Recording from digital piano

[davidinireland]

Hi, I have a Casio PX-310 digital piano. I have both Home Studio and Multi-track recording software. Neither will record a note. Multitrack most easy to use yet will not read instrument. I have downloaded (again and again) the SMF Converter from Casio. Anyone have any suggestions? Casio doesn't appear to have online tech support.

[jimbo320]

Hi David,
I see this is your first post so welcome to the forum.
I have a Yamaha PSR that I use but in this case the situation should be the same.
I hard wired the keyboard's ext. amp/headphone output to the computers mic input. That way you go through the sound card. Just be sure to have everything turned off before you wire them.
Good luck.....


Musically, Jimbo

[mas_oyama]

I guess I will use topic instead of creating a new one...

Like I already said, I have a Clavinova CLP-320. I'm getting better now that I take some lessons, and I would like to start recording. What do I need? Do I need any specific sound card and cables form my PC?

[nystul]

Some instruments have a pair of 1/4" jacks labeled line out L/R, which is for recording or amping the instrument.  Otherwise the only option is to record from the headphone output.  The same way at the other end: a professional sound interface will have L/R jacks for line input but a consumer sound card will usually have a stereo 1/8" jack for line in or even worse only a mic input.  So exactly what you need in the way of wires depends both on the instrument and what you hook it up to.

Digital instruments also have outputs labeled MIDI or USB to host.  These do not transmit the sound of your instrument playing.  They transmit the MIDI data: what notes are being pressed at what velocity for how long, what pedals are being pressed, etc.  This allows you to use the keyboard as an input device for another sound generator: a different synth or a sound module or software equivalents of the same.  That can be quite powerful for what it is, but if you are trying to record the actual sound of your keyboard those outputs are useless.

MIDI can be recorded to a sequencer and then sent back to the keyboard to play the recording on the keyboard also.  But in this case the only thing you've recorded on the sequencer software is the MIDI data, and your keyboard is using that information to render the song.  To record the actual sound of the keyboard you still have to use the line outputs or headphone outputs.  Or you could be primitive about it and just record it like a real piano with microphone or digital recorder.