Introduction :

It is not my intention to tell you about everything that is out there, since that would take me a couple of years. I will show you that there is a cheap and easy way to record simple riffs (or even multi-track recordings !) just by using the computer and some software.

System requirements :

Before you start, make sure you have at least a Pentium based computer with a minimum of 64Mb of virtual memory (RAM). If you have less than this, don't botter reading the rest of this page. You'll also need a full duplex soundcard (necessary for playing and recording sounds at the same time). I use the AWE64 from Creative Labs. Also see that you have a hard disk of about 1Gb minimum.

Attaching your gear to the computer :

The easiest way is hooking the cable of your guitar directly into the line in of your soundcard. The only problem is that you have absolutely no effects when you play. There is software out there to simulate those effects (p.e. Guitar FX), but I wouldn't recommend it if you have a small computer configuration. You can also add the effects (distortion, delay, etc.) afterwards with your software, but that way there really is no fun in playing.

I put a multi-effects processor between the guitar and the soundcard (the Zoom 505 is not perfect but quite cheap). This way I can create all the sounds I want before I start recording the music. You can also use "simple" effect pedals (Boss, Dod, etc.) or any other effects rack. So, the sound of the guitar pick-ups goes through the effects processor and enters the computer through the line in. The music comes out through your computer speakers (or any hi-fi instalation you might have hooked to it).

Software :

There is so much recording software on the market that I still haven't figured out which is the best. Still, before choosing, you need to understand the difference between simple-track recording and multi-track recording.

Simple-track recording is recording 1 track only (pretty obvious...). This means 1 guitar only, so this is what I do for all my exercises and rip-offs.
Multi-track recording means that you mix various instruments. For example, listen to "Feelings" (about 1Mb, so beware) and try to hear the different instruments I have used. There is a drum track, a rhythm guitar track and a solo guitar track. Since I cannot play everything at the same time, I had to play both guitar parts seperately and mix them afterwards. The drums were created with a program called Sequebeat Pro from Neztech.

Creating simple-track recordings is easy. There is a lot of shareware software on the net to realize this. I recommend Sound Forge from Sonic Foundry and Goldwave, but I haven't tried all of them so there might be better programs. I won't explain the use of the software since they have integrated help functions that are much smarter than me.

For multi-track recordings, you need more money... Altough there is stuff like N-Track Studio from Fasoft which is pretty cheap ("Feelings" was made with N-Track Studio and you can hear the noise...), only professional software like Cubase VST and Cakewalk Audio Pro or Cakewalk Guitar Studio really do the trick. The only problem is that they are very expensive and quite difficult to learn. For the money part, you might find a "solution" here or here (but you didn't hear it from me...).

Sound formats :

All recordings are done in the wav-format. The only problem is that this format requires a lot of free disk space (a basic song takes about 45Mb in disk space). Luckely, someone invented the mp3-format. Most people think that an mp3 is the compression of a wav, but that is not entirely true. In fact, mp3 encoding means taking those sounds out of a wav that cannot be heard by the human ear. This way, the file becomes much smaller and easier to download over the internet. I use the "make mp3" function of the cd grabbing software Audiograbber.

Conclusion :

With this info you can start building your own home studio and record your own music. Share your stuff with the world and let me put it on this site (as a thank you for the info...?). Anyway, enjoy !