La Vie En Rose recorded with a Zoom H4

Stackabones

I think if you mic from 3 feet away you can kick up the levels on the zoom mics to Med or Hi. The sound you got was good, and some of the room's ambience was present, which I think adds to the vibe of the recording.

Your take of Out Of Nowhere sounds like different mic placement. Or did you just get more boost out of Cubase? Sounds to my ears (and my tiny Apple speakers) like it's different.

I can't recall if you can mark the times for punch in/out. IIRC I just wrote down the time on a pad of paper.

The Zoom for me has been a great songwriting tool. I can write standard notation, but sometimes it's better just to capture the idea as it happens. The Zoom is great for those moments.


btw, you've got a nice touch with your lines. Imo you are an engaging player. What guitar are you using?

Stackabones

Oh, just curious ... what guitar are you using?

Stackabones

Just read that you raised the volume!

WowBobWow

Hi Stackabones ~

Thanks again for the words of encouragement and I am glad you like the recordings! I don't get why it sounds good through my headphones, then muddy and bizarre from my monitors. oh well, hopefully I'll figure out what to do someday, I'm trying to get a full, loud sound, but I don't know much about mastering a take (despite my scribbled notes from mastering books I find at Borders).

The guitar I'm using is Gitane's Dg-320, and I'm using john pearse strings (though they are a few months old and dull), and I use the wegen button pick.

I've been having fun with the Zoom and will hopefully add more tracks sometime along the same veins. Happy Zooming and thanks again!

WowBobWow

Duke Ellington's 'The Creole Love Call' added:
I made a rhythm track, then added saxes in various harmonies panned (one far to the left, one to the right), then lead guitar in the center, then bounced things together and lastly added the accordionist. It's a trial and learning experience for me as I'm trying to understand the Zoom H4 & figure out its potential.

Cheers & Thanks

Stackabones

Man, I've had a pretty long day. A good one, but just long. When I hit play on the Duke tune, I just got this crazy grin and chicken skin!

Dayum!

Lovin' it. Are you playing the saxes? Since you said "the accordionist," I'm guessing that it's not you?

WowBobWow

Great ! I'm glad you enjoyed the clip. Ellington's tunes are just perfect vehicles to run through and record. It's amazing how many dozens and dozens of classic tunes he's got that don't get enough attention.

Yes, the saxes were me--- they are from a C melody sax, which is a smaller sax that reads in C though is a major pain to play in tune. I had to record one track in one register, then adjust the mouthpiece for the other track so they'd both be in tune. As I haven't played sax in over 3 years I was trying my best not to squawk! I wanted to use my Bb tenor sax but I think it would take months for me to make a good note in the lower register with ease..

My wife is the accordionist on the clip. She is a classical pianist, & plays accordion in our little gypsy jazz group when I can rope in some paying gigs. With our bassist friend, we made a small Vince Guaraldi trio project over the Holidays (I used a Dg-320 for the recordings and played rhythm without a pick so the guitar would have a less percussive sound--all the recordings are with Cubase & a Rode mic, pre-Zoom). Here's a link to that: www.myspace.com/theguaraldiproject

Thanks again & I'll keep working with the Zoom to find that clean recording format I'd like to find. For the Creole Call clip I used compression and tried to make the clip neutral so it could be played through various monitors/ speakers so it doesn't come out muddy or with clipping. I am experimenting to find some kind of simple mastering system that sounds good.

danny

hi stackabones
nice recording,would it be possible for you
to post a chord chart or point me in the direction
of a chart

cheers danny

WowBobWow

Hi Chris -

I just wanted to share my knowledge of a cool plug-in I found called the "BBE D82 Sonic Maximizer Plug-in" which when added to my quiet/ muddy recordings gives a fuller sound. And so far, I really dig it.

The plug-in gives a nice 3-D feeling to the digital soundscape beefing up the sound. I took my old J-attendrai & Creole clips from above and ran them through the BBE plug-in and uploaded new versions below just as a comparison to what the BBE plug-in can do.

Not that your recordings need the plug-in at all (they all sound really really good), but if you or anyone is interested, the bbe plug-in can be found from the bbe link @ www.BBEsound.com

Thanks again all of your help with my zoom h4 questions & looking forward to hearing more of your recordings. I really enjoyed the No Name tune & of course, Sip de RUm is classic.

- Alex

Stackabones

Alex,

That's a pretty cool improvement. To my ears, it sounds like there is more detail in the recording. I'll have to check out that plug-in ... I have the Boosta Grande, and it's a good pedal.

Thanks for the tip,
Chris

8)