How do you record yourself?

[zemos]

I see that here in the forum there are many people record themselves.
Just wanted to know how you do it? Maby I can too?

[mound]

I practice on a digital piano (a Roland RD-700) but even with an acoustic, the process would be the same with the addition of microphones.

I have a Dell Inspiron 9100 laptop with an external firewire hard-drive (internal laptop drives are too slow)

I also have a MOTU 828mkII firewire recording interface. This has 2 microphone pre-amps in it, as well as 8 line level inputs.  This device is actually the "heart" of my practice space, as my piano is plugged into it, my metronome is plugged into it, my computer audio is plugged into it and my speakers are plugged into it. It's like a mixer and a recording interface in one.

I use Cakewalk SONAR on my laptop, which lets me create mutli-track recordings.

Of course, this is far more complex than it has to be, this is more of a basic home studio setup.

To simply record yourself so you can listen back and learn where your problem spots are, all you really need is a standard tape recorder.


-Paul

[pianolotus]

All you need is a simple computer microphone ($2-$30) and a laptop, or computer if its close to ur piano. then use any recording software (im sure u can find one for free but they dont cost that much if u cant find one), then just save ur file and upload them to a place like

www.soundclick.com and u can let people hear (soundclick is a free service)

[Tony Bennett]

Fostex makes an 8 track digital recorder called the MR-8, I think it cost me a couple hundred bucks.  I purchased a couple of really nice Marshall microphones on ebay for I think 80.00 each.  I messed around with placement quite a bit but in the end just ended up have them right up close to the lid, one nearer me, one towards the end of the piano.  I have a 5’ 10” Kawai.  The recorder records unto a flash card and my home computer has a flash card reader (20-30 bucks).  I’m actually really impressed with the sound I get, and I’m a picky fellow.

Now if I could just get through a song with out screwing up!  I did actually record a song one night while I was quite drunk as I had to put my dog down.  It was the first really decent melody I’ve come up with, good enought I haven’t been embarrassed to play it for others.  I’m just having problems coming up with an ending.

[BoliverAllmon]

i just use my mp3 player to record.

boliver

[squinchy]

i just use my mp3 player to record.

boliver

Me too, or I use a digital camera (and then extract sound from the video) provided that the piece isn't longer than 3 minutes.

[JimDunlop]

Yes, I've also used the cheap PC-mic and laptop method many times.  As well as just a tape recorder.

Lately, what has been a HUGE help to me, has been the fact that my digital piano can record directly into its memory and provide instant playback... .The only issue that I've had with that is a bit of loss in the dynamic range, and every now and again I could swear that the tempo has changed a little in places.

Overall though, this is great for me, because I can not only listen to myself (in horror) but if I take notes, mark my score and pay close attention to details, I can fix SO many problems.... Then, a week later, I compare recordings and the difference is, to say the least, stark.

Good luck -- it's an awesome way to improve your playing (and keep you humble). :-)

JD

[richard w]

One of the advantages of using a digital piano (or using MIDI to record onto a PC) is that you can slow your performance down on playback and listen out for things that are sometimes quite hard to hear at speed, like evenness of semiquavers. It is very satisfying to hear that a slowed-down at-tempo recording sounds just as even as actual slow play.

[Alde]

I use a sony minidisc recorder.  After I have recorded I simply download to a computer and then edit with a Clean program from Steinberg.  From here I can burn to a CD.

[zemos]

I use a sony minidisc recorder.  After I have recorded I simply download to a computer and then edit with a Clean program from Steinberg.  From here I can burn to a CD.

ok, now, I record with a sony minidisc recorder. The problem is that it doesn't allow me to transfer what I've recorded!! Something like "check in failed". I bought that minidisc especially for that purpose. It's so annoying!..
Do you know what can I do?

[Edgar]

Fostex makes an 8 track digital recorder called the MR-8, I think it cost me a couple hundred bucks.  I purchased a couple of really nice Marshall microphones on ebay for I think 80.00 each.

I have a Fostex MR-8 too. Two Shure M-57 microphones. I just recently purchased a 1-GB flash card to replace the 128MB card the Fostex came with.

[alextryan]

As to Recording:

I have an audio technica single point stero mic (the AT822), a very decent mic, and I plug it into a Sharp minidisc recorder, model 722.  If you eventually want recordings you can feel proud to send to family and friends, be ready to invest a couple hundred bucks into the microphone.  That's the heart of the rig.  Crucial to the use of the microphone is getting it close to the piano so the tone doesn't sound hollow/empty. 

As to minidisc transfers:

Unfortunately minidisc is lorded over by Sony, so the only way easy way to transfer is to get a nice audio dubbing cable (1/8" jacks on each end) and record from the minidisc headphone jack into the audio-in jack on your computer.  The downside is that you've now lost quality in the minidisc compression, in the audio transfer, and presumably in the compression to mp3 later.  But, it still sounds alright.  Better than a lot of cheap-microphone options. 

I put some recordings of my playing on my page, www.alexryan.net, under "News."  I *didn't* position the mic well for these, so you'll hear varying amounts of edgy tone, but you'll get the idea.

[Alde]

ok, now, I record with a sony minidisc recorder. The problem is that it doesn't allow me to transfer what I've recorded!! Something like "check in failed". I bought that minidisc especially for that purpose. It's so annoying!..
Do you know what can I do?

You need to connect a cable from the minidisc headphone jack to the microphone input on your computer.  Unfortunately you can not the USB cable to transfer files.
The minidisc is great because it records so much cleaner then the old tape recorder.

[zemos]

You need to connect a cable from the minidisc headphone jack to the microphone input on your computer.  Unfortunately you can not the USB cable to transfer files.
The minidisc is great because it records so much cleaner then the old tape recorder.

So do I need to buy this kind of cable? What cable is it?

[Alde]

So do I need to buy this kind of cable? What cable is it?

I am sorry I don't remember, however if you have a Radio Shack (North America) nearby they would be able to help.  This cable should only cost a couple dollars.

[gyzzzmo]

hi everybody,

i have a (digital) yamaha clavinova piano (the clp-950).
Does anybody know what i need to record something from my piano to my laptop?

thanks.


(by the way, this is a very good piano to my opinion. Cheap because it doesnt have any disco, pingpong or picknick functions, and the sound an touché is great [bought it for 800 euro])

[xvimbi]

Search the forum, it's been described many times. In a nutshell, you can either connect your keyboard through MIDI -> USB -> laptop, or USB -> laptop (if the digital has a USB port - I don't know), or you can do Line-out -> laptop. In any case, your manual should have a section on it.

[beethovenfan]

I use my notebook and record my play by using a headphone.
The qualitiy is not that good, but it's ok for looking if I'm playing the right notes etc.

[Nordlys]

I found a very interesting portable digital recorder, which I already ordered! It is similar to the Fostex mentioned, I think, in that it records to a compactflash card. It can make mp3 and wav files. Here is info:
https://www.edirol.com/products/info/r1.html

I was first thinking about a minidisc recorder. That would be a little cheaper, but the sound quality is reduced with minidiscs, and it is inconvenient that you cannot connect it to a computer.