Singing Tips & Recording Questions

[Guest Sofy1411]

anyone here using MAC? i wanna ask how to record an audio by using macbook? does it have any software or something? well all i know is mac has built-in camera & microphone. but i dont know how to record an audio. can somebody help me?

[Guest MajaFlavaz]

anyone here using MAC? i wanna ask how to record an audio by using macbook? does it have any software or something? well all i know is mac has built-in camera & microphone. but i dont know how to record an audio. can somebody help me?

garageband is a fantastic program to use on the mac.

but the buil in mic on the mac is not very good at all for singing. it will record, but it will sound very thin and with a lot of background hiss.

[Guest Sofy1411]

garageband is a fantastic program to use on the mac.

but the buil in mic on the mac is not very good at all for singing. it will record, but it will sound very thin and with a lot of background hiss.

oh alright. thanks for telling me! =)

[Guest dahye_is_here]

I know that a lot people have the Samson C01U...

Where did you people buy this mic?! (besides the internet)

I can't seem to find it anywhere TT_TT

Can anyone help me?

[Guest Denied86]

Not sure if there's a solution for this but when I record songs, words with 'sssss's causes the track's waveform(?) to distort(?). That might be the popping sound that many people experience? Is there anyway to sort of compress just the height of the wave itself to make it less obvious? Because apparently I'm using a headphone mic like that pic above, lol...

Gah, sorry if I sound like I'm talking nonsense, I really don't know the terms for the different objects.

[Guest christalbellekayshing]

i'm been trying very hard to listen to TVXQ's acapella version of TONIGHT and sort of mimic the harmony.

The chorus part alone contains at least three layer. worse still i'm going to perform this song in my school function.

can some of you teach me the basic of harmonizing?

can someone give me the english version of TONIGHt,coz in my school nobody knows korean

[Guest Inyange]

I know that a lot people have the Samson C01U...

Where did you people buy this mic?! (besides the internet)

I can't seem to find it anywhere TT_TT

Can anyone help me?

I bought mine at a SamAsh music store.

Where do you live? ... you should be able to find a music store that sells it. Look online for music stores in your area and call and ask.

here's the link to the SamAsh Store locator , maybe you can find one of their stores near you.

[Guest xiao jia]

My doctor told me that i have very low lung capacity, meaning that even if i tried, i could only hold much less air than normal people. people say i have a good voice, but when i sing, i really get out of breath. if i sing for more than five minutes straight, i feel light-headed and my vision turns dark for half-seconds, and i feel really sleepy and tired.

i was wondering if, basically, i'm doomed to never really sing? whenever i try recording, i could only do the first half, because by the second, i'm already out of breath.

i didn't really ask my doctor if i could sing or not (due to my small lung capacity), but i'll ask next time. meanwhile, does anyone have the same problem? did you find any solution to this?

[Guest sikkony]

My doctor told me that i have very low lung capacity, meaning that even if i tried, i could only hold much less air than normal people. people say i have a good voice, but when i sing, i really get out of breath. if i sing for more than five minutes straight, i feel light-headed and my vision turns dark for half-seconds, and i feel really sleepy and tired.

i was wondering if, basically, i'm doomed to never really sing? whenever i try recording, i could only do the first half, because by the second, i'm already out of breath.

i didn't really ask my doctor if i could sing or not (due to my small lung capacity), but i'll ask next time. meanwhile, does anyone have the same problem? did you find any solution to this?

Lung capacity can be increased by exercises, but I'm not sure to what extent for you。

[Guest twinklefish]

I have this ..problem haha.

For audacity because I can't really mix I opened the karaoke track and recorded myself on the same window.

When I replayed my singing always goes way too fast.

But I don't think it's me because my sense of rhythm is good, plus I kind of clap quietly to keep the beat.

This happened multiple times so I kind of gave up trying to mix. OTL

Does anyone have any advice ? 8D

[Guest captivation]

^ Your question has been asked a lot of times before.

I have the same problem too.

i dunno if you found your answer yet, but this happens typically when the computer cant handle recording and playback at hte same time.

it may be an old processor issue, a ram issue, a sound card issue... basically somewhere along the line your computer doesnt have enough power or resources to perform the task with zero latency (delay).

the only other issue i can think of is if you are using a usb mic... so if you are using a usb mic with a 1.1 port instead of the newer/faster 2.0 ports, you may have some problems. OR the usb mic may just be crappy overall.

but i'm willing to bet its a computer issue the only thing that iwll fix it will be to upgrade some parts.

You can get around it by recording in verses, rather than the whole song.

[Guest hinsaru]

Alright I'll be the answer to all technical questions (I hope).

I have a studio myself, so hopefully my answers will

be able to assist you guys.

Microphones -

SAMSON C01U is BEST for deep voiced USERS. It has a lot

of bass boost in their preamp so the fullness and richness

of your voice won't come out as good when you are

high pitched. (Baritones sound the best). Also, Samson C01U

gave me some driver issues, so I have to download a seperate

mixer to adjust the gain and low cut frequency of my microphone.

** IF YOU PLAN TO GET A SAMSON, I recommend getting a pop

filter. If the songs has P or B's you'll hear a lot of PFFT and BFFT's

in them. Trust me, I have this mic and it's annoying without

a pop filter.

A lot of retail stores won't be selling USB Condensers, maybe the

AT2020, but thats it. I have no idea, but Guitar Center doesn't have

them neither does Musician Friends. Your best bet is online, http://www.sweetwater.com

has free shipping on every single items especially the Samson C01U. If

you have anymore questions about it you can ask my buddy Steve Di Magio on

sweetwater (EXT 1234)

'

Most USB Condenser mics are used for podcasting, not

for recording. So it's best if you stick with a desktop mic.

The only thing I don't recommend about getting

headset mics is that if you put it on your head your mic

needs to be far. I know some people here sing loud

or get louder as they get closer to the chorus so you'll

hear a lot of PFFT sounds. Anyways, if you are just

recording covers and rely on auditioning you don't need

to spend $70 - $100 on mics. A lot of online auditioners

and demo CDs have quality where it was recorded on their

cellphones. (Trust me, I produce someone in Sony Records

and she sent me demo CDs with people who sounded like

they had a sock in their mouth).

Recording -

I have all three platforms, Windows XP, Vista, and Mac. I haven't

been able to test out Vista because in my opinion it sucks.

But anyways I used Mixcraft, but you need to pay $70 for that.

Audacity is the best way to go and even professionals will

recommend you for starters.

If you are ready, go second step and use Goldwave or

Audition. I prefer Audition cause all the useful pre-made

effects.

For Macintosh, Garageband is not the best option. Their

quality somehow sounds compressed and flat if you export

it as .mp3. Once again I recommend Adobe Audition if you

have a mac. Mac's inbuilt mic quality isn't that great either.

I'd prefer a desktop stand mic than the inbuilt. It makes you

sound higher pitched and picks up loads of backgorund noises

such as hissing.

To twinklefish: It could be that you are lagging and that

your recording could speed up faster than your rendition.

Try A) Checking what sample rate you are recording at

or B ) trying opening your instrumental on a different computer or

in your ipod.

[Guest momo panda]

Does it matter if I get any microphone at all?

I don't want to buy it online..

how should I ask the staff in the shop?

eg. like which microphone can i use to sing?

[i have audacity]

I've downloaded it some time ago and never got to use it..

where do I plug the microphone ifI buy one?

and how do I open up the song I want to sing & record it

with me singing along?

and then afterwards how do i get rid of the artists' vice and save as mp3?

someone please help me.

my audacity looks like this..

[Guest VoxButyri]

ask for a uni-directional mic that can be plugged into a computer (3.5mm male technically). i'd say spend about 15-25 bucks or so for a beginner, should be good enough. once you get the mic, your computer should have a jack (hole) that has a small picture of a microphone next to it. for my computer, the hole is in the back of the computer and looks pink (if that helps).

once u open up audacity, you can just click and drag the song, or go to File -> Open... and find the song. then once your mic is set up, click the record button (red circle at the top) and you're good to go.

to save both background and your vocal as one mp3 file, go to File -> Export As MP3...

removing the artist's voice is called vocal cut. i don't know how to do that with audacity, i'm sorry, but you can go to the instrumentals thread in the forums and look for instrumentals of the songs that you like.

good luck!

[Guest Maia-X3]

Does anyone have Hmaster's tutorials??

The link is expired on the first page!

I'd really appreciate if anyone who has it could upload it somewhere for me!!

Thank you!

[Guest bambishanny]

does anyone know how to make or provide me a tutorial for vocal cuts (acid pro)?

[Guest fast11375]

What are good songs to sing if your voice is pretty low(Bass) and male? After looking at this forum, kinda want to try it out myself. But I can't sing many of the songs because they aren't in my register(all too high :\).

[Guest captivation]

^ Try some Fly To The Sky songs.

Perhaps Eru too.

If you like rapping, then Epik High should be an okay range ^^

[Guest sevigne.]

question:

when i sing, i am most comfortable singing with my head voice; even the parts where you're supposed to use the chest voice. does this basically mean that.. i can't sing? (lol)

when i use my chest voice/my speaking level voice to sing, some parts sound kinda 'croaky'.. not like my voice is cracking or anything, just sounds hoarse. anyone know what i'm doing wrong?

i will post a singing clip if it helps. thanks.

[starforme]

I think you just need to practice using other parts of your voice more because you're used to head voice. Don't be afraid to break out of your head voice. It may sound different but it can't hurt to try.