? How do I use m audio Oxygen keyboards with audacity?

[scramby]

Hello

I recently purchased the m audio Oxygen 25 keyboard but can't figure how to use it with Audacity :S . Its only usb connection so I cant connect it to my mobile pre amp, and I can't seem to get any acknowledgment from audacity of the oxygen that I'm trying to use them both together

Can I use with oxygen series with audacity? & how do I do it? Complete keyboard amature here!

[kozikowski]

The short answer is you don't. The Oxygen 25 keyboard is a MIDI controller, not a musical instrument. It's job is to tell a separate musical instrument when and how to play. It doesn't make music itself.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIDI_controller

I can't tell from the description, but my guess is you load the software on your computer and then the controller tells the computer how and when to make music. You plug your headphones into the computer, not the controller. In order for Audacity to record this music and manage it, you would have to record Music Playing on the Computer which is a special series of adjustments.

http://wiki.audacityteam.org/wiki/Recor ... e_computer

Koz

[kozikowski]

Further, I doubt you would be able to do serious musical production on this combination because Audacity Overdubbing itself is a series of special adjustments, and they conflict. You really need to put a stand-alone musical instrument in there somewhere that's not the computer.

Koz

[scramby]

Thanks for the reply, I guess I should have typed amature in capital letters!! :S

So I purchased the wrong thing? Can you suggest a budget synthasiser/keyboard that I could work with audacity?

My basic use of audacity has been to record rough song lyrics over other people instrumentals for a part time music tech course I'm on. But I want to show that I can do my own instrmentals too, but the course is only 2 hrs a week and it isn't enough time for me to achieve want I want in the lesson, so I wanted to be able to put together basic demo's at home, to then show folks that I have some abilety at the course.

All I really want is a keyboard/synth to do this. But I'm obviously a bit clueless as to what I'm buying. Could you/ or anyone suggest something that would suite my needs please? :S

[steve]

Any keyboard that produces sound will do, but preferably one that has a "Line" or "Aux" output so that you can listen to it through headphones or speakers while you record.

[scramby]

thank you, I'll have a look

[kozikowski]

Of my two Yamaha keyboards, only one has Stereo Line-Out, but other I connected to my sound system and Audacity with adapters to the Headphone Out socket.

http://usa.yamaha.com/en/products/music ... mode=model

http://www.amazon.com/Yamaha-DGX505-AD- ... B0002AGMCI

They both do MIDI, too, so you can control them from your computer and you can play a Software MIDI Instrument inside the computer from the keyboard.

You can get much smaller musical keyboards, but I think you have to get away from name brands. Look for the headphone connection. Note that those two keyboards have different number of keys. The top one is on 61 and the bottom one is 88 -- the full number of keys on a piano. I think you can get smaller ones yet.

Please also note the specification of "full size keys." That's important to a musician. Many of them don't look when they play and if the keys are the wrong size, it can make them crazy.

"The 'A' key should be here!"

You can also get keyboard software that presents a keyboard on the screen and you poke at it with the mouse, but that gets you into the one computer doing two different things problem.

Koz

[scramby]

thank you , I just saw the price on your amazon link tho and 'youch' $490.00!! lol

Would this work?:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/M-AUDIO-9900522 ... 637&sr=1-6

I know you said not to get stuck on named brands, but its a bit more in my price range

[steve]

Again that appears to be a "controller keyboard" - that is, it produces MIDI messages rather than producing actual sounds.

Audacity records sounds, not MIDI.

It IS possible to record sounds using a MIDI controller keyboard, but that requires using a software synthesizer of some sort. Programs such as Cubase are designed to do this as they can "host" the software synth and record it - Audacity can't do that. Audacity may be able to record a stand-alone software synth, but configuring the computer to do this can be a pain.

If you particularly want to use Audacity, you need to use a keyboard that produces sound.
A while back I picked up a cheap second hand Yamaha keyboard which has built in sounds and drum kits for less than $10 - it's not brilliant but it works.
Here's one for under $50 from a quick scan on Google: http://www.pawnmart.com/?itemid=98784308878

[scramby]

ok, I think Im starting to understand now

I'll have anoter look lol

I appreciate your help