Recording/Headphone Jack Question

Rv5 · Newbie Alert Joined: 14 Jun 2007 Posts: 2

hey guys,
new to the forum and it looks like a great place. i dont know much about amps, so ill enjoy reading through all the posts.

had a question that may be a bit silly, but im curious about it. im interested in doing a little home computer recording of my stuff. nothing serious, nothing professional, just a single player having fun. my question regards how to best capture the sound. is the "headphone" jack sufficient to run a cable out of the amp either directly into the computer or into some sort of midi box to record the sound? or is there a better way? or am i totally off and this isnt the way to do this? im looking to purchase a new amp in the near future and would like one with the capability to record without the need for a mic in front of the speaker as capture method, if there is such a thing.

sorry if the question is silly. did a search and didnt find much on this subject.
thanks

shuphrk88 · Tadpole Joined: 05 Jun 2007 Posts: 19

In my opinion, and this is just my personal taste, but recording line direct with most amps to me is never a good idea. Part of what makes an amp sound the way it does how it interacts with the speaker and how the speaker, in turn, interacts with its enviroment. Line direct removes any sort of that kind or realistic sound that an amp produces and makes it sound kind of cold. If you want to play around with home recording, I'd suggest getting a line 6 toneport, which will give an arsenal of amps, speakers, effects, and preamps, without all the fuss that comes with mic-ing them and such. Also, the toneport is handy because if you really want to record line direct, then just plug it into one of the inputs.

tw001_tw · Posted: Thu Jun 14, 2007 5:32 pm Post subject:

Rv5 - I will preface this by saying I am NOT a home recording wizard and
I still have not bought the equipment I need to do the recording I have in
mind. But, I do have to go along with shuphrk88 regarding the tone captured
by recording from your line out to the sound card line in. To directly answer
your question, yes it is doable and you can record that way. At worse you
will spend about $10 in cables or so (if you don't already have them).
I have found that the recording is rather steril and lifeless. But maybe I
wicked good sound card would help? I don't know.

If you want to 'capture' the sound you hear from your amp in a pure form,
then a mic infront of the speaker is the way to go. I decent mic into a
digital recorder is the way to go - like a Boss BR-864 or something similar
which is way more (capabilities) then an average home recording person
would need. (Maybe the model number can get you started in your research).

The line 6 toneport is indead an option that you would benefit from
considering, but I wanted to give you some other options to consider too.

shuphrk88 · Tadpole Joined: 05 Jun 2007 Posts: 19

btw, always have a shure sm57 handy with you. It's a great, durable mic, that works great for mic-ing guitars and snare drums. No guitarist should be left without one.

Rv5 · Newbie Alert Joined: 14 Jun 2007 Posts: 2

awesome, thanks for the tips guys. i did try, as best i could with what i had, going straight from amp into the computer, and the results were just terrible. i figured maybe i didnt have good software, or maybe just not the right equipment, but if i get serious about it i will can the direct link idea and go with a mic. im looking all different setups, including all mentioned here, and am really just in a research phase now. thanks again for the advice!

BoutiqueMusic · Posted: Tue Jul 31, 2007 6:41 am Post subject:

The 57 is an old standard but if you are looking to save a few bucks and get something with a little more clarity, try the Audix i5. I went to buy a 57 and when I heard the i5 I put the 57 back.