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You are here: Home / Guitar / How To Record Guitar For Youtube Videos

How To Record Guitar For Youtube Videos

By Adam Rafferty 18 Comments

Since the original 2009 post is outdated, I have made 2 NEW walkthrough videos showing how I do all my processes when I record guitar for YouTube videos.  Check these newer videos out, and be sure to get the current “7 recording tools” cheat sheet.

Download Article as PDF

Watch the Videos & Get Cheat Sheet HERE

Here is a quick rundown of my non-recording gear (guitar, camera, lights.)

  • Maton Michael Fix Model Guitar
  • Canon Vixia HF M40
  • Flashpoint Lights with Stands – I use 2

Click Here for my “7 Recording Tools” Cheat Sheet.

RELATED: 10 Tips for Healthy Guitar Practicing


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Filed Under: Gear Reviews, Guitar, Jazz Education, Online Promotion, Recording

About Adam Rafferty

I’m Adam Rafferty – a guitar player born and raised in New York City, and currently spending most of my time on tour playing concerts and coaching my guitar students online at StudyWithAdam.com

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Olarn says

    August 22, 2012 at 1:02 am

    Hi Adam,
    Your video, how to record guitar, is very helpful. I’d like to share mine using Apogee ONE mic. direct connect to garage band and the sound quality is really good too. Eventhough I use only Apogee ONE’s internal microphone. For the video, I use my Macbook’s camera with imovie. When I record it, I run both app. at the same time then import the video to garage band and do some mixing stuffs there.
    thanks anyway for your nice videos.

    Reply
  2. Greg says

    August 28, 2012 at 4:50 pm

    I’m a novice. So… What kind of mIc stand are you using?

    Reply
  3. RemydeLyon says

    September 12, 2012 at 7:16 pm

    Hi Adam !!
    I’m so jalous of your talent !! When I’m just a novice in a guitar playing you’ve got all the talent: Guitar players, video & audio engineer !!
    Why God did not balance that in a better way !!
    I’m so far to realize some records of my playing, however, I can say that your teaching video can’t be more clear than that !!
    PLease continue to educate our ears and to develop our skills as you’are doing from a long time… Definitively and absolutely fan of your talents !!

    Fantastic !!

    Reply
  4. Paul says

    September 11, 2014 at 9:36 am

    I use the Zoom H6 and Reaper to record.- little chorus and reverb. Then sony vegas to record video..Very easy setup…Heres the first one i put up… im not sure if im allowed to put link it up here but u can hear the sound and see the simple video i do…just black n white, no lights, nothing fancy at all… Guitar is a taylor..
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtoCQfvEIao
    If i have broken any rules here Adam, remove the post..cheers and thanks for all your help. Learning from you all the time.

    Reply
    • adamrafferty says

      June 13, 2015 at 6:11 pm

      Paul WOW it sounds great. WHich mics / pickups do you use?

      You’d be amazed – get 2 video lights on Amazon, maybe a backdrop. Not expensive, and they will deliver it to your door.

      I use 3-4 softbox lights (still experimenting) and a basic black video curtain behind me.

      A little light REALLY helps video.

      AR

      Reply
      • Paul says

        June 25, 2015 at 8:38 am

        I use the fishman pickup in the Taylor and the Mic is just the one that came with zoom h6 … Lighting should be better, but that was my first video upload after doing some research etc…as always , learning all the time

        Reply
  5. Apostol Apostoloff says

    March 19, 2015 at 4:36 pm

    Back in the sixties we have been listening to the Beatles and Stones on the radio. We never saw them. Especially we, the youngsters in communsit coutries. Nevertheless even nowadays they are still the most popular bands. Think about that! Is video really nessecery?…

    Reply
    • adamrafferty says

      December 27, 2015 at 5:58 am

      Video killed the radio star! Thanks for commenting and sorry for the late reply! – AR

      Reply
  6. Bruce says

    January 13, 2016 at 1:07 pm

    while I really appreciate (ok envious) of your talent … I would suggest that a decent mic – like a large diaphragm Mic would make DRAMATIC improvements of the Rode mic you are using … now days there are a huge number of great mics that can be had at decent prices …. but the better the mic you have the better your results … also since you (also) a Mac user … I LOVE LOGIC … it allows you to do so much more than garage band … yes you can import everything from garage band into logic …. so I use garage band for ideas … but when I want to get serious I switch to Logic ! if you are interested in my full set up send me an email … but you can build a GREAT studio piece by piece at home that can [if you know how] that will rival the professional ones! yes really! it just takes some work! Bruce

    Reply
    • adamrafferty says

      January 13, 2016 at 2:04 pm

      Bruce – I have Logic. For steel strings, small diaphragms are very cool, I have an Oktava MK 319. All sounds are worth expermenting & checking out. Thanks for the comment. AR

      Reply
  7. Vladimir says

    February 20, 2016 at 9:42 am

    I guess you may be have to move mic track a bit relatively DI track. otherwise phase shift will be. it can be done by visual only. waves of both tracks should match exactly. but if all sounds great – do nothing )

    Reply
  8. Ralph Lyle says

    May 28, 2016 at 11:25 pm

    I joined a month or so ago. I find I get real value for my money. I was really happy to find this video , because I’m new at recording and found some real useful stuff. Thanks.

    Reply
  9. Arti Funaro says

    May 30, 2016 at 12:37 am

    BOY! Did I need that! Awesome and a million thanks! Now I can publish my stuff to YouTube and leave a 50 Year Old mark on the Earth. You are very generous to share these goodies. Good dude (and you play great). I’ll let you know when I have a few videos so you can see your teachings in full swing.
    Lot’s o’ love from the “left coast”, – Arti Funaro

    Reply
  10. Joe Zing says

    May 2, 2017 at 6:22 pm

    Adam,
    I have done a bit of recording of other people and very little recording of myself so I appreciate how you have taken the time to put this video together.

    If I may suggest: The joining of separately-recorded video and audio, which you describe as a bit of a tedious process, can be made reliably simple if you think of how ‘movie takes’ are always preceded with a clapboard (a device that, among other things, is used to produce a sharp ‘clap’ sound). The idea is to record both the audio and the video of a sharp sound being produced. So, get video and audio rolling, move in front of the camera and sharply clap your hands together. Then proceed with your recording. When you need to join the video and audio In the editing room you simply drag the audio ‘clap’ (which you will recognize as a large spike) to the exact point where your video shows your hands coming together to make the ‘clap.’

    Reply
  11. John Charnock says

    July 3, 2018 at 3:13 pm

    Is there any reason you prefer to go via the Zooom and Audacity as oppose to go directly into Garageband?

    Obviously, you would need to add a DI to mix signals, Focusrite for example.

    Reply
    • adamrafferty says

      July 19, 2018 at 10:02 pm

      John I use a ZOOM H6 now but yes…I prefer to record to a separate device, not the computer. Uses less HD space, and less fans whirring, cables and software that could lock up. Easier to record to the ZOOM, then dump to mac after. – AR

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Youtube Recording Technique for Guitar Videos « Adam Rafferty – Guitar and Spirit says:
    August 21, 2012 at 12:09 pm

    […] on August 21, 2012 at 12:06 pm | Reply How To Record Guitar For Youtube Videos « Adam Rafferty – Guitar and Spirit […]

    Reply
  2. guru post says:
    June 18, 2014 at 5:08 pm

    […] How To Record Guitar For Youtube Videos – Adam Rafferty https://adamrafferty.wordpress.com/Hey Gang,. I wrote a post on this 2 years ago, but I have refined my guitar recording technique. The old post is here. At the bottom of this post I will list the equipment & software I use…. There are MANY ways to do the same … […]

    Reply

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