General Music Chat

Kind of figured out the youtube thing using my own webcam. Oooooh man, do I look scared haha. I need practice...

Kind of figured out the youtube thing using my own webcam. Oooooh man, do I look scared haha. I need practice...

where's the like button?

I've done one or two videos and find that the framerate and microphone on web-cams is just not good enough for a decent video. What I've been doing is recording myself with a FLIP video camera to get good a framerate - and while I'm recording the video, I record my instrument into recording software, then I'll replace the audio on the video clip with what I recorded my instrument / voice with. That's generally how the pros do it.

You have to do a little video-editing to sync up the music / vocal recording with the video but it comes out a-lot cleaner. I use Sony Vegas Pro to do the video editing and audio replacing. If you get into making vidoes, you might consider investing in doing it that way.


Thanks for sharing, and keep it up
Chris

thanks for replying! I have no clue about equipment or video editing lol. my husband wants to get me a mic and headphones so I can record at home in my spare time, but I'm not sure what is a good mic or what other equipment I would need to get. one day, I'd like to have my own home studio. it would be awesome to be in a band, but not right now being that I am a temporary stay-at-home mom and taking classes online full time. I don't think a band will ever be in my future, actually, because we chose to have a family band life is more for people who are not tied down to other responsibilities unless you plan on playing at local bars here and there. I don't know. first step for me is home studio either way. any recommendations?

Don't sell your dreams short.
Yes, being in a band is time consuming.
Yes , being in a band can take time away from family, but it can also be good family time at performances and such.
Yes, band relationships can stress family relationships.

But ... my wife and I have been together 30 years.
We have four children & four grandchildren.
She and I both have full time nursing jobs and part time jobs as well.

Then there is the band.

Of course my wife was a " kung fu widow " long before I picked up a guitar.

*snip* I don't know. first step for me is home studio either way. any recommendations?

I'm a record-at-home when everyone is sleeping kind of guy myself, for pretty much the same reasons.

basically - the "basic" home recording studio consists of your microphone, an audio interface (AI) and recording software (DAW).

The audio interface can be either your sound card, or better, an actual USB/Firewire unit that allows you to plug your microphone into it, since they generally will supply phantom power for condenser mics. However if you're on a tight budget, you can get up and running for about $200 U.S. using only your sound card and a dynamic microphone.

probably the cheapest and quickest way to go is to get a dynamic mic and an XLR adapter to get it into your soundcard, and record using free software (DAW) like REAPER. REAPER is a really good DAW from what I've seen by artists using it, and there are versions for both PC and MAC.

http://www.reaper.fm/download.php

A good dynamic mic for the money is the SURE SM58.

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/ ... QgodjGGgLw

The quality will be so-so if you go directly into your sound-card, but it will be a definite step up from using a web-cam / gaming mic.

The next step up to the approach above is to go "entry level". The baseline price range will likely start at about $500, but the improved quality will be noticeable. This is what I did.

1. Purchased a "condesor mic", which is preferred for vocals, but requires phantom power, so you'll need to plug it onto something that provides it. You'll need at least one cable for the mic - +- $20 bucks for a cheap one? I have this one because it was cheap and sounds good (at least to my ears).

http://www.mxlmics.com/products/900_series/990/990.html

2. Purchase an Audio Interface. If you rely only on your soundcard, the sound will be o.k., but you'll need a power supply for your microphone, so you'll have to invest in one of those separately, so I just went for an AI that supplies phantom power and an XLR input to power the microphone. They go for anywhere between $90 and upwards. I use a Firestudio Mobile.

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/ ... gwodNyJG5Q

I don't know if I would recommend this one or not to others. It's convenient, and has been stable for me, but a bit pricey and read a lot of complaints from other buyers about the unit. There are better ones to be had for the price - I would go online and look for reviews on AI's that provide XLR inputs with phantom power.

3. Get REAPER - It's a really good recording software package that supports VST instruments. Things like drums, piano, bass, guitar, just about anything.


---
The Audio Interface will connect to you computer via a USB/Fireware cable. The mic will connect to the AI. The DAW will recieve the audio signal via the USB/Firewire cable for recording. Within the DAW, you can record multiple tracks, edit, eq, add compression & effects like reverb, etc. , all the audio manipulation you'll need. and export to the main formats like .mp3, .wav, etc.

There's a learning curve to all this, of course, but if you really want to record, this is the way to go to get your feet wet and give yourself flexibility to upgrade to better things in the future.

Chris

Um: reaper used to be free. I'll have to look for the free version. I know it's out there because someone linked it to me. I'll post when I get home and find the link.

Awesome! so overwhelming learning all this new information haha. I'll have to copy and paste this so I can reference back to what you said when I go shopping
thaaank you!

I record all my DAW stuff with 24/96 cards, but I usually use the lower settings as I don't take my playing that seriously. You can get a good quiet mixer for as little as $99.00. So the sound card and the mixer can be had for well under $300.00. Nady makes a killer sounding condenser mike for under $50.

There are a lot of good quiet sound cards out there for under $200.00 that will give "Studio" results. All you need is a two channel card to do your own stuff at home.

Mike http://www.musiciansfriend.com/pro-audi ... 2000000000

Sound cards http://www.pcmus.com/choosecard.htm

Mixer
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/pro-audi ... 02fx-mixer

I have a couple of those mixers. They are incredibly quiet and work well. Not only that but the price is what you would pay for a repair on an more expensive mixer. So if you manage to break it (Neither of mine have broken) you can just go get another.

I also agree on the SM 58 as being a good mike. But I have a couple of Nady SPC 25 Condenser mikes that sound real nice. I have been using them quite a bit lately.

I have been using Sonar for recording, but there are a good many inexpensive or even free multi track programs out there for very little.

Or... get one of these H1 recorders and get really good results for $100. Super simple to use also. No mixer, no specialty interface no other mics. Just record, load it onto your video sound track and done.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmT00jOD ... re=related

I use a Line 6 KB37. It has guitar processing, is a controller, keyboard, has mic inputs, etc. It is a nice piece of equipment.

thanks everyone
copy and pasted it all to word so I can look and compare at stuff and figure out what would be reasonable price wise but produce a nice sound. I have a dinky little laptop though....would I need something...bigger? this is an archos 10 laptop. very small. sounds like I would need something with more..everything lol.

Or... get one of these H1 recorders and get really good results for $100. Super simple to use also. No mixer, no specialty interface no other mics. Just record, load it onto your video sound track and done.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmT00jOD ... re=related

I love the Zoom's. Great recorders.