For years my recording setup has been pretty simple. I have a digital audio interface, a mic, and some other basic gear that allows me to record quality tracks without having to spend too much time setting up or getting into the details of the process. I’ve always felt this was fine because I generally play through a full rig when I’m playing and recording, so having a full pedalboard as part of my recording setup seemed unnecessary.
Recently though, I’ve been working with more people who are looking for different tones than what their normal rig provides. This means I’ve had to record with many different guitar rigs and a variety of pedals. As a result, I’ve come around on the idea of having my pedalboard be part of my recording setup in order to make the process easier for both myself and others.
There are three reasons why this is beneficial:
Adding pedals to your recording setup is a great way to add new and interesting tones. Especially if you’re using the same guitar, amp, and cab during your recording sessions, pedals are a great way to get new timbres. If you want an easy way to access the tones of your pedalboard during recording sessions, having a powered pedalboard readily available is the way to go.
There are many reasons why having a pedalboard on hand is beneficial for your recording sessions:
* You can easily record with your favorite pedals without unplugging any cables.
* It makes for fast experimentation; you can quickly switch between different guitar tones on the fly.
* It’s convenient; your pedals are already set up and ready to use when you need them.
* You can experiment with different tones and timbres in real-time during recording sessions with different guitars or amps.
Have you ever had a really great idea while you were playing guitar?
You were jamming on something and it just felt right. It felt like magic. You knew that if you could only record it right then, you would have something special.
But if you’re like most guitarists, you probably didn’t record what was happening because it was too much of a hassle to stop playing, mess with your phone or computer, and get everything set up.
So you kept playing, but the moment never came again. And so another great idea got away.
It doesn’t have to be this way. You can always be ready to record any time inspiration strikes by having your recording equipment readily available.
With the songwriting toolkit I developed for my students (and myself), I always have my recording gear set up and ready to go so that I can capture any good ideas as they happen. My recording setup is part of my pedalboard—I can quickly plug my guitar into my audio interface, press record in Logic Pro X, and track my ideas there on the spot before I forget what I wanted to play. This allows me to easily write down my ideas so that I can build on them later when I actually sit down
MIDI pedals are an essential component to your recording setup. In fact, you’d be surprised how easy it is to make your pedalboard part of your DAW-based recording rig.
1. MIDI Pedals Give You More Control Over Your Plugins
2. Use a MIDI Pedal to Trigger Different Parts of Songs
3. Use a MIDI Pedal as a Looper
4. Make Your MIDI Pedal Part of Your Recording Setup
So, what are you waiting for? Get your pedalboard ready for recording today!
If you’re anything like me, a big part of the appeal of playing guitar is the pursuit of tone. Amps, guitars, effects pedals — I’ve been chasing that elusive sound in my head for decades. And as any guitarist will tell you, the equipment rabbit hole goes deep.
It’s a never-ending quest to find new combinations of gear that yield exciting results, and it can be a ton of fun. But it can also wreak havoc on your recording setup.
When you’re playing live, you want to make sure your rig is dialed in and ready to go at a moment’s notice. That usually means keeping everything set up on your pedalboard so it can be stashed in the trunk or backseat of your car for easy access.
That’s great for shows, but what about when you want to record?
When I was first starting out, if I wanted to use my favorite drive pedal on a song, I would have to unplug everything from my pedalboard, haul it into my home studio setup, plug it in and record it there — then go through the whole process again to put everything back where it was so I could play out with my band later
I know, I know… pedals are for guitarists and bassists, not keyboard players. Well, that’s just not true. Pedals can add a whole new dimension to the sound of your keyboards.
Pedalboards are often reserved for live performance because they are pretty big and take up space that could be used for a lot of other things… like recording gear. But what if you had a pedalboard that doubled as your recording interface? It’s possible! All it takes is the right combination of hardware and software.
To get started, you’re going to need an audio interface with MIDI I/O ports. The M-Audio M-Track 2X2M is perfect for this since it has MIDI I/O ports and enough inputs/outputs to record your band (or whatever else you need). Oh yeah, it also comes with some great software like ProTools First so you can get up and running right away.
It’s no secret that I am a big fan of using guitar pedals for recording. I don’t think that it is something you should rely on, but it definitely has its place. The great thing about pedals is that they give your guitar sounds a different texture than plugin effects do.
There are two ways you can use your guitar pedals for recording. The first way is just putting the pedal in front of an amp and setting the amp to record. This can be a good option if you want to capture that “direct from the amp” sound and not have any extra processing going on.
Also, keep in mind that if you are putting the pedal in front of an amp, then the amp will have an effect on the pedal, so this may not be the exact sound that you are looking for. If this is what you are going for then it can work out well though.
The second way to use pedals for recording is by plugging them into your audio interface directly, or through a preamp if you have one available