Hi Martin,
I am using a software program called Presonus Studio One 3 and it comes with a 2 input device that will accept a guitar cable or XLR input from a mike. The software comes complete with all amp and pedal effects as well as reverb, compression etc. but I have been miking my amp, with a Shure 57 dynamic mike, directly into the software and using amp reverb and pedals. I purchased Adobe Premiere 13 elements for the video and upload from a camera or tablet and then sync the recorded software audio in the Adobe program.My son dropped my camera and it’s kaput. I need a higher resolution video device than my wife’s tablet for future submissions.
John

Hi Martin, I think it’s all over the board. John’s is really the best combination of equipment and software….

I didn’t submit this challenge, but I am working on ep 135 only…..for recording I either go direct from the modeling amps (Fender mustang III or Yamaha THR10C) direct to prologic X or garageband, I do some mixing there. Or for the tube amps I just bought a device Tascam 100MKII which is a portable high end recorder with 2 condenser mics on board and 2 XLR inputs for external mics like the ones JOhn described. The recording audio is amazing on this thing….then same process in Prologic or Garageband. The Tascam can record directly to a camera as well eliminating the need for syncing. I have not resolved my camera situation, sold an HD video cam last year not knowing I’d be recording myself….so experimenting with Ipad and a Kodak Portable HD camera I picked up on ebay….will be trying this week.

Be well,

Roberto

@Maradonagol,same son borrowed my ipad for a work project. The ipad worked well and gave pretty high resolution video.
John

My first challenge was done on a smartphone held by a tin can, with amplifier put right behind it. It was good enough.
The jingle bells challenge was recorded audio only through Sternberg UR22 audio interface, and cut/mixed in Cubase software. It was way better.
The 12bar blues challenge was recorded on macbook I got from work (we’re trying to move into iOS development), and I’m quite happy with video quality – audio not so much, but good enough. If I get to keep the macbook, I’ll explore iMovie and GarageBand and figure out how to use the UR22 with it.

@charjo would that be Shure SM57? I’m looking around for something to record acoustic and/or singing, and Shure sits at a price I’m willing to pay. I expect it sounds good for instruments, have you tried it for voice?

@Vojtech, from what I understand a dynamic mike, like the Shure SM57 is not good for acoustic guitar or voice. It is very uni-directional and has to sit right up to or close to the cabinet. Advantage is it doesn’t pick up any other noise in the room. For voice and acoustic, I believe you need a condenser mike and they are more expensive, intro models are about $200 Can. They are more sensitive and will pick up the acoustic and voice. They have cardioid versions which pick up sound mostly in front of the mike and omni-directional versions which pick up 360 degrees. I am researching to purchase a condenser mike soon.
John

@charjo,

honestly the ipad does a great job….in the more than good enough category….the condensor mics onboard the Tascam…have turned out o be a steal….because they can be set to one direction for amps….or omni for voice, acoustic, room recording etc….I paid $29 US for the underwater version of the kodak portable HD camera including a tripod, so worth a try…..

Fun to learn all this as well.

Roberto

iPhone 6

Man,

Do I feel old! I’d rather spend my money on guitars than things to record myself on even if I understood a word of what you guys are talking about. I stand back in amazement!

I have a friend who does his own recording and although it is not my sort of music (he’s a Shadows man and not a blues man)he gets great sounds and videos. I will have to get his help.

Type in Geoff Tiny and look for “Going Home” which I think is a Mark Knopfler number.

Anyway, nice to see your results. On my camera I look a sort of bluey mauve and the sound crackles like an old ’78.

Back to the drawing board!

Andrew

Martin,
I have the Logitech HD Pro Webcam C920. Which goes directly into the MAC.
Logitech is there any Software for the Cam control.
The Sound goes directly via XLR (DI) Output from the Amp into the mixer.
From the mixer directly into the MAC.
As Software, I use GarageBand.

Wilfried

I too am trying to figure all this out, question for John. I’ve been looking at the PreSonus AudioBox Studio Complete. Comes with a Mic, but I doubt it’s a condenser type. I’m probably more interested in being able to record on Acoustic but ideally would like to find something for both Acoustic and Electric.
Are you happy with the PreSonus setup?
Thanks
Rob

Hi Martin,

I’m using a Logitech HD Pro Webcam C920 Webcam for Video. For audio, I’m using a Shure SM57 mic to my amp. I use Shure x2u to connect the mic to my pc. The audio recording software I’m using is Audacity. It’s a free download. Then I import the audio and video into Windows movie maker and presto!!!

Mark

I used an Android Galaxy Grand phone, laid flat on a TV table about 2″ in front of me (the table height was close to the height I hold the gittar when sitting). I’m relatively happy with the sound. It captures highs, lows and in-betweens. I’m sure there are gaps but listening back over the tiny phone speaker or my PC, it sounds alright.

@kubrider,I’m not sure Presonus is the easiest to use and I am using it in a fairly basic way at present. I am going to view a video course at lynda.com to get better with it. I think it is a system you will probably never outgrow. I watched Brian’s blog on the Apple Pro Logic X and was jealous of the intuitive way the drum tracks were set up but I wasn’t willing to shell out $2,000 for a Mac. I think Presonus Studio One 3 can do everything the Apple product does, just have to figure out how. I wouldn’t buy the kit with the mike, I would purchase decent mikes separately. The input device that comes with the software is fine. One precaution, I had to buy Studio monitor speakers to use with the input device. I don’t think there was a way to use your computer speakers. The Studio monitor speakers are now used as my pc speakers, however.

I use my iPad for video capture. I simultaneously record the audio in Garageband. I have a large diaphragm condenser mic on my amp and it goes into my Scarlet 2i2 interface which goes into my iMac. I match the audio up with the video in iMovie.

It sounds more complicated that it is. It is pretty easy to record on a MAC. I have yet to figure it out on a PC.

For videos, the best thing I’ve found so far in my arsenal of toys is my iPhone 5s. I did not use it for the EP127 Challenge, because I only just tried it a couple of days ago. I plug a Shure SM58 mike into an Apogee Jam (same as an iRig) then it plugs into the Lightning port of my iPhone. I’ve heard that a good quality lapel mike plugged into the audio jack of the iPhone also works very well. I’ve also read many times that the ear-plug type earphones that come with the iPhone work very well in reverse as a stereo mike – much better than the iPhone’s built-in mike. I’m going to try that next, since it would use much less energy than the Shure/Apogee Jam setup.

For just audio recording (for this challenge), I plugged my Fender Strat into the Apogee Jam, then straight into my iPad and used Garageband to do the recording. For recording an acoustic guitar, I have plugged my Shure SM58 mike into the Apogee Jam and into my iPad. It might be a dynamic mike, but if I place it a bit less than an arm’s length away from my guitar, it works just fine. Next time I’m going to skip the iPad and plug the Apogee Jam straight into my Macbook and record using Logic Pro. That would be faster, simpler, easier. Duh!

Hey Marty, I use my wife’s Nikon D7100 SLR, no external mic just the internal one. I put it on a tripod and hit record. I am able to edit the stop and start points with the camera before I put the SD card into the computer. Really simple and I think the quality is fine for what we are doing.

Scott

The last recording I’ve done was on macbook camera through photobooth. I’ve run signal through multieffect set to “whiteblues”, selected my Steinberg UR22 as audio input and no audio/video syncing was necessary. I don’t think it gets easier than that.

Here it is for reference: