How to get better at recording

  • 5 Replies
  • 530 Views

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Martinswede

  • *
  • Platinum Album
  • ****
  • Posts: 667
« on: October 03, 2017, 08:27:25 PM »
Hi!

After spending two hours trying to record a cover of paulads Stand Down I've realized that I don't know how to record. I have no method. I just press record in the daw and play til I make a mistake. Then I do retakes over and over.

I understand that recording in sections helps but I don't know how to do it. The timing goes wrong and sounds spill onto the other tracks.

So advice, guides, video lessons that are good. All the way from 1234 to mixing. Not mixing. All is appreciated.

Thank you!

Martin

Boydie

  • *
  • Administrator
  • Stadium Tour
  • *****
  • Posts: 3975
« Reply #1 on: October 03, 2017, 08:58:22 PM »
Quote
video lessons that are good

I am actually about to start work on a video series

I wanted to cover everything from connecting things up right through to mastering (and everything inbetween)

What kind of things would you like to see included?
To check out my music please visit:

http://soundcloud.com/boydiemusic

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BoydieMusic

Martinswede

  • *
  • Platinum Album
  • ****
  • Posts: 667
« Reply #2 on: October 03, 2017, 09:34:58 PM »
What comes to mind is

The order of how you record. What is recorded first. Building tracks.

How much do you record in one take. One verse?

If you record the guitar for first verse in one take how do you end it without making an abrupt stop or letting it bleed into the second verse. (This might be insane.)

Some personal thoughts on timing and click tracks. If you use them. When you became convinced to use them etc.

Details about those things would be great.



Wicked Deeds

  • *
  • Guest
« Reply #3 on: October 03, 2017, 10:32:05 PM »
I guess it depends on your final goal. I spent years honing my songwriting skills. I learned how to write with my acoustic guitar, occasionally with an electric and then extensively on piano. I spent many years playing in bands. By the time I started to explore digital recording, I’d absorbed so much music and experimented with so many writing approaches, that the recording part seemed to fall into place so easily.  Maybe that’s because I learned  to enjoy writing so much, that recording the results of my time became so enjoyable and therefore, not a task as all. I learned how to record in a number of different ways too. I’m not the most accomplished operator of a digital recording set up but I believe that digital recording is so user friendly that it is hard to record something that sounds bad providing you have developed your musical ear. Keep writing until you feel really comfortable doing so. Your recordings may not be top of the range but you should be able to produce something that you are more than happy with, providing you have a reasonable DAW.

Paul

pompeyjazz

  • *
  • Stadium Tour
  • *****
  • Posts: 5668
  • pompeyjazz
« Reply #4 on: October 03, 2017, 10:36:23 PM »
Hi Martyn. Right, you are ready to record a verse. First of all lay down a basic click or drum track at the approximate bpm you want. Leave a couple of bars space so you can hit the record button and pick up your plectrum  (if using) Then when you're done hit stop and edit the track so it ends at the end of the bar (unless you want to retain some bleed ) Then do exactly the same for you're chorus on another track and finally moved the two sections together.You can always use a new track as a working track to give you a guide and then just mute / unmute as necessary. There's no perfect answer to this question,  just a technique that I use. Oh yeah, don't forget cut and paste  ;D Hope that's been helpful  :)

adamfarr

  • *
  • Stadium Tour
  • *****
  • Posts: 3166
    • SongEspresso
« Reply #5 on: October 04, 2017, 06:37:53 AM »
Whether you use a click track or not, I think it's essential to do a "scratch" or rough version to play/arrange over. So you do one run through through from beginning to end and play over it the next times as a guide (but in the end just discard it).

If you're doing something with just guitar and vocals, then I'd do a scratch version of both on one track, maybe just simple strumming and half-hearted vocal complete with errors. If you're not happy with the flow, timing etc this is the time to review and make any cuts/adjustments to that track. Then do a serious guitar track while listening to the scratch track for timing - if complicated I would do all verses on a "guitar verses" track (so you can rest and regather in the choruses) and then do a separate "guitar choruses" track. Then mute the scratch and listen to the good guitar tracks to record vocals over (again on two tracks if voice may tire).

I try to do three good takes of each track in order to have material for putting together (comping) the best ones. If you have bass and drums etc. then the order (and whether you need to play more than one verse/chorus, or copy-paste) may be different but you should still work over a scratch track to start (I usually go: scratch, drums, bass, rhythm instruments, melody instruments, lead vocals, backing vocals, instrumental solo if there is one).

Then you need to edit the tracks. You can do this by cross fading, cutting, stretching, all the tools in the DAW. Some of them will line up. Some may need a bit of surgery. This takes a bit of getting used to.

That's the way that works for me. I take a long time to record. But I think I'm slowly moving forward.