Anyone into recording music?

[Koolau]

I have a few toys, but I’m lazy and unmotivated.

DAW is Sonar, M-Audio interface, Alesis usb mixer, a couple of midi sound modules I bought off Craigslist moons ago. Couple of cheapo midi keyboards, etc. The second photo is a setup for a Boss looper pedal. The synth is a microKorg. And a sh!t load of guitars…

Also have video capabilities, including chromakey. Note the green sheet.



View attachment 52012View attachment 52013

VERY impressive!

Music is wonderful to make.

 

[HFWR]

Is the mattress room treatment, or did you just have to move it to make room for the guitars?

Damping!

Thankfully I have other rooms. Older photo; I’ve added a couple since.

 

[stevemac]

Studio One Pro 6, Focusrite 18i20 audio unit, a lot of software plugins/instruments, and a few guitars (half are out of the shot)

 

[Koolau]

Heh, heh, I own 3 ukulele (pronounced ooh-kew-leh'-leh.) I'm not very good on any of them but they bring fond memories from when I bought my first one almost 70 years ago. (My Dog Has Flees.)

Thanks for sharing your collection and your passion with us. I applaud both!

 

[DaveLeeNC]

I play classical guitar - either my own arrangements of 60's/70's classic rock stuff, or pieces from the traditional classical guitar repertoire. I played a bit of guitar as a kid, but most of what I know I learned (long) after I retired. I have two pretty nice classical guitars - one made by Ashley Sanders and one by Robert Vincent. I record into a pair of Octava MK-012 condenser mic's, that goes into a Focusrite Clarett 4Pre interface, and then to my Dell Windows 11 desktop. I do video and audio capture with OBS Studio and most of the editing is with Reaper. If I need to do something 'better' with the video I do that in Filmora, but usually strip out the audio before doing that (merge it back later) as Filmora is quite limited in what it can render WRT audio.

My equipment is more sophisticated than I am, BTW.

dave

 

[sengsational]

I got rid of my PA, my P-bass, and amp when they screwed up my vocal nerves. But I missed doing some kind of playing, so I bought a ukulele (which I pronounce yoo-kah-lay-lee, mostly to annoy people who pronounce it correctly). Then I spend way too much time making arrangements of songs that have no place being played on the uke. The only tech thing I do is play a backing click track in my ear, and use Audacity so the appropriate mix (without clicks) comes out on the video. That's actually a work in process... I've posted several songs with a backing track, but don't think I've done it the same way twice.

 

[Koolau]

I got rid of my PA, my P-bass, and amp when they screwed up my vocal nerves. But I missed doing some kind of playing, so I bought a ukulele (which I pronounce yoo-kah-lay-lee, mostly to annoy people who pronounce it correctly). Then I spend way too much time making arrangements of songs that have no place being played on the uke. The only tech thing I do is play a backing click track in my ear, and use Audacity so the appropriate mix (without clicks) comes out on the video. That's actually a work in process... I've posted several songs with a backing track, but don't think I've done it the same way twice.

Fortunately I don't get upset when folks mispronounce Hawaiian words. I'm in no way an expert. In fact, I'm still a hack when it comes to Hawaiian language - and especially pidgin which is often spoken in the Islands. I just like to let folks (who might be interested) know about such things as they are interesting to me. As always, YMMV.

Here is a short treatise on the possible origin of the word ukulele.

How the Ukulele Got Its Name

It's likely an insect was (inadvertently) involved

www.merriam-webster.com

By the way, I've heard it that the "jumping flee" reference actually has to do with the way the strings vibrate. So, like many words in many languages, the actual origin is now apparently lost to history. But everyone has a story about such words.

Returning you now...

 

[someday soon]

wow, y'all have me wondering if some digital recording is waiting for me in retirement!

My first job ( late HS years and into college somewhat ) was recording local bands in our family's garage on a TEAC reel-to-reel .. really enjoyed that, but I set the recording gear aside to do non-profit & software w*rk for a lo-o-o-ng time while raising a family.

Kept the music flame burning by playing bass in church a lot ... then I accidentally bumped into Emmylou's old drummer and played in a juicy band with him for about 10 yrs starting in my late 40s. We recorded some tunes but someone else took care of all the tech stuff. I'm fortunate to still be playing live occasionally and it looks like I'll be closing the w*rk chapter at year-end. I've never touched a single piece of recording gear since my old analog days expired in the 80s.

Seems like retirement might be a good time to dip my toes in that digital recording water ...hmmm...

 

[shafer9]

Have used GarageBand for 7 years, it’s fun and I enjoy demoing my own tunes. I play /sing it but hi also use Band in a Box for some stuff cuz it sounds great and it’s faster and easier than 800 takes/punches by me. Lol
Play with stuff. You get better. (And u get lost in the Zone easily—my favorite place.)

 

[Koolau]

wow, y'all have me wondering if some digital recording is waiting for me in retirement!

My first job ( late HS years and into college somewhat ) was recording local bands in our family's garage on a TEAC reel-to-reel .. really enjoyed that, but I set the recording gear aside to do non-profit & software w*rk for a lo-o-o-ng time while raising a family.

Kept the music flame burning by playing bass in church a lot ... then I accidentally bumped into Emmylou's old drummer and played in a juicy band with him for about 10 yrs starting in my late 40s. We recorded some tunes but someone else took care of all the tech stuff. I'm fortunate to still be playing live occasionally and it looks like I'll be closing the w*rk chapter at year-end. I've never touched a single piece of recording gear since my old analog days expired in the 80s.

Seems like retirement might be a good time to dip my toes in that digital recording water ...hmmm...

I still recall when Dolby came out in the mid 60's. I wasn't much into the actual technology, but I fell in love with the sound quality. I spent a month's pay on my first stereo system ca 1969. From tape hiss to no tape hiss. What a great time to be alive.

 

[someday soon]

I still recall when Dolby came out in the mid 60's. I wasn't much into the actual technology, but I fell in love with the sound quality. I spent a month's pay on my first stereo system ca 1969. From tape hiss to no tape hiss. What a great time to be alive.

Interesting ...Noise reduction for me in my little garage studio in the late 70's was a little unit by DBX.
With only 4 tracks available, I would mix the the first 3 tracks ( usually drums / bass/guitar or whatever ) down to the 4th track to free up the 1st 3 tracks for re-use. Tape hiss would accumulate in that track-mixing, hence I HAD to have that very expensive little 4 channel noise reduction box!

 

[motley]

If you haven't messed with hardware or software lately, as I mentioned before, it's come a long long way. So much cheaper and so much better. There is cheap, low-end gear that rivals or surpasses what used to cost four or five figures in years gone by.

 

[albundyz]

I am strictly an amateur. I also did not want to spend a lot of $ on something I only do for kicks. I bot a used mini-Mac, installed garage band, Focusrite, and got on with it. Had some fun but, I have found that it's too much like work. I like to play all the instruments, but get tired of re-recording a bad part. Also, my buddy listened and gave no encouragement, so, there's that. I recorded about 12 songs, 2 were pretty good. Have not touched it in months. Good luck.

 

[motley]

I am strictly an amateur.

I doubt there are many professionals hanging around this site.

I also did not want to spend a lot of $ on something I only do for kicks.

I'm not now, but when I retire, to me that's kind of the point!

I know what you mean about re-recording, and I'm kind of a perfectionist, not helping...but that's what comps (and MIDI editing when applicable) are for...

 

[albundyz]

I doubt there are many professionals hanging around this site.


I'm not now, but when I retire, to me that's kind of the point!

I know what you mean about re-recording, and I'm kind of a perfectionist, not helping...but that's what comps (and MIDI editing when applicable) are for...

I see the pictures of guys, here, who have 8-12 guitars....... I have 2. Guys with 10 guitars, IMO, are semi-professional.

 

[motley]

I'm not speaking to anyone here or anyone specifically at all, but how good one is has nothing at all to do with how many instruments one has, just like having a lot of high-priced gear doesn't mean the recording will be any better. If you're not enjoying it, it makes sense to stop, but it'd be a shame if you stopped just because you aren't a professional. Sounds like your "buddy" didn't exactly help...oh well.

 

[Koolau]

I recorded about 12 songs, 2 were pretty good. Have not touched it in months.

Would you care to share a song here? We'd be "objective" I'm sure. But, seriously, if you want an audience, we are here (hear ) for you.

 

[motley]

You could also post here: https://gearspace.com/board/songwriting/684448-post-your-rough-demos.html

In my experience, they're pretty supportive, but also generally may give suggestions to improve it too (more from a recording standpoint than the performance).

 

[leeg]

I pay fingerstyle acoustic (with electronics). I'd love to get started on recording. Any advice would be appreciated. I would record and post on Youtube ..,.

 

[motley]

I confess I don't know what fingerstyle acoustic (with electronics) means, but in depends on what kind of music you want to do and how you want to do it (i..e. just straight ahead as if listening live, or do you want certain effects etc) and how high of quality you want it to be. If just posting on youtube is it, it doesn't have to be all that IMO.

Generally you'll need a "DAW," which is simply the software to record the music. Most DAWs have plenty of functionality and extras that come with it, but as to which is best, there is no right answer; you'd need to try them out to see which fits you best (most have trial versions).

Hardware-wise, you'll need:

- An audio interface
- Speakers
- At least one or two microphones
- Headphones

Of course there are 1000 choices in brands, features, etc but I suggest you read, read, and read some more before buying anything. Long story short, even the low-cost stuff is really good now, so don't fall into the "you get what you pay for" BS because that's all it is. Likewise for software. There is some really good stuff out there even for free.

That's the basics. You can go as deep or as simple as you want with it. Again read up on it in general for more info. Plenty of articles on the internet!

 

[TickTock]

leeg,

motley has a good summary. I suggest starting with the book Home Recording For Dummies (2020). My copy is 4th edition (2012).

Assuming you want to start inexpensively (you can spend all your money on sound equipment...)

Audio interface: 2 inputs, including 1 Hi-Z for guitar. That way you can plug in directly to the interface and sing at the same time if you want, or mic the guitar, or plug in directly and mic at the same time. MIDI input if you care about that. Behringer and M-Audio are good quality with decent prices.

Mics: If you want to sing, a dynamic mic. The Shure SM58 is the standard and has been for years, but you can go with less pricey options. If you want to mic the acoustic guitar, a large-condenser mic.

Headphones: You can get a decent one for $30 - 50. Use what you have if you already have one.

Speakers: What you're looking for here is "near-field monitor speakers". Unless you listen a lot to sound from your computer, I'd make this the last purchase. KRK has good quality, reasonably priced speakers. Mine are KRK Rockit-6.

Computer: The one you're using to get to this site is likely good to start with.

DAW: Audacity is free. As motley noted, most have free trials.

You'll also need cables and connectors to make everything talk to each other.

 

[motley]

Mics: If you want to sing, a dynamic mic. The Shure SM58 is the standard and has been for years, but you can go with less pricey options. If you want to mic the acoustic guitar, a large-condenser mic.

Great post, but I respectfully disagree somewhat with this one. Condenser mics are generally better for vocals, although that's an oversimplification too (this is where the research will pay off...). Re the SM58, it's a great live mic, but I wouldn't recommend for recording. Of course it's all subjective though, and as far as specific mics, that's quite a rabbit hole

 

[mh]

i quite like Universal Audio’s (relatively) new LUNA DAW. they just came out with a version that runs on macs and windows now. it’s free and you don’t need to use Unviersal Audio’s audio interface hardware anymore ( as you did in the inital release). i also use their VOLT audio interface which is very nice. works on ipads as well as macs and PC's

 

[mh]

I confess I don't know what fingerstyle acoustic (with electronics) means, but in depends on what kind of music you want to do and how you want to do it (i..e. just straight ahead as if listening live, or do you want certain effects etc) and how high of quality you want it to be. If just posting on youtube is it, it doesn't have to be all that IMO.

Generally you'll need a "DAW," which is simply the software to record the music. Most DAWs have plenty of functionality and extras that come with it, but as to which is best, there is no right answer; you'd need to try them out to see which fits you best (most have trial versions).

Hardware-wise, you'll need:

- An audio interface
- Speakers
- At least one or two microphones
- Headphones

Of course there are 1000 choices in brands, features, etc but I suggest you read, read, and read some more before buying anything. Long story short, even the low-cost stuff is really good now, so don't fall into the "you get what you pay for" BS because that's all it is. Likewise for software. There is some really good stuff out there even for free.

That's the basics. You can go as deep or as simple as you want with it. Again read up on it in general for more info. Plenty of articles on the internet!

if you are doing a lot of acoustic guitar recording and that’s your primary source. i’d suggest getting something like a K&K trinity system for your guitar. Trinity Systems — K&K Sound there are other people who make similar systems, like Fishman, but i like K&K myself. you’ll get better results with a lot less futzing around than you will with std. microphones. really expensive ribbon mics or whatnot might get you better sound but you’ll be paying a lot more money for that and for your particular application it’s not going to be that much better.

 

[motley]

That's interesting, I wasn't aware of that kind of thing for guitars, but that's probably because I don't play guitar FWIW there are very good ribbon mics that don't cost a lot these days. How much better they'd be for guitar however again I can't say (and again it all varies depending on the specifics) but they're great on vocals IMO.