I had a crazy idea that I would not buy a mixer and just use my computer to EQ my Gameboy in realtime. Can this work somehow? I figured I would just run my Gameboy through the mic input on my computer and have a program (hopefully one that doesnt use many resources) and obviously output through the stereo output.
So would this work?
If so, what VST would you recommend for real time EQing? I guess what DAW too as I don't want something munching all my CPU and causing lag.
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London, Ontario
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Sweden
Yes, you can! If you're using windows Vista or 7 I don't think that you even need a DAW - there is a built-in equalizer for the output stage.
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London, Ontario
Hmm...I looked into this, and though I have XP I found a mixer for my soundcard. It doesn't seem to affect mic input though...
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Matthew Joseph Payne
You're trying to use your computer as an EQ, not as a mixer
just a friendly correction 
You really just want to get a D/A converter (audio interface) of some kind, game boy in, EQ VST like the one ant1 mentioned running, EQ'd gameboy out.
Personally, I would consider that two unnecessary D/A conversions and I would find a cheap EQ somewhere. The only real benefit of using the computer (assuming you use free software and already have an interface) is that it's free.
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Melbourne, Australia
Mixers are cheap though, and you'd probably want one if ever playing live?
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UK
It might be better to use an operating system with a real time kernel. Perhaps using Ubuntu & Ardour would be a good solution for keeping latency very low.
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Sweden
shotgun breakdown wrote:
Hmm...I looked into this, and though I have XP I found a mixer for my soundcard. It doesn't seem to affect mic input though...
Yes, that's why I said Windows Vista and Windows 7. Windows XP only has a mixer (though I've seen some drivers with simple treble/bass control), while Windows Vista and Windows 7 have what you are looking for - an equalizer.
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México, DF.
GB1 and GB2 goin' through a Toneport UX2, that goes to my macbook, then the stereo outputs from the Toneport go to the mixer.
At least that's how I do it.
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Godzilladelph
firebrandboy wrote:
It might be better to use an operating system with a real time kernel. Perhaps using Ubuntu & Ardour would be a good solution for keeping latency very low.
ah I always wanted to try ardour! how is it for recording live audio and applying effects live?
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IL, US
don't use a mic in, they're almost always mono and are looking for a mic level signal, not a line level one, so they tend to add a little distortion to your signal. if you don't have a line-in jack, best bet is to buy a cheap usb soundcard at least, which tend to run $30+.. cheapest mixers with 3 band EQ are only about $10 more, so if the main purpose is for live EQ, mixer is probably a better deal (though youd still want the usb soundcard for recording, id think)
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liverpool - uk
You can use fl-studio to do that, send the live input through one of the fx channels and add any plugins you like. You will need a decent low latency sound card though.
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England
firebrandboy wrote:
It might be better to use an operating system with a real time kernel. Perhaps using Ubuntu & Ardour would be a good solution for keeping latency very low.
I'd think that EQing would have imperceptible latency on any well-configured audio computer. Under 10ms should be achievable. You could install a real time kernel, but I think the perceivable result would be the same for quite a lot of effort. Good idea though!
Better still would be to use a soundcard with a built in hardware EQ. This would have zero latency. A soundblaster or audigy (maybe with kX drivers) should be able to do it, I suspect there are plenty more. See: http://www.hometheatershack.com/forums/ … y-2-a.html
poisoncut wrote:
You can use fl-studio to do that, send the live input through one of the fx channels and add any plugins you like. You will need a decent low latency sound card though.
Any decent DAW software will do that, not just FL.
Last edited by InactiveX (Nov 25, 2011 10:55 am)
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D D D Detroit, not the burbs
TmTgr wrote:
Mixers are cheap though, and you'd probably want one if ever playing live?
I agree with this sentiment, using just the computer might be a good temporary solution to eq'ing your tracks but if you want to play live that means you have to bring your computer, or if you want to use something other then one gameboy your stuck switching your only input around. Personally i run all sorts of nonsense into my mixer, without at least 5 inputs id be a saaaaaad panda.
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Alabama, USA
firebrandboy wrote:
It might be better to use an operating system with a real time kernel. Perhaps using Ubuntu & Ardour would be a good solution for keeping latency very low.
Lol, low latency with Ardour.
But seriously, if you want realtime effects and EQing with low latency, you want JACK under Linux.
There are several applications for effects, etc, but here is a nice list:
- JACK Audio Connection Kit
- Patchage
- Rakarrack
- JACK Mixer
- JACK EQ
- JOST Ladspa/DSSI/Linux VSTi
- SooperLooper
You don't need all of these, and it isn't an extensive list, but it's a start.
If you choose to use JOST, I would run a search for LADSPA plugins, as well.
There are also Linux distributions with these (or similar) applications ready-to-go, such as Dreamstudio, Dynebolic, Ubuntu Studio, or Puredyne.
Or, you could buy a mixer.
EDIT: If you need to use multiple inputs/outputs, open a terminal and read up on alsa_in & alsa_out.
Last edited by mrhmouse (Nov 27, 2011 11:46 pm)
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Brunswick, GA USA
Agreeing with the above, the very basic answer to your question is "yes," but is it necessarily the best tool for the job? I don't think so but I'm not the one to answer that. (Coming from a person who recently decided that guitar-modelling amp-DAW is a better result than guitar-DAW-amp sim VSTs. YMMV)