Help me prepare?

H

Helpmeimanoob

New member
I'm trying to record vocals and guitar(amplified) at once.

First off, I'm aware that the best route is to just try out several different combinations and find what I think sounds best. And that does work. But in the past I've asked basic questions on this site and got some very simple answers that have helped me tremendously. So I figured, while I can't start yet since its early in the morning it would be wise to ask for some quick ideas to give me some direction.

THIS IS MY INTERFACE, REAPER INPUTS, AND MY BEDROOM!

If I gave you 5 minutes to arrange my shit, and set the gains to however you would set them... What would that be?




P.S. Im not looking for perfection. Just some thoughts from experienced people.
 
Well, if your guitar is amplified, you are going to get bleed. So, you could always think of making an ISO box for your guitar Amp. Since it is just you, it really seems like it would be better to record vocals after the guitar.

I think you are going to really be hard pressed to get the vocals and guitar mixed correctly with recording at the same time.
 
Helpmeimanoob said:
If I gave you 5 minutes to arrange my shit, and set the gains to however you would set them... What would that be?
Click to expand...

Everything on "11".
:)


If you just have one mic....it's going to be hard getting a good balance between the guitar amp and your vocals, but it can be done....though I don't thinkn it will sound that great and you will be stuck with a single track that has both vocals and guitar on it.
 
If that interface has Mic inputs that also serve as DI inputs, I would record the guitar direct and use an amp sim. Then, vocals through the mic. You'll need headphones, but it'll work (unless the mic inputs wont' support the impedance of the guitar signal - although it won't hurt to try...)
 
Todzilla said:
If that interface has Mic inputs that also serve as DI inputs, I would record the guitar direct and use an amp sim. Then, vocals through the mic.
Click to expand...
Or record the guitar direct and then reamp it with the mic. For final mix you could even use a blend of mic'd amp and guitar sim.
 
Are you seriously asking us to call out gain levels for you?

Plug the guitar into the amp. Turn the amp knobs till it sounds good to you. Put the mic about an inch from the speaker somewhere halfway between the dust cover and the edge of the cone. Play the guitar and turn the interface gain until Reaper shows levels somewhere around -18dbfs. It can be a bit higher or a bit lower, but way somewhere in that range. Record a short segment and then listen back. If there it's too bright, move the mic toward the edge of the speaker a bit, record and listen again. If it's too dark, move it closer to the center.

Or just crank everything to 11 and call it black metal or shoegaze or something.

For vocals, it's even easier. Stand in front of the mic and sing like you mean it. Set gain levels so that it averages somewhere in that -18dbfs range, and doesn't peak any higher than -6 or so.
 
Put guitar amp in different room. (if you can) direct monitor in Reaper and sing away. If you must have amp in same room because of space limitations you are gonna have some/lot of bleed. Bury it in blankets or other dampening material. NOTE: if you are using a tube amp DO NOT leave amp covered for long as it will likely overheat. I have done may recordings in my old apartment which was laid out like your diagram. I agree with previous poster. One thing you may try is to sing the song with guitar unplugged then record live guitar on new track later. One of my clients cannot sing the tune without playing along. Solution: unplug gtr, strum away and sing. Yes you may some bleed from gtr but it will be at low level relative to vox and will provide him/her with a "guide track" when you come back and record gtr. There are lots of ways around your problem you just have to be creative. Eg: amp sim, mic placement, dampening. Hope this helps. Be well all. WS. Post back with your ideas and results.
 
Gain level just needs to be set so you never clip. When I say never clip, I mean the clip light on the front of your interface never lights up, not even once. If you clip even once, turn it down a bit and start over.

In terms of levels inside your recording software: yeah you have to use your ears.
 
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