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The Basics on Recording Audio
This article will cover ways to record and listen to sound using your basic sound card and the windows operating system. While there are currently far more advanced software and hardware available then what is presented, this article is intended for a basic overview of sound recording on computers.
Let’s go over the basics. A standard computer sound card typically has three ports.
• Line In (blue)
• Speaker Out (green)
• Mic In (pink)
Speaker Out is a 1/8” mini jack where you can plug in stereo speakers or headphones. Mic In is a 1/8”jack where you can plug in microphones and other recording devices that may need additional signal boost. Line In is a 1/8” jack where you can get an unaltered signal to make clean recording of devices that output sound. Typical devices to plug into a Line In port are the headphone output or line output of a record player, tape player, radio, mp3 player, mixing boards or other media devices with sound output. Unlike the Mic In port, the Line In port will allow for a smaller signal boost, avoiding distortion and providing a cleaner signal.
All of these inputs can be controlled using the “Sounds and Audio Devices” properties found in your Control Panel. For Best control, Click on the “Advanced” button found on the volume tab.
A window called “Volume Control” will open. You can shift between the Volume Control and Recording Control Window by going up to your “options” drop down menu, and clicking on “properties”.
In this new window you can adjust the volume Playback or Recording. You can also select which volume control slider bars you would like displayed for each window.
Volume Control
In volume control, most volumes are turned up to at least halfway and everything is un-muted. The only time you would want to mute something in Volume Control is to avoid feedback. For example, if you have selected “Microphone” on the Recording Control window, you might want to mute or at least turn down the Microphone volume on the Volume Control to avoid feedback from your computer’s speakers. In Volume Control, the slider bars affect how loud the sounds come out of your speaker.
Recording Control
The Recording Control window looks very similar to the volume control window. This window allows you to select what source of sound you’d like to record. For example, if you want to record your tape player that you’ve plugged into the “Line In” port, you will want to click the “Select” Button directly under the slider bar labeled “Line In”. For Mic In recording, select the Microphone slider bar. If you don’t see all the volume options for all the device you’d like to control, go to “options” then “properties” and in the new window, put check boxes into all the inputs you’d like displayed. Different sound cards have different available inputs. A common one to use is “Stereo Mix”. This records all sounds produced by your computer. This is a great way to record things like streaming radio or other sounds that can’t be captured any other way. Be aware though that it will record every sound your computer makes, including opening and closing windows or clicking on other programs. In Recording Control, the slider bars affect the volume of the signal being sent into your computer. If the signal is distorted or too loud, simply lower the volume bar. If the signal is too quiet, raise the volume bar.
Windows Sound Recorder
So now that you’ve selected your inputs and volumes, its time to record. There are many different recording software options to choose. Each audio software option comes with different tools to help you get the best sound for your recording. Common tools are VU meters, to help you get loud enough yet clean enough recordings. Reverb, EQ, and even pop/hiss eliminators are available in many recording platforms. Here we’re going to talk about a very basic tool called Sound Recorder that comes with windows. It is extremely limiting due to the lack of tools that it has, but is free and not that hard to use.
To launch Windows Sound Recorder, go to Start->Programs->Accessories->Entertainment->Sound Recorder.
Under the File Menu, you can adjust the quality of the recording by going to “Properties” and clicking on the “Convert Now” Button. Under the “Name” drop down box, you can select presets (CD Quality being the best quality) or set up your own quality specifications. Clicking “OK” will confirm your selections.
One of the biggest limitations of Windows Sound Recorder is its default setting to only initially record 60 seconds. The best way to work around this limitation is to record a few seconds of audio and then stretch it out to more than 60 seconds by going up to the “Effects” drop down menu, and repeatedly choosing “Decrease Speed”. When your total recording time equals a large enough amount, you can then record directly over the stretched out audio with ample time. The sound file can then be trimmed down at the start or end of your sound file to remove unwanted silence. This trimming feature is found under the “Edit” drop down menu using the options “Delete Before Current Position” or “Delete After Current Position”.
After you have your sound recorded, you can save it as a .wav file. Again, it’s not the best option out there, but it is there. And since it’s so incredibly basic, it is a great tool for quickly troubleshooting your soundcard settings and hardware inputs. |
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