Home recording for GJ Guitar

ChristopheCarington

Hey @LeftyKevan guess we could have chatted about this during our hang, but here's my take if I were to start all over again:

1. Nice iPhone or Android phone as my camera
2. Zoom H6
3. Good mics that can double-duty for shows and recording (DPA 4099, AKG 414, etc.)
4. Davinci resolve for home recording, or CapCut on mobile for the most simple video edits.

Phone video is good enough for social media, and the unpolished nature of them can even make your videos seem more "truthful" which is a good thing. Investing in better lighting is muuuuch better than investing in cameras. And you don't have to learn videography if you use a phone. Also for quick videos, phone audio on current gen phones is good enough for social media if the phone is close. Using 0.5 zoom (wide angle lens) keeps your phone close enough if you can trust your players to balance with each other.

Zoom H6 runs on batteries for HOURS, takes 6 XLR inputs, acts like a Audio interface via USB-C, can record 32-bit float, and can just plug directly into a phone. I recorded my (currently unreleased) album in my apartment with it paired with good mics. Attached is the RAW audio I captured, along with it being mixed and mastered. But you could also go to the beach and record there no problem. I have captured tons of HCSF concerts with that device as well. You can even pre-mix audio on the device so you don't have to mix on your phone. It's great, though it's compact nature makes it a bit tricky to use quickly.

Carington Swing Zoom H6 RAW audio Mix.wav

Carington Swing Zoom H6 Audio Mixed & Mastered.wav

Good mics you already have, why not put them to use? Alternatively not just setup a single nice mic in an omni directional pattern and just move yourselves around? It's not the best audio, but it'll still be good. But the time and effort you need to spend is significantly less than mixing or editing. Ideally anything I'd use to record at home could also be used to play live.

Davinci Resolve is the golden standard. Avoid 10bit color and you don't need to pay for the professional version. Big learning curve, but tons of tutorials out there. If you need something quick CapCut free on mobile is great... but don't get too attached as they charge $180 a year for the good features.

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These are my recommendations as someone who has multiple professional cameras, lighting equipment, field recorders, mics, etc. It was years of learning and trial and effort. However, as a fellow band leader with limited time I've gotten a significantly better return on investment shopping my band around in person than improving my videography game.