Before we talk about recording sound, let me ask you a question. Have you ever avoided doing something because you believed there to be some sort of barrier or consequence you didn’t want to deal with (like “recording sound at professional quality is expensive)? Then have you ever found out….perhaps years later…that your belief was incorrect, and you could have done that something after all? That feeling really sucks. I found out at a high-school reunion that I was WAAAY more popular than I would ever have imagined while I was going through it. My belief about myself was that I was a scrawny, funny-looking geek that was too embarrassed and shy to ask girls out on dates. Then 10 years later I find out that I could have gone out with almost anyone! To hear people talk about how popular I was, and how my self-image was completely wrong, was at once wonderful and hugely frustrating.
So what does that little story have to do with recording sound from home? I have heard time and time again from many people that they are going to someday learn how to do home recording, but they don’t have the time or money right now. But guess what? Getting good quality audio is more about learning a few tips and techniques than it is about buying expensive gear and/or going to recording classes. Knowledge trumps gear! And that knowledge isn’t hard or expensive for a vast majority of the folks who let this myth stop them.
Let’s say you’re a singer/songwriter with the barest of computer skills. You need demo recordings constantly and you’d really like to record a CD of your own. But everything you’ve read says you can’t do this yourself. You need a commercial recording studio where you can rent time (for anywhere between $40-80 an hour!). So you either put it off, or try to save money for a day in the future when you’ll have 5 or 10 grand to record a CD. Then 10 years later, you find out that you could have set up a home studio on your PC and learned the techniques for using it to create professional audio for under $100 bucks. That’s right.
Well don’t wait 10 years! The knowledge you can gain for how to do JUST the minimum required to record your music and release your own CD is a fraction of what you need to know to become a professional recording engineer. Since you just want to record YOUR music, there’s no need to learn a huge majority of what a pro audio engineer needs to know.
So how can you acquire this knowledge? One great source on the web for tutorial videos, articles and other resources focused on recording sound from your PC is Home Brew Audio. It won’t take long. It will be fun. And in 10 years, you’ll have one less regret. So when you get a chance, check out Home Brew Audio and other great sources on the web. Good luck!
good recordings on a budget
Things You Can't Do With the $5 Home PC Recording Studio
I’ve been really pushing the advantages of starting out in home recording by “using the pc recording studio you already have.” By that I mean that it is now possible to produce multi-track audio with just a normal PC, its on-board sound card, and even the cheapest of plastic PC microphones. All you have to do is download the open source (read: “free”) audio program called Audacity and you’ve got what you need to get started. Most folks won’t have to spend a dime to get to this level. Those who don’t have a microphone can get one for about $5.00 anywhere they sell computer stuff (office supply stores, Tar-jay, Wall-Market, etc.). to learn how to do all this step-by-step, and make your first recording in the next hour, see our tutorials (the 1st 8 videos are free) at Home Brew Audio.
Lots of folks will, with a little knowledge, be able to produce what they need with JUST the stuff I mentioned. Maybe you’re just looking to put together a video tutorial or record a podcast, voice-over, etc. There are obviously some limitations to production capability with the $5.00 (or less) home recording studio, however. Here are some of the biggies.
Audacity cannot record MIDI. You can open MIDI files in Audacity’s current BETA version. But you can’t record it. If you work with MIDI, that will be a serious limitation.
Audacity does not support VSTi. Virtual instruments are wonderful, and can allow you to play trumpet, drums, piano, violin, etc. from a keyboard. Many of them sound indistinguishable from the real thing! But alas, the most common instrument plugin formats, VSTi and DXi are not supported.
You won’t be able to record multiple tracks at one time. This is mostly a limitation of the sound card in the $5.00 studio, which is your basic single channel card. Even if you have a multi-channel piece of hardware, the only way it will work with Audacity is for it to have a single Windows (no support for ASIO) “WDM” drive for multi-channel. Good luck finding one of those. Otherwise, you just have to over-dub each track.
There are, of course, more limitations at this level. But I think those are the biggest. If you want to do any of the above things, you’ll have to venture into the world of “software you gotta pay for.” The good news there are numerous programs out there for under $100, or even under $50, that will do nicely. Details on those in another article.
Lots of folks will, with a little knowledge, be able to produce what they need with JUST the stuff I mentioned. Maybe you’re just looking to put together a video tutorial or record a podcast, voice-over, etc. There are obviously some limitations to production capability with the $5.00 (or less) home recording studio, however. Here are some of the biggies.
Audacity cannot record MIDI. You can open MIDI files in Audacity’s current BETA version. But you can’t record it. If you work with MIDI, that will be a serious limitation.
Audacity does not support VSTi. Virtual instruments are wonderful, and can allow you to play trumpet, drums, piano, violin, etc. from a keyboard. Many of them sound indistinguishable from the real thing! But alas, the most common instrument plugin formats, VSTi and DXi are not supported.
You won’t be able to record multiple tracks at one time. This is mostly a limitation of the sound card in the $5.00 studio, which is your basic single channel card. Even if you have a multi-channel piece of hardware, the only way it will work with Audacity is for it to have a single Windows (no support for ASIO) “WDM” drive for multi-channel. Good luck finding one of those. Otherwise, you just have to over-dub each track.
There are, of course, more limitations at this level. But I think those are the biggest. If you want to do any of the above things, you’ll have to venture into the world of “software you gotta pay for.” The good news there are numerous programs out there for under $100, or even under $50, that will do nicely. Details on those in another article.
The Pros and Cons of the $5 Home PC Recording Studio
Most people don’t know that they can get started recording audio with a budget as small as $5.00. The only reason I don’t say zero dollars is that if you don’t have a microphone, you’ll need to buy one. A plastic PC mic will even suffice at this point. Now, those folks with experience recording audio from home will likely take issue with what I just said, so for them allow me to clarify. I recommend the cheapest recording set-up for beginners because they can still learn most of the basics they’ll ever need to know with that gear. Also, by learning the limitations of their current set-up, they will be better informed as to what else they need to get to the next level. I do not propose that the lowest budget recording studio will allow the most stunning audio ever. But most folks, even you experts out there, would be surprised at how good the audio produced from a “low-end” studio can be!The Pros of a $5.00 PC Recording Studio
So what are the “pros” of a $5.00 home recording studio? Let’s take a look at the top three:
- Cost: According to the US Census Bureau as long ago as 2003, “The majority of households have personal computers and Internet access. In 2003, 70 million American households, or 62 percent, had one or more computers, up from 56 percent in 2001.” More recent estimates put that percentage closer to 70 percent. That means that if they wanted to, 7 out of every 10 people in the US could start a home recording studio in the next hour.
- Capability: In 2013, the availability of open source audio software and the average quality of consumer computers make it possible to do: multi-track” (recording one sound, then recording another on top of the first as you listen, etc.) recording at this budget level. Editing and mixing tools in the software make it possible to pan sounds left and right, equalize and otherwise treat or fix audio problems, and mix down to a stereo master file. That was pretty-much unheard of 10 years ago.
- Affordable Upgrading: If you walked into a music store today and told a salesman you wanted to start a home studio, he’d try to talk you into spending several hundred (or even thousands of) dollars. You’d have some pretty nice gear, but odds are that you won’t need a majority of that gear to do what you need to do. You’ll also be totally overwhelmed by the knowledge needed to operate all this gear. The $5.00 studio is easy to learn, and allows you to incrementally add gear and/or software in order to achieve exactly the quality you need. That will save you time, frustration, and money in the long run.
The Cons of a $5.00 PC Recording Studio
- Noise: At the lowest budget, sound is recorded through a very small microphone going directly into a factory sound card on an “average” computer. You’ll have noticed that there is a lot of buzzing, humming and hissing noise when you record with this equipment. There are things you can do to minimize noise, such as keeping the mic wire as far from plugs or other power sources as possible. You can also treat the noise after it’s recorded. But at the end of the day, the physical limitations in the amplifiers in “regular” sound cards, and construction of the $5.00 PC mics will mean a fair amount of noise is inevitable.
- Capability: There are things you simply cannot do at the lowest budget level, such as use make use of MIDI, virtual instruments, record more than one track at a time, etc.
- Ease of use: The $5.00 budget studio doesn’t have room in the budget for things like microphone stands, patch bays, cables, etc. It can be pretty slow-going trying to set the PC mic up to capture piano or guitar without a little more effort than many folks find feasible. Also, the cables for these mics tend to be pretty short, again making it difficult logistically to record.
Those are the major pros and cons of starting your home studio with the “zero-to-five-dollar” budget. The great thing about that budget level, though, is that you have little-to-nothing to lose and everything to gain. Once you get comfortable with the limitations, you can address them one-by-one, incrementally improving your set-up according to your own needs. Chances are good that if all you need to do is record your voice for podcasts, or video narration, you can get the quality you need by spending as little as $25 extra dollars for a USB microphone. Whatever your ultimate needs are, you really can’t go wrong starting at the lowest budget and working your way up.
Learn to record and produce professional-sounding audio from home without spending a dime for gear. Fun and short video tutorials show you how. We’ll show you how to start with a $0-$5 budget, and then how to improve your studio for a few dollars at a time as your knowledge and confidence increase.
See you around campus!
Newbies Guide to Audio Recording – eBook
Recording and creating great audio (music, your voice, etc.) from your computer is easier, faster, and way less expensive than you ever imagined.
You can give it a try right now! What, you don’t think you can because you don’t already have a home studio?
Did you know you could set up a recording studio on your computer that is capable of creating high quality audio in less than 30 minutes, without spending a dime for gear or software?
In 2012 all you need is a computer with a sound card, an mp3 player (for the ear phones;)), and any kind of microphone…even those cheap plastic PC mics will do to start out! With that set-up you are capable of creating multi-track recording projects, and learning the methods used by the pros to make high-quality audio.
Here is the big secret: Knowledge trumps gear when it comes to audio quality. It is possible, actually common for people to spend many hundreds of dollars on a microphone, only to turn around and make the same crappy audio with it. Why is this? It is a lack of knowledge…and not even hard knowledge!
Despite what many people think, regular people (not just tech geeks) can create professional quality audio from a home studio that pretty much anyone can afford. In fact, even if you’ve never done any audio recording before, the video tutorials here at Home Brew Audio will guide you through your first recording, your voice-over with some music behind it, for free.
If you have done audio recording at home, but aren’t satisfied with the quality of your recordings, you’ll discover several techniques for greatly improving that quality without having to buy any expensive microphones or other gear, in our eBook Audio Recording Awesomeness: 5 Things I Wish I’d Known As An Audio Newbie.
What is the benefit for you? There are lots of reasons for learning to record and produce great audio from home,like:
Improve your videos with superior audio content - Record your music without having to leave your house and pay through-the-nose at a commercial studio
- The awesomeness that is multi-track recording (Sing harmony with yourself, play rhythm AND lead guitar, add music to your voice-over, etc.
- Start a voice-over business
- Make audio versions of your e-books and reports, add podcasting to your website or business
The list is almost endless. So what’s in the eBook?
Ive been guerrilla recording for well over 20 years, learning as I go, and made a huge number of mistakes that taught me very valuable lessons. Those 20 years can be condensed to days or weeks for your learnin’ pleasure. The most important of the lessons are in this report.
Take a gander at the table of contents:
If you’ve always wanted to record and produce audio, or if you’re serious about improving the quality of your current audio, you will get this report right now and read it today.
For the price of a large cup of coffee you will have all of the information you need to jump full force into professional audio recording.
Why $2.99?
I’m only charging $2.99 for this report, and not giving this report away, for 2 reasons.
- $2.99 puts the report within reach of the vast majority of people. It’s not too expensive for even the humblest beginning online businessperson.
- Anyone who’s not serious enough about their audio quality to invest $2.99 into this report isn’t going to take the time to use the methods laid out in the report anyway.
So if you’re serious about your music or other online businesses in 2012, click the “Buy Now” button below. If you need to justify the expense, skip getting that large coffee once this week and it’s paid for.
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Made Through PayPal
P.S. Seriously, for just $2.99 I’ll teach you the most important techniques that the pros use to create professional quality audio. How can you pass on that?
Questions? Comments? Need support? jake@homebrewaudio.com
5 Secrets To Quality Audio on Your Home PC Recording Studio
Everyone wants to learn audio recording don’t they? It’s so easy and, as it turns out, inexpensive to do. With a pc recording studio, you can do everything from transferring cassettes and records (remember those) to CDs, create audio books, voice-overs, put great audio onto your video files instead of the crappy audio that usually comes from camcorders. You can release a CD, start your own record company, be a 1-person band, etc. Audio is everywhere. Have I convinced you? Good, now read on:).
Before you do anything else, read the rest of this article. It will be your shield against the advice you might get from a salesman at your local music store, or from some other audio experts. Here are the five secrets:
You DON’T need to lay down a bunch of money to get started.
Try this just for fun. Walk into your nearest musical instrument store (the kind that has a “recording” department) and ask them what you would need to get started recording audio from home. My guess is that you will be told you need a condenser mic, cables, mic stand, computer interface and special software; all of which will end up costing at least $500, but more likely, over $1000, and you still won’t know how to use it! The only other option, you’re told, is to go to a commercial recording studio, which will cost around $50 per hour plus the hassle of getting there with all the stuff (or all the people if you’re in a band) you’ll need. Most people believe those are their only two options. Well the truth is you probably don’t need to spend a dime on gear, OR a studio. All you need is a computer with a sound card (just the onboard one will do for starters), the microphone that probably came with your computer (which you can get for $4.00 at Target if you didn’t get one), headphones (the kind you use with your mp3 player will do), and an internet connection. I’m betting most folks have all that stuff RIGHT NOW. It just takes a little knowledge about how to get the most out of what you have….which brings me to the next point:
Knowledge is far more important than gear.
Fact: you can still make bad recordings with top-notch (read: “expensive”) gear. This is extremely common. Just pick up a copy of “Recording Magazine” and look at the “Readers Tapes” section some time if you want to see for yourself. Their reviewer is constantly dumbfounded at the great recordings that come in with cheap-to-modest gear, as well as the crappy recordings that are produced on high-end gear costing up to $10,000 (or more) most of the time! If you would like to hear a real-world example of this, listen to our podcast here. Fact: now that the technology is available to virtually anyone with a computer, the world is flooded with really terrible-sounding audio. That’s because most people (and I do mean like 80-90 percent here) don’t know the basic principles of audio recording, mixing and producing. With so many amateurs cranking out audio, the only real discriminators that will set YOU apart from the rest are “content” (your song, your podcast, etc.) and “know-how.” Fact: if you’re just starting out, and you have $300, you will produce better recordings after spending the $$ on knowledge than if you buy any equipment or software..
You don’t need to know HOW a television works in order to learn to USE it.
What? Said another way, you don’t have to know how to rebuild an engine in order to drive a car, do you? What you DO need to be taught can be learned very quickly (about a minute in the case of a TV). You could go your entire life and not know what a “catalytic converter” is, and it wouldn’t stop you driving the car. Heck, I’ve been watching television for 35 (or moreJ) years, and I STILL don’t know what a “cathode ray tube” really was. I didn’t even notice when you didn’t need one any more! The same is true for recording. Having gone through this as a beginner, I can tell you that MANY of the “experts” you’ll find on the newsgroups or forums will offer beginners some version of the following statement: “You can’t really learn recording overnight, or from books; you just have to do it over and over again for years to really learn it.” This is simply not true, and it stops a lot of people trying. It’s a little like saying “you can’t really understand how a TV works unless you go to TV-repair school, or at least have an electrical engineering degree.” That’s true, but I don’t NEED to understand all that stuff! I just want to change the channels! It will depend to large degree on what kind of recording you are trying to do (spoken-word, music multi-tracking for a CD project, or full-on CD mastering), but a large percentage of folks can learn to do ALL they NEED TO from in less than an hour from the right teacher. Many beginners take one look at, say, a mixing board (or its virtual counter-part), get information overload, and run screaming from the room. Heck I still do it after 30 years in this business! The bottom-line truth is…you really only have to learn 4 or 5 of those 80 or 90 buttons and scary commands to do what you need to do to start! Then as you choose to go deeper down the rabbit hole, you’ll have to learn maybe 15 more…seriously! I’ve engineered hundreds (probably thousands) of audio projects over the last 30 years, and I estimate I probably only know about 1/5th of what my programs and gear can do!
You DON’T Need a Mac!
Oh, this one goes back to the 80s. When every-day people started to buy computers (yes, kids…there was a time when households did not have a computer! And a short time before that, they didn’t even have televisions! Shock, Horror….sorry, I’m better now), the early Macs had some built-in features that made them better-suited to music-production. But over the years, things have evened out, and the recording landscape is about 50/50 on the issue. It’s like Pepsi and Coke. Some people prefer on over the other, but one is not INHERENTLY better than the other overall. Our tutorials are geared toward teaching skills REGARDLESS of the OS. But DON’T be talked into buying a MAC for audio just because a salesman tells you their better. It’s just not true anymore.
You Don’t Need “Pro Tools”
This is another myth that persists from the “old days.” There was a time, in the late 80s, when the software program called “Pro Tools” was only available for the Mac. Early versions for PC were often unstable. That was pretty-much fixed by the mid-late 90s. But since Pro Tools was marketed directly to the professional market from the start, on the Mac, it sort of became standard to associate “good” recording software with both Pro Tools and the Mac. Pro Tools is still regarded as probably the most commonly-used audio software in the world. But in the 21st century, “common” does not necessarily mean “better,” and it ABSOLUTELY does not mean “mandatory.” In order to use Pro Tools, you not only need the software, but also very specific hardware as well! The program will not work without one of several approved hardware interfaces. At the time of this writing, the least expensive Pro Tools system available is “Pro Tools M-Powered,” combined with the M-Audio Fast Track Pro interface. Total cost: $450. Compare that with the minimum cost of gear/software I mentioned above, which comes out to…..hmmmm…let me think….oh yeah, $0.00! Will that budget get you EVERYTHING Pro Tools can get you, in terms of capability or quality? No. But it will get most folks what they NEED, right NOW. Then when you need the next steps up in features and capability, there are incremental steps to climb (like $50 for the first 3 jumps) so you don’t pay for more than your need. Why buy a Lexus when you only need a bicycle? One day you may want a Pro Tools system. But for Pete’s sake, don’t dive right in with Pro Tools! Now go forth and record! And start today…without the 2nd mortgage:).
Cheers!
Before you do anything else, read the rest of this article. It will be your shield against the advice you might get from a salesman at your local music store, or from some other audio experts. Here are the five secrets:
You DON’T need to lay down a bunch of money to get started.
Try this just for fun. Walk into your nearest musical instrument store (the kind that has a “recording” department) and ask them what you would need to get started recording audio from home. My guess is that you will be told you need a condenser mic, cables, mic stand, computer interface and special software; all of which will end up costing at least $500, but more likely, over $1000, and you still won’t know how to use it! The only other option, you’re told, is to go to a commercial recording studio, which will cost around $50 per hour plus the hassle of getting there with all the stuff (or all the people if you’re in a band) you’ll need. Most people believe those are their only two options. Well the truth is you probably don’t need to spend a dime on gear, OR a studio. All you need is a computer with a sound card (just the onboard one will do for starters), the microphone that probably came with your computer (which you can get for $4.00 at Target if you didn’t get one), headphones (the kind you use with your mp3 player will do), and an internet connection. I’m betting most folks have all that stuff RIGHT NOW. It just takes a little knowledge about how to get the most out of what you have….which brings me to the next point:
Knowledge is far more important than gear.
Fact: you can still make bad recordings with top-notch (read: “expensive”) gear. This is extremely common. Just pick up a copy of “Recording Magazine” and look at the “Readers Tapes” section some time if you want to see for yourself. Their reviewer is constantly dumbfounded at the great recordings that come in with cheap-to-modest gear, as well as the crappy recordings that are produced on high-end gear costing up to $10,000 (or more) most of the time! If you would like to hear a real-world example of this, listen to our podcast here. Fact: now that the technology is available to virtually anyone with a computer, the world is flooded with really terrible-sounding audio. That’s because most people (and I do mean like 80-90 percent here) don’t know the basic principles of audio recording, mixing and producing. With so many amateurs cranking out audio, the only real discriminators that will set YOU apart from the rest are “content” (your song, your podcast, etc.) and “know-how.” Fact: if you’re just starting out, and you have $300, you will produce better recordings after spending the $$ on knowledge than if you buy any equipment or software..
You don’t need to know HOW a television works in order to learn to USE it.
What? Said another way, you don’t have to know how to rebuild an engine in order to drive a car, do you? What you DO need to be taught can be learned very quickly (about a minute in the case of a TV). You could go your entire life and not know what a “catalytic converter” is, and it wouldn’t stop you driving the car. Heck, I’ve been watching television for 35 (or moreJ) years, and I STILL don’t know what a “cathode ray tube” really was. I didn’t even notice when you didn’t need one any more! The same is true for recording. Having gone through this as a beginner, I can tell you that MANY of the “experts” you’ll find on the newsgroups or forums will offer beginners some version of the following statement: “You can’t really learn recording overnight, or from books; you just have to do it over and over again for years to really learn it.” This is simply not true, and it stops a lot of people trying. It’s a little like saying “you can’t really understand how a TV works unless you go to TV-repair school, or at least have an electrical engineering degree.” That’s true, but I don’t NEED to understand all that stuff! I just want to change the channels! It will depend to large degree on what kind of recording you are trying to do (spoken-word, music multi-tracking for a CD project, or full-on CD mastering), but a large percentage of folks can learn to do ALL they NEED TO from in less than an hour from the right teacher. Many beginners take one look at, say, a mixing board (or its virtual counter-part), get information overload, and run screaming from the room. Heck I still do it after 30 years in this business! The bottom-line truth is…you really only have to learn 4 or 5 of those 80 or 90 buttons and scary commands to do what you need to do to start! Then as you choose to go deeper down the rabbit hole, you’ll have to learn maybe 15 more…seriously! I’ve engineered hundreds (probably thousands) of audio projects over the last 30 years, and I estimate I probably only know about 1/5th of what my programs and gear can do!
You DON’T Need a Mac!
Oh, this one goes back to the 80s. When every-day people started to buy computers (yes, kids…there was a time when households did not have a computer! And a short time before that, they didn’t even have televisions! Shock, Horror….sorry, I’m better now), the early Macs had some built-in features that made them better-suited to music-production. But over the years, things have evened out, and the recording landscape is about 50/50 on the issue. It’s like Pepsi and Coke. Some people prefer on over the other, but one is not INHERENTLY better than the other overall. Our tutorials are geared toward teaching skills REGARDLESS of the OS. But DON’T be talked into buying a MAC for audio just because a salesman tells you their better. It’s just not true anymore.
You Don’t Need “Pro Tools”
This is another myth that persists from the “old days.” There was a time, in the late 80s, when the software program called “Pro Tools” was only available for the Mac. Early versions for PC were often unstable. That was pretty-much fixed by the mid-late 90s. But since Pro Tools was marketed directly to the professional market from the start, on the Mac, it sort of became standard to associate “good” recording software with both Pro Tools and the Mac. Pro Tools is still regarded as probably the most commonly-used audio software in the world. But in the 21st century, “common” does not necessarily mean “better,” and it ABSOLUTELY does not mean “mandatory.” In order to use Pro Tools, you not only need the software, but also very specific hardware as well! The program will not work without one of several approved hardware interfaces. At the time of this writing, the least expensive Pro Tools system available is “Pro Tools M-Powered,” combined with the M-Audio Fast Track Pro interface. Total cost: $450. Compare that with the minimum cost of gear/software I mentioned above, which comes out to…..hmmmm…let me think….oh yeah, $0.00! Will that budget get you EVERYTHING Pro Tools can get you, in terms of capability or quality? No. But it will get most folks what they NEED, right NOW. Then when you need the next steps up in features and capability, there are incremental steps to climb (like $50 for the first 3 jumps) so you don’t pay for more than your need. Why buy a Lexus when you only need a bicycle? One day you may want a Pro Tools system. But for Pete’s sake, don’t dive right in with Pro Tools! Now go forth and record! And start today…without the 2nd mortgage:).
Cheers!