hello it's Patrick here from the GarageBandguide.com in this video I'm
gonna show you how to record audio and GarageBand for Mac if this is your first
time here and you want to master GarageBand and prove your music and
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first things first before you even start thinking about recording in GarageBand
it's important to get your project set up correctly doing this can save you
some headaches don't when opening a new project
GarageBand gives you some templates to choose from that can help you get
started quickly and easily each of these templates preloads a
selection of track types specific to which one you choose alternatively you
can open an empty project which allows you to build your GarageBand project
from scratch personally I almost always go for this
option the details menu at the bottom of the window allows you to further tinker
with the settings of your project don't worry if you're not sure of the exact
tempo of your project going in you can change it and other parameters from
garage bands mean workspace at any time if you plan to attach an external
recording device like a USB microphone or audio interface you can select it as
an input device here you can also select other output sources like studio
monitors via an audio interface for example here once you're happy head
shoes and your project will open
from capturing a rough vocal track with your max built-in microphone to
recording professional quality audio via an audio interface and microphone the
two variations of audio track are what you'll be using to capture real-world
audio the first audio track option is geared towards recording audio through a
microphone the simplest way to get real-world
audio ends a garage bands as via your Mac's built-in microphone fair warning
though if you're looking for great or even good sounding recordings using your
Mac's built and make int gonna cut it having said that it's quick and easy
plus you don't need to setup any NP options or configure anything apart from
your tracks volume settings
your second option is to use a USB microphone USB microphones are a great
middle ground between ease of use and sound quality what's more GarageBand
will automatically recognize when you attach your USB mic to your Mac and will
give you the option to use it as your primary input source as soon as you
attach it the quality of the recordings you're able to capture with the USB
microphone is tied directly to how much you wanna spend on one
beware of super cheap options as their quality can sometimes barely improve on
your Mac's built-in microphone
spending a bit more will yield much better results
for the best quality recorded audio an XLR microphone connected to your Mac via
an audio interface is your best option it is pricier with you having to grab an
interface and a microphone but the jump in quality when compared to your USB
options is worth it
the second audio track option creates a track that's set up to record a guitar
or bass guitar using one of the audio interface options I talked about earlier
or an interface designed specifically for guitars like Ike a multimedia iRig
HD - for example you can access garage bands fantastic amplifier and pedal
board Sims if you want to find out more about the different ways you can connect
your guitar to garriage bands click the card that's in the top corner of your
screen just now with all that out the way it's worth taking a second to check
GarageBand settings before hitting record making sure everything is set up
how you want it can save you some time later on you could open garage bands
preferences menu from the GarageBand menu and the toolbar at the top of your
screen or by using the keyboard shortcut command and comma here you can check and
change your input and output settings and the audio MIDI tab and the Advanced
tab audio recording resolution is set to 24-bit by default and I would recommend
that you just stick with that if unchecked your projects will be recorded
in 16 bit resolution and while that does result in smaller file sizes when
exporting it does negatively affect the sound quality while not the most
exciting process in the world taking the time to properly tune your instrument
will ensure your project sends its best garage bands built-in tuner will work
great whether you are making up your instrument or and putting it directly
open the tuner by clicking on the tuner icon at the top of the GarageBand window
right next to the tuner are the count in and metronome buttons telling the count
in feature on gives you a 1 or 2 bar counting before recording begins you can
change the length of the countin by clicking record and the tool bar at the
top of your screen and hovering over count in activating the metronome will
play a click track to the temple you specified when setting up your project
it's worth noting that you can turn the metronome off at any
time of recording or when playing back your project the last thing you need to
do before hitting the chord is to make sure your recording level is properly
set I've turned up too high your recorded audio may be too loud and
result in a distorted sound this is called clipping to quiet and you'll run
into problems matching volume with the rest of your project and when applying
effects like compression when you come to mix your project to set your
recording level make sure the track you're working with is selected and open
garage bands smart controls open smart controls by clicking the small dial icon
in the top corner of the GarageBand window or by double-clicking on your
selected tracks header you can adjust your tracks and creat volume using the
mark slider or check the automatic level control box to have GarageBand
set the level for you personally I don't really use this feature as I prefer to
set the volume myself but experiment with both options to see what works for
you
there you have it that's everything you need to get started with recording and
GarageBand for Mac if you're just getting started with GarageBand on Mac
or just want a refresh on the basics you can grab a copy of my Quick Start Guide
completely free I put a link to that and all the gear I've mentioned in this
video down in the description below I've been Patrick from the GarageBand
guide.com and I'll see you next time bye for now