by Clarence Bell

Created on: March 04, 2009

Many aspiring guitarists may find the need to record their practice. Many sensible reasons exist for wanting to do so, maybe to remember the new riff they invented, play a rough patch of a song and play it back to see where they go wrong, or just to prove to their parents that they practiced! Of course, to record the easy way, they'll need their guitar to be hooked up to an amp, a computer, and headphones (optional).

Many computers have recording software. Garage Band comes free for the Macs. Windows users can download Audacity for free. (Audacity is a mediocre program only useful for recording and playback. The quality is lacking, so serious users may want to upgrade eventually.)

To start off, turn on the amp and tune your guitar. Get comfortable, and make sure that all your equipment is in reach. With that in order, a player should proceed to execute a sound check.

Sound checks are essential, tedious tests that are necessary to recording. The player must record a measure or two of music and play it back. They should adjust amp, guitar, and computer settings to try to achieve a desirable tone. They should then continue the process until the recording quality is excellent.

To record, most programs have a built in metronome that will automatically count throughout a song. The BPM can normally be adjusted due to tempo. Players should let the metronome count off for a measure and start playing. when finished, the musician should rewind the track and replay it, identifying rough patches. When they find these patches, they should try to record over them to smooth them out, or start from a point easier to overwrite and play through it.

More professional players may wish to plug directly into a recording device and listen to playbacks with noise-cancelling headphones. Others may record open-air, others yet may just use a tape player. Whatever the case, the right equipment is key. Any aspiring musician wishing to record their electric guitar practice should visit stores like Guitar Center and Best Buy to look at recording equipment. One would need to know if they want to record on a mediocre level, or professional level and their price range.

Recording one's electric guitar practice can be extremely beneficial, and highly recommended to any uprising musicians. One's musical skill and quality could be helped through recording a practice, and I would strongly suggest any musician to take up this practice.

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