While I have been doing a gig or two each month with John, I haven't recorded in a dog's age and haven't worked on anything of my own for a while. I needed to give myself a kick in the rear, so in a bout of G.A.S. not seen since the Beanie Baby craze of the late 90's, I bought a dedicated computer and put together a full-blown D.A.W. Credit cards be damned!
I am still firmly in the throes of making sure it is working correctly, so I'm setting small goals for myself. This "tune" of first passes had my first recorded electric guitar (I had to put that Zappa phaser on there after the fact) and bass through it, first midi instrument (my cheesy organ), first use of loops, and I messed with all sorts of plug-ins. I haven't found my way, but it's fun to fumble around in the dark. Too much bass, but I like the sound of the Squier fretless procured for $90.
My inquiry: You'll notice all the hum from the guitar. When I solo the track, I don't hear it, but when I mute the track (and have everything else play), the hum goes away. I noticed that the actually graphic of the file is pretty flat, so I assume I didn't record it hot enough. Any ideas?
Peace.
Blooby
braw indeed very zappaesque indeed.
Some monstrous playing there!
Love it.
On the hum... er, can't quite tell. It just sounds like a guitar being played through a lot of gain to me. I'm wondering, is the hum there when you turn the phaser off? Could it be there's a bunch of "inaudible" stuff on the track that becomes somewhat more noticable when you stick the phaser on it?
Try sticking a hi-pass filter on it to take out the inaudible noise/rumble (about 50Hz or so) before it goes through the phaser?
The overall track is quite quiet as well - had to turn up my monitors to listen.
BADASSTASTIC!
Rock On!
Cool track. The hum, try putting a noise gate on the DAW, sounds like guitar/high gain/effects hum to me, may be an earth loop. Hum's are the bain of a recording engineers life.
B
Kerpow!
Guitars is majik! What did you do for drums?
Did you have an outboard effect on your guitar?
Cool tune and some great guitar playing.
Quote from: Blooby on November 11, 2013, 07:31:03 AMMy inquiry: You'll notice all the hum from the guitar. When I solo the track, I don't hear it, but when I mute the track (and have everything else play), the hum goes away. I noticed that the actually graphic of the file is pretty flat, so I assume I didn't record it hot enough. Any ideas?
Very strange. It's hard to believe that you can't hear the hum when the guitar track is soloed. That would suggest that the hum was added
after the guitar track was recorded. Perhaps during mastering? I suspect that there is
some hum in the guitar track, though it may not be noticeable, and it was boosted during mastering.
I only noticed the hum in the more sparse parts of the guitar track (between notes). Did you use a lot of compression in mastering? If there was a small, unnoticeable amount of hum in the guitar track, a compressor could exaggerate it by boosting the signal level when it goes low in the input. That would boost the noise too, making it noticeable when it was not noticeable in the original track. But because the compressor only boosts the signal when it's low, you don't hear any hum when the guitar playing is louder and more dense (not much space between notes).
The overall level of the recording is quite low. That reduces the dynamic range which could make the hum more noticeable. If the recording level was higher, the desired signal would be that much louder than the unwanted hum, making the hum less noticeable. In other words, you'd get a better signal-to-noise ratio.
I like that tone and playing on the guitar. Cool.
re: hum - Sounds like 60 cycle hum to me, you got anything with a ground problem? And I too only hear it when the lead stops covering it up. I don't think it goes away but is just masked. Have you tried inverting the phase to see if it is still there? Or umm... yeah, just what they said about compression or limiting. Did you try all the tracks solo to see if it was noticeable? ERm... strange.
There is a way to set up and use EQ to cut a specific frequency. Once you have a sharp enough cut, you can adjust the EQ frequency until it it matches the frequency of the hum. This will usually be outside of the natural frequency of the guitar. Once you are there, cut the crap out of that frequency and hum will disappear.
I'm writing this at work and I can't remember the right terms to describe this process - its new to me too! Someone else will know - or I'll try to remember to look it up tonight and post an edit to this.
Ian
Quote from: IanR on November 12, 2013, 07:46:43 PMI'm writing this at work and I can't remember the right terms to describe this process - its new to me too!
You dial in the frequency you want to attenuate on a parametric equalizer, give it a high Q value and then turn it way down. So for a ground/mains hum, that's 60/50 Hz depending on your AC system. That's 60 Hz for Blooby and those of us in North America. :)
Also known as a
notch filter.
But the fact that it's inaudible when soloed makes me think it may be a phase issue, and T.C's suggestion might be the one to investigate, especially if there's more than one electric guitar track.
Thanks so much for all the replies. I am overwhelmed by all the features and options that have come with the package and have spread myself rather thin. I am so interested in seeing if everything is working that I haven't spent too much time on any one aspect.
I think 64 and others nailed it. A combination of recording a weak signal and then going back to fiddle with the guitar simulator was the culprit. I can't remember exactly, but I think I soloed the track with a cleaner signal. Then I got a little crazy with the gain before rendering the MP3. I have since made another pass with a hotter signal and just about all the hum vanished (with still a healthy amount of gain). I ran the organ through a Marshall sim as well to give it a taste of the late Jon Lord. Will toy with the mix and repost when I have some time.
Thanks again.
Blooby
I meant to ask earlier but it slipped my mind... What are the details of this new recording system you've put together? PC or Mac? Which DAW software? Audio interface? Midi keyboard?
Blooby fella some absolutely rocking guitar! I can't help with the hum I am afraid, I would check the advise of these guys, they know far more than me! Loved the track though - cool
Andy
Quote from: cuthbert on November 12, 2013, 07:59:45 PMAlso known as a notch filter
Thanks Cuthbert. I knew someone would have an understanding of this!
Blooby - I agree that getting to know how DAWs work is a big task. I am trying to get to know how Sonar LE works so that I can use it to mix and master tracks from the BR800. Even this cut down version of Sonar is tough.
I have seen some of the benefits with the effects and plug ins that are available with the standard (out of the box) software and of course there would be more with others that that could be added on later. I think the effort will pay off. The problem that I foresee ( and there is not much chance of this right now) is over producing - spending too much time on the post recording process and not enough time moving on to the next song. But like anything, I guess, you have to learn and practice to get good at it.
regards,
Ian
Quote from: 64Guitars on November 12, 2013, 10:01:12 PMI meant to ask earlier but it slipped my mind... What are the details of this new recording system you've put together? PC or Mac? Which DAW software? Audio interface? Midi keyboard?
I have been researching this for over a year, but I'm not sure how seriously. Presonus Studio One was being offered at a huge educational discount last year, and it got my wheels turning. I had some expenses back then that derailed my machinations. Anyway, about three weeks ago, I was down for about five days with a nasty bug and an abscess on my tonsils (rather painful I might add). They say that idle hands are the Devil's workshop, and as I was feeling well enough to surf the web, I found myself researching this stuff again. I then found the software at Samash.com for $100 less than all the other sites (I knew it was a mistake). I had a credit line with Guitar Center, not Sam Ash. GC ended up matching the price, and then it went downhill from there (financially speaking).
To answer your question, I went with Studio One Pro with the 44VSL interface (4 inputs). I got a dedicated PC that I will only hook up to the Internet for music software updates. I am determined to leave this machine as stable as possible. I also found a like-new AKAI MPK25 midi controller super cheap locally, but I'm not sure I will keep this. I am using a Yamaha keyboard somebody horse-traded me for a rocking chair a few years back. I bought an extra pair of used Tapco S8 (designed by Mackie) monitors a few years back for a killer price (I didn't need them at the time, but they were crazy cheap) and had many other musical goodies I've accumulated through the years...an embarrassing amount really.
It came with a gaggle of effects, loops, and instruments from a Native Instruments library, samplers, synths, Guitar Ampire, Guitar Rig, Reaktor, etc (a list is here (http://www.presonus.com/products/Studio-One/explore/what-you-get/included-content)). Getting up and running was a breeze. Making sure all the add-ons were working correctly has been a long, mostly pleasant but sometimes infuriating headache. It was supposed to come with something called EZ drummer, but the company had some sort of falling out with Presonus, so they stopped giving download codes. This took hours to figure out as I kept thinking it was an installation issue (Studio One is currently being advertised on several of the online stores as still shipping with EZ Drummer). I finally found something on the Presonus form that the EZ Drummer ship had sailed. I was so pissed that I immediately whipped out the credit card and downloaded Addictive Drums, which is bloody amazing. Within 15 minutes of it being installed, I was using my Yamaha e-kit as a midi controller. I also quickly learned how to quantize, which made my shoddy performance almost bearable (Simon Phillips I am not). The only other add-on was a plug-in called Valhalla VintageVerb, which I have been reading about for a while (review here (http://www.musicradar.com/us/reviews/tech/valhalladsp-vintageverb-574692)). It is wonderfully lush and warm.
Well, you asked. Forgive my prattling on, but as you can surmise, I am pretty excited. What has been nicest is creating a dedicated space. I cleaned up a back bedroom, and it has become a centralized music lair (I think
The Museum may be appropriate). It will be so nice not to have to set everything up when inspiration strikes.
Once I get more adept at it all this stuff, I plan to finally tackle my aforementioned progressive rock opus
The Prog Fan Wants to Get Laid.
Thanks again for the input on the hum, folks. It helped me out a lot.
Peace.
Blooby
Quote from: Blooby on November 13, 2013, 05:28:36 AMTo answer your question, I went with Studio One Pro with the 44VSL interface (4 inputs).
I haven't tried Studio One but it looks like an excellent DAW. If anyone else is interested in trying it, there's a free version available for Windows and Mac. https://songcrafters.org/community/index.php?topic=14954.0 (https://songcrafters.org/forum/index.php?topic=14954.0)
Quote from: Blooby on November 13, 2013, 05:28:36 AMI also found a like-new AKAI MPK25 midi controller super cheap locally, but I'm not sure I will keep this. I am using a Yamaha keyboard somebody horse-traded me for a rocking chair a few years back.
I too have an AKAI MPK25 (see my review here (https://songcrafters.org/forum/index.php?topic=16954.0)). I also have a Yamaha keyboard (PSR-2100). I love the AKAI because it's small enough to leave in my computer room, while the Yamaha is too big so it stays downstairs with my BR-864 and guitars. I like all of the assignable controls on the AKAI. They're great when using synth software as you can assign knobs to VCOs, filters, etc. and adjust them in real time without having to use the mouse and computer. Also, the AKAI has an arpeggiator while my Yamaha does not. The only thing about the AKAI that disappointed me is the pads. I had hoped to use them for creating drum tracks but I found that they're not very suitable for that purpose. They're not sensitive enough. You have to hit them really hard to get a sound, so it's difficult to control the dynamics. I tend to play drums on the keys instead, then edit them in the DAW sequencer to fix mistakes, improve timing, and adjust velocity. You can buy replacement pads for the MPK25 that are supposed to make it more sensitive. http://www.mpcstuff.com/mpk25parts.html (http://www.mpcstuff.com/mpk25parts.html) According to the reviews I've read, it seems to work. I might give it a try one of these days. But you've got an electronic drum kit so you probably don't care about the AKAI's pads.
you gave away a rocking chair? !!!! are ye aff yer rocker? ?????
Just have one thing to say: shut up and play your guitar some more !!! ; D
Random dozen bump. Such a badass!
Rock on!
Quote from: Hook on July 23, 2017, 04:45:57 PMRandom dozen bump. Such a badass!
Rock on!
I missed this earlier - thanks for bump!