the round-trip-latency depends very much on the audiointerface you use ! So you need to do some tests to see if your round-trip-latency is low enough for you to play along.
next downside,.. when the system fails (i.e. laptop).. your performance is ruined.. I mean not only the recording.. but your live-performance !
Why am I suggesting this method anyway ? 'cause you can get a very "pro"-sound out of the box without any additional ext. gear(mixer/effects).


So variant "a" gets the job done.. no risks.. you can shape your sound later at home..
variant "b" shapes your sound already on stage,.. you can still do a post-production later with all the benefits of variant "a"

Re-reading your post, your needs are a bit smaller..
You can probably get away with a stereo-audio/midinterface.
Connect the vocal-mic to the left input of your audiointerface.. connect the guitar to the right input of your audiointerface.. connect the piano via midi to the midi-input of that audiointerface..
There are several options for the routing..
For live-performances I can only recommend to use a pair of mics(condenser) for the audience/ambience..
With these additional mics your audiointerface would already need at least 4 mic-inputs..
remember that you yet only record the midis of your piano.. if you want to record the audio as well you'll need at least 6 mic-inputs..
If the "Motu 8pre" had 8 outputs, then that would be something to consider..
The Edirol FA-101 could get the job done.. only 2 mic inputs though..
I am a bit clueless to find "moderate" gear for your situation..

Anybody else have suggestions/recommendations/success stories?

Thanks
~Colin

I figured it might be useful to have a little more info about the connectivity of my live-setup for two reasons. One, so it would be easier to recommend recording equipment and two, if I should add anything to the current set-up.

The vast majority of the songs in my sets are played on the Yamaha P-120, which has the following outputs:
L/L + R, R (1/4" jack)
L, R (RCA jack)

I've been singing into an SM-58.

For most shows, I've been running a 1/4" out of the Yamaha's L/L+R jack and an XLR from the mic both into a Roland amp, which has separate EQ channels and basic reverb, chorus, and delay settings.

Recently I've instead connected both L and R keyboard outputs to a Yamaha MG 10/2 mixer. I've put an XLR to 1/4" adapter on the end of my mic cable and connected it to an Alesis Quadraverb which I maniuplate with a footpedal to get more control over switching effects from one song to the next or triggering delays, etc. I run the output of the quadraverb back into the mixer, set levels, and run the ouptut of the mixer to the Roland amp.

I've tried without much success to set AUX levels for the mixer inputs and connect the aux outputs to my computer, but I don't have enough inputs with my current interface (M-Audio FW Solo has a maximum of 2 simultaneous inputs) to have control over the stereo tracks AND the vocal track.

What I'd like to do is purchase either an interface or a stand-alone recorder (but presumably I'd still need an interface with as many inputs as tracks?) that would allow me to record the stereo keyboard sounds, vocal, possible guitar, and possibly additional audience mics SEPARATELY and ideally, independentally of the levels for the sound coming out of the speakers that the audience hears.

What do people recommend? Also, would you recommend I make any changes to my equipment? Should I invest in a better live mic? Do I need a preamp? Is the Quadraverb too low-quality to record with?

Sorry to be a nuisance about this, but it's probably hard to make recommendations if you don't know what I'm starting with.

Thanks,
~Colin