The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #1

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    I’ve never had much success getting phone videos to sound ok. The problem I’ve had is that my archtop’s acoustic sound is pretty loud and the phone’s built-in mic and automatic gain control accentuate that at the expense of the electric sound plus whatever playback I’m using for backing tracks.

    I was using android phones for a long time and never quite figured it out (Android + external mics is a very tricky thing). I recently switched to an iPhone and figured out how to plug in an OK-sounding external mic that allows me to close-mic the amp + playback and position the phone-as-camera separately.



    This was was recorded with Blue Snowball plugged into iPhone 13 using a lightning to USB adaptor.

    Backing track played back though a JBL Flip.
    Guitar: Seventy Seven Hawk Jazz Deep. Amp: Fender Champion 20, BF Deluxe Reverb model.

    The mic is a little thin sounding and doesn’t quite capture the mid- range warmth of the amp + guitar, but it’s better than I’ve gotten before. I have a feeling that with a bit more experimentation with setting and levels I can get it even better.

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  3. #2

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    Nice playing and nice sound!

  4. #3

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    What did you use for the backing track? I assume you set the mic up in front of the amp? Then the tracking speakers in the vicinity?

  5. #4

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    Quote Originally Posted by deacon Mark
    What did you use for the backing track? I assume you set the mic up in front of the amp? Then the tracking speakers in the vicinity?
    I used this track I found on YouTube


    I played it back on my tablet through a JBL bluetooth powered speaker. The speaker was sitting on top of the guitar amp. The mic was pointed slightly upward to capture both the speaker and the amp. I also put some pillows behind the mic to keep it from picking up too much the guitar’s unplugged sound and limit “room tone”.

  6. #5

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    Nice, John!! The Blue Snowball mic is decent, but as a typical reviewer said, "You're obviously not going to get the same depth of sound and warmth that an XLR microphone running Phantom Power 48V can deliver through an audio interface". I'm not convinced that the mic itself is the only constraint on tone. The electronics in iPhones are pretty fine, and the processor in the 13 Pro is also quite capable. But the audio chip in an iPhone is not a match for any decent DAI - there are many comparisons showing great improvement using a DAI like the Focusrite 2x2. And the preamp / ADC in the Snowball is also great value for money but no match for the preamp and ADC in any decent entry level DAI.

    Are you using GarageBand for the audio capture? Have you optimized the audio quality settings and chosen the best file format? Do you upload the unedited videos directly from your phone to YT? You can transfer them to your computer and use an editing program like Lightworks or OBS to tweak the audio tracks before uploading or saving for your own use. You can even import the video file into Audacity. It will automatically extract the audio tracks as wav files, and you can use plugins to warm up your sound (or do whatever else you want to do with it). Then export the edited tracks as a wav and substitute them for the original audio.

    It may sound a lot better in person, but I think you're getting fine sound in the video considering that you're using an under-$100 mic / preamp combination and a phone chipset. Unless the videos are grossly different from the live sound, you can probably improve things a bit more with the above. Or...you can use iMovie and GarageBand together - here's a link to a decent tutorial. The fun is just beginning!

  7. #6

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    Quote Originally Posted by nevershouldhavesoldit
    Nice, John!! The Blue Snowball mic is decent, but as a typical reviewer said, "You're obviously not going to get the same depth of sound and warmth that an XLR microphone running Phantom Power 48V can deliver through an audio interface". I'm not convinced that the mic itself is the only constraint on tone. The electronics in iPhones are pretty fine, and the processor in the 13 Pro is also quite capable. But the audio chip in an iPhone is not a match for any decent DAI - there are many comparisons showing great improvement using a DAI like the Focusrite 2x2. And the preamp / ADC in the Snowball is also great value for money but no match for the preamp and ADC in any decent entry level DAI.
    I've used the Snowball for vocals going into GB on my mac, and I think it's pretty good for that. I have some other mics, but nothing serious (SM57 and 58, Behringer Studio C condenser, Radio Shack/Audio-Technica electret condenser, a Shure headset mic). The Snowball stacks up well against this motley assortment. On this particular track, it's definitely somewhat thinner and brighter sounding than the the sound in the room. Not sure that's the equipment, though. I think that may be more an artifact of mic placement. This was literally the first time I've tried this, and I haven't yet gotten into tweaking beyond capturing an undistorted sound.


    Quote Originally Posted by nevershouldhavesoldit
    Are you using GarageBand for the audio capture? Have you optimized the audio quality settings and chosen the best file format?
    No, no, and no. I just used the native camera app to capture both audio and video. I've never tried doing anything with GB on my phone.

    Quote Originally Posted by nevershouldhavesoldit
    Do you upload the unedited videos directly from your phone to YT?
    I edited the video in iMovie on the phone (trim the beginning and end, fade in and out, fade out audio at the end); then I exported from iMovie to the video library on the phone and uploaded to youtube from there;

    Quote Originally Posted by nevershouldhavesoldit
    You can transfer them to your computer and use an editing program like Lightworks or OBS to tweak the audio tracks before uploading or saving for your own use. You can even import the video file into Audacity. It will automatically extract the audio tracks as wav files, and you can use plugins to warm up your sound (or do whatever else you want to do with it). Then export the edited tracks as a wav and substitute them for the original audio.
    I could, but that would defeat the purpose of doing things as simply as possible.

    Quote Originally Posted by nevershouldhavesoldit
    It may sound a lot better in person, but I think you're getting fine sound in the video considering that you're using an under-$100 mic / preamp combination and a phone chipset. Unless the videos are grossly different from the live sound, you can probably improve things a bit more with the above. Or...you can use iMovie and GarageBand together - here's a link to a decent tutorial. The fun is just beginning!
    It does sound better in person, but TBH I find that's nearly always the case when I record an amp. I've done a lot of videos where I captured video either on my phone or on a webcam plugged into the computer and captured audio through my DAI into GB (typically recording the guitar direct), and then wedded the two in iMovie. That yields the best results, but it's complicated, and having to operate all that stuff while playing tends to be a performance-killer. I've also done a lot videos with just a phone, but that yields poor sound IME.

    The specific problem I have is that my archtop is pretty loud, and it gets overemphasized by the native phone mic/processing. I had been thinking about getting some sort of external mic, and then it dawned on my that there might be a way to get the snowball into the phone. This video is a test of that, and I think it worked pretty well.
    Last edited by John A.; 02-18-2023 at 04:10 PM.

  8. #7

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    I got calkwalk and have been trying some things on the recording end with the Snowball. I seem to get decent sound from the mic but for some reason Calkwalk to me has a bit of a learning curve. I never has messed around much ever recording because I feel wiped out when done. I get the jitters whenever I know I am being recorded and cannot relax. The other problem is I was using BIAB as a backing track and they does not sound as good as these organ trio things on youtube. I have a whole bunch of learning to do in the process but frankly I am lazy sometimes i just want to get the guitar out and noddle around.

  9. #8

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    Quote Originally Posted by deacon Mark
    I got calkwalk and have been trying some things on the recording end with the Snowball. I seem to get decent sound from the mic but for some reason Calkwalk to me has a bit of a learning curve. I never has messed around much ever recording because I feel wiped out when done. I get the jitters whenever I know I am being recorded and cannot relax. The other problem is I was using BIAB as a backing track and they does not sound as good as these organ trio things on youtube. I have a whole bunch of learning to do in the process but frankly I am lazy sometimes i just want to get the guitar out and noddle around.
    I used Cakewalk a long time ago, but don’t remember it well enough to offer any advice. Unfortunately there’s no way to avoid the learning curve with these things.

  10. #9

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    I would also like to do some raw acoustic recordings with various carved tops I have. I want to hear differences from the recording as opposed to my hearing them just playing them.

  11. #10

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    Hey John,

    As others have said, nice playing and tone!

    Quote Originally Posted by John A.
    ... that would defeat the purpose of doing things as simply as possible.
    As a tradeoff between simplicity and the better tone that a different setup might provide, it seems like this approach is already giving a lot of bang for the buck. At face value, without comparison to the live sound to bias my opinion, this track sounded really good to me.

    Your idea to experiment with mic placement is probably the next easy-to-do thing that could produce dramatic results. Even small variations in mic placement can produce big changes in sound. Try micing the back of the cabinet instead of the front, or the edge of the speaker, or various degrees of off-axis till you find the "sweet spot." TBH, mic placement is ALWAYS critical to any recording, and pro studios spend hours placing mics and checking the results before recording a single note. Once set, nothing gets disturbed till the session is complete. And the obvious problem with that is repeatability... you can take a photo, and try to recreate the setup, but as soon as the mic or the amp gets moved you are back to square one to try to find that tone, and you probably won't ever get it exactly the same for any two attempts, which is why mics don't get moved till the session is over - otherwise you have minor variations in tone across different tracks on the same album/disc/release. But if you are just looking for "simple with good results" and don't care too much about minor variations in what you post to YT, then setting up the mic about the same way for different sessions might work just fine.

    If you have carpeted floors, micing overhead could produce really good results; put the mic a foot or two in front of the cabinet and then raise it up to create distance, instead of moving it further out front. If you have hardwood floors, high ceilings, or uncovered windows this approach probably will pick up too much room reflection to be useful, but thought I'd mention it.

    Another trick is to put the amp in a closet - it's the home version of the iso booth :-) A nice close space, with the clothes soaking up what little reflected noise there may be. You might wind up wanting to use phones to monitor your sound while recording in this manner... a little more work, but not too much.

    Another possibility would be to tweak the tone controls on guitar, amp or both to compensate for the changes in tone that the recording setup produces. This might affect your live performance, tho, perhaps becoming a dealbreaker.

    Cheers,

    SJ

  12. #11

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    Quote Originally Posted by deacon Mark
    I would also like to do some raw acoustic recordings with various carved tops I have. I want to hear differences from the recording as opposed to my hearing them just playing them.
    If you just want to hear those differences yourself on your computer and not upload/share them anywhere else, I'd say the easiest approach would be to keep going with your snowball and cakewalk. If you want to share that audio online, you'll need to figure out how to mix down from cakewalk to a standard audio file format (e.g., stereo .wav or .mp3), then open a soundcloud account and upload there. If you want to do videos, and possibly upload them, you have to figure out a different set of tools,. The easiest way to do this with decent audio is what I'm doing here. None of this is really hard, but each permutation takes a little thought, and a little finagling with software and gear.

  13. #12

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    Quote Originally Posted by starjasmine
    Hey John,

    As others have said, nice playing and tone!
    Thanks!

    Quote Originally Posted by starjasmine
    As a tradeoff between simplicity and the better tone that a different setup might provide, it seems like this approach is already giving a lot of bang for the buck. At face value, without comparison to the live sound to bias my opinion, this track sounded really good to me.

    Your idea to experiment with mic placement is probably the next easy-to-do thing that could produce dramatic results. Even small variations in mic placement can produce big changes in sound. Try micing the back of the cabinet instead of the front, or the edge of the speaker, or various degrees of off-axis till you find the "sweet spot." TBH, mic placement is ALWAYS critical to any recording, and pro studios spend hours placing mics and checking the results before recording a single note. Once set, nothing gets disturbed till the session is complete. And the obvious problem with that is repeatability... you can take a photo, and try to recreate the setup, but as soon as the mic or the amp gets moved you are back to square one to try to find that tone, and you probably won't ever get it exactly the same for any two attempts, which is why mics don't get moved till the session is over - otherwise you have minor variations in tone across different tracks on the same album/disc/release. But if you are just looking for "simple with good results" and don't care too much about minor variations in what you post to YT, then setting up the mic about the same way for different sessions might work just fine.

    If you have carpeted floors, micing overhead could produce really good results; put the mic a foot or two in front of the cabinet and then raise it up to create distance, instead of moving it further out front. If you have hardwood floors, high ceilings, or uncovered windows this approach probably will pick up too much room reflection to be useful, but thought I'd mention it.

    Another trick is to put the amp in a closet - it's the home version of the iso booth :-) A nice close space, with the clothes soaking up what little reflected noise there may be. You might wind up wanting to use phones to monitor your sound while recording in this manner... a little more work, but not too much.

    Another possibility would be to tweak the tone controls on guitar, amp or both to compensate for the changes in tone that the recording setup produces. This might affect your live performance, tho, perhaps becoming a dealbreaker.

    Cheers,

    SJ
    For more serious stuff when I have the ability set up the recording environment more carefully, those are all good suggestions. In this case I'm working a lot more casually -- this is just a quick video in my bedroom, with very simple gear all sitting on my bed and me sitting across from it trying to play and record at the same time. I can move the mic around a little, and I can tweak guitar and amp settings, but that's about it for this set-up.

  14. #13

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    For a phone video I thought the sound quality was great (for any type YouTube video really). You make a very strong point for simplicity.

    I sometimes do the same, but instead of a phone I just use a camera with sound inputs, and plug in a multi effect direct to it, with a backing track going through the effect.

    As your video shows, if someone has the aesthetic and some recording experience, it's possible to get really good results these days even with the most minimal gear.