Ever wanted a fuss-free, all-in-one home recording solution? Look no further! The Sound Blaster R3 is the perfect YouTube(TM) starter kit for budding musicians and anyone who wants to have high quality recordings at home. It comes with an advanced recording interface and two high quality microphones for vocals and guitar.
The Sound Blaster R3 is a complete starter kit that comes with a dynamic microphone for vocals and a clip microphone for your guitar, and these work seamlessly with the included advanced audio recording interface. Dive into your recordings right away!
The Sound Blaster R3 expands your laptop audio connections to more than one input. Dedicated connections such as the dual microphone input or line-in allows you to sing and play with your favourite guitar tunes simultaneously, as well as plug in other sources of music such as your MP3 player. With the dedicated line-out connection, hook up some powered speakers and play out your latest tracks to your friends, in all its glory.
The Sound Blaster R3 also comes with both a high-quality XLR vocal microphone and a clip-on instrument condenser microphone. The vocal microphone fits into standard microphone stand clips and also features an on-off switch integrated into the microphone.
The instrument microphone has a clip designed to secure to acoustic guitars, but is also suited well for other acoustic instruments.
Unlike some other external recording cards using FireWire, the audio interface in the Sound Blaster R3 utilises simple USB connectivity, which means that PC and Mac users can now enjoy simplified connectivity to desktop and notebooks with a single USB cable. Simply plug it in and you're ready to go.
When connected to an external USB battery for use with tablets or mobile phones, the Sound Blaster R3 uses the USB port for power, and the "mobile in" port to handle audio transfer. This means that the Sound Blaster R3 works even when you like outdoor recordings, or when travelling around the world and inspiration hits you!
When recording, it's essential to be able to monitor audio in real time. This limits the number of takes needed and also allows creativity to flow much easier.
The Sound Blaster R3 allows for real-time monitoring in hardware with the added bonus of being able to add in and adjust hardware reverb as well. The reverb level that you hear in your monitors is applied to the output stream for a truly "what you hear is what you get" result.
The dedicated hardware reverb control knob lets you adjust the level of reverb to dress up your voice for professional recording sessions.
Tired of having to choose specific headphones impedances to match your setup? The Sound Blaster R3 has a 600 Ohm amplifier, which means you can even use studio-grade headphones to monitor your recording.
The dual microphone input allows you to sing and play with your favourite guitar tunes simultaneously!
Sound Blaster R3 Control Panel gives you the ability to control and customize every aspect of your recording.
Do you produce in GarageBand Or do you prefer an advanced editor like Logic or Pro Tools There's no problem in either case as the Sound Blaster R3 is designed to integrate into both basic and complex production workflows.
Alex, a Senior Bass Clarinet player at Lynbrook High School in San Jose, CA thinks that the ability to set up the R3 quickly and the ease of setup is something that will get him and his Woodwind quartet to the next level.
"We've always practiced in the practice room together on our duets or quartets for different music festivals. When we started using the R3 we were able to set it up in a couple minutes and record on my MacBook with GarageBand. After we finished all of us were able to listen to the file and have our own copy to listen back to. It's so simple we're going to record ourselves from now on to listen to our progress as a small ensemble, and also listen back after our practice at home to find any mistakes in tuning or rhythms that we need to fix. This is definitely going to help us get that Unanimous Superior we've all been working so hard for."
The R3 is a full recording kit which includes 2 microphones: a "vocal" mic that is also great for small group recordings and an instrument mic designed with a clip that's ideal for attaching to a guitar. Alexa, an alto sax player in high school, discovered the instrument mic is perfect for attaching to a standard Wenger music stand as well.
"I actually prefer the sound of the "guitar" mic for recording myself on my saxophone. I just clipped it on the edge of the music stand and adjusted the neck to exactly where I wanted it to record. It's really simple and I really like the flexibility of the mic, so I can get it positioned correctly."
The R3 kit also includes an XLR to 1/8th inch adapter which is used with the supplied vocal mic, and can also be used with other XLR microphones if someone already has a preferred mic and want to use that with the R3 base unit. This gives R3 the adaptability to be used in many recording situations where specific mic types are crucial, like outdoor ensemble recordings versus indoor solo performances.
Mike is the band director of these students and sees the R3 recording kit as a valuable tool for his students for multiple reasons.
"Every year it's a challenge getting great quality audition tapes for my students that give them the best shot to make it into the ensembles that they are trying out for. There's a lot of nuance in sound and technique when you start listening and comparing advanced players. A great recording is essential to capture those details. The R3 makes it really easy for the players to record themselves and they can pass along their recordings for me to review as well when I'm busy with classes or preparing my full ensembles. It's a lot more convenient than having to set up a complicated recording setup that might not even get the great result you get with the R3. Whether it's an audition tape for State Honor Band or just a practice session, it's very cool to see my students starting to use these tools to take their passion for music even further."