what's the trick to recording?

[CJ]

what's the trick to getting a good quality recording? what's the most important factor? a good mic? software? being able to really crank your amp?

i keep trying to record things, and it all sounds ok (playing aside :lol:), but it really doesn't sound like most of the clips i hear on here, and it certainly doesn't sound quite like my amp.

i think i've got a shure pg57 (?) microphone. i know its a pg something, its the cheaper version of the sm57. and yeah, its not the sm57, but its not a computer mic. i run the mic into a behringer xenyx 802 mixer and then the mixer into my line in jack on my computer. i record using audacity. i usually record above bedroom levels, but not much higher. does cranking the amp really have a huge effect? i know multitracking guitar parts also has a big effect, which i'm starting to get, but it doesn't help enough.

what else? do i need some type of sound card? different recording software? a microphone? or is there just a certain technique to recording that i'm not quite getting?

i'm sure there's others out there who are looking to get into recording or get better at it, so i think this thread could probably help out a few others as well.

[Denim n Leather]

The most important things are:

Using whatever gear you have to the limit of its potential
Persevering until you hear the sound in your head through your finished tracks
Taking in as much knowledge as you can and practicing until you forget all the rules and follow your ears


There are no RULES in recording.

[murraymurray]

Did you try playing around with different mic placements? im pretty much a novice on recording but find that moving the mic slightly can drastically alter the tone. so if you do start multitracking you can then do different takes with different placements and compare which you prefer, or use both and blend the tracks to shape it to the tone you want.  
does the xenyx have usb/firewire connectivity? might be better than using the input on the soundcard (no idea, always used firebox) and then you could send multiple tracks to the PC if you have more mics, saving time on playing the same riff over and over again.
i also find its best using less gain than you normally would, and also a bit less bass, some mics dont seem to be able to handle all that you want them to
theres quite a lot of home recording info online and in guitar mags quite often have some helpful tips, but trial and error is also a good educational way, get you more comfortable with playing around with everything. And you know the sound youre after, nobody else does, so one persons tricks of recording may not suit what youre going for at all
other dudes hear probably know a lot more though, there's some nice clips floating around.

[hamfist]

You certainly don't need expensive gear to get good recordings.

I use a cheap(ish) Beyer TGX-58 mic, a super cheapo behringer mixing desk (incl it's pre-amps of course). I do, however, experiment a lot with mic placement. I tend have the mic on axis (ie. pointing straight at the grill-cloth), about 1cm away, and then try the mic in all sorts of positions relative to the centre of the speaker cone until I get the sound that fits what I'm actually hearing the best.
  I get great results too. I never use much volume, either, although I do use attenuators quite aggressively.

One difference is that I'm using a good soundcard (an M-Audio Audiophile 2496). These are not particularly expensive, but are several leagues above the standard soundcard you get in your "everyday PC".  That could possibly be the weak link in your set-up.

here's an example I recorded recently of a Marshall 2204-type amp at low volume - http://www.box.net/shared/static/id5huqd13b.mp3

[38thBeatle]

Before you start recording, try and get the best sound you want out of your gear.You are recording the core sound of your rig and no recording techniques will make up for a poor basic sound-poor being a value judgement when you are recording yourself.
Playing around with mic placement is also important. There are some threads upon this on this forum but there is a lot of material around. As a short cut, I would say that for me, a mic placed at around 50% to wards the speaker is normally ok.Move the mic back and forth and you should be able to hear the best point. Make sure obviously that you have good monitoring facilities before the event.

[Lazy_McDoesnothing]

Quick tip:  For metal rhythm, record two tracks(at least two), pan them left and right, and turn down the gain. 

[MDV]

If theres any 'trick', its experimentation

What sounds good is good, and recording is the supreme fullfilment of "The ends justify the means" - whatever it takes to get the sound you want goes.

The most important factor is how you use your gear, not any part of the gear

That said, just because I like contradicting myself in sequential sentences, you would do well to get an interface with some mic preamps in it that also functions as a sound card and get a dynamic instrument mic. I recommend the audix i5.

[dave_mc]

with me it seems to be somewhere between "don't bother" and "buy some decent recording gear, you cheapo!"...

:oops:

[Johnny Mac]

Get your head around some of the terminology is a good place to start! Read and experiment. Record when the neighbors are out and crank the amp.

[CJ]

i'll experiment with the suggestions here, thanks guys. and maybe i do need to mess around more with the actual tone i'm getting before hitting the record button.

[Oli]

When sorting out your tone, get your head down in front of the speaker, and listen to what comes out of it- it sounds a lot different to how it sounds up at head height and a couple of metres away.

Check that each part of the chain is set up correctly; you shouldn't really have to really crank anything or turn anything down to a really low level (in the recording chain, not the amplifier). Things like making sure the line input is set to accept the correct level signal (either -10dBu or +4dBV), will really help sort the sound out :)

[CJ]

Check that each part of the chain is set up correctly; you shouldn't really have to really crank anything or turn anything down to a really low level (in the recording chain, not the amplifier). Things like making sure the line input is set to accept the correct level signal (either -10dBu or +4dBV), will really help sort the sound out :)

not really sure what all that means. what i usually do is just cut my mixer's output level to the point where i don't get any type of clipping in my recording... don't know if this is what you mean or not.

[Oli]

Yea, you don't want any clipping at all, if you have to turn the mixer output really low, then there is some point in the chain that isn't set correctly; if a level of something is really low, then you'll get increased noise. With your mixer, i'd suggest setting the preamp level, channel level and the main mix to 12 o clock, and then go from there. Adjust the mic preamp level, but be careful with it, from my experience the preamp controls on the smaller behringer mixers are really sensitive. When that is set, then tweak the levels of the channel level and the main mix, until you get a healthy level out of the unit, without either control being set too extreme. On the meters in Audacity, i'd suggest trying to get the input level to sit between the 3rd and 4th divisions- if you go over it's not a major problem, but processing is easier if you've got a bit of headroom to work with :) Also, I would suggest not using any EQ on the mixer; set them all to the notched 12 o clock position when recording. Hope that helps a little.

[CJ]

on the mixer i have all knobs set to 12 o'clock and then cut the output level. so i should use the mic preamp to cut the level instead? is that the little black 'trim' knob? and i'm not sure what i'm supposed to use, but i'm using the red/white output plugs to send to my computer's line in.

here's a pic for reference...

http://cachepe.zzounds.com/media/quality,85/brand,zzounds/802_big-f6d2f59c2ce953b415c7a79ecbdd0d46.jpg

[hamfist]

Yup, that little black "trim" knob is your input gain control.

I use that exact mixer (although it is the pre-xenyx, behringer branded one). In my experience, if your white "level" control is over halfway, then you may have your "trim" set a bit too low. If your white "level" knob is below a quarter, then you may have your trim set a bit too high.  I don't find it that critical on my system though.

  Anyway, why don't you try setting the white "level" knob at about 10 to 11 o'clock, and adjust the trim until you have got a reasonable input level into your soundcard/recording software.  That would seem to mirror the sort of settings that I seem to end up using.

To be honest, I suspect that is not your problem though