How to solve the "OVER" problem?

[Eagle]

I don't know if this question has been answered yet, but what keeps happening to me is that when I use some effects with a lot of distortion (like St.Metal) I keep seeing the OVER dialog thing when all I wanna do is just rock.

The fact is that when I record my songs, the sound is too heavy and fuzzy, and it shouldn't be like this. I can see, in other recordings, that the sound is cleaner. Is there any way to adjust my overall levels so I can record properly with distortion effects?

[hewhoiscalledj]

You need to strike a fine balance between your guitar's level, and the SENSITIVITY level on the INPUT screen. Watch the level meter as you experiment with where this SENS level should be. 64guitars has pointed out in another thread that while recording guitar/mic, the INPUT wheel does not affect the recording itself due to it's position in the signal chain so don't even mess with it, just the SENS level.

Too much gain on the distortion effects setting can be detrimental as well so that's another thing to tweak in your quest for the perfect distortion settings. When recording on digital equipment, it's best NOT to record too hot (as the myths go) to avoid clipping. Its much easier to make a quiet recording louder, than it is to make a loud recording not distort.

Peace.

[Sprocket]

The line(LIN) input is "padded" where as the guitar input isnt...basically, its not as sensitive so you wont have to crank down the sensitivity so much to get a good clear tone. But youll need a different cable or adapter to use the line input.

But Id try the sensitivity of the guitar input first...Id even adjust the "level" on your drive pedal to be a lil more forgiving as well. You should still be able to use healthy doses of gain, but your level may need to come down. 

[64Guitars]

64guitars has pointed out in another thread that while recording guitar/mic, the INPUT wheel does not affect the recording itself due to it's position in the signal chain so don't even mess with it, just the SENS level.

Yikes! I'm sure I didn't say that the INPUT LEVEL control doesn't affect the recording! 

What I said is that the INPUT LEVEL control on the side of the Micro BR has no effect on the OVER indicator. However, it does most certainly affect the recording level. And that's true regardless of which input is selected.

The OVER indicator lights when the level of the input signal (guitar/mic/line) is too high. Within the BR, the only way to reduce the input signal and stop the OVER indicator from lighting is with the Input Sensitivity setting ("Sns:"). See page 29 of the Micro BR manual, 3rd edition. However, outside the BR, you can also prevent the BR's OVER indicator from lighting by reducing the output of the connected input device (guitar, mic, CD player, mixer, etc).

After you've adjusted the Input Sensitivity so that it's as high as possible without making the OVER indicator light, you should make any final adjustments to the insert effect settings. The last level you need to adjust before starting to record is the INPUT LEVEL control on the side of the Micro BR. Adjust it according to the IN level meter at the right of the Level Meter screen. See pages 15 and 39 of the Micro BR manual. The IN level is your recording level and everything before it in the signal path affects it, which is why it should always be the last level you set before you begin recording.

See this message for more on level setting and the OVER indicator:

https://songcrafters.org/community/general-discussion-b8/the-joys-and-sorrows-of-my-first-project/msg14412/#msg14412

Whenever you change any setting that affects signal level, it will affect everything after it in the signal path, and have no effect on anything before it in the signal path. That's why it's important to set things in the correct order. Input Sensitivity first ("Sns:"), then insert effects, then the INPUT LEVEL control.

[hewhoiscalledj]

Thanks for the correction! And for that original post/message on this topic. It has helped me understand this little box so much better than the manual ever has! Explaining it can still get tricky though...

[OsCKilO]

The Osckilo Way of avoiding "Clipping" is to Strike a chord as hard as you can every time you switch track....

If you see over, strike it again and lower the input level until you don't.....

If you turn it up later in the mix after you have recorded, it shouldn't  come out!

[Eagle]

Thank you guys for your answers. I've tried lowering down the SENS level and also the input level and later put the track level up and both ways are effective. OVER's gone

[Glenn Mitchell]

Another one that still occasionally confuses me is duplication of FX due to the recorded FX remaining enabled during playback.
This is where during recording it sounds fine but playback sounds over done.

[Satchwood]

What I've been doing lately is.............find where I can Jam IT....Whammy IT, Chord IT hard!!! and NOT get a "over", then I bump it down yet Another notch.....maybe it has something to do with my style of playing, but this is the SAFETY ZONE!!!!!!

[AndyR]

What I've been doing lately is.............find where I can Jam IT....Whammy IT, Chord IT hard!!! and NOT get a "over", then I bump it down yet Another notch.....maybe it has something to do with my style of playing, but this is the SAFETY ZONE!!!!!!

This is good advice - what happens to us guitar and bass types is that we strum/etc for a level, all seems fine...

... and then in mid performance we get all psyched up and hit the bluddy thing even harder!!

There's nothing worse than the perfect take that has one little click on that stunning note you played in the middle...

Another vote for "safety zone" here...