Geting bigger guitar sound using copy/paste doubling tracks

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nimra

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Hi! I'm a noob at recording, and I was recording this metal song. I've recorded a single guitar track, it sounds descent for a start to me, but it kinda takes a lot of that center space of the recording.

I want to make the sound kinda wider and bigger, so I was thinking if I could kinda copy paste the same track to another, and apply some other effects, without having to re-record it. I've heard its good to make the other track just slightly out of time to get that delay effect, but when I do it it kinda gets sloppy (and I've put it just a little bit out of time). I've also done that while panning and cutting double of the volume compared to a single track.

So guys, what could I do as a beginner to make the sound bigger while doing the copy/paste doubling method?
 
Not a lot with copy and paste tbh.
Youre obviously not happy with the outcome of that or you wouldnt be asking for help.
You'll end up with this phasey kinda mess . comb filtering.
You could double track it with a differant guitar and amp. it might sound better,bigger.
I defo would not pan the tracks all the way to the extremes either.
I've never been happy with copy and paste fixs when it comes to guitar parts in the past.
I hope you find a solution :) Welcome to the forum .
 
Even better than trying to copy/paste the guitar track is to simply re-record another guitar track the same as the first and pan the two tracks opposite left and right. This will get you the sound you're looking for effortlessly.

EDIT: You beat me to it kip4! :D
 
Copy/Paste/Shift is crap. Record it twice, pan em apart, thank me later.
 
Triple track it and together we will rule the universe.
 
Well thank you :), looks like I'll be re-recording it. Since I don't have another amp or guitar, should I just record it with different settings, say a different (less clean) channel on my guitar to make it sound different? I'm currently micing my amp with all the effects already there when recorded (except that I add a little reverb later on), and the eq on the amp is a metal setting with a lot of bass and highs and few mids.

So, in short, what should the difference between these two recorded tracks be if I record it with the same amp and guitar?

Thank you again :)
 
Use a differant pick up set the eq a little differant. do go wild and do a super clean track or a much muddier more gain setting. Just double tracking it with a close to original sound will make the guitars sound bigger.
 
you must spread some rep before giving it to greg or moresound :laughings:
 
Well I'll experiment a bit with it and we'll see how it goes. Thanks
 
nimra said:
So, what should the difference between these two recorded tracks be if I record it with the same amp and guitar?
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Well, think about it for a moment. Many guitars have two or three pick up settings and they usually sound vastly different from one another. Then on the amp, there's treble, middle and bass as well as volume and master volume. You also say that you have effects. So between that little lot, there are so many different combinations of settings you can arrive at. You don't need anyone to tell you, just try out lots of different combinations and you can't fail to find two or four that will sound good together.

mjbphotos said:
Remember: when recording LESS guitar distortion is better.
Click to expand...

Greg_L said:
That's not always true.
Click to expand...
It's one of those pieces of advice that has some truth in certain applications that was probably good advice for someone at some point in the problem that they had but which sort of hardens into dogma in an almost unnoticeable way over the years. It's not a hard and fast rule. Sometimes it does sound 'good to better' to record with some crazy distortion. The key as always {Ab :D} is ¬> is this pleasing to your ears ? Is it the kind of sound you're looking for ? Not to start an argument here but I'd even say that about copy and pasting although it's not at all my preference. Sometimes, it can work. It depends on what you want and like. As far as I'm concerned, there's virtually nothing that has been hit upon since the advent of recording that cannot intrinsically work. But there are zillions of things, even tried and testeds that might not work in many scenarios.
Experiment and you'll soon be comfortable with what you practice and you'll arrive at a workflow and cache of sounds that you're cool with. The 'how' isn't nearly so important as the 'what'.
 
Greg_L said:
That's not always true.
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Is the 'less distortion' thing just because the amp in the room (at ear height) sounds vastly different than at the grill of the cab? I find if I setup a mic at shoulder height, it sounds fine tonally, but you get that distant sound to it, but if the mic is on the grill, it sounds super-fizzy. If I stick my ear on the grill, it sounds fizzy too and the solution seems to be to turn the gain down for it to sound right at that position.

Am I getting close here? I'm starting to record distorted power chords, which is great fun! Double/quad tracking all the way, btw!!!
 
jonny deep said:
Is the 'less distortion' thing just because the amp in the room (at ear height) sounds vastly different than at the grill of the cab? I find if I setup a mic at shoulder height, it sounds fine tonally, but you get that distant sound to it, but if the mic is on the grill, it sounds super-fizzy. If I stick my ear on the grill, it sounds fizzy too and the solution seems to be to turn the gain down for it to sound right at that position.

Am I getting close here? I'm starting to record distorted power chords, which is great fun! Double/quad tracking all the way, btw!!!
Click to expand...

It's my opinion that the "less gain is better" thing really only applies when you're stacking guitar tracks. Literally stacking. Like say you're recording 4 guitar tracks, two right on top of eachother on each side of the stereo field, then yes, less gain on each track will make the tracks combined sound thicker and less fizzy.

If you're recording only one track per side, and the guitar tracks will be all alone out there on the edges of the stereo field, then record the guitar with the sound you want. Less gain is not ideal in this situation. You want to capture the guitar as you dial it in at the amp.

I prefer the latter scenario. I dial in my amp the way I want it to sound and record it that way. If you have a general ear for tone and mic the cab properly it's not a problem. One rhythm track per side. No stacking, no layering, no tricks. What you hear is what it is. That's how I like it.


The sound at ear height is different than the sound right on the speaker, but that phenomenon happens with clean amps too. Reflections in the room help to smooth the sound to your ears. What's happening at the speaker is what counts with close miking.


Happy new year. :)
 
If you want a copy/paste tactic, try copying your guitar track, then move the parts about on the copied on. Swap the 1st and second verses around if they're both played the same, and the same goes for chorus'. If there's a bridge then that wouldn't work unless there's a repeated structure.

Note this will only work if you played each bit of the song differently, and didn't record a verse then copy-paste it to the second one.
 
Greg_L said:
It's my opinion that the "less gain is better" thing really only applies when you're stacking guitar tracks. Literally stacking. Like say you're recording 4 guitar tracks, two right on top of eachother on each side of the stereo field, then yes, less gain on each track will make the tracks combined sound thicker and less fizzy.

If you're recording only one track per side, and the guitar tracks will be all alone out there on the edges of the stereo field, then record the guitar with the sound you want. Less gain is not ideal in this situation. You want to capture the guitar as you dial it in at the amp.

I prefer the latter scenario. I dial in my amp the way I want it to sound and record it that way. If you have a general ear for tone and mic the cab properly it's not a problem. One rhythm track per side. No stacking, no layering, no tricks. What you hear is what it is. That's how I like it.


The sound at ear height is different than the sound right on the speaker, but that phenomenon happens with clean amps too. Reflections in the room help to smooth the sound to your ears. What's happening at the speaker is what counts with close miking.


Happy new year. :)
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Thanks Greg. Happy new year to you and yours too.
 
nimra said:
Well thank you :), looks like I'll be re-recording it. Since I don't have another amp or guitar, should I just record it with different settings, say a different (less clean) channel on my guitar to make it sound different? I'm currently micing my amp with all the effects already there when recorded (except that I add a little reverb later on), and the eq on the amp is a metal setting with a lot of bass and highs and few mids.

So, in short, what should the difference between these two recorded tracks be if I record it with the same amp and guitar?

Thank you again :)
Click to expand...
the fact that you did it twice will make it bigger even if you don't change a thing since it's impossible to play it exactly the same and it's those timing differences that make double tracking so effective. Adding EQ changes and fxs can make it even more effective.
 
jonny deep said:
Is the 'less distortion' thing just because the amp in the room (at ear height) sounds vastly different than at the grill of the cab? I find if I setup a mic at shoulder height, it sounds fine tonally, but you get that distant sound to it, but if the mic is on the grill, it sounds super-fizzy. If I stick my ear on the grill, it sounds fizzy too and the solution seems to be to turn the gain down for it to sound right at that position.

Am I getting close here? I'm starting to record distorted power chords, which is great fun! Double/quad tracking all the way, btw!!!
Click to expand...

I think a lot of time the advice is given to young players who play in their bedrooms and set their Boss Metal Zone pedal to 11 on the distortion scale and end up with this overly fizzy, flat, lifeless track that sounds godamned awful...."turn the distortion down dude!" is usually pretty good advice for them - they won't have a concept yet of what sounds good in a mix, they just like the fuzzy bliss they're hearing, solo, from their amp.

I prefer to state it as "You MAY need less distortion than you think..." People who've done a bit of recording generally work out a way to get the sound they want quickly enough, and the techniques can be anything from stacking multiples to single takes, depending upon what the song requires.
 
I definitly agree with others here. I always record my rythm guitar by recording seperate left and right tracks. Even if you leave the sound exactly the same, it's all of the tiny nuances and those little millisecond differences that will make the stereo track in the end sound huge. I've done it a lot for solos in a song too.
 
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