Cattle Call for Beginner Guitarists

Hi,

The way I record with an electric is, Guitar/Amp/Line-in/Audacity just make sure you set Audacity to record "Line-in" and not "Mic".

Scott

do you go from amp to computer if so where do you put the line i have only 2 places to plug in 1st is for the guitar (input) 2nd is for headphones its only a little 10 watt practice amp this might sound crazy can i plug guitar straight in to computer ?
F

do you go from amp to computer if so where do you put the line i have only 2 places to plug in 1st is for the guitar (input) 2nd is for headphones its only a little 10 watt practice amp this might sound crazy can i plug guitar straight in to computer ?
F
You do need to use the amp or some kind of pre-amp to boost the signal. I believe the headphone jack on the amp will suffice as the Line Out to connect to the computer.

In addition to the cable you use to connect the guitar to the amp, you need another cable and the proper adapter for one end.

For this second cable, you can use a normal 1/4 inch guitar cable, and put a stereo mini-plug adapter on the end that goes into the computer soundcard (Line In, which may be on the BACK of the computer tower). The adapter in that case would look like this:

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Live-Wire-TRSFMiniM-Stereo-Adapter?sku=330862

OR,

you can go the other way and use a stereo mini-cable similar to this:
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=382760&CatId=779

And an adapter similar to this, which would go on the end of the cable going into the amp:
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Hosa-Stereo-Mini-Female-Stereo-14-Male-Adapter?sku=333093

Hope this helps.

Margaret

oops, yes I use the headphone out, and Margaret got the rest of it :)

Scott

Great initiativ. Would love to join in but I'm already guilty of having done a number of jams here so I'll have to pass this one. On the risk of sounding like Captain Obvious: for those who want to record with a mic, there are dynamic microphones for sale for only a few dollars. An example: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Nady-StarPower-1-Microphone?sku=277024

This will be a big improvement over the 'pc microphobe/headset' sort of equipment and it's just as cheap. With home recording the first few dollars matter most, the tiniest ammount can lift a recording from hopeless to decent.

Margret this is looking good i have that adapter so cool and yes it helps loads, all very new to me sorry.

Sleutelbos sorry again but does that mic go straight into the computer or again does it go through the amp

hopefully some day ill know all this stuff

Margret I am very much a beginner and would love to have a go ..but I know nothing Have a listen to my sound click on my webb site you will see i am a true beginner with dreams ..

There is a piece called nearly 4 minutes that is as good as I get ..

Trevor

Scales darn wish I had actually taken more notice ..

C Pentatonic Major what ever that is bugger more stuff to learn

I guess the obvious answer to my next question is no but just in case: is there a way to connect my tube amp to the computer through a cable or can I only record it using a mic?

Sleutelbos sorry again but does that mic go straight into the computer or again does it go through the amp
Giving your question a bump here, Frank. I'm guessing a mic signal will need a boost, the same as a guitar, (meaning yes, it must go through an amp), but I could be wrong. Anyone who knows care to respond?
Margret I am very much a beginner and would love to have a go
Trevor, consider yourself assigned segment 3 on Team 5, with Dagwood and Neztok. :D So download the backing track already and start practicing that C Major pentatonic. (Be sure to check out the flash tool mentioned early in this thread to help you locate the scale. It's very slick.)

EVERYONE: BY THE WAY--there may be/are likely other scales besides C Major Pent that work with this piece too. Remember that I'm a noob myself and am only suggesting that scale as one I found that will work. Feel free to play around a bit and find what you like. Maybe someone will happen by and suggest another scale they've found that sounds good with it.

I guess the obvious answer to my next question is no but just in case: is there a way to connect my tube amp to the computer through a cable or can I only record it using a mic?
AK, I really don't know if a tube amp must be recorded differently than otherwise, but someone here will.

A little help, please??

Margaret

"I guess the obvious answer to my next question is no but just in case: is there a way to connect my tube amp to the computer through a cable or can I only record it using a mic?"

If it is a fairly modern tube Amp and has a line out or Headphone out it should be possible to connect these outputs to the line in on the PC Soundcard.

But the absolutly safest way (and sometimes the best way soundwise) ist to record the Amp with a mic.

I've never heard of a tube amp with a headphone jack O.o

In any case my amp is very old. I guess I'll go with the mic thing.

I can do recordings with my mp3 player but for some reason I can't save those files onto my computer, so does anyone have any suggestions for a mic? What else do I need? I'm sure this question has been asked before so if you guys could refer me to the proper forum/topic that'd be great.

I've never heard of a tube amp with a headphone jack O.o

In any case my amp is very old. I guess I'll go with the mic thing.

I can do recordings with my mp3 player but for some reason I can't save those files onto my computer, so does anyone have any suggestions for a mic? What else do I need? I'm sure this question has been asked before so if you guys could refer me to the proper forum/topic that'd be great.

There is info higher up in this thread about connecting to record onto your computer.

Take a look at the third post on this page (Page 3 of the thread) for my explanation of the cable/adapter you'll need.

Also, see the fifth post on this page--Sleutelbos makes a recommendation about a mic.

If you'll be miking your amp, the instructions for you may differ a bit from what you read above, so scan through the other posts and then post again if you have other questions or problems as you go to connect up.

Margaret

A microphone will need a microphone pre-amplifier. If you look at your soundcard you'll see a number of different holes. One of them (mic-in) goes into a basic mic-preamp. The line-in does not and should be your choice if you used a pre-amp earlier (like when recording electric through a V-amp/POD or sending an accoustic through a DI or external preamp). So in short: If you get a XLR->1/8" cable you can hook it up directly. The basic mic preamp in 'consumer soundcards' are not very good. If you are not satisfied you can look in a basic pre-amp. One of the cheapest that would still be a big step-up from the soundcard would be: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Behringer-TUBE-ULTRAGAIN-MIC100-Preamp?sku=182482

BIG FAT NOTE: condenser microphones usually require phantom power (+48 volts) and do not work without it. Feeding phantm power into a mic that doesn't requrie it will fry things. This should be clearly indicated on the box, if it doesn't mention PP it doesn't require it. Make sure to ask the salesman just to be safe. The preamp I mentioned above can provide PP by the way.

As for tube amps: some have line-outs. If your's doesn't you'll need a dummy load with a line-out. After that you'll need a speaker simulation. Depending on the wattage of the tube amp this would cost between $150 and $300 dollars, for the cheapest brands. For the same money you could probably get yourself a nice soundcard, mic and preamp.

An example of a direct-recorded tube amp (Epiphone valve Junior, Weber Minimass dummyload, V-amp2 cabsims):
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/songInfo.cfm?bandID=361288&songID=4342785

Thanks Margaret and Sleutelbos for your replies. Sorry I was too lazy to read the whole topic ^.^;

I just consulted a troubleshooting website for my mp3 player and got it to work. I think the sound quality of the recordings is acceptable so I won't actually need a mic. But once I want to upgrade to something better (don't have the money right now, I just bought some really cool pickups :D ) I will look into the stuff you suggested Sleutelbos.

That said, I'm pretty excited about the jams. I never thought I would participate in one but seeing so many people sign up motivated me. I feel inspired! Plus I've never actually written any music at all... this will be prove to be a great experience I'm sure!