What do I need (for sound in videos)?

[marsquake]

I've tried to read a lot of posts here and am still confused about what all the gadgets do etc. I'm not trying to build a recording studio, I would just like to have something that records my bass sound in video recording better than my iPad or phone's mic propped against a couch pillow. Simple video recording for playback/listening/learning/sharing-with-friends etc.

What do I need? Is there something I'm missing? A way to connect a better mic to my phone or iPad? I have at my disposal a bass, amp, laptop, iPad, cellphone. How do the YouTubers get good sound for their videos? Everything I record through my phone sounds like garbage.
Thanks!

 

[AceOfBassFace]

You need to bypass the iPhone mic with something like this - just connect your signal chain (mixer/mic/DI) into it. Depending on how old your iPhone/iPad is, you might also need an adapter so you can then plug that into the lightning port.

You MIGHT be able to plug your bass directly - not sure how good the results would be though. You'd need a mixer if you want to combine a mic for your voice with the bass direct signal.

Mic-Line - Line-Level Audio Input Adapter for iPhone & Smartphones

 

[JRA]

I have at my disposal a bass, amp, laptop, iPad, cellphone. How do the YouTubers get good sound for their videos?

with free stuff/software that you can get on the internet = you can pull-off the following method:
- capture your 'pictures'/video with your ipad or cellphone --- whichever is better.
- capture your bass playing on your computer at the same time --- requires free audio recording software. google
- 'marry' the pictures (the video) with the sound (your playing) on your computer via free video editing software. google

some youtube presenters are doing it all-at-once because they have the equipment/software to do "live," well. you have plenty of equipment to do what you want, but you need some software to get the results/quality you are suggesting.

maybe someone else has an idea that works well for them. good luck with your videos!


disclosure: i use the same methods described above. i use software that isn't free, but the free stuff will do this task easily.

 

[marsquake]

Thanks, @JRA ...i noticed youre tiny google hints in there. haha! I quickly looked up free audo software and the first one that came up is Audacity. I reckon I'll grab that one and mess with it. I do have and only just started messing with Garage Band two days ago on my iPad, but not proficient with it yet. Also don't know if it imports/meshes video...and i don't have the do-dads to plug my own instrument into the thing yet.

 

[JRA]

marsquake , i wasn't sure about endorsing software with which i have little experience, but you're right: audacity works. FWIW: VSDC video software also works (i have the paid version but the free version works well!).

i'd let some other folks chime in with their suggestions/methods --- my suggested method is demonstrable but it's only one way! good luck with this!

 

[JRA]

here's a TB member with some nice playing and some thoughts on the subject!
Professional Video has spoiled me.

 

[marsquake]

I wonder if plugging into an iRig into my iPad and then setting a microphone up in front of the amp would work? That way I'd play the bass sound directly into the video if I'm using the iPad's camera to record?
The sound of the music I'm playing along with would come into the iPad via an external (better) mic and my bass would be going in via a iRig type device. Not sure if that would work....does an iRig create just a separate music audio file on the iPad and all I'd hear on the video is the band I"m playing along with and no bass?

 

[DirkP]

1. Every usb-audio interface that has it's own power source and is class compliant works with iOS devices.
2. You need an Apple Camera-Connection kit to connect a USB-interface to the iPad. (40,-). This works since about the first iPads.
3. Whatever sound-source gets into the iPad on channel 1 and 2 is recorded through the camera-app
4. There are alternatives to the camera app like MoviePro (10,-) that show the audio-levels and allow monitoring.
5. I would always go direct with the bass and not mic it, but this is a matter of genre and taste.
6. You don't mention your budget. If you can afford a Model 12 from Tascam (600,-) it would do everything you need and more. It would even allow you to mix the backing tracks with the bass and send it to the main-channel and switch the interface-mode to stereo-sum. This way the mix of the bass and the backing-track would be send to the camera-app as one stereo-signal.

A budget solution would be the Yamaha AG06. For 145,- you get an iPad compatible interface and a little Mixer. This allows you too, to send the stereo sum of the backing track and your bass to the iPad.
Both the Tascam and the Yamaha allow to directly connect your bass (HZ input). So you don't need an amp or an additional DI box.

If you use an ordinary audio-interface like the ones from Motu or Focusrite, you would need an additional mixer to mix the backing track and the bass and send the mix to the inputs of the interface as one stereo-signal.

 

[Sonoma Bass]

This is what I use on my iPhone. The have a newer model for new phones. Sound quality is GREAT for what this mic is. Best part is, you shoot the video and the higher quality sound is already synched with the video. Post and go. No hassles with recording gear, software, PCs, etc.

RØDE Microphones - VideoMic Me Directional microphone for smart phones

In depth audio review by Curtis Judd:

 

[DirkP]

This is what I use on my iPhone. The have a newer model for new phones. Sound quality is GREAT for what this mic is. Best part is, you shoot the video and the higher quality sound is already synched with the video. Post and go. No hassles with recording gear, software, PCs, etc.

RØDE Microphones - VideoMic Me Directional microphone for smart phones

View attachment 4034599

View attachment 4034600

In depth audio review by Curtis Judd:

1. If I would use just a mic, I would prefer a mic that has a digital connection to the iPhone like the Shure MV88 or the Rode i-XY. The video mic is a better solution if you want to use it with your camcorder or mirrorless or DSLR. Qualitywise I prefer the Shure to the Rode i-XY.
2. In the case of recording bass and a backing track, I wouldn't use a mic, I would very much prefer the solutions I have proposed above. They deliver a much higher quality: these mics have only average quality, the video mic you proposed is noisy due to using the analog in of the smartphone and most living rooms of amateurs leave a lot to be desired in accoustic treatment and mic-recordings are depending on room-accoustics. Even a Neumann sounds like sh*t in a reverberating room recording music from speakers and a bass amp.
You get decent results for example if you record a loud gig or an interview directly in front of the mic with these Rode mics, but this isn't asked here.

 

[DirtDog]

Depends on how simple or elaborate you want it.

Some of the best YT vids (with music) are heavily post-processed, meaning video and audio are recorded separately on different devices, edited and mixed back together in something like Final Cut or Adobe Premiere. Most of these producers are using higher end mics, audio interfaces, video cams or DSLRs and likely spend as much time editing as they do recording.

The simplest setup (aside from just using your iPhone's built in mic, which is a level you want to move beyond) is to record video and audio direct to the same file but use an external mic compatible with your device (iPhone). USB mics seem to be popular. I would go with a dynamic mic as opposed to a condenser. Google up podcaster mics. @Ukiah Bass and @DirkP listed some good options.

The middle ground is to use a half-decent mic, an audio interface and your computer. Record audio and video separately but then edit together with the simpler/cheaper editing packages (e.g., iMovie and the like). There are some devices designed to work with your phone or iPad - things like the iRig, the Alesis IO Dock, etc.

If the simplest setup is too basic for you, I'd go with the middle ground option. The middle ground has a huge variety of possible combinations of product - impossible to document here.

 

[DirkP]

Depends on how simple or elaborate you want it.

(...)I would go with a dynamic mic as opposed to a condenser. Google up podcaster mics. @Ukiah Bass and @DirkP listed some good options.

(...).

These LD dynamics are good for podcasts (recording speakers close to the mic in not so ideal rooms), but for recording music as he wants to do it, I wouldn't prefer them to condensers and would prefer a stereo-mic. Or even better: no mic at all!

 

[OptimalOptimus]

You need a laptop with an audio interface like the Scarlet. It comes with free version Of Protools or Live... you record the bass and the music there.

at the same time you record vido with whatever cam you have.

you put the two together via an an app like Adobe première


It is way easier than it looks

 

[DirtDog]

These LD dynamics are good for podcasts (recording speakers close to the mic in not so ideal rooms), but for recording music as he wants to do it, I wouldn't prefer them to condensers and would prefer a stereo-mic. Or even better: no mic at all!

I'm on the fence with condenser vs dynamic in these situations. Clearly the room is not going to be treated in any significant way. A condenser mic in this use case (assuming recording from a small distance (say, 3/6 feet) from the subject will suffer from whatever the room introduces. The OP might have to get closer into a dynamic mic (say, 1-2 feet) but reduce any room artefacts (not eliminate!). Also depends if he's mic'ing voice PLUS instrument, or just instrument. Then dynamic, close-mic'd is the way to go. Also depends if he wants to narrate in real time or will voice-over in post. Now it's getting complicated!

@marsquake, I'll also suggest you research some simple/cheap lighting options. Nothing worse than a video with decent sound and decent playing but where the lighting is crap! Here are two videos that I'm *trying* to emulate in terms of lighting/production:

 

[marsquake]

Thanks for all the suggestions, everyone. Big help! This gets me in the right direction. Right now I'm looking at simple to maybe mid-tier in complexity.

Another wrinkle in this....if I go with something whereby i record video and audio separately and then try to blend them with software so they align/mesh, would I also be able to merge, say, a guitar audio track? For example, I have a friend that plays guitar and another that sings....neither of which live anywhere near each other. If they recorded voice and guitar in I guess mp4(?) and sent it, could I put that in with the above recommended pieces of kit or software?

 

[OptimalOptimus]

Thanks for all the suggestions, everyone. Big help! This gets me in the right direction. Right now I'm looking at simple to maybe mid-tier in complexity.

Another wrinkle in this....if I go with something whereby i record video and audio separately and then try to blend them with software so they align/mesh, would I also be able to merge, say, a guitar audio track? For example, I have a friend that plays guitar and another that sings....neither of which live anywhere near each other. If they recorded voice and guitar in I guess mp4(?) and sent it, could I put that in with the above recommended pieces of kit or software?

Yes you can

 

[DirkP]

Thanks for all the suggestions, everyone. Big help! This gets me in the right direction. Right now I'm looking at simple to maybe mid-tier in complexity.

Another wrinkle in this....if I go with something whereby i record video and audio separately and then try to blend them with software so they align/mesh, would I also be able to merge, say, a guitar audio track? For example, I have a friend that plays guitar and another that sings....neither of which live anywhere near each other. If they recorded voice and guitar in I guess mp4(?) and sent it, could I put that in with the above recommended pieces of kit or software?

Yes you can...

...but a few things make it easier

1. Always record audio with the video, that makes syncing later much easier. You can later delete the audio of the video
2. Start tracks with counting 1 2 3 4 and have it both on the video and the separat audio track or do it the old way: klapp, klapp, klapp...

3. Let your friends use the same DAW as you do and send the files forth and back (so no problems in syncing the parts of the other musicians with your part

4. Blackmagic offers DaVinci for free, which is very good software to sync audio to video and much more. You could even have your friends filming themselves while playing and later cut them into the video.

If I understand Marsquake correctly, he doesn't want to do voiceover or narrate... It's just music. So better no mic...

 

[pravus]

The easiest way to high quality sound will be some sort of audio interface. There are many of these with different features but two that I have used successfully are the PreSonus AudioBox 22VSL and the Phil Jones Bass BigHead practice/headphone amps. There are also other brands like FocusRite and Apollo which are higher end and newer mixer boards even have digital connections on them. The biggest thing is to check the physical connection to your computer and you'll find USB, ThunderBolt, and Firewire versions to match what you have on your laptop. Once plugged in these appear as a sound source and can be used for recording.

Depending on the capabilities of your video editing software you might need separate audio software (DAW - Digital Audio Workstation). Audacity works but it's clunky. I've never used it but Reaper is also a popular piece of software that you can get for free. There are many of these (most cost $$$) and the PreSonus unit came with its own which is pretty good. Mixing audio and video is kind of an art of its own due to timing issues but essentially you'll record a WAV/PCM audio file in the DAW and then import it into the video editor. After that you'll need to sync the two together and then export the result to a video file which can then be uploaded to YouTube or wherever. The DAW will also probably have more options for plugins (VSTs) and audio processing (effects, filters, etc.) so it's usually worth looking into even if it's a bit harder to coordinate.

On the simpler end I also use a Linux-based piece of software called 'guvcview' which can record both video and audio together although it doesn't do any editing. I only mention it because part of the confusion in this space is the large selection of software and the capabilities between all of them. You'll want to spend a little time experimenting and figuring out what works best for you but I hope this helps.