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The Secrets of Making Great Guitar Recordings

Not every guitarist records. In fact, most guitarists will never

make a recording of themselves. However, many of the burdens

associated with the task of recording have been, in recent

years, pushed aside. In the past, it was necessary to assemble

an entire team of people to make recordings. You had to have one

or two engineers, usually a producer, several band members and

generally a few hangers-on who just wanted to get in on the

action. As technology has increased, the amount of labor

associated with recording has decreased, along with the number

of people needed to produce recordings.

For most guitarists who want to record, especially in a home

studio, the recording environment will consist of three primary

things: the guitar, the amplifier or direct device, and the

recording device. All three of these are of equal importance in

producing quality guitar recordings.

First, you must make sure that your guitar is of quality and in

good working condition. If you're not up to the challenge

yourself, take it to a quality repairperson who will be able to

make sure that your string heights are adjusted correctly, the

action is comfortable and that your electronics are in working

order and free of buzzing and other electrical noise.

Second, the amplifier or direct interface. More and more these

days, guitar recordings are made with direct recording

interfaces, such as the Line6 POD. These types of devices can be

great time-savers in the studio and, more and more, can offer

you a tone equivalent to or better than a traditional amplified

signal. If you're more of a purist, make sure that you have a

quality microphone to pick up the signal from your amplifier

(the standard is a Shure SM57) and that your signal is free from

interference. This means making sure that your amplifier,

microphone and microphone cables are free of buzzing and that

all fluorescent lights in the recording environment are turned

off. Fluorescent lights, although great energy-saving devices,

reflect up to sixty percent of their energy back into the

system. If an amplifier or loudspeaker is hooked up to the

system, a beautiful 60-cycle hum ensues, ensuring that whatever

recordings you make are utterly useless.

Third, the recording device. For most of us these days, our

primary recording device is a home computer. Macintosh has been

the industry standard for years, but most PC makers have revved

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up their models enough (and made them crash-free enough, thank

you very much) so, although the majority of studios still use

Macs, the only real difference is your personal preference.

Whatever type of computer you decide to purchase, however, make

sure that you max it out with speed and memory.

Although many computer programs and direct recording devices

will have some pretty good-sounding presets, to get original

tones, make sure that you experiment and try to come up with

something that sounds original. Many presets are loaded with

gain and effects to make them sound impressive to first time

hearers. Remember, a whole lot of great guitar sounds have been

recorded with a minimal amount of distortion, and effects can

always be added later, so don't risk screwing up a great take by

committing your effects to tape right away, without being sure

of the tone that you're going for.

Good Luck!

About the author:

You can find more information about guitars, recording and

recording techniques at www.guitar-4u.com.