Using Zoom Q8 to record
 

Hi,
I had a thread about this a little while back and have a couple of more questions please.

The way it was left is that I was convinced that the Zoom Q8 would be a good simple way to get a quality guitar recording to my pc, and I can use some built in microsoft product ( i forget which one ), to do minor tweaks to the output file and then post to youtube.
I was thinking I would just need to get some mic holding solution so that I can point the mic close enough to the guitar , around the 12th fret, and plug the usb into my pc and that's about it.

Do I have that about right ?

If so, then the new question I have is that I have decided i will need to have some voice recording with it. In other words, god help me, I will sing on some of the songs. I have no voice but songs like Clay Pigeons or some blues song it won't matter so much. :-)

So I want to know if I need to do something different to capture the vocal. Do I need a second mic just for the vocal ? And if I do, I would probably just get another usb mic or can i do that with the zoom by moving one of the mics I think there are two on there.

Also, if I get one of those free or cheap and popular daws, is there any adjustments for making the vocal sound a little better ?

Thank you for any simple advice on this again.

Thanks,
floyd

I can't speak on the Zoom 8. Also, I can't speak for any of the daws you're considering but as long as they let you use plugins, yes, you can improve a vocal.

If you can't sing in tune, there are plugins to address that. My plugin of choice for dealing with pitchy vocals is Melodyne but other popular choices include AutoTune and ReVoice. I believe Waves also has a plugin that deals with that as well.

Compression can tame dynamics and impart character on vocal tracks.

Parametric Equalizers can help reduce offending frequencies. They can make a vocal track less shrill, less nasal, less boxy, etc.

Saturator plugins can add warmth and distortion to a sterile vocal track.

Reverb and Delay create spaces for a vocal track to reside.

Tale a look at the Plugins section in post #2 of the AGF Members Gear Masterlist and Recommended Tutorial Videos. There are many plugins in those categories, including many quite good plugins that are free. There are also many videos in post #4 that will show you how those types of plugins are used. That's a good place to start.

Thanks very much for those good suggestions and that thread to dive into Jim.
Heading on over there. :-)


Thanks,
floyd

Inexpensive or free DAWs that accept plugins (not a complete list):

Cakewalk by Bandlab - Free

PreSonus Studio One Artist, version 5 and above - Bundled with many PreSonus products or $100 separately. If you buy a $100 PreSonus audio interface it comes with Studio One Artist.

Reaper - $60, free to try.

There are others. If it were me I'd take a close look at both S1 Artist and Reaper.