Noobie Question

  • Thread starter Thread starter megan_
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megan_

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Hi, I just recently started recording a friend who plays acoustically. I'm recording her because I'm her "manager" and we need to get SOMETHING posted online so others can listen to her.

I got a microphone and we record on my friend's Mac. No matter what program we use to record (Audacity or Garage Band), a loud hissing noise is captured from the mic. Is there any way to reduce this? I googled for hours and tried everything but nothing helped.

Also, should I be recording the guitar and the vocals separately? I think it sounds cleaner that way, but we are having problems with the timing if we do them separately.

Thanks,
Megan
 
Hey Megan,

I'm a noob also, however I think it's pretty standard to record the guitar & vocals separately. If you're having timing issues, maybe use a metronome or click track?

I think the hissing noise maybe something coming from how you're connecting the mic to the PC. If you're running the mic straight into the mic port on the PC (others can correct me if I'm wrong) the mic is not getting any power - making it very difficult to get a good sound out of it (if any in some cases). It also then requires turning up the volume of that particular line, using gain boost, etc. All which adds to the hiss.

If you are plugging it right into the pc? I would recommend against that. Check out the mic preamps? This is the area I'm just getting into specifically as well. I just bought an M-Audio Mobile Pre for very similar purposes (recording into the pc easily).

Others might have different advice.
 
Definatly record with a click track and idealy you could get an audio inteface like the M-Audio Mobile Pre or the Mackie Blackjack. I would recommend the black jack from personal experience because it has the same preamp as the Mackie Onyx 1640i has which is what I use for recording everything. The preamps are pretty quite which should help with the amount of noise you have. Also miking the guitar and vocals more closely will reduce the amount of gain you need or you could go direct with the guitar which could also help.
Mackie - Onyx Blackjack
 
The alternative is to get hold of a video camera and use that.

Most video cameras these days have reasonable mikes . . . certainly better than what you seem to be getting at the moment.

Otherwise, you need to go down the path that Bassman suggests.
 
What's the microphone?

What interface are you using between the mic. and computer?

It's difficult to help without knowing what you are doing.

If it's acoustic guitar with someone playing and singing, I would record it with a stereo pair (ORTF or MS) set back and capture the song in the room.
 
Try recording a take of her singing and playing at the same time, then have her listen to that on her ipod while she just plays the guitar for one take, then do the same with the vocals.
 
Another idea is to have her play and sing at the same time and if it is an acoustic-electric, direct record the guitar only. Then record the vocals on a different track afterward.
 
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