Multi track recording audacity
Other general tips: get an audio interface and a real mic, not a cheap USB podcast mic that plugs directly into your computer. But other than that, if you're doing larger complex arrangements it's much better to record nearly everything with audio and video done separately. And of course, any time you record an improvised solo for a video multitrack you should be filming it. For small-scale things it can for sure be the way to go. I've done this for recording all 4 trombone parts on big band charts as well. During COVID lockdown I did a few of those remote recording collaborations for fun, and when you only have to record one part that isn't that hard you can absolutely do the audio and video simultaneously and punch whatever little things you need to. Multitracks take a LONG time to make, and trying to do the audio and video simultaneously makes it take way longer. Even Jacob Collier does, and if anyone in the world could record all the takes perfectly the first time with video, it would be him. Some people inevitably get hung up on it being "fake" and "not authentic" when this is brought up, but EVERYBODY does it this way. Someone really needs to make a powerful video editing software specifically designed for multicam videos, but I digress.Īn important thing to note about video multitracks: it is MUCH easier and takes MUCH less time to record all your audio, and then do the video takes separately. I have to wonder if any of the expensive paid software (Sony Vegas, Final Cut Pro, Adobe Audition, etc.) are any easier. I switched to HitFilm Express after using Resolve for a while, which runs better on my computer and isn't quite as tedious (but still really not great). But it is also very unintuitive and a very tedious process to put a multicam together. Da Vinci Resolve is probably the best and most popular free option, and it is very powerful. Sadly, there is no equivalent software that I know of for proper multitrack recording on a computer, so you have to fight with video editing software that seems to only do multicam videos in protest. By far the easiest way is to record everything on your phone with the Acapella app, which does all the multicam work for you. When you start involving video it gets trickier.
Plus Reaper is open source and infinitely customizable. Cakewalk by BandLab is completely free and very good, but Reaper has the better workflow for acoustic recording IMO. It has an unlimited free trial, and the full license is only $60. If you want to graduate to a proper DAW that you can use VST instruments and effects with (which I would 100% recommend once you're comfortable with the basics in Audacity), Cockos Reaper is my recommendation. That's how I started after I graduated from recording that Telemann Canonic Study everybody plays onto an ancient handheld voice recorder so I could play back the response part with myself. As you mentioned, Audacity and a click track is enough. Just doing an audio multitrack is pretty simple.