Buzz
Creating music can be a lot of fun, but achieving a great recording and arranging your song requires effort and know-how. Last week, we set up a home recording setup. This week, we’ll begin recording.
Note: This is mainly a video tutorial, and you'll gain much more insight by watching the video above. However, the instructions below are sufficient, and you should keep them for future reference.
What You'll Need for This Lesson
If you joined us for last week's lesson, you should have all the necessary gear to start. If not, review last week's lesson first before continuing. We won’t be suggesting specific equipment here, but you should be aware of what you need to follow along with this lesson:
Your computer with your preferred DAW software installed (we'll be using Cubase for this tutorial)
A digital audio interface (with 48v phantom power) connected to your computer
A microphone linked to your digital audio interface, typically using an XLR cable
An instrument (e.g. guitar, voice, or any other instrument)
Approximately 20-30 minutes of your time
Once everything is set up, launch your DAW software and let's dive into it!
Familiarize Yourself with Your DAW’s Interface.
While interface elements may differ between DAWs, the core concepts remain consistent. We'll be using Cubase to demonstrate, but if you're using another DAW, you'll notice similar features. Let’s go through the common components you’ll need to understand.
The main project window is where you'll spend most of your time. This window allows you to interact with your instruments and sounds, and access individual channel settings when needed. It offers much more functionality, but these are the key features to start with.
The mixer (in Cubase, this is the first of three mixers) resembles a physical mixing board in many ways. It allows you to adjust the levels of each track, access their channel settings, monitor the master output, and keep an overall view of your mix while it plays.
The transporter does exactly what you'd expect: it navigates you through your project. Here, you can record, stop, and play your project, as well as toggle the metronome, set time signatures, loop the project, and check the current position within the project.
The VST instruments panel isn’t something you need to worry about until the next lesson, but it’s essentially where you add virtual instruments to your project.
By clicking the small "e" button next to an audio track, you open its channel settings. Here, you can apply track-specific inputs and multi-track sends, use the built-in EQ, and adjust gain levels.
These are the key interface elements you need to be familiar with. Keep reading to learn how to set up your first project!
Create Your First Project
Recording audio is simple if you know how to press a button, but setting up your digital audio workstation (DAW) is key before that big red circle will capture an audio signal. While we’ll be using Cubase to set up the project, most DAWs work similarly. If you're using a different DAW, you should still be able to follow along with minor differences in menu locations and buttons. Here’s the step-by-step guide:
To begin, create a new project by selecting 'New Project' in the File menu. Choose "Empty" as the project type. Cubase will prompt you to pick a location to save the project, then wait for everything to load.
Before recording, ensure that Cubase (or whatever DAW you're using) recognizes your interface and the microphones (or other devices) connected to it. Go to the Device menu and select VST Connections.
Click the Inputs tab and assign the first mono input to your first microphone. Repeat this for any additional microphones or instruments (e.g., electric guitars).
Click the Outputs tab to configure the stereo outputs. Set the first one to your left speaker and the second one to your right speaker.
Now that inputs and outputs are properly routed, close VST Connections and go to the Project menu. Select Add Track -> Audio.
In the new track window, create one track and set it to mono. Since we are recording with a single microphone in this lesson, a stereo track is unnecessary. Even with two microphones, you'll often prefer separate channels for better control over placement and sound. Click Add Track when done.
By default, the new track should have its record-enable button lit red. You’ll find this below the track name. If it’s not red, click it to enable recording on this track.
Your track should automatically be set to your first microphone. If not, look at the panel on the left side of the main project window, where you'll find input and output settings. Ensure the output is set to Stereo (the default for Cubase’s stereo output), and the input is set to the first microphone (usually named Mono In by default). If you see No Bus, that means no input is connected to the track, so click on it and change it to your first microphone's name.
Using the transporter, the horizontal strip with tools and buttons, press the record button. The recording will begin. Speak, sing, or play an instrument into the microphone, and the audio waveform will appear in real time.
Once you’re done recording, press the stop button on the transporter.
That’s it! You’ve just recorded your first audio. It might not sound great right now, but that's likely due to the need for EQ, higher gain (increased volume), or other adjustments. We won’t worry about that for now, as you're still getting the hang of using your DAW. We'll dive into mixing individual audio tracks and full mixes in later lessons, but you can get a preview by watching the video above.
Want to learn more? Join us next Tuesday at 5:00 PM PT for our next lesson: playing and recording virtual instruments. Don’t forget to bring your MIDI keyboard!
Artwork by David Broderick.
