Recording Band Practice

NorioDS

Hey guys ?

I've joined Li's band and we practise every Friday night in a smallish room at her place. We need to be able to record ourselves so we can pick out where we're going wrong/right and what needs attention, etc.

What can we use to record the sessions direct to MP3?

I was thinking of using a cheap (not crappy) mic and Audacity, recorded to a single track just for basic review purposes. Right now, Li's sister Mariska records the sessions on her all-purpose camera thingie but she's not always there.

Also, how about placement of the mic/recording-device so we get an even sound?

Recommendations?

Martyr

try REAPER,it's not big at all and does the job quite nicely or try one of these 2

http://www.freewarefiles.com/Audio-Recorder-For-Free_program_41960.html

http://www.freewarefiles.com/MP-Recorder_program_28797.html

i've used the 2nd one before for quick recordings and it does the job nicely,just press record and when you done playing press stop and it saves an MP3 for you

placement,i'm assuming infront of the hole band so that the sound travels directly into it(i'm not an expert in t his field by far)

hope that helps

Manfred-Klose

Brings back memories.

Me and Wessel just use to put the small cd/tape players in the middle of the room, ofcourse it had a small built in mic and then recorded to tape, it came out good enough so we could hear what is happening in the song.

You could get a small mixer/pre amp and a crappy mic, and plug that into the laptop.

Remeber these days:
http://www2.dealtime.com/xPO-Sony-TCM-210DV

Well they are still available at "hifi coruption" for R150.

I would go for the tape recorder, it's cheap and works.

AlanRatcliffe

I'd also go laptop with a simple stereo recording program and a mic or two. Most laptops have mics built in, but horrendous quality.

A small recorder is fine to use - but the things at hifi corp are designed for voice (Dictaphones really) and are not full frequency range. The modern and better equivalent are the mini digital recorders with built in mics (Edirol, Zoom, Sony, etc.) - they're still a bit expensive as these things go though.

Whatever route you go, positioning of the mics is key - it usually takes some experimentation moving them around to get the best balance.

NorioDS

How would I connect the mic to the laptop? I have one of those adapter thingies that takes it from big jack to little jack (yes, that's what I call them ?). Would that suffice?

Alternatively, I could plug a mic into my Lightsnake cable as that goes in via USB. Quality should be better, no?

Renesongs

Definatly the lightsnake the recording quality of most laptop's sound cards are pathetic. And those little 1/4" plugs are secret terrorist, they break and destroy your equipment

NorioDS

Thanks Rene ?

Spyke

We started with a cellphone to get an idea but the mic distorts at high volume lever and at certain frequencies.

We once ran all the guitars into one amp through a cheap mixer and then mic'ed that up and recorded on Audacity using a 6-3.5mm jack pin reducer into the laptop. Worked quite well.

I do all my recordings through those jack-pin reducers. Spend at least R20 on one, don't go for the real cheapies.

NorioDS

Spyke, I have 2 of those goodies but they're a bit iffy. You always have to move them around to get stereo to work. Methinks the LightSnake will be easier but we'll try both this Friday and see what we come up with.

Tks mate ?

Spyke

Alternatively you could switch it round a little:

guitars -> mixer -> laptop -> amp.

If you're using a EFX on the laptop for amp emulation. Then the final amp is only serving as a monitor to the band.

As for the stereo aspect, I've always only recorded in a mono channel and either duplicated (and modify) or panned the guitars for stereo effect. Maybe I'm doing it wrong...

CornFlakes

Will the Lightsnake USB Instrument Cable work with Guitar Rig?

NorioDS

I'm afraid that's way more complex than what we need ? I have this nasty habit of noodling aimlessly right through a song and I only ever pick it up when I'm hearing a recorded version of my playing. So, for me, right now, all I need is a basic recording thingie setup. Later we'll look into more hectic stuff.

Luckily for us, one of our band members is studying sound engineering and he has to record a band in tech's studio so that'll be us ? Awesome eh?

NorioDS

CornFlakes, yep the LightSnake works well with GuitarRig and similar programs. I got mine from Marshall in Woodmead but most places should be able to get it for you if they don't stock it.

CornFlakes

I use my Edirol UA 4FX for all my recordings and stuff but it would be cool to have something like that because it’s nice and portable..
How much do they go for?

NorioDS

I think they go for around R350. Not very cheap but still quite affordable. It works with Windoze, Linux & Mac.

Spyke

Hmmm... first i hear of Lightsnake. I did a search and this looks like a handy item.

Compatibility with the likes of Audacity or Cubase?

NorioDS

It's pretty nifty and works with practically any software as it simply gets detected as a 2nd sound card. I did my "NorriRock" recording using my LightSnake. It works a treat!