how do i record directly from my amp to my computer?

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ATTN: amateur musician desires help for amateur recording! caution: amateur descriptions within.

Hello there. I'm back at college where i can't use my amp without headphones but where i do want to record.

Right now i have an amp with two (a red and a grey) auxiliary inputs, a few cables and a little converter that fits my headphones into the 'headphones' input, which is as big in diameter as the inputs

SO i was wondering what else i would need to be able to record from my amp to my macbook equipped with garageband, the program i'll be using for my recording purposes.

since i wouldn't want to waste space with another self serving post on the same topic, i'll also say that since i'm [obviously] no good at this sort of thing, how am i to use these extra tools/materials to be able to successfully record?

thanks all! sorry i'm such an idiot.

― buyabiznatch (buyabiznatch), Monday, 11 September 2006 23:18 (nineteen years ago)

(a) You will get made fun of a lot less if you ask this question on I Make Music.

(b) It sounds like what you want is to run a line from your amp's headphone output to your Mac's line in. Depending on what line-in arrangement they put on Macs, this might be possible, if not the best-sounding thing on the planet. Have you, like, tried that? If not, why not?

(c) If that doesn't work out for you, there are approximately 8 million USB and Firewire-based guitar-input boxes you can buy, often for less than $100. You might try, like, going to your local guitar store, telling an employee what you have, and asking him or her to point out a cheap one.

(d) It will totally help you to learn the names of different jack, cord, and input/output types, and the differences between them! RCA, quarter-inch, eighth-inch, XLR, line-in versus mic level, etc.! I'm not saying that to be snotty, either -- if you want to set up even a basic home-recording system, you have to be able to make sure everything plugs in right. Then you can look forward to figuring out how latency works.

― nabisco (nabisco), Monday, 11 September 2006 23:50 (nineteen years ago)

if teh amp head has a line level output you are better off using that. THe headphone output will be too high for the input of the computer.

you need an appropriate cable.

― Savin All My Love 4 u (Savin 4ll my (heart) 4u), Tuesday, 12 September 2006 01:04 (nineteen years ago)

That depends on his amp, actually! Cause some of your cheaper practice amps -- e.g., mine -- are wired so that if you plug something into the headphone jack (to kill the speaker), it cuts off the line out, too.

But yes, he totally needs to just try a few combinations, most likely using a 1/4-inch cable with a 1/4-inch to 1/8-inch adapter at the computer end. (This is more likely to work than a 1/8-inch cord with and 1/8-to-1/4 adapter at the amp end, for reasons I don't understand but nonetheless respect.)

― nabisco (nabisco), Tuesday, 12 September 2006 04:03 (nineteen years ago)

i'm sorry you're such an idiot, too

― a name means a lot just by itself (lfam), Tuesday, 12 September 2006 04:28 (nineteen years ago)

― a name means a lot just by itself (lfam), Tuesday, 12 September 2006 04:29 (nineteen years ago)

A NAME MEANS A LOT JUST BY ITSELF

you probably wont read this ever again, but we go to the same school. fancy that!

― buyabiznatch (buyabiznatch), Thursday, 14 September 2006 23:23 (nineteen years ago)

also: thanks a lot for the help nabisco!!!

― buyabiznatch (buyabiznatch), Thursday, 14 September 2006 23:25 (nineteen years ago)

if you don't have any luck with the amp, you could spend $40 on a digitech "bad monkey" overdrive pedal. it's got a mixer out that's reported to do a nice job with what you're trying to do.

― dan (dan), Thursday, 14 September 2006 23:37 (nineteen years ago)

http://homerecording.com/bbs/

the best place to ask any questions about amateur recording.
you have to sign in to see all the computer related topics.

― nicky lo-fi (nicky lo-fi), Friday, 15 September 2006 06:14 (nineteen years ago)

If yout amp has a line out, that would be the best thing to use. I have used headphone out before. Just set the input levels on your recording software so your not real low or high. I think the quality also depends on the quality of your computer's soundcard. Sometimes people without great soundcards get a analog/digital converter as an interface between the instrument and the computer. They can cost $350 plus. Here's one for $30:

http://www.zzounds.com/item--BEHUCA202

I just record directly in, because I'm lo-fi! Now that I found that $30 one, I might give it a shot to see if it makes a difference

― nicky lo-fi (nicky lo-fi), Friday, 15 September 2006 06:38 (nineteen years ago)

When I first started recording I plugged the amp's headphone out into my soundcard's line-in. In the middle of my furious guitar shredding session there was a 'pop' and the comptuer reset. The sound card no longer worked, and opening it up saw that a capacitor on the card had burned out.

Since then I've used a mixer as an intemediary and not had any problems. I'm pretty lo-fi too...

― Rombald (rombald), Friday, 15 September 2006 14:00 (nineteen years ago)

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