How are all you cakers?!?!?

Whats up guys, how are you all? Good to see some of the old gang still around

Good to see you're still breathing Rob....

You back or just dropping in for a visit? 

A few of us are still holding the fort against the onslaught ......  

We have more gray hairs and higher post counts these days....

How you doing, Robo?
Several of us have undergone... things this year. Endeavor to persevere.

Your dad is as old as my mom.... still kicking it...

at least you were not among the 3 let go.....

Music is good, try to spend more time with it and come back when you can. 

Hi Rob,

To Herb's grey hairs I can add half an inch shorter and 5 inches 'rounder'.  My wife say's there are 3 of us in this marriage now, me , her and 'Dave'.

Just listened to your 'Tambourine Man' 'cos I'd not heard that since the cd's displaced the vinyl's and 'record player' into the loft.

'Together They Stand' suggests that you must take time or make time
for some more composition.  Easier said than done I know but I hope you can.

Regards, 

'Fat Dave' 

aka

Vincent.

In all the gear you mentioned I did not see where you mentioned  having, or are using any sort of EXTERNAL sound card or interface. If you are using the internal soundcard, I would recommend the purchase of something like the M-Audio, Presonus or Focusrite line of USB interfaces. 

Cakewalk also sells some interfaces like the UA-101 or the UA-25EX...depending on what you want. 

The sound card you use really does matter and the factory cards are normally deficient when it comes to recording with cake products. 

Other than that, everything you have INCLUDING MC5 is perfectly fine for recording.

I fear if you took the advice of the sales-dude in the store, you would have spent money and still not resolved the volume issue.

An interface will run between $100 to $250 depending on the features you need. Get one that runs native ASIO drivers.... that IS the driver you need to be using. Make sure the interface comes with that driver.  Follow the install instructions, select the new interface and run the wave profiler and you should see a big difference.  You will need to either use headphones plugged into the interface OR run the interface output to some powered speakers or to a stereo as a last resort. You will NOT be using the speakers in the computer from that point on.

With my interface, I have the volume on the interface software control panel at about 50%, and the volume on my studio speakers at 50% and it is plenty loud for all my studio work. I actually use my master faders (linked) pulled down about 10db while tracking and mixing..... volume is not an issue with the proper sound card. 

Hope this helps.

Just reply here in this thread.... we'll see it and many can respond... not just one person. 

Are you working at all with synths and midi or is everything audio with a microphone?

If it's audio only..... you need the external soundcard/interface with phantom power, a decent condenser microphone to record the grand piano, and at least a set of headphones to monitor. Headphones can be inexpensive ...I even use ear buds at times. 

The signal path is : Mic to interface. Interface connected to PC with USB cable.  Headphones plugged into interface to monitor OR.... interface outputs to powered speaker system or stereo. 

You can only monitor through the speakers with the mic turned off. Headphones let you monitor to sync other tracks. 

I apologize for not being clear.  It's like this:
I record an audio track.  Very easy.  Mics are inside the computer.  They are excellent.  Much better than the previous computer when I had a mic on the piano.  There is only  a connection to the Sony receiver via headphones output.  Recorded at receiver's +/- 30.
 
Now I want to add an obligato, shall we say.  Here I turn to a MIDI track.  Tracks>Instruments>either Cakewalk Soundcenter or TTS1.  The keyboard is connected to the computer USB.  At the 30 of the receiver I can barely hear instruments such as flutes, strings, etc.  I will be recording on the MIDI track while hearing the audio track.  I cannot turn the receiver way up to hear the instruments, for the audio track will also increase proportionately.  You see?  It is such a very simple thing I want to do. 
Ten years ago now I got my first Cakewalk, MC 3.  I had an HP computer, Windows XP.  As I mentioned, it was Rob who got me started.  I had the same grand piano and a Panasonic keyboard.  I had to put a mic on the piano when I played, and on the keyboard when I used it.  Had to put it on a towel so it wouldn't rattle!  The keyboard was large and clumsy and one could hear the key action, but the whole thing worked in the sense that I could play an audio piano track and add a MIDI one.  Equal volumes.
Then a family who couldn't afford one, wanted a keyboard for a child, and I gave it away.  After a while the first computer gave up, I had to replace it, and Cakewalk suggested this with Windows 7, 64 bit, with the excellent microphones.  Then I had to get MC 5 also.  As time went on I thought I could get a smaller keyboard that would just plug into the computer, and did so about 2 years ago.  Haven't been able to use it.  It does connect to the MC5 instruments, responding correctly, but they are too faint at 30, and the receiver tends to drop out protectively if I turn it way up.  Too, I can' t put the 2 tracks together that way.  It does seem as tho there should be a simple way to do this, don't you think?  The old way wasn't very good, admittedly, soundwise, but it did work.
Thank you for your kindness.
Sister

Sorry to be dense, but I still don't understand some of your terms.

what exactly is the "Sony receiver" and what do you mean by "Recorded at receiver's +/- 30%?

assuming you're recording this in MC6, have you tried decreasing the piano playback volume and/or increasing the volume of the cakewalk soundcenter's track?  or increasing the output volume of the master track?  or a combination of those?  - in other words "mixing" the volumes for your output?

To record the piano,  all I have to do is insert an audio track.  I hit R, play and that's that.  The mics are in the computer, which is at right angles to the piano bench.  I hit the space bar, and it plays back from the speakers.  Very clean and simple.  Cannot record piano that way on a MIDI track.
To add a flute, bells, or whatever, I insert a MIDI track and choose the instrument from either TTS1 or Soundcenter.  The audio track plays as I add the instrument (so I can hear where it goes, obviously).  I am playing the keyboard here, but it is too soft.  If I turn the Sony receiver way up, the audio track goes up, too.
 

Reece, I think she has the keyboard connected to a stereo reciever, playing through speakers, and records her performance via the computer microphone.
 
Sister, what is the make and model of the keyboard?

Yeah, she also mentions a grand piano... acoustic? Perhaps she's recording an acoustic piano with the computer mic... but the reciever wouldn't have anything to do with that, either.
Puzzling.
I'd like to know how she has everything connected.

The keyboard is m-audio KeyStudio 49i.  Volumes all turned up.  Keysensitive, but pounding on it wouldn't make that much difference.  The grandpiano doesn't record on MIDI track.  It is not an electronic piano.  The mics in the computer record it perfectly!  Thank you for helping!  Sister

Dear Beagle,  Hello!  I didn't know you had entered the conversation, and had not seen your message.  The reply which irritated you was for someone else.   You and Rob were the ones that got me started 10 years ago.  And all has been fine until this, thanks to you.
I think your questions have been answered now above, except that altho I did buy MC6, m-audio said the MC5 should work just fine, so I use that.
I suspect my problem is probably so basically simple that you professionals don't see why I don't know!  Going back to your #19, that is exactly the problem.  How do I do that?  My #17 explains what I am doing.  There seems to be some confusion about the piano.  It is not acoustic, nor connected to anything.  The 49i is connected to computer via USB.  The computer is connected to the stereo receiver.  Does that answer the connection question?
How does one change the volumes on different tracks?  Individually?  If one moves the control bar slider, both tracks respond. 
 I need to increase the MIDI or, as you said, decrease the audio, so I can record them together.
Thank you.  Nice to hearr from you again!  Sister M