Reamping - Revision history

Meambobbo: /* Example Use Cases */

2016-02-21T05:50:28Z

‎Example Use Cases

Meambobbo: /* Walkthrough */

2016-01-31T05:55:08Z

‎Walkthrough

Meambobbo: /* Tips */

2016-01-31T05:53:40Z

‎Tips

Meambobbo: /* Example Use Cases */

2015-08-03T03:51:48Z

‎Example Use Cases

Meambobbo at 20:54, 12 April 2015

2015-04-12T20:54:46Z

Meambobbo: /* Caveats */

2015-04-07T18:28:51Z

‎Caveats

Meambobbo: /* Tips */

2015-04-07T18:01:16Z

‎Tips

Meambobbo at 17:57, 7 April 2015

2015-04-07T17:57:46Z

Meambobbo: /* Reamping Process */

2015-04-07T16:20:22Z

‎Reamping Process

Meambobbo: /* Walkthrough */

2015-04-07T16:10:15Z

‎Walkthrough

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 * You want to make a tone demo comparing several amps and/or effects.  You want the playing to be 100% identical to minimize any perceived differences being attributed to inconsistent performances.  You record one take with a dry signal and re-amp it for each demo clip, eliminating any possible performance variation.
 * You have an artist whose part you want to record, but he is on a very tight schedule.  You can get him in the studio, quickly set up a rig for him, and get him recording with a rudimentary tone.  He records his part and leaves.  Or he records his part elsewhere using his own gear without worrying about mic'ing his amp and sends you the DI track.  You can then re-amp his playing for as long as you need to find the ideal tone, without requiring him to be physically present.
 == Required Hardware ==

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 === Walkthrough ===
-# DAW track 1 has a recorded DI track.  Its output is set to Line Out or SPDIF Out.  It is unmuted, but has direct monitoring disabled.
+# DAW track 1 has a recorded DI track.  Its output is set to Line Out or SPDIF Out.  It is unmuted, but has software monitoring disabled.
 # The interface's Line Out or SPDIF Out is connected to the appropriate input on the amp or modeler.  The amp/modeler has all switches set up to allow that input to function.
 # Pressing play in the DAW should generate output from the amp/modeler.  This can be heard from the cab attached to the amp or headphones plugged directly into the modeler.

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 == Tips ==
 * Don't keep switching back and forth between tracking DI's and reamping.  There are often hardware or software changes that need to be performed when switching back and forth, and this can make the process tiresome.  Record all your DI's, then do all your reamping.
 * Verify your DI tracks are good before starting to reamp them.  This is best done by recording a parallel wet track while recording DI's and using these wet tracks to verify the quality of the performance.  Listening to raw guitar (DI) can be difficult to determine whether a take was good or bad.

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 == Example Use Cases ==
-* After 20 takes, you finally lay down a difficult solo perfectly.  But halfway through the solo, a studio assistant trips on a cable, moving the microphone position on the guitar cabinet and killing the tone (or other random crap like amps blowing fuses, someone making noise while recording, power surges, etc.).  Instead of taking another 20 takes to get it perfectly again, you can just reamp the good take.
+* After 20 takes, you finally lay down a difficult solo perfectly.  But halfway through the solo, a studio assistant trips on a cable, moving the microphone position on the guitar cabinet and killing the tone (or other random crap like amps blowing fuses, someone making noise while recording, power surges, etc.).  After setting everything back up, instead of trying another 20 takes to get it perfectly again, you can just reamp the good take.
 * You lay down 4 tracks of guitars for an intricate riff.  After listening to the playback in the mix, you realize the guitar tone was too distorted and the quad tracking sounds too "mushy" (or you think a different amp will provide a better tone, or you want to add a compressor/noise gate, etc.).  Rather than concentrating on playing, you can re-amp one of the tracks without actually recording, adjusting the amp's gain during re-amping to dial in the perfect setting.  Then you can re-record all the tracks with that setting using re-amping.
 * You are having trouble playing a passage that involves quickly footswitching pedals and/or manipulating a volume/wah pedal.  You can record the part without touching the pedals at all, then re-amp it and focus on the footswitches while re-amping.

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 '''Reamping''' is a recording technique that uses a "raw" or "dry" signal recorded direct from the instrument's output as input into an amp or processor to re-record a part.  This decouples the artist's performance from the settings of the gear dialed in at recording time, enabling changing the instrument's tone without having to worry about inconsistent performances or even the availability of the performer.  The practice is popular for recording guitar tracks using amps or amp modelers - the raw guitar signal is sent back through an amp to re-record, which is where the name reamp comes from.
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 While re-amping is designed to ultimately save time (for most use cases), if done improperly or excessively it will increase the time one takes to master a piece.  When recording DI's, one should also record the wet signal.  There are likely numerous cases where the time to setup your DAW/gear and re-amp are simply not worth the effort given the quality of the original recording.  Also, make sure to monitor your wet signal, even when recording DI's that you intend to re-amp.  It is difficult to determine whether you performed a good take when monitoring the dry signal, especially if you are not monitoring the wet signal at all.  You may end up re-amping a poor quality take or throw away a good take before attempting to re-amp it, both of which will waste time.
 [[Category:Recording]]
 [[Category:DAW]]

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 == Caveats ==
-Recording the DI requires an analog to digital (A>D) conversion.  Sending it back to the amp requires a D>A conversion.  This adds two additional conversions to the entire signal chain vs. recording straight guitar > amp > DAW.  Many consider A>D and D>A conversions to degrade the signal.  With high quality converters, the degredation is insignificant to most listeners.
+Recording the DI requires an analog to digital (A>D) conversion.  Sending it back to the amp requires a D>A conversion (although this can be avoided using a modeler with SPDIF).  This adds two additional conversions to the entire signal chain vs. recording straight guitar > amp > DAW.  Many consider A>D and D>A conversions to degrade the signal.  With high quality converters, the degredation is insignificant to most listeners.
 While re-amping is designed to ultimately save time (for most use cases), if done improperly or excessively it will increase the time one takes to master a piece.  When recording DI's, one should also record the wet signal.  There are likely numerous cases where the time to setup your DAW/gear and re-amp are simply not worth the effort given the quality of the original recording.  Also, make sure to monitor your wet signal, even when recording DI's that you intend to re-amp.  It is difficult to determine whether you performed a good take when monitoring the dry signal, especially if you are not monitoring the wet signal at all.  You may end up re-amping a poor quality take or throw away a good take before attempting to re-amp it, both of which will waste time.

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 * Watch out for feedback loops.  This typically happens when reamping.  If a track in the DAW has its input and output set up incorrectly (usually the DI track), it will form a loop with the amp/modeler.  Be prepared to mute your tracks or turn off your amp quickly.
 * Some audio interfaces feature gain/trim adjustment, phantom power, and padding on inputs.  Depending on the interface, this may distort or add noise the signal, which may make it less than ideal for capturing a DI track.  Different settings may alleviate these issues.  A dedicated DI box (or a different interface) may be necessary to cleanly capture DI tracks.
 == Caveats ==

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:57, 7 April 2015
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−	'''Reamping''' is a recording technique that uses a ~~recorded~~ "raw" signal as input to re-record a ~~processed signal~~. This decouples the artist's performance from the settings of the gear dialed in at recording time, enabling changing the instrument's tone without having to worry about inconsistent performances or even the availability of the performer. The practice is popular for recording ~~guitars, which is where it gets its name~~ - the raw guitar signal is sent back through an amp to re-record.	+	'''Reamping''' is a recording technique that uses a "raw" or "dry" signal recorded direct from the instrument's output as input into an amp or processor to re-record a part. This decouples the artist's performance from the settings of the gear dialed in at recording time, enabling changing the instrument's tone without having to worry about inconsistent performances or even the availability of the performer. The practice is popular for recording guitar tracks using amps or amp modelers - the raw guitar signal is sent back through an amp to re-record, which is where the name reamp comes from.

	== Example Use Cases ==		== Example Use Cases ==

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 # DAW track 3 will record the reamped audio.  Its input is set to the audio interface input from the above step.  Its output can be the master bus or a group track.  It is record armed.
 # Press record.  Track 1 will output to the Line/SPDIF out connected to the amp/modeler, which outputs back into some input on the interface, which is captured in track 3.
 == Caveats ==

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 # The most ideal monitoring will be direct monitoring the wet input from the audio interface.  Set up direct monitoring in your interface control panel, and disable software monitoring on DAW track 2.  If you cannot use direct monitoring, the next best solution is to hear the amp/modeler's direct output.  If that is not an option, then resort to software monitoring on DAW track 2, but be aware that there may be latency and you must ignore it while tracking.  Avoid using multiple monitoring methods, as they are prone to phase issues that can be distracting.
 # Press record in the DAW and start playing.  Once finished, verify the track sounds good by listening to DAW track 2 played back.  If it was not a good performance, delete the audio events for both tracks 1 and 2 and record another take.  Do this until you are satisfied, then move on to the next part for the song.
-# Save DAW track 3 for a possible reamp of the DI in track 1.  For the next part, start on DAW track 4 for the DI, 5 for the direct wet, and 6 for a possible reamp.
+# Reserve DAW track 3 for a possible reamp of the DI in track 1.  For the next part, start on DAW track 4 for the DI, 5 for the direct wet, and 6 for a possible reamp.
 == Reamping Process ==