Tips for Home Recording on the Laptop

[jowash]

Mga sir, another question out of my curiosity. Since I'm plugging my mic sa line level (USB guitar link), has anyone of you tried using a pedal clean boost as mic preamp to raise yung level ng mic?

 if it sounds good why not

[Ralph_Petrucci]

Mga sir, another question out of my curiosity. Since I'm plugging my mic sa line level (USB guitar link), has anyone of you tried using a pedal clean boost as mic preamp to raise yung level ng mic?

Yes. pwede to. Did this before hahaha!

[tonwins11]

Yes. pwede to. Did this before hahaha!

How did it go? Did it color the vocal?

Since I'm a pedal DIYer, I'm thinking of doing this.

http://www.tonepad.com/photoessay.asp?photoEssayID=31&sequenceNo=1

A stereo microamp which is basically 2 MXR microamp boost clones in one circuit. Hahaha. Hahaha. Sorry, rocket scienctist wannabe ako eh. 

[Ralph_Petrucci]

How did it go? Did it color the vocal?

Since I'm a pedal DIYer, I'm thinking of doing this.

http://www.tonepad.com/photoessay.asp?photoEssayID=31&sequenceNo=1

A stereo microamp which is basically 2 MXR microamp boost clones in one circuit. Hahaha. Hahaha. Sorry, rocket scienctist wannabe ako eh. 

Parehas tayo pareyyyy! hahahaha! yes, it did color the vocal track. kaya nauwi din ako sa audio interface hahaha pero dati ganun ako, DIY na 9V amp, into the soundcard. worked for my guitar and the vocal track. hahaha

[SexyLicks]

  Went to Behringer they have this mini Mixer with USB Interface for 3800 something Is it good?
At the Moment I use basic Cellphone for Recording anyways here's some songs I did

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-a_Ykv-3Vuc&list=UUy1Uqr33aJh1Qaozj8Az-HA&feature=share

Can I get better Quality using the USB Interface thingy?
Sometimes I get ambience noise from Buses or Cars passing by lols.

[chiinabi]

For small budget interfaces. Merong package ang focusrite 2i2 with mic and headphones na. Available sa jb for 12k i think. Meron naman komplete audio 6 sa music source

Never mo irekta ang guitar sa input ng laptop mo. XD baka masira motherboard mo.

For me:
Preamps - focusrite
Build quality - komplete audio

Madami ding 2nd hand interfaces sa classifieds for starters

[SexyLicks]

For small budget interfaces. Merong package ang focusrite 2i2 with mic and headphones na. Available sa jb for 12k i think. Meron naman komplete audio 6 sa music source

Never mo irekta ang guitar sa input ng laptop mo. XD baka masira motherboard mo.

For me:
Preamps - focusrite
Build quality - komplete audio

Madami ding 2nd hand interfaces sa classifieds for starters

Oh no sir I think this is what broke my Sound card or something? :l Di ko pa alam toh dati.

[jowash]

share ko lng mga Sir check out link with regarding line level and mic level this might help


https://soma.sbcc.edu/users/davega/filmpro_181/FILMPRO_181_Reference_Notes/FILMPRO_181_LineVSMicLevel/LINE%20LEVEL%20VS%20MIC%20LEVEL.pdf

[Ralph_Petrucci]

Went to Behringer they have this mini Mixer with USB Interface for 3800 something Is it good?
At the Moment I use basic Cellphone for Recording anyways here's some songs I did

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-a_Ykv-3Vuc&list=UUy1Uqr33aJh1Qaozj8Az-HA&feature=share

Can I get better Quality using the USB Interface thingy?
Sometimes I get ambience noise from Buses or Cars passing by lols.

Is this the Behringer XENYX 302 USB sir? or the 502?

[cjsantos]

I was reading this thread recently when I remembered I have usb cable interfaces for both mic and guitar. Both used for rockband and rocksmith, respectively.

So I had both of them plugged to my laptop via Cakewalk guitar tracks pro 3, I had to tweak the settings for a couple of hours until I could record a song with rhythm, lead guitar, and vocals. Initially the guitar's volume was too weak,and there was a delayed response when hitting the strings hence the tweak.

However, the guitar's tone was already overdriven by the time I finished. I used an epi lp standard to do recording. Is this a normal behaviour? Is it the guitar being humbucker-equipped? I was excited being able to record something and then forgetting about the clean tone. hehe

[Ralph_Petrucci]

I was reading this thread recently when I remembered I have usb cable interfaces for both mic and guitar. Both used for rockband and rocksmith, respectively.

So I had both of them plugged to my laptop via Cakewalk guitar tracks pro 3, I had to tweak the settings for a couple of hours until I could record a song with rhythm, lead guitar, and vocals. Initially the guitar's volume was too weak,and there was a delayed response when hitting the strings hence the tweak.

However, the guitar's tone was already overdriven by the time I finished. I used an epi lp standard to do recording. Is this a normal behaviour? Is it the guitar being humbucker-equipped? I was excited being able to record something and then forgetting about the clean tone. hehe

You might wanna check the settings of your built-in sound card. usually they have their own "pre-eq" or effects for the line in. I usually disable these to get the cleanest sound possible. or maybe your soundcard is shot. I've been recording via my laptops soundcard and I used to get a clean sound while recording with an LP so it shouldn't be a case for humbucker equipped guitars.

[cjsantos]

You might wanna check the settings of your built-in sound card. usually they have their own "pre-eq" or effects for the line in. I usually disable these to get the cleanest sound possible. or maybe your soundcard is shot. I've been recording via my laptops soundcard and I used to get a clean sound while recording with an LP so it shouldn't be a case for humbucker equipped guitars.

Thanks bro. Will look into it later 

[CeL1916]

Thanks bro. Will look into it later 

Also try using asio4all driver, fixes latency issues(that delayed sound your referring to)

[cjsantos]

Also try using asio4all driver, fixes latency issues(that delayed sound your referring to)

Workable na yung delay nya, ilang ms na lang. Medyo may bitin konti kapag nag-transition na ko sa next chord, parang nagtatantya pa. Kaya hindi ako naka-monitor during recording. haha. Thanks for the tip 

[Ralph_Petrucci]

Workable na yung delay nya, ilang ms na lang. Medyo may bitin konti kapag nag-transition na ko sa next chord, parang nagtatantya pa. Kaya hindi ako naka-monitor during recording. haha. Thanks for the tip 

Sure, but using ASIO4ALL will definitely help. para pwede ka na magmonitor habang nagrerecord.

[cjsantos]

Was able to install asio4all and was able to achieve the clean tone of the guitar. 
But there was a point na nagga-garble yung sound from the monitor during recording, I wonder where that came from. I had to turn the monitor off and then on to get it right again.
When I did playback, hindi lumitaw yung garble where it should have been. Sound card na kaya to?

[skin]

Was able to install asio4all and was able to achieve the clean tone of the guitar. 
But there was a point na nagga-garble yung sound from the monitor during recording, I wonder where that came from. I had to turn the monitor off and then on to get it right again.
When I did playback, hindi lumitaw yung garble where it should have been. Sound card na kaya to?

Buffer settings sa asio4all.

[Ralph_Petrucci]

Was able to install asio4all and was able to achieve the clean tone of the guitar. 
But there was a point na nagga-garble yung sound from the monitor during recording, I wonder where that came from. I had to turn the monitor off and then on to get it right again.
When I did playback, hindi lumitaw yung garble where it should have been. Sound card na kaya to?

Pwedeng Buffer Settings, pero ang tancha ko, hindi na kaya ng processing power ng laptop mo. especially pag nagmomonitor ka while having a VST Effects chain in realtime. lakas kumain ng memory ang VST, lalo na yung mga reverb at delay VST

[cjsantos]

Pwedeng Buffer Settings, pero ang tancha ko, hindi na kaya ng processing power ng laptop mo. especially pag nagmomonitor ka while having a VST Effects chain in realtime. lakas kumain ng memory ang VST, lalo na yung mga reverb at delay VST

Yes, I think so too. Parang nagsa-saturate yung soundcard habang tumatagal eh. Thanks 

[kingjamm]

I didn't read all the replies,
I just read your first post...
So here's what I got...

I'll explain each...

You need to record vocals and guitars...
So you need these stuffs....

• Laptop / Computer
• Audio Interface
• Condenser Mic

First of all your laptop / computer must contain a recording software, either a sequencer or a DAW. But in this instance let's use a "DAW"
Here are your wide options...

Top of the food chain list
  - Ableton
  - FL Studio
  - Cubase
  - Sony Acid
  - Sonar
  - Studio One
  - Pro Tools (Industry Standard they say)
Other stuffs
  - Audacity
  - Audition
  - Reaper
  - Magix
  - Motu
  etc...

[How to use it, the internet will serve you well on almost every single one of them]

Audio interface
 is where the sound / audio will get processed into digital, and also from your laptop / computer back to your output reference speakers and headphones...
this certain device allows you to connect your mixers / instruments / microphones to your laptop / computer.

Condenser Mic
 Not all condenser mics are suitable for your vocal needs... Because there is this thing that's called Polar Pattern, and this pattern tells you the range of the microphone, on how much large of an area can it gather.... So I suggest look for a "Cardiod" Condenser Microphone, you be needing Omni and Figure 8 for this one... The Cardiod polar pattern is the same as to almost every dynamic microphone, the only difference is this gathers more clear sound than a dynamic mic could but more sensitive as well, don't drop it like the karaoke mic, lol.

Now when it comes to recording your guitar, you have 2 options. (there are a lot actually but I'll just give the 2 that you would need)
Either you Plug in your guitar to your mixer or directly to your interface.
Or
Record it off your microphone...

What's the difference?

Okay, because if you plug your guitar to your mixer to your interface to your laptop, there is this thing called latency, that you might have a ton of trouble with. If you don't know how to mess with your latency then you will have a miserable life recording..... Issues with latency will cause your recordings to have a delay. Not delay as in an effect, but a delay like for example, you already strummed the guitar, but it will be recorded for like a miliseconds late or maybe even a second above, depending on the latency....

Now, to remove those delays you could just (for acoustic guitars) place the condenser mic off your gutiar and then directly record it.... (For elctric) Plug it into your amp, then play it through your mic...
But TAKE NOTE! You somehow need to get to an acoustically arranged room to able to get some good quality sounds... You could still get that, if you have a good room even if it's not acoustically arranged, as long as when you here the sound, it's as good as what you here from your favorite songs....

To sum it all up, I don't know if you will read this or not, coz' you may think I just copy pasted this [gooey brown stuff] off the internet, well I typed it all based from my knowledge and experience....
So feel free to send me a message about some recording stuffs....
Again, I hope you read it and, I hope you learned something...
And YES! You definitely need that Audio Interface. 

Have a great day!

ONE LOVE
GOOD VIBES

[EDIT PART]
PS.
Your laptop needs to have some power...
I suggest a minimum specs of...
• 4GB Ram
• Core i3 / i5
You'll have no problem beyond it.

[SexyLicks]

Is this the Behringer XENYX 302 USB sir? or the 502?

I think so well the other one looks like a white USB Dongle then the other one is like a Mixer type one but with USB Interface.

[SexyLicks]

I didn't read all the replies,
I just read your first post...
So here's what I got...

I'll explain each...

You need to record vocals and guitars...
So you need these stuffs....

• Laptop / Computer
• Audio Interface
• Condenser Mic

First of all your laptop / computer must contain a recording software, either a sequencer or a DAW. But in this instance let's use a "DAW"
Here are your wide options...

Top of the food chain list
  - Ableton
  - FL Studio
  - Cubase
  - Sony Acid
  - Sonar
  - Studio One
  - Pro Tools (Industry Standard they say)
Other stuffs
  - Audacity
  - Audition
  - Reaper
  - Magix
  - Motu
  etc...

[How to use it, the internet will serve you well on almost every single one of them]

Audio interface
 is where the sound / audio will get processed into digital, and also from your laptop / computer back to your output reference speakers and headphones...
this certain device allows you to connect your mixers / instruments / microphones to your laptop / computer.

Condenser Mic
 Not all condenser mics are suitable for your vocal needs... Because there is this thing that's called Polar Pattern, and this pattern tells you the range of the microphone, on how much large of an area can it gather.... So I suggest look for a "Cardiod" Condenser Microphone, you be needing Omni and Figure 8 for this one... The Cardiod polar pattern is the same as to almost every dynamic microphone, the only difference is this gathers more clear sound than a dynamic mic could but more sensitive as well, don't drop it like the karaoke mic, lol.

Now when it comes to recording your guitar, you have 2 options. (there are a lot actually but I'll just give the 2 that you would need)
Either you Plug in your guitar to your mixer or directly to your interface.
Or
Record it off your microphone...

What's the difference?

Okay, because if you plug your guitar to your mixer to your interface to your laptop, there is this thing called latency, that you might have a ton of trouble with. If you don't know how to mess with your latency then you will have a miserable life recording..... Issues with latency will cause your recordings to have a delay. Not delay as in an effect, but a delay like for example, you already strummed the guitar, but it will be recorded for like a miliseconds late or maybe even a second above, depending on the latency....

Now, to remove those delays you could just (for acoustic guitars) place the condenser mic off your gutiar and then directly record it.... (For elctric) Plug it into your amp, then play it through your mic...
But TAKE NOTE! You somehow need to get to an acoustically arranged room to able to get some good quality sounds... You could still get that, if you have a good room even if it's not acoustically arranged, as long as when you here the sound, it's as good as what you here from your favorite songs....

To sum it all up, I don't know if you will read this or not, coz' you may think I just copy pasted this [gooey brown stuff] off the internet, well I typed it all based from my knowledge and experience....
So feel free to send me a message about some recording stuffs....
Again, I hope you read it and, I hope you learned something...
And YES! You definitely need that Audio Interface. 

Have a great day!

ONE LOVE
GOOD VIBES

[EDIT PART]
PS.
Your laptop needs to have some power...
I suggest a minimum specs of...
• 4GB Ram
• Core i3 / i5
You'll have no problem beyond it.

Wow Sir Thank you so Much for the great reply this sums it all up. Anyways the PC specs look insane. Anyways here are my current Specs
Motherboard: Asrock P43 Chipset, ddr2 pcie,
Processor: Intel Core2Duo E6550 2.33ghz 4m/1333 fsb
Memory: 3gb ddr2
HDD: 160gb Hitatchi SATA
Videocard: 9600gt 512mb 256bit ddr3
500watts PSU True Rated

It looks like I will do 2 condenser mics one for voice and the other for guitar will that work? O.o I'll put the other one in front of my electric guitar amp?

[KitC]

But there was a point na nagga-garble yung sound from the monitor during recording, I wonder where that came from. I had to turn the monitor off and then on to get it right again.
When I did playback, hindi lumitaw yung garble where it should have been.

Buffer is one cause, sound card can be another, but another overlooked aspect is hard drive speed. Most laptop drives rotate at 5400 rpm can this can cause low track counts as well as slow seek times especially if you are using a partitioned drive. One of the reasons I prefer a 2 physical drive system is to avoid this and I always suggest using 7200 rpm drive - very hard to find for laptops.

[SexyLicks]

Are the zoom cameras effective? I mean If it's too much hassle to get good sound quality would it be okay to just get one of these and shoot a video then convert or extract audio? LOL Or just use the video instead?

[sonicassault]

Buffer is one cause, sound card can be another, but another overlooked aspect is hard drive speed. Most laptop drives rotate at 5400 rpm can this can cause low track counts as well as slow seek times especially if you are using a partitioned drive. One of the reasons I prefer a 2 physical drive system is to avoid this and I always suggest using 7200 rpm drive - very hard to find for laptops.

I found this problem when setting up my Mac mini for the first time with my gear. It won't do anything right above 44.1KHz sampling frequency. Well, I suppose it could, but just plugging in everything and doing nothing else, 44.1KHz or less works.