Korgscrew
Group: Super Admins
Posts: 3511
Joined: Dec. 1999 |
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Posted: April 22 2003, 09:42 |
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For MIDI sequencing, two popular ones are Steinberg's Cubase and Cakewalk's Sonar - they both handle audio as well, so they should be perfect for when you want to integrate things like that piano into your recordings. I believe both companies produce versions to suit various different needs and budgets. There are probably other good ones which I've forgotten about. Have a look at http://www.cakewalk.com/ and http://www.steinberg.net/ for more information.
As for that piano, this is a tough one, as getting a good recording of something depends on so much...
The first step in getting a good piano sound recorded is of course having a good sounding piano - some instruments can take a lot more work to get a good recorded sound out of than others. Secondly, the acoustics of the room are important, as some rooms can enhance and some can weaken the sound of a particular instrument. Positioning of the piano in the room is also going to affect how it sounds. How much effect the acoustics have on the recorded sound depends on where you place the microphones, of course...
Assuming you have your piano sounding nice, where next? You'll want a microphone, and the piano presents a 'problem' in that its bandwidth is very wide, going all the way from very high frequencies to very low ones. As a result, you'll ideally want a microphone to match (this isn't completely necessary, of course - you can use any microphone, as long as you realise you're not likely to be able to get the best sound possible). One I would recommend looking at is the Samson C01, which has had some good reviews and seems to be good value (though I should stress I've not heard it myself) - you might want to have a read of the Sound On Sound review. You ought to be able to buy one for around ?70 (that's Euros, in case the symbol doesn't work...). A microphone like that will also need a source of phantom power (that is, power sent to it down the microphone cable) - a little mixer like Behringer's UB802 will do that, and provide a better microphone preamp than you'll find in your soundcard (it seems its suggested price is around ?100, though you're likely to be able to find it a bit cheaper than that). You'll also want a good adjustable boom-type stand for it, to allow you to position it well.
You may of course not want to spend out that much to start with. Like I say, you can record a piano with any microphone, and you may find that you can use a very inexpensive one and be happy with the results. Sometimes a well positioned, but mediochre microphone, recording a really good instrument in a really good acoustic, will give a better sound than a great microphone in less good conditions. But hang on...what have I just mentioned? Oh no, it's the mystical art of microphone positioning...
You'll find lots of guidelines on how to position microphones to record instruments, but as you'll probably find, they're just guidelines, and sometimes things in the real world work out differently.
Where to put them depends on whether it's a grand or upright piano - I'll assume upright for the moment, as they tend to be the more common in homes. Now, the thing is that while I've recommended buying one microphone, you may find you need two, pointing both at the soundboard of the piano, one towards the treble and one towards the bass strings. You can do a lot with one, though - try having that pointed towards the middle of the soundboard from a metre or so away (not much further, as it's likely to start picking up too much of the room sound). You can also try opening the lid and having the microphone above, or at 45 degrees from behind. Really, move the mic around until the sound's right - the exact point is going to depend on the way your particular piano projects its sound, and where the reflections in the room are coming from.
Another solution is a contact microphone which sticks onto the piano's soundboard. These tend to sound rather unnatural though, and are mainly intended for use on stage, but you may find it's worth a try (also bear in mind that some are about as expensive as the samson C01 and a little mixer like the Behringer together).
There are lots of articles on the net about this - I've only scratched the surface here! My main piece of advice would be to trust your ears and go with what seems right to you (that goes for choosing equipment, positioning microphones and all the rest!)...and when something doesn't work, experiment until it does!
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for final EQ, overall room & (sometimes) denoising. Next, I'm a friend of compression, for which I use WaveLab. Again, there sure is better software. Clean it all up with Creative WaveStudio, and compress to MP3 with AudioActive. And that's about it.