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Post by bellyshere on May 13, 2016 11:49:35 GMT
Just spent the morning trying to record some stuff only to decide that getting a decent sound is the devils work. It's quicker to learn an instrument than learn how to get a good sound. Moan over.
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ocarolan
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Post by ocarolan on May 14, 2016 1:11:36 GMT
Agreed. And the more complex/expensive the recording setup, the harder it seems sometimes to get the sound you're after. I went all around the houses before coming back to simple Zoom H2 as USB mic into truly ancient Cakewalk software which seems to have lost various functionalities with every Windows upgrade. The basics still just about soldier on though! Chin up bellyshere , there's always another day! Keith
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Post by vikingblues on May 14, 2016 6:57:00 GMT
Sound quality is a struggle but I also think recording equipment is born with an embedded hatred of amateur musicians and with a deep desire to show us how useless we are! Mark
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Post by scripsit on May 14, 2016 7:42:59 GMT
Recording is nature's way of proving what crap acoustic spaces we live in.
Most home recording is about compensating for the astonishing range of reflections and acoustic distortion caused by average height ceilings, smallish rooms and furnishings which look like they should absorb sound but in fact only do so for trebles.
Kym
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Post by michaelwatts on May 14, 2016 12:32:07 GMT
Reflection filters can help...
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Post by bellyshere on May 14, 2016 14:26:59 GMT
I've got reflection filters. They reflect how rubbish I am at recording.
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Post by Cams on May 14, 2016 15:39:42 GMT
I've got an assignment for my Berklee Music Production course to 'teach' how to record an acoustic instrument. The deadline is tomorrow so I must remember to bring home the stands and cables after tonight's gig! I've never heard of reflection filters. I'm off to see what they are now...
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Post by jackorion on May 15, 2016 10:31:03 GMT
I find I get better results with less gear - one mic for guitar and vocals, and a DI for the guitar pickup (which I mix very, very, very low in the mix with a bit of reverb and a 'stereo spread' effect that slplits the highs and lows to left and right). My lounge seems to sound okay but I walked around a bit playing and singing till I found a spot where it sounded alright and set up and played. I've got a pretty nice preamp (UA Apollo Twin) which makes a massive difference to how a microphone sounds, and I tend to use a couple of the Ua plugins (a compressor for volume more than compression and a plate reverb) and some 'light' EQ - normally just cutting some low end and boosting the highs a tad. I think my demo turned out alright: benmorganbrown.bandcamp.com/album/2016-e-p - considering I just did it at home in a day, but it has taken me 6/7 years of home recordings to get somethign that sounded as nice as this...
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Post by seren on May 15, 2016 11:38:59 GMT
Not bad at all, jack!
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leitrimnick
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Post by leitrimnick on May 15, 2016 13:44:16 GMT
Just a thought but maybe you should keep in mind the why you are making the recording, the reason being that this probably has large effect on what constitutes acceptable or better. I can't read music and dislike tab so video pieces simply to remember them. The sound is taken straight off the camcorder and it is perfectly fit for purpose when played back on my laptop.
In contrast, my album was recorded on ProTools LE7 via an a second hand MBox. A matched pair of AKG CS1000s were cabled through an MAudio Audio Buddy mic pre-amp. Once recorded each piece was mixed in ProTools, using native plug-ins. Once mixing was complete, tracks were mastered using a very old derivative of Wavelab. The mixed and mastered tracks were then finished using a couple of Waves processors which came with the ProTools. I spent some time on a sound engineering course learning how to use this stuff and I probably still only understand a few percent of what is available to me. I am not very keen on hugely over-reverbed guitar tracks so tried to get a fairly natural sound which had the feel of a professional studio recording. The point being that the album was produced, on a very limited budget, with the intention of gaining radio airplay and had to be produced to certain level to achieve this..to date in Ireland, UK, Europe, USA and Australia.
The point I'm trying to make is that most people are seeking to record somewhere between these two extremes. Knowing where you want to be on the spectrum can save a good bit of beating yourself up.
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Post by Cams on May 15, 2016 16:25:47 GMT
I got my assignment done! Here's the video I've posted to discuss how to record acoustic guitar using my iPhone6+ as the capture device for video
The resulting video is here
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Post by bellyshere on May 16, 2016 6:24:15 GMT
I like the mic holder thingy. Better than two stands.
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ocarolan
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Post by ocarolan on May 16, 2016 7:31:58 GMT
Lovely sound Cams.
k
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Post by martinrowe on May 16, 2016 7:48:06 GMT
Nice one - thanks for that.
Martin
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Post by michaelwatts on May 16, 2016 9:47:38 GMT
Here's an example from last week that came out pretty well
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