Recording Your Own Music

Here's a list of recommended equipment to successfully complete this course.

In this lecture, we’ll introduce the demonstration song we’ll be recording throughout this course.

To get the most out of this course, we strongly recommend you follow along by recording your own project. If you don’t have a song ready to record, you can download the sheet music, chords and lyrics chart for our demonstration song.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS AND CREDITS: "Yorkshire Lady" written by Darryl Webster. Originally performed by OLD KID. Please support the artist!

This activity will get you up and running with REAPER, the digital audio production software we’ll be using to record and mix our song. We’ll start by showing you how to optimize REAPER for music recording, then guide you to create your very first REAPER project file.

Audiohackr and REAPER Version 6

In this lecture, we’ll explain what an audio interface is and why we need one to record music onto your computer. We’ll look at three different entry-level audio interfaces, and explore the differences and similarities between them.

By the end of this lecture, you’ll be able to identify all the essential connections and controls on your own audio interface.

Make sure you know where everything is on your audio interface and how it's labelled. You can use this Audio Interface Reference Sheet to review all the most common connections and controls.

If you haven't already set up your audio interface to work with REAPER, take the time to do it now.

Here's your Project Checklist:

• Start by reviewing all the connections and controls on your audio interface.

• Next, download and install the driver software for your interface.

• Finally, follow the instructions in the PC or Mac video to select your audio interface as the audio device in REAPER.

Once you've completed the checklist, you're ready to move on to the next section!

In this lecture, we’ll explain what a “click track” is, and why it’s a good idea to use one when recording.

You’ll learn how to set the correct tempo for your song in REAPER, as well as how to set up REAPER’s built-in metronome to use as a click track.

In this lecture, we’ll explain what an XLR microphone is. We’ll look at three different example microphones, and explore the differences and similarities between them.

By the end of this lecture, you’ll understand the difference between “end address” and “side address” microphones. You’ll also know where and how to position a microphone to get the best sound, depending on the situation.

In this lecture, we’ll show you how to get audio into REAPER using an XLR microphone. We’ll explain why it’s essential to set good audio input levels when recording, and show you how to do it.

Finally, we’ll explain how to set up a headphone mix (or “monitor mix”). This mix will allow you to hear the click track in your headphones while you play.

If you're having trouble getting audio into REAPER, use this Audio Troubleshooting Checklist to find a solution.

In this lecture, we’ll explain how REAPER handles and displays multiple takes. By the end of this lecture, you’ll know how to create multiple takes of the same track in order to capture the best performance possible.

Now that you've learned some recording basics, it's time to use your new skills!

Here's your Project Checklist:

• Start by setting up the tempo and a metronome for your song.

• Then dive right in and record an acoustic instrument. We recorded an acoustic guitar, but you could try mic'ing up and recording another acoustic instrument, such as a piano.

• Next, record a vocal part.

• Finally, label all the sections of your song using timeline regions. Identify the verse, chorus, and bridge sections, along with any other sections you want to label.

Once you've worked through the checklist, you'll have everything you need to move on to the next section.

If you’re not a drummer, programming drums is often the most practical way to add a drum part to your song. In this lecture, we’ll show you how to program a simple drum part using MIDI.

By the end of this lecture, you’ll be able to use REAPER’s “ReaSamplOmatic5000” plugin (yes, that really is what it’s called!) to program a drum part using the MIDI drum samples we’ve provided with this course.

“Loops” are typically short, 1 to 4-bar audio recordings that can be looped seamlessly in order to repeat indefinitely. Drum loops are most common, but anything can be made into a loop.

In this lecture, you’ll learn how to add a percussion loop to your project by matching the tempo of the loop to fit your song’s tempo.

The next three lectures will cover everything you need to know in order to be able to add synth parts to your song.

In this lecture, we’ll talk about virtual instruments (also called “software synths”) and what they do. We’ll show you how to download and install TAL Noisemaker, a free virtual instrument available for both Mac and PC.

In this lecture, we’ll explain how to set up a MIDI controller so you can record a MIDI keyboard performance right into REAPER.

If you have a MIDI keyboard, we’ll walk you through the process of setting it up to use as MIDI device in REAPER. If you don’t have a MIDI keyboard, we’ll show you a neat trick that lets you turn your QWERTY keyboard into a virtual MIDI keyboard!

Now that you’ve got TAL Noisemaker installed along with a MIDI controller, you’re ready to make some music with it!

In this lecture, you’ll learn how to select a sound in TAL Noisemaker and record your MIDI synth performance directly into REAPER. By the end of this lecture, you’ll also know how to adjust the timing and the relative volume of each note after you’ve recorded your performance.

It's time to add some overdubs to your project!

Think about what parts you want to add to your song:

• If your song needs percussion, try programming a drum part using MIDI, or add some percussion loops.

• Does your song need an electric guitar or bass? You can record these parts either by mic'ing up an amplifier, or by recording them direct using the instrument input on your audio interface.

• If you want to add a keyboard part, install TAL-NoiseMaker or any other software synth. Set up your MIDI keyboard as a MIDI device in REAPER to record your keyboard part.

• Does your song need backing vocals? If so, record those too.

Once you've worked through this checklist, you're ready to move on to the next section.

In this lecture, we’ll explain why it’s important to take a “snapshot” of your project at periodic intervals for backup purposes. We’ll show you an easy way to do this using the “Save As…” function in REAPER.

Do you wish you could fix the timing of just one note in a recorded performance? You can! In this lecture, we’ll show you how to use REAPER’s built-in tools to fix timing issues by moving and stretching an individual note without changing its pitch.

“Comping” is the process of making a compilation of the best sections of many different takes. You can use this technique whenever you record multiple takes.

In this lecture, we’ll demonstrate making a “vocal comp” that combines the best sections of each vocal take we did back in Section 3. By the end of this lecture, you’ll know how to create and save your own custom “comps.”

NOTE: “Comping” doesn’t have to be left until editing! If you’re wondering if it’s a good idea to do this as soon as you’ve recorded the part, while it’s still fresh in your mind — yes it is!

Now that you’ve “comped” a track, you’ll need to clean it up to ensure a better final mix.

In this lecture, we’ll explain why and how you should check all the fades in your comp, and delete any long silent sections in your final comped track.

Now, it's time to edit your project!

• Before you start editing, remember to use "Save As..." to save a new version of your project.

• Review your tracks to see if there are any timing issues you want to fix.

• If you did multiple takes for a particular part, such as a vocal, create a "comp" to combine the best sections of each take. Then clean up the comp by adjusting the fades between sections into crossfades.

• Next, check ALL your tracks for silent sections, and make sure to delete those.

• Then clean up each track by adjusting the start and end fades.

Once you've completed this checklist, you're ready to move on.

In this lecture, we’ll look at three things you can do to organize your project before you start mixing:

• Moving tracks around

• Using track folders

• Colour coding

Organizing your project before mixing will save you time AND make mixing a lot more fun!

In this lecture, you’ll learn how to get a consistent audio level and avoid distorting your mix. We’ll show you how to start at the loudest, densest part of your song in order to make sure your mix doesn’t clip. We’ll also give you some guidance on how to decide what the balance should be between the different tracks in your mix.

In this lecture, we’ll introduce compression as a kind of “automatic volume control” we can use on any track (such as a vocal). We’ll talk about the most common parameters you might want to start adjusting on a compressor, including:

• Threshold

• Ratio

• Attack

• Release

By the end of this lecture, you’ll know how to use REAPER’s built-in compressor ReaComp to even out a dynamic track and increase its overall level without clipping.

In this lecture, we’ll introduce EQ as a “tone control” you can use on any track to adjust the treble, bass, or any frequency you want. We’ll demonstrate using REAPER’s built-in ReaEQ plugin to remove the unwanted low bass from our recorded acoustic guitar track, and instead emphasize the “sparkle” of the instrument.

In this lecture, we’ll explain what reverb is and show you how you can use it to add a sense of “space” to your mix. We’ll demonstrate how to add the same reverb to multiple tracks in order to make them sound like they were recorded at the same time in the same space. We’ll also experiment with different reverb sounds by changing some of the available parameters, including “length” and “room size.”

REAPER’s built-in automation feature lets you automate practically any parameter you want! In this lecture, we’ll demonstrate how to use it to automate level changes so we can make the electric guitar louder just in the second solo.

It's time to mix and add effects to your song!

• Start by organizing all your tracks in a way that makes sense to you. You might want to move some tracks around, put some tracks into folders, and use colour coding.

• Next, use the track faders to set the levels for each of your tracks to get a rough mix of your song.

• Once you have a rough mix in place, you can start using compression, EQ and reverb to tweak the sound of each individual track.

• When you're happy with the sound of each track, try using automation to get the levels just right for each section of the song.

Once you've completed this checklist, you're ready to move on.

In this lecture, we’ll explain what “stems” are and how to create them. You can use these stems for backup purposes, or to give to remixers. By the end of this lecture you’ll know how to export stems for your own project.

Congratulations, you’re almost done! Let’s wrap up your project:

• Prepare your mix for export

• Export your song as a 16bit 44.1kHz stereo WAV file

• Export your song as a 320kbps MP3 file

• Export an instrumental mix of your song

• Export stems of your song

Let’s review the project we just completed. If you like, you can download our complete REAPER project files so you can see what we did throughout this course. You can also download any of the course resources.

This concludes our course – now all that's left is for you to practice. Take what you've learned here, and apply it to your own songs and projects. The more practice you get, the better you'll become!

As you can imagine, we've just scratched the surface of what's possible. There are a lot more features and functions to explore within REAPER. In our final lecture, we'll give you some advice on how to continue improving your skills.