The "Audacity"/computer recording thread

[moaner]

Audacity is a legal, free peice of recording and mixing software, which is one of the most useful things I've seen since powertab. Our resident demi-mod KKK can use it pretty well, and having only downloaded it today, I'm learning. so, please place any questions about using audacity or computer recording in general in here.

Audacity (http://audacity.sourceforge.net)

I'm currently working on "House of the Rising Sun"- I've got the acoustic guitar and vocals laid down, and I'm going to add some solos and distorted guitar in later. Some of the most useful features:

Under effects, there is a very good compressor.

Ctrl + L = silence selected section- very useful shortcut

don't forget to use the pan on the left hand side of each track to add a bit more atmposphere to your songs

[Splig]

how come the "save as MP3" thing doesn't work. It says something about not finding the dll file or something.

[bennyl]

How am i doing on it, I just recorded my first thing today. Not much to it, other than a bit of splicing http://s21.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=211311D80C31586F48DAEC46FE581E69

for save as MP3, you have to download the dll file lame_enc.dll (i hope the name is right). Go to the website and it has it

[AcidQueen]

When I try to multitrack how come the tracks are a little bit off?

[vizo]

Under effects, there is a very good compressor.


Yeah, I've done several tracks with layered guitars and the compressor it has actually does the job very very well. It makes the recordings sound so much fuller. I'm quite impressed.

I've had some problems with saving to MP3s. It used to work but now it doesn't for some reason. Whenever I try to save as an MP3, it takes one second and saves a 0kb mp3 file. I've reinstalled Audacity and the lame codec, but nothing seems to work. So, I'm stuck with ogg for now :\ What the hell is going on?

[moaner]

how come the "save as MP3" thing doesn't work. It says something about not finding the dll file or something.

Go to their site, there is a bit saying they use another peice of software to convert to mp3, called 2lame or somehting". Download that, it'll give you the .dll

[moaner]

When I try to multitrack how come the tracks are a little bit off?

try just adjusting them by adding some silence at the start depending how far out of sync they are. If they were 100% in sync when you recorded them, it could be that your soundcard or computer is too slow. You might be able to try and adjust the bit-rate, I'm not sure if that's possile.

I tried out "GVerb"- either i did something wrong or it brought my voice down an octave and messed it up.

thank god for the undo button.

[moaner]

How am i doing on it, I just recorded my first thing today. Not much to it, other than a bit of splicing http://s21.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=211311D80C31586F48DAEC46FE581E69

for save as MP3, you have to download the dll file lame_enc.dll (i hope the name is right). Go to the website and it has it

no time now, do it when i get home.

moaner

[moaner]

Yeah, I've done several tracks with layered guitars and the compressor it has actually does the job very very well. It makes the recordings sound so much fuller. I'm quite impressed.

I've had some problems with saving to MP3s. It used to work but now it doesn't for some reason. Whenever I try to save as an MP3, it takes one second and saves a 0kb mp3 file. I've reinstalled Audacity and the lame codec, but nothing seems to work. So, I'm stuck with ogg for now :\ What the hell is going on?

I really have no idea, sorry. See if (long shot) you can find an .ogg (or whatever it is audacity uses) to .mp3 converter online.

[moaner]

How am i doing on it, I just recorded my first thing today. Not much to it, other than a bit of splicing http://s21.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=211311D80C31586F48DAEC46FE581E69


right.

First thing to do is to select it all and go "Effects -> compressor". You'd be amazed how much better it'll sound, it should get rid of some of that clipping aswell.

Next thing to do, is to see if you can find a silent bit, where you're not playing and its just background noise. Highlight it and go "effects -> noise removal (i thiknk) ->get noise profile" and remove the noise. What were you using to record, your tone appears to leave much to be desired. Are you micing your amp?

[KKKKKocaine]

http://s21.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=4119363C150D01344FF4581593DF57D8

I did something to the recording for you, but I have a bit of temporary threshold shift in my left ear, so I have no idea how much of a difference it's made, but I tried :)

[moaner]

http://s21.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=4119363C150D01344FF4581593DF57D8

I did something to the recording for you, but I have a bit of temporary threshold shift in my left ear, so I have no idea how much of a difference it's made, but I tried :)

much better k. Much, much better. Could do with abit of EQ though, if you haven't already.

[KKKKKocaine]

much better k. Much, much better. Could do with abit of EQ though, if you haven't already.

E.Q. + TTS = Nada :p
E.Q. shall have to wait till my hearing unmuffles itself, I should have worn hearing protection :)

[moaner]

House of the rising sun = teh recorded

Will get it edited and on soundlcick by this evening hopefully

As long as you promise not to laugh at my poor singing and simplistic guitar work

[KKKKKocaine]

House of the rising sun = teh recorded

Will get it edited and on soundlcick by this evening hopefully

As long as you promise not to laugh at my poor singing and simplistic guitar work

If you upload the seperate tracks I'll create a crazy remix :)

[moaner]

If you upload the seperate tracks I'll create a crazy remix :)

I'll giv you an audacity file if you want, you can use the "wah wah" effect

What is that supposed to be? A wah pedal made of banana skins?

[moaner]

ok, i know i can't sing..

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/6/moanermusic.htm

[bennyl]

right.

First thing to do is to select it all and go "Effects -> compressor". You'd be amazed how much better it'll sound, it should get rid of some of that clipping aswell.

Next thing to do, is to see if you can find a silent bit, where you're not playing and its just background noise. Highlight it and go "effects -> noise removal (i thiknk) ->get noise profile" and remove the noise. What were you using to record, your tone appears to leave much to be desired. Are you micing your amp?

I did noise removal, but it was still somewhat distorted, and i also used the compressor, but i don't really know how to so I'm not sure what would make it best. Also, i dodn't have it on full screen and didn't realise I could edit the improvisation part. Most of this stuff I've figured out since I did my second thing, which is 4 track, and better, and also blues, 'cause its easy to work with.

[Moseph]

When I try to multitrack how come the tracks are a little bit off?


That's called latency. Every system has it, it's physically impossible not to have some latency (of course high-end hardware systems have low enough latency that you don't notice).

Audacity has a time shift tool that's useful for this, but it takes practice to get it right. You'll get the hang of it after about a dozen takes or so. Also, be sure you're listening back to your other tracks so that your new take is in time just right.

[Moseph]

I did noise removal, but it was still somewhat distorted, and i also used the compressor, but i don't really know how to so I'm not sure what would make it best. Also, i dodn't have it on full screen and didn't realise I could edit the improvisation part. Most of this stuff I've figured out since I did my second thing, which is 4 track, and better, and also blues, 'cause its easy to work with.


As a general rule in any sort of recording, try to avoid noise removal b/c it destroys the integrity of your original recording (this is true of even high-end noise removal algorithms). The best practice is to get the best, cleanest signal you possibly can before you hit the record button. This means simple things like eliminating background noise, but also trying to reduce electrical interference (ground loops, static, hum, that sort of thing as well).

Audacity's noise removal: though powerful, is also a bit clumsy w/ your data. Record your voice w/ lots of background noise, and then remove the noise, and listen to what it does to the signal: it's not really pleasing to the ear.

[Moseph]

hey KKKKKocaine, how long have you been using Audacity?

[KKKKKocaine]

hey KKKKKocaine, how long have you been using Audacity?

About a year or so.

As a general rule in any sort of recording, try to avoid noise removal b/c it destroys the integrity of your original recording (this is true of even high-end noise removal algorithms). The best practice is to get the best, cleanest signal you possibly can before you hit the record button. This means simple things like eliminating background noise, but also trying to reduce electrical interference (ground loops, static, hum, that sort of thing as well).

Audacity's noise removal: though powerful, is also a bit clumsy w/ your data. Record your voice w/ lots of background noise, and then remove the noise, and listen to what it does to the signal: it's not really pleasing to the ear.

Yup, You can't fix it in the mix, the noise removal tool is a compromise, a good mix starts with a good recording.

[vizo]

I really have no idea, sorry. See if (long shot) you can find an .ogg (or whatever it is audacity uses) to .mp3 converter online.

I've tried literally every single converter and none of them work! This sucks.. time for a reformat haha.

[vizo]

As a general rule in any sort of recording, try to avoid noise removal b/c it destroys the integrity of your original recording (this is true of even high-end noise removal algorithms). The best practice is to get the best, cleanest signal you possibly can before you hit the record button. This means simple things like eliminating background noise, but also trying to reduce electrical interference (ground loops, static, hum, that sort of thing as well).

Audacity's noise removal: though powerful, is also a bit clumsy w/ your data. Record your voice w/ lots of background noise, and then remove the noise, and listen to what it does to the signal: it's not really pleasing to the ear.

I find that trim works best on single tracks.

[Moseph]

I've tried literally every single converter and none of them work! This sucks.. time for a reformat haha.

http://www.dbpoweramp.com/

They have a converter, media player, and pretty much every codec you'll ever use available for windows online for free.

[vizo]

Holy crap.. thanks a lot. It actually worked :D

[LTD]

whenever i try to import a midi file it works, but the file wont play. It either goes through with no sound, or it tells me there might be a problem with the bit rate or output.

once i get the midi to work, is there a way to delete certain intruments in the midi file, using audacity?

also, i have an mp3 backing track that i wanna use that has guitar, bass and drums. Is there anyway i cant take the guitar out of the track with audacity and just use the bass and drum parts?

[moaner]

whenever i try to import a midi file it works, but the file wont play. It either goes through with no sound, or it tells me there might be a problem with the bit rate or output.
Try to import it by setting the audacity recording source was "wave out", and just playing the midi and recording it.

once i get the midi to work, is there a way to delete certain intruments in the midi file, using audacity?
Importing the midi file into somehting like Powertab will allow you to do this.

also, i have an mp3 backing track that i wanna use that has guitar, bass and drums. Is there anyway i cant take the guitar out of the track with audacity and just use the bass and drum parts?
No.

[LTD]

Try to import it by setting the audacity recording source was "wave out", and just playing the midi and recording it.


Thanks, i did similar to that. I just played the midi on windows media player, and set the recording source to the midi one, and recorded it while it played.

[Syko]

For those having problems with MP3 conversion/saving, download LAME (stands for LAME Ain't an MP3 Encoder...but nevermind that):

http://mitiok.free.fr/lame-3.96.1.zip

And if that link doesn't work, go to http://mitiok.cjb.net/ and download from one of the mirrors.

Once you download it, extract the file "lame_enc.dll" from the ZIP and put it in your Audacity directory. So, if you installed Audacity to "C:\Program Files\Audacity", put it there. (Re)Start Audacity and with any luck it will find the DLL file you just put there, and you will be able to do File -> Export as MP3...

Let me know if this doesn't work and I'll try to help.

[Syko]

also, i have an mp3 backing track that i wanna use that has guitar, bass and drums. Is there anyway i cant take the guitar out of the track with audacity and just use the bass and drum parts?

If you're really lucky and the drum track is in only one of the channels (only right or left -- the track must be stereo for this to work), and the guitar and bass is in the other channel, then you might be able to pull it off. This probably won't be the case, so it probably won't work. I'm pretty sure there's also a way to remove the center "instrument," (usually voice) by doing right minus left or something -- there's a tutorial about this on Audacity's website IIRC.

[Vitriolic Rage]

Yeah, Audacity is awesome, I've started using that instead of Kristal and Pro Tools.

[NoMoreHate]

I downloaded Audacity after reading about it here, my band is going to have a go at recording something on it tomorrow (all with a kind of crappy Gemini mic... even drums) but yeh we'll see....

[KKKKKocaine]

I downloaded Audacity after reading about it here, my band is going to have a go at recording something on it tomorrow (all with a kind of crappy Gemini mic... even drums) but yeh we'll see....
Good Luck :)

[NoMoreHate]

OK, we recorded our first track yesterday with Audacity and I think it came out ok. I just wanted to ask if anyone had any advice on how to improve it? I'm planning on re-doing the vocals anyway (and before anyone says 'ditch the vocalist', I'M the vocalist!). Check it out and advice would be awesome (I'm fully aware this should be in audio arena but the question is specific to audacity). :)

http://www.purevolume.com/opium4themasses

[moaner]

OK, we recorded our first track yesterday with Audacity and I think it came out ok. I just wanted to ask if anyone had any advice on how to improve it? I'm planning on re-doing the vocals anyway (and before anyone says 'ditch the vocalist', I'M the vocalist!). Check it out and advice would be awesome (I'm fully aware this should be in audio arena but the question is specific to audacity). :)

http://www.purevolume.com/opium4themasses

not bad at all, guitar tone leaves a bit to be desired and those drums sound a bit digital, but a very good recording anyway.

Who's your guitarist? I can see somewhere he's going a bit wrong in the way he writes his solos.

[NoMoreHate]

not bad at all, guitar tone leaves a bit to be desired and those drums sound a bit digital, but a very good recording anyway.

Who's your guitarist? I can see somewhere he's going a bit wrong in the way he writes his solos.

Haha yeh that was entirely improvised by our lead guitarist, kind of random I know.

And the drums were recorded live from a kit with a single vocal mic.

Is there anyway of improving the general quality in the mix?

[z is me]

i liked your band NoMoreHate......

[NoMoreHate]

i liked your band NoMoreHate......

Thankyou :) I'll be re-doing the vocals soon with an improvised pop-filter and we're redoing the lead guitar and drums probably

[moaner]

can you add to a track you've already recorded, as in like if you've done the first 1/2 on one track can you do the other half on that track aswell having pressed stop?

[Moseph]

Haha yeh that was entirely improvised by our lead guitarist, kind of random I know.

And the drums were recorded live from a kit with a single vocal mic.

Is there anyway of improving the general quality in the mix?

I'm not sure if it's b/c of the low-quality of streaming audio, but there's a plosives issue around 1:45 into the song. I think it's either f/ the vocal track or the drums. You may need to completely re-record if the plosives exist in the uncompressed audio.

Also, you can add presence and warmth to the vocals by doing a bit of compression.

Overall the mix is pretty good, but you've overdone the drums a tad. Additionally, I'd drop a mic onto the kick drum to help flesh out sound spectrum: make the whole track sound bigger.

Good work though, I'd like to hear the 2nd mix and see how it turns out.

[moaner]

guys, I'm having trouble with stereo recording...

If i go into project and mew stereo track, then pressing record just starts a new mono track. I'd swear "wave out" is a stereo source, but the only way to record it is in mono. I'm worried because when i get my v-amp, I'll want to record that in stereo trough the line in.

[moaner]

pleeeease?

[downinkashmir]

I think you need a stereo input(2 cables) to begin with. Use a y-cable converter to 1/8 or 1/4--whichever you need--to plug into the pc. Best to go through an outboard mixer with stereo outputs

[IAJP]

Can someone give me a link to the site you need to download the thingy to save them as MP3's?
I have audacity, but I can't find the link for this.

[NoMoreHate]

http://audacity.sourceforge.net/windows.php

It's called LAME. It's near the bottom.

[moaner]

I think you need a stereo input(2 cables) to begin with. Use a y-cable converter to 1/8 or 1/4--whichever you need--to plug into the pc. Best to go through an outboard mixer with stereo outputs

the wave out ought to be a stereo source, since the PC works in stereo. Audacity doesn't have a software option on inputs, thats probably the problem.

[rubberabbit]

guys i recorded a track with my pc mike. then i wanna continue on the 2nd track. but i it wont play the 1st track along with the 2nd track on record so i can count in...anyone?

[moaner]

guys i recorded a track with my pc mike. then i wanna continue on the 2nd track. but i it wont play the 1st track along with the 2nd track on record so i can count in...anyone?

in options, say play other tracks whilst recording.

[rubberabbit]

thanks dude!!!

[UnDeRoAtHfAn777]

I made a thread asking this but no one is answering so...Do I need a special mic or special anything I need to buy to record sounds with my computer? Please help.

PS. When I click on generate it says "Recording Time Remaining:37 hours 21 minutes." Does that mean you can only use it for a little bit or something or is that how long you have per song?

[rubberabbit]

^its like the amount of space u have left in ur hdd that can accomodate more recordings.

i use a cheap pc mike. sounds ok for rough takes. but i think u'd need better stuff if ur serious.

[UnDeRoAtHfAn777]

^its like the amount of space u have left in ur hdd that can accomodate more recordings.

i use a cheap pc mike. sounds ok for rough takes. but i think u'd need better stuff if ur serious.

Where do you get a pc mic from and do you plug it directly into the modem??

[Vitriolic Rage]

Modem?
No, no, no, you plug it into the microphone port (pink) or line-in (blue)

[Triangle]

Hey, I normally use cubase for recording my Podxt through usb into my pc and have hardley any latency. But, in Audacity I get some noticeably latency! Does anyone know why this is and can fix it? Cheers.

[UnDeRoAtHfAn777]

Modem?
No, no, no, you plug it into the microphone port (pink) or line-in (blue)
Thanx

[Devil Inferno]

i recorded some stuff for my first ever song composed.

1 vocal track, 1 acoustic track, 1 keyboard track, 1 rythmn track and 1 lead track.

the result was utterly horrible. The timings were way off. is this "latency" as well?

[KKKKKocaine]

i recorded some stuff for my first ever song composed.

1 vocal track, 1 acoustic track, 1 keyboard track, 1 rythmn track and 1 lead track.

the result was utterly horrible. The timings were way off. is this "latency" as well?

Probably not, I'm assuming you recorded each individualy, it's more likely to be a matter of them being out of time.
You will need to re-align the tracks, it shouldn't take long.
Zoom in close so you can see accurately where one track begins, then line this up with another track, then line up the next track with the above two e.t.c.

[fuzzyhair]

O.K. I downloaded the VST Enabler and I have Amplitube. Now how do I get them all to act together so that I can plug my guitar straight into my computer to record and edit the effects. I know someone here will know the answer.
Thanks

[Thomas~]

Being a newbie to recording software and recording in general, could someone explain the effects compression is meant to have, and how best to acheive them with it? I got audacity today, and am yet to get to grips with it. Thanks :thumb:

[Triangle]

Does anyone know how to fix the latency in Audacity? I have had no problems in the past with Cubase recording my guitar.

[moaner]

Being a newbie to recording software and recording in general, could someone explain the effects compression is meant to have, and how best to acheive them with it? I got audacity today, and am yet to get to grips with it. Thanks :thumb:

quite possibly the most useful tool in recording, especially IN MODERATION for acoustic/clean guitar, drums, and often vocals.

It essentially "compresses" different volumes of signals into one fairly smooth volume level. So if you use it on an acoustic guitar, all the notes will have a near identical volume.

this is only on simple terms. The way it does this is by increasing the "gain" (increase in volume) on quiet signals and decreasing it on loud signals.

However, if it just did this, a quiet hum in the background would become a blaring noise. so, the compressor has a cut off point or "threshold" for what it compresses. The ratio is probably easiest described as the amount of compression. Attack time is the amount of time before compression kicks in. If this was on 0, things would sound odd, as we all know a guitar is a lot louder just after a chord is strummed than 0.5s later. Put attack time lower for vocals than for drums and guitar. Bassis probably somewhere between the 2.

[moaner]

Does anyone know how to fix the latency in Audacity? I have had no problems in the past with Cubase recording my guitar.


Cubase costs $500

Audacity costs $0

so unfortunately, its unlikely to be as good. Was audacity on the same computer? If not, check your RAM and sound card are up to scratch.

[Triangle]

Cubase costs $500

Audacity costs $0

so unfortunately, its unlikely to be as good. Was audacity on the same computer? If not, check your RAM and sound card are up to scratch.
Cheers for that. I know its free n all and its great, but it would just make my life a lot easier if there was less latency! Do you have problems with it as well?

[KKKKKocaine]

guys, I'm having trouble with stereo recording...

If i go into project and mew stereo track, then pressing record just starts a new mono track. I'd swear "wave out" is a stereo source, but the only way to record it is in mono. I'm worried because when i get my v-amp, I'll want to record that in stereo trough the line in.

Have you tried going into preferences and setting channels to 2 instead of 1?

[moaner]

Have you tried going into preferences and setting channels to 2 instead of 1?

OMG :upset:


it worked

[KKKKKocaine]

OMG :upset:


it worked

http://audacity.sourceforge.net/help/faq

[<Donnie_Darko>]

I downloaded Audacity the other day and have been recording my acoustic guitar through a USB mic that i have. Then today I tried playing my electric guitar into the program but its not picking up anything when I start recording, basically im using the linout from my amp to connect with the computer, I''ve tried both the mic and line-in ports but its not working.

The problem seems to be that on the mixer toolbar the dropdown menu is grey so cannot be used so I can't select the mic or line-in ports. The computer im using is only about 6 months old and im using Windows XP

Anyone got any ideas whats wrong and how I can fix it?

[<Donnie_Darko>]

Never Mind, it's decided to start working.

[UnDeRoAtHfAn777]

I have quite a few questions on this, srry...

1. What is the point of things like white noise, tone, pluck, and making a silent track?(I can guess what tone does but I don't know how to make tone better. Btw, this is under generate if you don't know what I'm talking about.)
2. How can I record only a part of a song w/o making another track?
3. How can I select the entire track w/o having to go through the entire song w/the mouse.
4. How do I hook up my pa into the computer?(I've only been using a mic in the back of my computer to record but am going to try and record drums w/multiple mics soon.)

[larry_emder]

1.White noise - just sounds like static, might wanna use it for the sart of a track or something, i dunno, maybe to 'set the mood'
Tone - just gives a tone (obviously) - maybe to see if you are in tune!
And the generated silence takes out the need to wait inbetween the playing sections, you can just overdub - and also, you wont have any inwanted 'noise' in the silent section (amp noise, cpu noise, etc)

2.I dont know what you mean

3.Select entire track = click at the very start of the track you want, then goto 'edit', then 'select' , and then 'cursor to end'


4. Plug youre mics into the pa, then use one of the outputs, or line out on it, and send this to the cpu line in

[larry_emder]

Now i have a question!!!

Ok, i want to loop a couple of the sections in my piece - how do i repeat the selected section???

[UnDeRoAtHfAn777]

Now i have a question!!!

Ok, i want to loop a couple of the sections in my piece - how do i repeat the selected section???
Wow, now I get to answer one, their is an effect called repeat that repeats the selected part as many times as you want. You need to make sure their are no empty parts b/c it will screw up the timing, especially if you are repeating it alot(I used this effect to make my techno track lol)

[KKKKKocaine]

Now i have a question!!!

Ok, i want to loop a couple of the sections in my piece - how do i repeat the selected section???

Zoom right in so you can see the waveform properly.
Now this is one of audacity's failings, soundforge has a center line running through the waveform, this is very useful when making looks.

We will just have to do without, but we must know what the waveform means.
Now your tracks waveform will go up and down. Imagine a line running through the 0 point on the track bar. Any waveform above this, tells the speaker driver to push out, anything below tells it to pull back, and anything on the 0, tells it to do nothing.
What has this got to do with looping?
Well it means you will have to make sure that the waveform ends on 0.
Otherwise you will suddenly be telling the speaker to push out and pull back which will create a pop at the beginning of your track and sound clipped.

So your loop needs to end on the imgarinary centre line, you need to shorten it enough for it to be loopable without silence afterwards.

Hope that helped.

[larry_emder]

Cheers, i'll give it a go....and maybe post the results if its of good enough standard

[DWESP]

im downloading audacity now. can it be burned onto a disk?

[moaner]

im downloading audacity now. can it be burned onto a disk?

your songs can be converted to a wav, suitable for a CD.

[paulh]

im really having trouble with converting, i have gone on that site and clicked the links but nothing happens when i do so and i really wanted to host some stuff, but im stuck without mp3 files, can anyone help?

[larry_emder]

try d/lthe file again - and then in audacity, click on 'convert to mp3', and the program will ask you for the location of the .dll file that converts......(i think)

[moaner]

You need the LAME Mp3 encoder.

[paulh]

yeah i cant seem to get the lame mp3 encoder

[DWESP]

whats the best way to plug a guitar amp into the computer? right now im using a lead that goes from my headphone jack in my amp to the 'mono out' jack in the back of my computer. it works but im geting a lot of noise and when its supposed to be clean it comes out distorted. should i just mic my amp or would that be worse?

[moaner]

whats the best way to plug a guitar amp into the computer? right now im using a lead that goes from my headphone jack in my amp to the 'mono out' jack in the back of my computer. it works but im geting a lot of noise and when its supposed to be clean it comes out distorted. should i just mic my amp or would that be worse?

If you have a reasnoble mic, it should be better. Remember to keep your volume low when using a headphoe output as a line out. If you're gonna be doing a lot of home recording, say so, and I'll suggest some cheap solutions for you.

[paulh]

i have sorted the mp3 encoder out now and have started recording, thanks

[DWESP]

If you have a reasnoble mic, it should be better. Remember to keep your volume low when using a headphoe output as a line out. If you're gonna be doing a lot of home recording, say so, and I'll suggest some cheap solutions for you.

thanks, me and my band are planning to put together an album in the next few weeks so all the suggestions you can give me would be great. thanks again.

[moaner]

thanks, me and my band are planning to put together an album in the next few weeks so all the suggestions you can give me would be great. thanks again.

write, so you want to record your entire band?

what do you currently have? One of the chheapest and best ways to record guitar is with somehting like the behringer v-amp 2, or the behirnger guitar DI with built in cab modelling. The latter, put between your line out and mixer, will give you great results. The v-amp can go guitar -> v-amp -> mixer, and give pretty decent results.

[DWESP]

write, so you want to record your entire band?

what do you currently have? One of the chheapest and best ways to record guitar is with somehting like the behringer v-amp 2, or the behirnger guitar DI with built in cab modelling. The latter, put between your line out and mixer, will give you great results. The v-amp can go guitar -> v-amp -> mixer, and give pretty decent results.

it would be really hard for me to get the behringer because i live in ireland and that kind of gear is really hard to get here. how does the noise remover work on audacity? when it asks for a sample of the noise what am i supposed to give it? if i could get that to work i could use a mic and get rid of the backround noise.

[moaner]

it would be really hard for me to get the behringer because i live in ireland and that kind of gear is really hard to get here. how does the noise remover work on audacity? when it asks for a sample of the noise what am i supposed to give it? if i could get that to work i could use a mic and get rid of the backround noise.

Always leave 5 seconds of "silence" at the start of a song. select it, and use this as your noise profile.

[thechad202]

How do I configure Audacity so that it only records whats coming through the line-in.
I want to be able to hear what I'm recording over, but when I do this it records everything coming out of my speakers as one track.

[Abbath]

Okey, I havn't read through every post on this tread so maybe this have been asked before:

I can't hear the other guitar when I want to record something over it!! F. eks. when i record a rythm and I want to solo over it, I can't hear the rythm guitar.

Anyone know how I fix that?

EDIT: Just saw the post above :p

[ineedahaircut91]

Okey, I havn't read through every post on this tread so maybe this have been asked before:

I can't hear the other guitar when I want to record something over it!! F. eks. when i record a rythm and I want to solo over it, I can't hear the rythm guitar.

Anyone know how I fix that?

EDIT: Just saw the post above :p

go to preferences, then at the bottom of Audio I/O theres a box that says "play other tracks while recording new one" and check it

[extremities9]

Question: Would a standard microphone (came with our new Dell) handle cymbals?

[moaner]

Question: Would a standard microphone (came with our new Dell) handle cymbals?

like a PC mic?

No. Mine has enough trouble handling speach.

[extremities9]

it can handle bass and guitar fine

[extremities9]

It records them crystal clear I'd say

[ineedahaircut91]

question, when i record w/ 2 channels, it sounds exactly the same as recording with 1 channel. do you need 2 mics to make it sound good on 2 channels?

[moaner]

It records them crystal clear I'd say

well then, its not the same mic as i got with my dell.

[extremities9]

i guess so

[bomber]

right i know this may sound completely stupid and silly but im new to these parts of mx and was advised to come here because i'm looking for free downloadable equipment to put on my computer to arrange my music on. Is this possible and if so where can i find it. I put it in here because this seems like something to do with downloadable software.

[moaner]

right i know this may sound completely stupid and silly but im new to these parts of mx and was advised to come here because i'm looking for free downloadable equipment to put on my computer to arrange my music on. Is this possible and if so where can i find it. I put it in here because this seems like something to do with downloadable software.

do you want to arrange music, i.e. arrange samples, or record your own songs, like recording each part of the song, not sampling? if the latter, the first post in this thread has a link to audacity, a veyr useful program indeed.

[bomber]

do you want to arrange music, i.e. arrange samples, or record your own songs, like recording each part of the song, not sampling? if the latter, the first post in this thread has a link to audacity, a veyr useful program indeed.

yes i really want to get my own recording program on my computer where i can mix what i record and make up songs etc although i have abseloutely no equipment. My bassist in our band has a 6 track i can use if that's any help.

[moaner]

yes i really want to get my own recording program on my computer where i can mix what i record and make up songs etc although i have abseloutely no equipment. My bassist in our band has a 6 track i can use if that's any help.
a 6 track is somehting you could use instead.

download audacity, see what you come up with. If you've got nothing, a mixer (like the behringer UB1202 or ub1002), and a mic, like the behringer XM1800 i think its called.

[bomber]

a 6 track is somehting you could use instead.

download audacity, see what you come up with. If you've got nothing, a mixer (like the behringer UB1202 or ub1002), and a mic, like the behringer XM1800 i think its called.

oh cool thank you very much

lastly do you know of any websites i can get a drum machine onto audacity?

edit: so i downloaded audacity and i understand the language of the goat better than it :(

[ClayTheJ]

Does Audacity install itself immeadiately when its finished downloading?

[ClayTheJ]

Anyone?? Because I wanna be able to transfer it to another computer.

[moaner]

no,i don't think it does. you have to install it like any other program.

[Blink_Fan315]

argh that annoying fuzzy noise is in the background of everything i record, i even cleaned out my walk in closet and hung blankets on the walls so i wouldnt get that annoying fuzz, anyone know a good way to get rid of it using audacity? Ive been using it for several months and nothing really helps much...

[thechad202]

noise reduction.......???^^

[KKKKKocaine]

argh that annoying fuzzy noise is in the background of everything i record, i even cleaned out my walk in closet and hung blankets on the walls so i wouldnt get that annoying fuzz, anyone know a good way to get rid of it using audacity? Ive been using it for several months and nothing really helps much...

Post an MP3 or send it to me,
bandage_these_hearts@hotmail.com
I'll try and work out whats causing it, also tell me what you recorded with, and everything in the signal path.

[Implements Of Destruction]

ok sorry if this has been posted before but how do i get my guitar to sound clean? When im playing it, it comes out of the speakers clean, but when i record it it comes out slightly distorted and just sounds horrible i've tried lowering the my volume but that doesn't work. Any ideas?

[sparkylp2002]

Question
How would you go from cassest to cd using the program?

[I'd Hit it]

I was wondering if anyone has made a tutorial for basic recording on audacity for noobs (like me).

Cause I was just trying to get my buddy to lay down a song on guitar so I could listen to it and add some drums later on (all on cheap mics, just to get an idea, you know).
But we were having somewhat of a problem. I was able to record the first guitar normally (though I kept having to blast my speakers to the max to actually hear it, and yes mic input level was all the way up). Now when came time for the 2nd guitar, I was expecting that when I pressed record, that it would play the first one(so we could hear it) PLUS record the 2nd one. I hope you get what I mean. I want to record a guitar track over another guitar track, but I can't do it properly if I don't hear the first one.

I'm sure there is a way to record, hear what you recorded and record into that. I just don't know how to do it. Any help would be great. Thanks!

[jimifan]

Anyone ever used vst plugins with Audacity? I read you could do this on sourceforge but not sure what plugins are available to use? If anyone has used them I'd love some advice. Thanks.

[AG]

I really like Audacity, it's very user friendly, and the manuals make it alot easier.

The only thing I don't like about it is the lack of MIDI editing, and for some reason, neither of my versions of Audacity will even play MIDI (It ain't because I have the wrong MIDI settings though :confused: )

I like the Compresser, and the Pitch shift is ace (as well as the Change tempo, for cheating on solo's, hehehe) I got a remove center pan, so hopefully with some fiddling I should be able to remove vocals (not as of yet though)

I should be getting Cubase soon, along with Drum Kit From Hell.

I would higly recommend Hotstepper for drum loops, its very easy to use, and you can upload your own beats onto it, if you don't want to use the techno-ish ones already on there.

To summarise, Audacity pwns.

[KKKKKocaine]

The only thing I don't like about it is the lack of MIDI editing, and for some reason, neither of my versions of Audacity will even play MIDI (It ain't because I have the wrong MIDI settings though :confused: )

It can't play MIDI, that's your explanation :) The ability to import MIDI is simply so you can compare notes and appearances, I found that little gem in the FAQ somewhere, if you really want to get MIDI to MP3, set it to record 'MIDI Synth' then press record and play the MIDI file through another program and it will only record the MIDI.

EDIT: I'll get onto the casette to cd, plugin and other questions tommorrow cause I have a sound recording assignment to finish up.

[AG]

Ahh, thankyou, I was wondering what was up with it.

I'm getting Cubase soon, so I can live without it MIDI backing for a little while atleast.

[UnDeRoAtHfAn777]

Can someone please help me, I want to know how to delete a few seconds in the beginning of a song, I don't know how to delete the same amount of time from every track though.

[KKKKKocaine]

Can someone please help me, I want to know how to delete a few seconds in the beginning of a song, I don't know how to delete the same amount of time from every track though.

Ok, load all your tracks. In the top track select the few seconds you want to delete, then drag down through the other tracks and it will highlight the same area in each track :)

Anyone ever used vst plugins with Audacity? I read you could do this on sourceforge but not sure what plugins are available to use? If anyone has used them I'd love some advice. Thanks.

http://audacity.sourceforge.net/download/plugins
They used to have a large list of plugins, but you can use most VST plugins alongside audacity.
You need to download the VST enabler linked on the site, then download the plugin and place it in the plugin folder.

Cause I was just trying to get my buddy to lay down a song on guitar so I could listen to it and add some drums later on (all on cheap mics, just to get an idea, you know).
But we were having somewhat of a problem. I was able to record the first guitar normally (though I kept having to blast my speakers to the max to actually hear it, and yes mic input level was all the way up). Now when came time for the 2nd guitar, I was expecting that when I pressed record, that it would play the first one(so we could hear it) PLUS record the 2nd one. I hope you get what I mean. I want to record a guitar track over another guitar track, but I can't do it properly if I don't hear the first one.

I'm sure there is a way to record, hear what you recorded and record into that. I just don't know how to do it. Any help would be great. Thanks!

Go to file > preferences
Under Audio I/O at the very bottom should be a box.
"Play track whilst recording new one" Make sure this is ticked :)


How would you go from cassest to cd using the program?


Cheaply.

http://www.minidiscaccess.com/item.html?PRID=725944
That's basicly what you need, plug one end into your cassette players headphone output, and then the other end into your pc's line in.
Then set Audacity to record 'Line In', press record, and then press play o n the cassette player and it will record. :)

ok sorry if this has been posted before but how do i get my guitar to sound clean? When im playing it, it comes out of the speakers clean, but when i record it it comes out slightly distorted and just sounds horrible i've tried lowering the my volume but that doesn't work. Any ideas?

What volume did you lower?
I'd start by turning everything down, your pc volume, your guitar volume, audacities input volume. Then slowly bring each one up by a couple and see if that makes any difference.
Chances are the distortion is caused by clipping, if recording your input meter is going above -12 you will clip as the sound level becomes too much for the speaker to recreate and so clipping can occur. If your volume is down and your clipping, it might be a soundcard issue, a cable issue, or it may even be your guitar.



Hope this has helped.

[larry_emder]

Alright, i got a question - can Audacity record via the usb input? if so, how?

[KKKKKocaine]

Alright, i got a question - can Audacity record via the usb input? if so, how?

Probably, I'll flag this one for Moaner, it's more his territory.

[AG]

Yes, it can, just set your computer to use the usb device as the soundcard.

Control Panel>Audio

[moaner]

Alright, i got a question - can Audacity record via the usb input? if so, how?

Yes.

plug in your interface/POD or whatever,and then select it from the source drtopdown box.

It will have some arbitary name like "external recording device" or something, but it should be there.

[larry_emder]

Cheers guys, thanks for everything

[I'd Hit it]

Yes thanks also for responding to my question ;)

[SeasonOfTheMad]

if you need the lame_enc.dll just go to http://www.rarewares.org/mp3.html and dl the top bundle, its easy if you extract the zip to the audacity folder, and then when you try to export itll be right there. p.s. i googled the dll name and that was the first site that came up, and it worked perfectly, so when it doubt, search.