I have a very simple question from a very simple person with probably a complicated answer.
I have a good microphone that I got as part of my voice activation software. I like it.
I want to record my voice (and instruments) and post that online. What do I need? Do I need to buy software or a place to host it? I’ve never posted noises to the Internet before, only pictures.
I have no idea how to begin so if you know any answers could you be as simple as possible in explaining it to me? I always mess stuff like this up, is why I ask…
I’d start by downloading Audacity and read the manual that came with your mic/software.
Audacity is pretty simple to use and has buttons like you would find on a cd player or a cassette deck. The installation should recognize your hardward and the like, Just go through the setup routine. Then just set your mic and volume levels and you’re off!
Posting a link to the sound file will work just like posting a picture. Try to convert your sounds to MP3 or low res wav files first or you’ll force your listeners to deal with really long download times.
There are lots of hosting sites available for this kind of file that are low or no cost. I’m sure some will be suggested but you could google it too and find some stuff.
You’re right, it can get very complicated, but this is the probably most bare bones you can go with it and still come up with a decent result. Hope this was simple enough.
While your microphone is probably good for voice recognition and talking into your computer, it probably isn’t well suited to recording. Having said that it should be adequate for rough demos and trying out ideas.
Anything more serious than that and you should probably look into a more specialist mic. A Shure SM58 (pretty much an industry standard as a general use microphone or it seems to be in all the venues and studios I’ve used) or one of it’s competitors would be the best option.
They’re not that expensive, although you would need something to allow you to plug a proper mic lead into your computer (specialist sound card or a mixer with phantom power).
Oh, and I’ll give another shout out for Audacity. It’s bloody simple to use and it’s free. What more could you want? I use it all the time for quickly recording guitar parts for my band to learn or use as a guide.
SM58s are good mic’s, the SM57 is good too, last I checked they were $99 and $89 respectively from decent music stores. A few adapters and a cable will put you at about $120 give or take. Or you could get one of these for about $80 without needing any adapters or other gear. They are swell little condensor mics that use a single AA battery for the power source (the SURE mics listed above are dynamic mics and don’t require phantom power)
Chances are though that your mic will be just fine for starting out.
Really? I’ve got a Byerdynamic mic, which I’m pretty sure is dynamic, but couldn’t pick anything up on my computer with it until I bought a powered mixer.
I don’t really know a lot about the technical side of these things. I just try and pick things up here and there when I’ve been recording or playing gigs with bands.
Ya, the Sure SM57 and SM58 are both Dynamic Mics. Make sure you’re not confusing Mic Level, Line Level, Phantom power, and Pre-amped power though.
Here’s a little diagram to help show the difference in mics. Please forgive the rough nature of the art.
Dynamic mics “generate” a signal much the same way a generator creates electricity. A wire coil is moved through a magnetic field by a diaphragm. The resulting voltage is the mic signal. As you can imagine this voltage is pretty small and is helped with a mic preamp (typically considered the “power” in a powered mixer) to bring the signal from Mic level to Line level, or about equal to what you would expect from say, a CD player or an Electric Guitar.
Condenser mics, are a whole other kettle of fish. Here you are putting a charge between two “plates” like a capacitor. (though one is really a diaphragm… In the olden days these were sometimes called capacitor mics) This charge can be provided by 48v “phantom” power which is delivered by the mixer along the mic cable, or by an internal battery in the mic itself. There really isn’t any “signal” in this voltage, it is static. The signal comes when the diaphragm moves closer or further away from the plate. This causes a difference in voltage potential, which is the signal. This is an even smaller voltage gap than is produced in dynamic mics and always requires preamping to get to a recordable level. Because Condenser mics don’t have to “drive” a coil, the diaphragms have the ability to be much more sensitive, so picking up subtle transients like string, breath, bow, and key noise is very easily done, rendering very transparent recordings.
Thanks to your excellent explanation I’m not anymore! A little knowledge as they say. I now understand why I needed the powered mixer, to get it up to line level and I was indeed confusing a powered mixer with phantom power (although it does have that feature as well, at least now I know when I’ll need to use it).
Incidentally I checked my mic and it’s a Beyerdynamic MG300 TG.
It’s very easy to upload audios at zShare. I upload MP3s I’ve recorded on Audacity using my Samson condenser mic, and send the URLs to my kids so they can hear mommy’s latest musical triumph. lol
