Need help with recording! Please Read

  • Thread starter Thread starter ElegyOfficial
  • Start date Start date
ElegyOfficial

ElegyOfficial

New member
Hey guys!

Heres my problem,
I dont know how to record very well...and i need to record my guitar, bass, and some vocals. And here is the equiptment i have.

M-Audio Fast Track Pro
AT2020 Condenser Mic.
Mixcraft 4.5 recording software.
I have Guitar rig...but when i record something and put it in guitar rig...it sounds horrible cause im guessing the mic isnt positioned right or something.

I wanna know how to get that professional metal sound on guitar when i record. When i play it, it sounds great, but when i hear it on playback..its not what i expected :(.

Give me AS MUCH advice as possible!

ill take any advice on recording..is there anything i need to buy (im on a budget tho, keep that in mind) or what im new and will appreciate any help :)

-Elegy
 
ElegyOfficial said:
Hey guys!

Heres my problem,
I dont know how to record very well...and i need to record my guitar, bass, and some vocals. And here is the equiptment i have.

M-Audio Fast Track Pro
AT2020 Condenser Mic.
Mixcraft 4.5 recording software.
I have Guitar rig...but when i record something and put it in guitar rig...it sounds horrible cause im guessing the mic isnt positioned right or something.

I wanna know how to get that professional metal sound on guitar when i record. When i play it, it sounds great, but when i hear it on playback..its not what i expected :(.

Give me AS MUCH advice as possible!

ill take any advice on recording..is there anything i need to buy (im on a budget tho, keep that in mind) or what im new and will appreciate any help :)

-Elegy
Click to expand...



Hey Elegy,

AT2020 mic is a good choice to start. You might want to google "Reaper" for some really excellent recording software. It will take you an hour or so to really get familliar with Reaper - but will be so worth it.

M-Audio Fast Track Pro is also a nice piece to get started.

Recording guitar (and many other things) you are probably going to want to get yourself a Shure SM57 dynamic microphone. Almost all music stores sell these. For vocals - use you AT2020. For bass - you'll want to Line-in or "HI-Z" or "Direct" right into your Fast Track Pro, if it has that option.

Recording takes years to learn well. You have to just do it -- trial by fire. This site is a wealth of information - read all you can.

Do you have a guitar amp you can record, instead of guitar rig? I'm not familiar with Guitar rig, so I can't help you much with that -- but if you can get a decent sound out of a real guitar amp, and point a Shure SM57 just a little of the center of the cone - you should be able to get a useable sound.

Anyway - trial by fire man - dig in. I've been doing this for over 10 years, and have barely scratched the surface, and I am still not completely happy with my recordings -- all you can do is make small steps 1 project at a time.

Good Luck - and don't give up.
 
mattkw80 said:
Hey Elegy,

AT2020 mic is a good choice to start. You might want to google "Reaper" for some really excellent recording software. It will take you an hour or so to really get familliar with Reaper - but will be so worth it.

M-Audio Fast Track Pro is also a nice piece to get started.

Recording guitar (and many other things) you are probably going to want to get yourself a Shure SM57 dynamic microphone. Almost all music stores sell these. For vocals - use you AT2020. For bass - you'll want to Line-in or "HI-Z" or "Direct" right into your Fast Track Pro, if it has that option.

Recording takes years to learn well. You have to just do it -- trial by fire. This site is a wealth of information - read all you can.

Do you have a guitar amp you can record, instead of guitar rig? I'm not familiar with Guitar rig, so I can't help you much with that -- but if you can get a decent sound out of a real guitar amp, and point a Shure SM57 just a little of the center of the cone - you should be able to get a useable sound.

Anyway - trial by fire man - dig in. I've been doing this for over 10 years, and have barely scratched the surface, and I am still not completely happy with my recordings -- all you can do is make small steps 1 project at a time.

Good Luck - and don't give up.
Click to expand...

Ahh i see...
Haha i cant trust guitar center at all they were all "Yeah man, use at 2020 i reccomend it for everything, guitar, vocals blah blah blah blah blah" The only thing they sold me that i LOVE is Fast track pro. But umm...anyway. Im going to look up that mic and see if it is at a decent price...

Check out my work at www.myspace.com/ourlastplague...
there are no vocals since there is noone to sing for us ... but thats whats good cause i want you to understand what sound im getting :( haha. But ive been familiar with recording for a year...and now i just started getting serious about it as i promised my band i would get a studio.

reply if you can! And im appreciating your help :)
-Elegy
 
mattkw80 said:
Hey Elegy,

AT2020 mic is a good choice to start. You might want to google "Reaper" for some really excellent recording software. It will take you an hour or so to really get familliar with Reaper - but will be so worth it.

M-Audio Fast Track Pro is also a nice piece to get started.

Recording guitar (and many other things) you are probably going to want to get yourself a Shure SM57 dynamic microphone. Almost all music stores sell these. For vocals - use you AT2020. For bass - you'll want to Line-in or "HI-Z" or "Direct" right into your Fast Track Pro, if it has that option.

Recording takes years to learn well. You have to just do it -- trial by fire. This site is a wealth of information - read all you can.

Do you have a guitar amp you can record, instead of guitar rig? I'm not familiar with Guitar rig, so I can't help you much with that -- but if you can get a decent sound out of a real guitar amp, and point a Shure SM57 just a little of the center of the cone - you should be able to get a useable sound.

Anyway - trial by fire man - dig in. I've been doing this for over 10 years, and have barely scratched the surface, and I am still not completely happy with my recordings -- all you can do is make small steps 1 project at a time.

Good Luck - and don't give up.
Click to expand...

Also. i used reaper...and i didnt like it too much :(

Mixcraft is better for me :)
 
ElegyOfficial said:
Ahh i see...
Haha i cant trust guitar center at all they were all "Yeah man, use at 2020 i reccomend it for everything, guitar, vocals blah blah blah blah blah" The only thing they sold me that i LOVE is Fast track pro. But umm...anyway. Im going to look up that mic and see if it is at a decent price...

Check out my work at www.myspace.com/ourlastplague...
there are no vocals since there is noone to sing for us ... but thats whats good cause i want you to understand what sound im getting :( haha. But ive been familiar with recording for a year...and now i just started getting serious about it as i promised my band i would get a studio.

reply if you can! And im appreciating your help :)
-Elegy
Click to expand...


Well - the 2020 can be used on guitar, but I am suggesting you get an SM57 as it's a very universally diverse mic. Engineer's who have thousands of dollars worth of mics still grab up an SM57 most of the time.

I owned the 2020 - and it will serve you well on many sources to get you started. Your ears will know when it's time to sell it and upgrade - but for now, it is a very solid, indestructable condensor mic.

I'll check out your myspace, and see if I can offer any more advice.
 
mattkw80 said:
Well - the 2020 can be used on guitar, but I am suggesting you get an SM57 as it's a very universally diverse mic. Engineer's who have thousands of dollars worth of mics still grab up an SM57 most of the time.

I owned the 2020 - and it will serve you well on many sources to get you started. Your ears will know when it's time to sell it and upgrade - but for now, it is a very solid, indestructable condensor mic.

I'll check out your myspace, and see if I can offer any more advice.
Click to expand...

Alright kewl :)
Yeah ill definately look into that mic i read reviews on musicians friend and its lookin nice :)

And please do, cause you can listen to the songs, gimme advice on what to do cause i bet if you listened to it you can tell "o dayum, that mic position is wayyy off" or something haha :)
 
My obligatory standard reply-for-newbies that I keep in Wordpad so this is just a paste (I don't want to re-type this all the time):

First off, immediately get a good beginner recording book (spend $20 before spending hundred$/thousand$) that shows you what you need to get started and how to hook everything up in your studio:
Home Recording for Musicians by Jeff Strong - $15
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/04...mp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0470385421
(Wish I'd had that when I started; would have saved me lots of money and time and grief)
You can also pick up this book in most any Borders or Barnes&Noble in the Music Books section!

Another good one is: Recording Guitar and Bass by Huw Price
http://www.amazon.com/Recording-Gui...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1215734124&sr=1-1
(I got my copy at a place called Half-Price Books for $6!!)

And you can get a FREE subscription to TapeOp magazine at www.tapeop.com

Barnes&Noble or Borders are great places to start --- they have recording books and you can go get a snack or coffee and read them for FREE! Don't pass by a good recording book --- this is a VERY technical hobby and you REALLY want to start a reference library!!!

Good Newbie guides that also explains all the basics and have good tips:
http://www.tweakheadz.com/guide.htm
http://www.computermusic.co.uk/page/computermusic?entry=free_beginner_pdfs
http://www.harmony-central.com/articles/
http://www.gearslutz.com/board/tips-techniques/168409-tips-techniques.html

21 Ways To Assemble a Recording Rig: http://www.tweakheadz.com/rigs.htm

Also Good Info: http://www.theprojectstudiohandbook.com/directory.htm

Other recording books: http://musicbooksplus.com/home-recording-c-31.html

Still using a built-in soundcard?? Unfortunately, those are made with less than $1 worth of chips for beeps, boops and light gaming (not to mention cheapness for the manufacturer) and NOT quality music production.
#1 Rule of Recording: You MUST replace the built-in soundcard.
Here's a good guide and tested suggestions that WORK: http://www.tweakheadz.com/soundcards_for_the_home_studio.htm


Plenty of software around to record for FREE to start out on:

Audacity: http://audacity.sourceforge.net (multi-track with VST support)
Wavosaur: http://www.wavosaur.com/ (a stereo audio file editor with VST support)\
Kristal: http://www.kreatives.org/kristal/
Other freebies and shareware: www.hitsquad.com/smm

Another great option is REAPER at http://www.cockos.com/reaper/ (It's $50 but runs for free until you get guilty enough to pay for it...)
I use Reaper and highly reccomend it...

Music Notation and MIDI recording: Melody Assistant ($25) and Harmony Assistant ($80) have the power of $600 notation packages - http://myriad-online.com
Demo you can try on the website.

And you can go out to any Barnes&Noble or Borders and pick up "Computer Music" magazine - they have a full FREE studio suite in every issue's DVD, including sequencers, plugins and tons of audio samples. (November 2006 they gave away a full copy of SamplitudeV8SE worth $150, November 2007-on the racks Dec in the US- they gave away SamplitudeV9SE and July 2009 issue they put out Samplitude10SE. FREE. It pays to watch 'em for giveaways...)
 
I'm not sure if someone's just mentioned this tip already but from recording throughout the years, the best tip for recording guitars is to mic directly to the bottom left of the cone.

For some weird physical reason, the bass, mid and treble aparently settles the best in this area.

If you have more than 1 mic, the best thing to do is to do this on 2 cones or if you just have the 1 cone, set 1 in the bottom left and another roughly a foot behind it - 1 mic to pick up the bassy tones and the other to pick up the top ends.

Hope this helps anyway dude, like people have said, it's all trial and error but I've been playing and recording metal for a good few years and this technique has worked really well with home recordings :)
 
truth_movement said:
I'm not sure if someone's just mentioned this tip already but from recording throughout the years, the best tip for recording guitars is to mic directly to the bottom left of the cone.

For some weird physical reason, the bass, mid and treble aparently settles the best in this area.

If you have more than 1 mic, the best thing to do is to do this on 2 cones or if you just have the 1 cone, set 1 in the bottom left and another roughly a foot behind it - 1 mic to pick up the bassy tones and the other to pick up the top ends.

Hope this helps anyway dude, like people have said, it's all trial and error but I've been playing and recording metal for a good few years and this technique has worked really well with home recordings :)
Click to expand...

beautiful!!!
It sounds better that way..i just had it in the middle.
Sounds better your way.
and i only have 1 mic haha :)
i have 1 cone btw
and 1 mic
but i already said that...
Yeah dude thanks sounds better.

And since you sound all pro and stuff haha - what are pans used for and how would i use them? does it serve any sound betterage? <--- you know what i mean i think haha :)
 
Last edited:
TimOBrien said:
My obligatory standard reply-for-newbies that I keep in Wordpad so this is just a paste (I don't want to re-type this all the time):

First off, immediately get a good beginner recording book (spend $20 before spending hundred$/thousand$) that shows you what you need to get started and how to hook everything up in your studio:
Home Recording for Musicians by Jeff Strong - $15
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/04...mp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0470385421
(Wish I'd had that when I started; would have saved me lots of money and time and grief)
You can also pick up this book in most any Borders or Barnes&Noble in the Music Books section!

Another good one is: Recording Guitar and Bass by Huw Price
http://www.amazon.com/Recording-Gui...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1215734124&sr=1-1
(I got my copy at a place called Half-Price Books for $6!!)

And you can get a FREE subscription to TapeOp magazine at www.tapeop.com

Barnes&Noble or Borders are great places to start --- they have recording books and you can go get a snack or coffee and read them for FREE! Don't pass by a good recording book --- this is a VERY technical hobby and you REALLY want to start a reference library!!!

Good Newbie guides that also explains all the basics and have good tips:
http://www.tweakheadz.com/guide.htm
http://www.computermusic.co.uk/page/computermusic?entry=free_beginner_pdfs
http://www.harmony-central.com/articles/
http://www.gearslutz.com/board/tips-techniques/168409-tips-techniques.html

21 Ways To Assemble a Recording Rig: http://www.tweakheadz.com/rigs.htm

Also Good Info: http://www.theprojectstudiohandbook.com/directory.htm

Other recording books: http://musicbooksplus.com/home-recording-c-31.html

Still using a built-in soundcard?? Unfortunately, those are made with less than $1 worth of chips for beeps, boops and light gaming (not to mention cheapness for the manufacturer) and NOT quality music production.
#1 Rule of Recording: You MUST replace the built-in soundcard.
Here's a good guide and tested suggestions that WORK: http://www.tweakheadz.com/soundcards_for_the_home_studio.htm


Plenty of software around to record for FREE to start out on:

Audacity: http://audacity.sourceforge.net (multi-track with VST support)
Wavosaur: http://www.wavosaur.com/ (a stereo audio file editor with VST support)\
Kristal: http://www.kreatives.org/kristal/
Other freebies and shareware: www.hitsquad.com/smm

Another great option is REAPER at http://www.cockos.com/reaper/ (It's $50 but runs for free until you get guilty enough to pay for it...)
I use Reaper and highly reccomend it...

Music Notation and MIDI recording: Melody Assistant ($25) and Harmony Assistant ($80) have the power of $600 notation packages - http://myriad-online.com
Demo you can try on the website.

And you can go out to any Barnes&Noble or Borders and pick up "Computer Music" magazine - they have a full FREE studio suite in every issue's DVD, including sequencers, plugins and tons of audio samples. (November 2006 they gave away a full copy of SamplitudeV8SE worth $150, November 2007-on the racks Dec in the US- they gave away SamplitudeV9SE and July 2009 issue they put out Samplitude10SE. FREE. It pays to watch 'em for giveaways...)
Click to expand...

yeah dude this helps too...
ill go test those magazines out :).
as for recording.
i bought mixcraft and im glad i got it :)
 
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