Thanks for this! We get these
BooDoo
People Location: Somerville, MA Joined: Mar 24 2008 |
Thanks for this! We get these questions all the time here, so hopefully people will see this thread and have answers to many of their questions right off the bat. I'll contribute one thing if you're concerned about latency but don't have money immediately available for a TonePort/PODStudio/et c.: ASIO4ALL is a great app that can reduce latency to tolerable levels in any Windows DAW/recording software with ASIO support on just about any consumer-level sound card. I use a SBLive! external USB's Line In and my total in-out latency into Ableton Live with ASIO4ALL is <30ms. Not 'perfect', but far better than >120ms or so without the ASIO4ALL interface. |
Oh yeah! that's exactly what
StrangeJam
Da Manliness Joined: Aug 23 2009 |
Oh yeah! that's exactly what I forgot to mention lol, thanks for talking about that. |
Not sure what you were
CpxAzn
Lurker Location: Atlanta, Georgia Joined: Sep 21 2007 |
Not sure what you were explaining in section B. Is that recording without using podfarm/gearbox?. Because if it is, if you load up the VSTs into the fx first and change monitoring mode to "always input", you can hear your guitar with distortion in real time without even having to record it clean first, but you do need to arm a track for recording and make sure it's set on the right input. And of course if you are using podfarm/gearbox, you can just select your device in the hardware settings(guitarport for me) and you can just use those effects in real time since your headphones are connected to your usb interface. |
hey you want me to post this
Vic9mm
The Fingerstyle Mechanic Location: Dallas Texas Joined: Aug 27 2008 |
hey you want me to post this as an article? on the front page of gametabs?
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Watch me: http://www.youtube.com/user/Vic9mm |
CpxAzn: Yeah I guess I wasn't
StrangeJam
Da Manliness Joined: Aug 23 2009 |
CpxAzn: Auriplane: vic9mm: |
So much for typo
StrangeJam
Da Manliness Joined: Aug 23 2009 |
So much for typo fixing, |
Me? Well I'm not too good at
What I was trying to say
CpxAzn
Lurker Location: Atlanta, Georgia Joined: Sep 21 2007 |
What I was trying to say about the monitoring was that you don't have to use a clean signal and apply amp vst fx after you record. For example, the nick crow vst can be used in real time like you would use pod farm. You can hear the distortion the second you play your guitar. Basically when you change monitoring mode to "always input", even if you aren't recording or doing anything with audition, you will still hear your guitar with distortion when you play it, like an amp. This way, while you record, you can hear your distorted guitar. Edit: Here try this. Plug in your POD and your guitar, don't start pod farm or gear box. Start a new session in audition, throw in one of nick crow's vst into the fx. Choose your USB interface in the hardware settings. Arm the track for recording. On the menu bar, click Options->Monitoring->Audition Mix->Always Input. Turn up the distortion on nick crow's amp and play something and it should be distorted. You should see the level bar at the bottom move up and down when you play your guitar. If the level bar is moving and you don't hear anything, check your output. If it doesn't work at all, then I probably skipped something. BTW, if you're set as "always input", you need to unarm your track after you record in order to play it. If not, you won't hear anything. |
I'll add this: if you're
auriplane
Joined: Sep 06 2008 |
I'll add this: if you're using any monitoring that adds more than 3ms of latency, don't use it, it'll make you sound horrible, even though you'll think you're playing fine while you're recording. You'll be subconsciously adjusting to the timing and constantly ruining your rhythm.
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Oh that's nice, I didn't know
StrangeJam
Da Manliness Joined: Aug 23 2009 |
Oh that's nice, I didn't know you could use Nick Crow's plugin in real time, tbh I didn't really spend much time looking through all the options, so I just recorded by running PODfarm and reaper at the same time, but then again rendering VST plugins in real time is a fast way to burn memory so I guess yours would be a better approach. pretty sure people will benefit from what you posted regardless. |
yeah figured it be a nice
Vic9mm
The Fingerstyle Mechanic Location: Dallas Texas Joined: Aug 27 2008 |
yeah figured it be a nice read for people who want to home record.
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Watch me: http://www.youtube.com/user/Vic9mm |
Sounds good @auriplane, and
StrangeJam
Da Manliness Joined: Aug 23 2009 |
Sounds good @auriplane, and thanks for turning it into an article Vic9mm , I thought it would be a good idea to have a thread like this for people who are totally lost on what to do to start recording. |
For those who just download a
jitJoined: Mar 04 2009 |
For those who just download a background track and play over it, this may not exactly pertain to you but it might be something you can consider in the future. I am by no means a master at this. I'm just going to explain briefly how I do it. Maybe you guys can take this as a reference points in your mixes because remember, there is no definite steps in this process. As the above states, make sure you got the equipment. 1. Your instrument(s) Remember, your sound is only as good as your weakest link. Try to get the better stuff if you can. As for me, I use the Firestudio Mobile(~$400) as my audio interface which has 10 inputs and 6 outputs (2 XLR with phantom power and 6 balanced TRS (Tip Ring Sleeve inputs) and MIDI, and SPDIF) ---Remember that your guitar uses TS (Tip Sleeve) 1/4 cables which are UNBALANCED, I still plug it in anyway, w/e. Also, XLR is probably one of the better quality cables over your standard 1/4inch cables. Your interface and computer (hopefully at least a dual processor) should be able to withstand the overload of midi and wav files your throwing in your DAW. For mixing, there isn't no definite process. As for me, the mixing/mastering process includes multipass compression on the master track, a side-chain of compression on most of the tracks, and a parametric EQ on each track channel. Then the after effects. Your main vocals should always be center if you have it in your track. The general rule applies to bass as well. I always mix my subbass/bass freqencies (1-500hz) first, then mid range (501-4500hz), then finally your high range (4501-~16000hz). Pan the back-up vocals, rythym and melody as you wish. The kick drum is by far the most annoying thing to mix, it can literally make or break your mix. Using more than 1 kick drum, and stacking it can work. Use the EQ, to put heighten the bass frequencies to pack a punch. Remember when you mix the kick drum, you should try and remove any frequencies that it might collide with when the bass notes hit. That actually goes for any range. The key to mixing is balance and having it sound in unison without random bass or high frequencies over resonating. Make sure that all the tracks are in the right volume range. For example, I keep my closed/open hi-hats and snare drum around -25 dB, so it doesn't become over focused when someone is listening to it. After you balanced your mix then apply the panning and extra FX. Afterwards apply your compressors to make your volume at least a decent level. Ta da! Sorry, I haven't been around doing songs as of late. Maybe in a bit I'll do a song. |
SINCE WE HAVE SO MANY NEW
StrangeJam
Da Manliness Joined: Aug 23 2009 |
SINCE WE HAVE SO MANY NEW FACES MIGHT AS WELL REMIND THEM THIS THREAD EXISTS. |
fucked up here didnt you??
wayfaerer
"Embrace your dreams." Location: The Lifestream Joined: Apr 03 2011 |
fucked up here didnt you??
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"i seem to be find a lot that apparently dont contain the .exe actually" -Anonymous "Has anyone really been far as decided to use even go want to look more like?" -Pherioxus |
I deleted my records and now
Joseph PetersJoined: Dec 20 2021 |
I deleted my records and now I'm very upset ((((((((((( Can anyone help me restore them? |
Re: I deleted my records and now
RafeHodgesJoined: Jan 29 2022 |
I found the application thanks to the article https://www.babelgum.com/data-recovery/best-free-data-recovery-for-mac/, it is quite popular and many people write that it can give good results in recovering deleted data. But I personally used this tip to recover deleted files on Mac, it is the best in different ratings. They also have a complete guide on their website, very simple, I think it will help you. I think I helped you. |
StrangeJam
Da Manliness
Joined: Aug 23 2009
So I figured i'd write a little quick reference guide for people who want to start recording themselves but have no clue where to start, what to get or what to do. if mods feel this is unnecesary feel free to delete it.
Let's cover this quickly in 3 stages:
A)What you need.
B)how to set it up.
C)Future considerations
A)What you need
To start recording you're gonna need the following:
-A guitar recording interface:
now you may be wondering, what exactly is that? well to make it short, it will allow you to record directly into your computer without having to deal with problems such as latency and quality. I personally recommend line 6 interfaces like the PODstudio GX,UX1, and UX2, since I own a UX1 and I know friends with the GX and we are all extremely satisfied with the results. they cost around 99-200 dollars, depending on the model, ideally if you're not gonna record by mic'ing an amp, a podstudio GX should suffice. did I mention they come with a software called POD farm? this is a VST amp modelling software which achieves really good results, so if you're also a bedroom guitarist looking to get a good sounding tone but don't wanna dish 1200 bucks on a valve amp this might be what you're looking for. not the best example since my guitar has pretty bad pickups and my mixing skills terrible but if you want a quick reference I recorded this using POD farm ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=napS4526ZJo ). if you think that sounds bad...you're not wrong! but just look up vids using the UX1,GX,or UX2 tags for better samples.
More info on said interfaces:
http://line6.com/podstudioux1/
http://line6.com/podstudiogx/
now let's get something out of the way, yes you can record using your amp and your pc's line in as well but I don't really recommend it, especially once you start using amp modelling VSTs, this is where that latency issue comes into play, coming from experience, there's actually no difference when you record straight from your amp's line out to your pc's line in, but I tried using software like Amplitube and PODfarm with it and a weird delay happens which ends up ruining your recordings, there are probably better reasons to not use your line out but i'm no expert in that area. just for reference: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGyODiIGsNc&feature=related
I recorded that using my pc's line in.
And let's wrap up this part by quoting BooDoo on something extremely important which I completely forgot about:
"I'll contribute one thing if you're concerned about latency but don't have money immediately available for a TonePort/PODStudio/et c.: ASIO4ALL is a great app that can reduce latency to tolerable levels in any Windows DAW/recording software with ASIO support on just about any consumer-level sound card.
I use a SBLive! external USB's Line In and my total in-out latency into Ableton Live with ASIO4ALL is <30ms. Not 'perfect', but far better than >120ms or so without the ASIO4ALL interface."
-A Digital Audio Workstation:
This is basically where the magic happens, where you record, edit, add effects, mix and master. It all comes down to personal preference here but here's a quick list of all the trusted big names:
-Cubase
-Sonar
-Reaper
-Adobe Audition 3.0
-Pro Tools
-Garage Band/Logic
Personally I use Reaper and Adobe Audition 3.0. these 2 let you load up VSTi effects(which is what pod farm is)and give you great control over your audio.
What is a VST plugin?
I feel like I should go over this real quick just for reference,aken straight from wikipedia:
"Virtual Studio Technology (VST) is an interface for integrating software audio synthesizer and effect plugins with audio editors and hard-disk recording systems. VST and similar technologies use Digital Signal Processing to simulate traditional recording studio hardware with software. Thousands of plugins exist, both commercial and freeware, and VST is supported by a large number of audio applications. The technology can be licensed from its creator, Steinberg."
And my quick explanation: A vst will give you realistic sounding tones and effects for a variety of instruments from guitars and synths to drums and bass guitars, but it is not just limited to that, a lot of audio mastering plug-ins(if not all) are VSTs. popular guitar amp modelling vsts are Amplitube,Guitar Rig, Pod Farm(highly recommended) and...oh yeah! a bunch of free ones like Nick Crow's 8085.
-A guitar,bass,or electro acoustic guitar.
Basically the instrument you're gonna record.
B)How to set it up
I'll assume you went down the audio interface route and picked up either adobe audition or reaper as your DAW for this quick "tutorial".
1.-First off you wanna make sure to import all your VST plugins into your DAW.
http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/2347/capturefo.png
2.-Insert a track and arm it for recording.
To do this press ctrl+T, and to arm it just press the button which says ar next to it.
http://yfrog.com/j1armmp
3.-Record whatever it is you want to record.
This is where the road forks and branches out, as pointed out by CpxAzn, when you recording using the PODStudio interfaces you have 2 choices, one is to first record the clean signal of your guitar and then apply the amp VST FX, or the other choice is to change the monitoring mode to "record input" and it will basically record whatever tone you're using while running PODfarm on the side. there are apparently quite a few approaches on how to do this, but this is how I do it.
That is basically how you record but there's a whole lot more to it of course.(doubling tracks,basic interface stuff,etc) but this should give you a quick rough guideline for you to experiment with.
C)Future considerations
so you've recorded your ultimate solo that will pierce the internet (lolreferences) and you have that killer rhytm track worthy of James hetfield, along with a killer bassline that would make Victor Wooten proud, as well as mindblowing drums that Mike Portnoy would dare not attempt...but you feel your mix doesn't sound balanced at all.
This is probably the area where most of us struggle, that is sound mastering.
It will give you headaches when you're starting out, oh yes.
personally I suck at making audio mixes and masters so I won't even fool anyone by giving "advice", but I highly recommend that you do some research on this after you get your basic recording setup ready. there's a bunch of plug-ins out there designed for this, but they're by no means magic, it still takes a lot of tweaking and knowing how sound frequencies work from your side.
here's a quick "list" of plug-ins for audio mastering that I know of:
-Izotope Ozone http://www.izotope.com/
-T-Racks http://www.ikmultimedia.com/t-racks/features/
...and another one which is worth around 12k dollars but I haven't actually even used, only heard from people that the results are really good, I'll get back with the name sometime.
Drum Machines:
They work pretty much in the same line as guitar amp vsts, except that you dump a midi and then apply the plug in and the drums becaome magically realistic sounding.
Personally I work with EZdrummer.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nE1mlwUIKO0&feature=related
Monitors:
Monitors are special speakers meant for sound mixing and mastering, i'll just leave the link:
http://www.zzounds.com/item--KRKRP8G2
it pretty much explains what they are and why you would want them.
Record by mic'ing an amp
If you already have a good amp then this is probably what you're gonna want to do.
basically you still use the audio interface except that you're gonna need different kinds of mics depending on what you're trying to record. there seems to be a universal rule from what I've seen.
Shure SM57 to mic electric guitar amps.
http://www.zzounds.com/item--SHUSM57LC
Condenser mics to mic electroacoustic/acoustic guitars:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CeLcQlO4H7Y
and at least quite a few mics to mic a piano(depends on the type of piano really.)
well that's it for now but I'll get back to reformat this thing to add more info. a lot of stuff escaped me right now, stuff which is probably vital, but this should at least put confused people on the generic track, feel free to correct me on anything if you spot some blasphemy up there, after all I recently just started to get into the whole recording-at-home business.