Recording sound really awful

Lionel · Heavyweight Member Joined: 25 Jul 2016 Posts: 783

Robert P has got it right.

"You need better gear", he said.

I had searched the while wide world over and still hadn't found a good one until I went in for some studio work back in '14.

And the engineer kept hovering all over us the brass section. Because he'd spent $2500 each on the mikes. And at least in this case the money spent was well worth it.
_________________
"Check me if I'm wrong Sandy but if I kill all the golfers they're gonna lock me up & throw away the key"!

Carl Spackler (aka Bill Murray, 1980).

Robert P · Heavyweight Member Joined: 28 Feb 2013 Posts: 2596

blackshady · Posted: Mon Feb 24, 2020 6:23 pm Post subject:

As for myself, I believe it is very important to keep recording my own playing so that I can fix any little errors.
I normally record the practices on the computer so that I can maintain the high quality of the recordings. About the recorder, I use Joyoshare Audio Recorder.

Lionel · Heavyweight Member Joined: 25 Jul 2016 Posts: 783

Definitely the equipment. Every trumpet player should probably be equipped with a truly good microphone. Plus a decent mixer, graphic equalizer, and superior P/A with recording equipment.

I used to buy a cheap condenser and insert inside my cheap microphone. This reduced the energy coming from the source (namely my tone) enough so that I wasn't sending a signal too great for the impedance of the mike. You take an ordinary sound wave they kinda resembles this squiggly thing

Here ~.

However if the mike is too sensitive and/or you blow too loudly or too CLOSE to the microphone??

Then the recording doesn't pick up the full wave and instead of the full, groovy wavelength the recording picks up only the "sides" of the wave,

like this: //// or maybe more this /\/\/\/\. Remember when grandma took pictures at Thanksgiving but cut the top off of Dad's head? Same thing* with the over blown sound wave.

Your recorded tone will not sound natural with the top of the wave cut off because it's not the natural tone. In fact the pitches will more resemble a vacuum cleaner roaring than the beautiful trumpet.

Try playing softer and/or with the mike a little further away. So your tone doesn't over blow the impedance.

Or buy something like "Yamaha Silent Brass". Perhaps there exist cheaper alternatives. It'll record far better than most ordinary P/A systems and won't wake up the neighbors.

I've often thought of using Silent Brass in concert with a small amplifier. With the mute on and an "On/Off" foot pedal? I could just nail tricky entrances in church or classical music.

Let's say there's a pianissimo A natural above the staff and I haven't blown a note for over 600 bars. That's just a pretty damned HARD thing to do. Almost impossible to play quietly enough without cracking the note. Yet with the system turned off to the P/A I can blow the thing a half dozen or more times well in advance of the entrance. Just to find exactly where it sits on my cold chops.
Audience can't hear it because the P/A is off. Only during the actual execution of the tone will the people hear it.

Is this cheating? Maybe. But the music is made by you and not overdubbed.
_________________
"Check me if I'm wrong Sandy but if I kill all the golfers they're gonna lock me up & throw away the key"!

Carl Spackler (aka Bill Murray, 1980).