At the beginning of the pandemic I started evolving my recording setup for getting the sounds from my instrument into the computer and out through Zoom/Facetime for lessons and into a file for recording.
Indeed, all musicians have to figure out what works best for them online, and there are a ton of choices and different ways to do this--my methods are by no means the only ones, just what works for me. I'll document here how my methods have evolved, and where I want to take things forward.
Things I had already:
- Music stand - for holding sheet music
- Microphone stand - I started with a simple stand, but quickly changed to an articulated mic stand that has a boom that can reach over and be positioned next to my monitor without needing to be right next to me and without it appearing in my camera view (just a personal preference).
- String Swing for easy holding of fiddles
- Stable internet with a good upload speed, ethernet connection highly recommended
- Good lighting (turn on lights, open blinds when going on zoom)
Things I figured out through 2020:
- Audio interface (described below in the story)
- Microphone(s) (described below in the story)
- drivers and sound utilities (the Mac audio midi setup tool, loopback, soundflower/blackhole - these tools let you move sound from different sources to different applications or to turn a mono signal into a stereo signal, and visa versa)
- Software - Digital Audio Workstations (DAW) are a complex field. I tried Audacity, GarageBand, and free trial version of Logic, ended up with Reaper.
- Placement/setup/cabling (this is always a challenge)
- Closed back headphones so the sound won't leak back into the recording (very personal choice, there are a lot of guides out there so I won't talk about this here)
Skills and Attitudes I had already:
- Good control over the mute button! (I know that's probably the number one issue for many people! Remembering to look at the mute icon to see when you are muted is key to having a good Zoom lesson)
- Good assortment of software for conferencing (zoom, skype, facetime)
Skills and Attitudes I needed to develop or are still developing:
- remembering to use and turn on Original Sound in Zoom - this is critical
- Room treatment (often cited as the number 1 important setup step - make sure your room works for the sound!)
- being confident going into a zoom conference and not asking "can you hear me" a hundred times before speaking or singing or performing, and let the other folks in the show/conference tell me if I'm not audible.
- My background is cluttered and a mess. I use the zoom background filters but that can't save me during lessons or performance recordings because the background filters will make the bow disappear
- Mic placement and ergonomics of playing while sitting at a monitor/desk
As of April 2021 here's my setup:
- Computer: Mac laptop/desktop, I opted to stay on Catalina (not Big Sur yet because of some incompatibilities) - Some people would choose to stay on Mojave because of yet other incompatibilities, depends on software/hardware.
- Audio Interface: Apogee Duet Firewire - this is a legacy product that has NO support and is crashy sometimes - but it's good quality and cheap. I got mine for $150 on Kijiji. Needed a firewire to thunderbolt 2 adapter.
- Microphone: Ear Trumpet Labs Delphina (for the lower frequency response for A Capella work and for octave fiddle range) - https://www.eartrumpetlabs.com/products/microphones/delphina - $600
- DAW: Reaper hobbiest/discounted license for $60.
Audio Interface:
When I first heard myself through this setup, what amazed me was the amount of airiness in the recording. I really love the Apogee sound so I'm firmly in the Apogee camp (vs the Universal Audio/Apollo camp).
My next audio interface upgrade would be an Apogee Duet, Element, or even the Symphony Desktop, but at the moment, the dinky and outdated Duet Firewire is good enough for me. It's important not to spend money on things unless you have to! The audio interface industry is an absolute money sink. Recommendation is to get the best quality/highest tier device within your budget, with the fewest number of inputs. Having extra inputs is not necessary when you only have one mic and possibly one additional instrument jack. Spending $600-800 on a 2 input interface is better than $500 on an 4 or 8 input device (unless you are micing a band). And if you don't have $800 for an Apogee Duet or Apollo Twin, look at other brands (but keep the number of inputs to only what you need) or buy used! The used gear market has incredible value!
Microphone: I started with an SM58 (everyone should experiment or at least know how to use an SM58!) The SM58 is by far the most used mic on the planet. It's cheap, reliable, indestructible, and at some point in their career it's guaranteed all musicians will be using one of these. It's in pubs, bars, studios, churches, conference halls, music halls, underground music venues for rap battles: anywhere a musician is expected to be amplified or recorded, you will find an SM58 or it's sibling SM57 somewhere. It's worth learning to use this mic for anyone on a budget.
I had the best results performing on Facebook Live on an SM58 - it needs really good awareness of positioning (make sure to sing/play into the mic, at a medium short distance away) and a lot of pre-amp headroom (this is referring to the audio interface, most interfaces will be at the upper ranges of the volume/gain knob when paired with the SM58, so it's important that there is less noise at that level).
I upgraded to an Ear Trumpet mic when I saved up enough money - mic choice is very specific to the type of music you want to play/perform/record. I have nothing but good things to say about the Ear Trumpet Delphina and it looks great and sounds great.
My next step in mics is to build my own MicParts S-12 which is a DIY mic kit inspired by the AKG C414, which is usually a very expensive mic. The kit is much cheaper but I'll need to do some soldering of my own. It's a fun project (kinda like an electronic jigsaw puzzle) and I am interested in getting one of these to see what the sound is like.
DAW: I started with Audacity, but quickly started looking into tutorials on GarageBand, and downloaded the free trial for Logic Pro. Both GarageBand and Logic are great for music production, but I found them a bit constraining, and Logic does have a $200 cost. I didn't enjoy the demo for Avid Pro Tools at all and it crashed a lot and felt sluggish. I finally ended up with Reaper which has a more complex user interface but is cost efficient and has enough depth that I feel like I can have fun using it (Fun is a big factor in my decision making process!).
Biggest advice, don't be afraid to experiment, move things/mics around, and trying all the different tools and styles. Renting mics is a great way to start seeing if the money is worth it to buy them. Often times a used $60 SM58 (or even just an iPad on a stand!) may work out better than a $1000 high end mic depending on circumstances, especially when playing outdoors. In terms of money, yah. This stuff ain't cheap. It's expensive and you have to take the time to learn how to use it, but the journey is worth it. As musicians, we spend countless hours practicing and getting our sound "just right" - the recording production and editing side of it needs just as much practice, but during these uncertain times, it's often the only way people will hear the music so it's part of the critical path of sound production. Choosing the right mic is like picking the right bow for a certain kind of performance.
For future and continuing edits of this guide, I'll put up audio and video clips and samples but for now, this is what I've got.
Good luck and have fun!