Cheapest recording method yet? Please read and comment!

[Russ]

Hey, how's it going? I just discovered this cool way to record drums for very very cheap. Basically what you're doing is using your headphones as a microphone to record your kit. It's not a perfect method, but I think it's probably the cheapest and best sound you can get(in my opinion) without spending a ton on recording equipment. Here's what you do.

What you need:
pair of headphones
computer
audacity
room to play drums, and your drums

How to do it:
1) Plug your headphones into the mic line input on your computer.(any kind you want to use will be fine, but the better the bass response the better they pick up the kick drum.)

2) Download audacity or any other recording software to record and edit, and click record to start and stop to stop(easy right?)

3) Try different placements in your room, and check the recording volume settings in both audacity and your computer's control panel to set your levels at just the right spot.

4) That's it pretty much, you can also monitor your recordings with another pair of headphones in the headphone jack or use computer speakers. The headphones you record with MUST be inserted into the mic input.

Notes:
-Headphone performance varies, so record it at the lowest volume at first, and work your way up to avoid hiss/clipping.
-Earbuds work best for close mic'ing in this method.
-Make sure device is recognized, and sample rate is correct in your software or it wont record.
-This may or may not work in Vista.

Audio:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WFyeQfcH8s"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WFyeQfcH8s[/ame]
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RoR2hA77bjM&feature=related"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RoR2hA77bjM&feature=related[/ame]

[bloodylipp]

ive been using audacity forever. great software, and what, its free???

i have used headphones way back in the day, sounds like i need to try again.

[Martinez12]

Awesome.

[funkyruss]

I suspect it is, in fact the cheapest recording method, unless you don't own a set of headphones..........I wonder how earbuds would work

[Nik276]

Holy crap Russ, I love you
It works really well
I didn't know it was possible to record with headphones. Thank you so much.

[itchie]

my life is complete

[tah821]

wow...amazing.

[Russ]

A few things i've noticed while experimenting around with this method:

The good:
-little to no audio clipping or feedback.(very little EQ required)
-headphones are set up kind of like an x/y configuration. A real plus for nasty phase/pan issues.
-good bass response and clarity(may depend on which headphones you use, may not)
-simplicity.. cheap and very easy to figure out.(no major recording equipment necessary like mixers, cables, stands, etc)

The bad:
-slight latency issues, but you wont notice if you can sync audio with video.
-recordings come in kind of quiet, so you may need to amplify them a bit with effects or adjust the gain.
-could be bad for headphones if the levels are too high.
-little to no options for multitracking, because this is intended as a one mic setup. Also, most computers only have one mic line input, and sometimes another one in the back.

Has it's ups and downs, but for that cheap it's pretty killer. If you're careful about placement, levels, and can sync audio with video you shouldn't run into any problems at all.

[Chaddd]

It works!
Thankyou so much russ
By the way would you guys reckon it would work better with a computer microphone?

[HiHaaT]

Nice method im gonna try it out next time i go to the practice rooms :D But why is the
1st video sound quality much better than the sound clip of the second one?

[Russ]

Nice method im gonna try it out next time i go to the practice rooms :D But why is the
1st video sound quality much better than the sound clip of the second one?

I think it has to do with positioning, although you could not see it very well. I watched another of his videos and he had set up earbuds on the rack tom and inside the bass. Which is okay, for those type of headphones. If you were using bigger studio monitoring type, you might want to hang them much closer to the kit then the 2nd video showed. I would start by trying in the vertical/horizontal center of your kit in front of it, maybe one or two feet out. Something to hang it on like a coatrack seems like it would also be helpful.

[scottd]

Very interesting...which interfaces will audacity work with if you want to use more than one mic?

[Cant Get Enough]

Any speaker can be used as a mic. That's what the subkick by yamaha is but with any "speaker mic" you have to reverse polarity since you'll be out of phase. Speakers project outwards and to take sound in you need to reverse polarity.

[nucjd]

Any speaker can be used as a mic. That's what the subkick by yamaha is but with any "speaker mic" you have to reverse polarity since you'll be out of phase. Speakers project outwards and to take sound in you need to reverse polarity.

That's right CGE. My brother and myself built a subkick mic for about 20 dollars and it works and sounds identical to the yamaha subkick.

[Cant Get Enough]

That's right CGE. My brother and myself built a subkick mic for about 20 dollars and it works and sounds identical to the yamaha subkick.

I agree with what this guy says, smart dude.

[MR. G]

what do you mean reverse the polarity ?

[trickg]

The first time I used a pair of headphones to record I did it in about 1990, plugging them into the "mic in" on the back of my boom box and recording to a cassette - it's not new at all. It wasn't high quality, but it was better than using the small condenser mic on other cassette player/recorders that I had.

[Fifty]

Great recording method, I'm going to try that out tomorrow. But PLEASE, for the life of me I cannot figure out how to make my toms sound like that, PLEASE teach me. I'll be very happy :3