5TipsForRecordingAcousticPiano FINAL PDF

5 Tips For Recording Your
At Home
< NO STUDIO NEEDED! >
How To Get Better Recorded Sound From Your
Acoustic Piano In ANY Environment
By Grammy Winning Engineer/Producer

Khaliq Glover aka Khaliq-O-Vision
www.Hypnotic-Audio-Secrets.com
Copyright 2008-All Rights Reserved
The Piano is a wonderful and complex instrument that brings

incredible joy to everyone who either plays it or listens to it.
Even little children and babies are irresistibly drawn to this
strange and fascinating thing that sits in the middle of many
living rooms and in recording studios alike.
Whether you read music or play by ear, the ultimate goal is to
let others hear and enjoy your playing. After all, youve worked
and studied hard to learn how to connect scales and chords to
make what we call MUSIC. At some point, youll probably want
to record your playing to save the perfect rendition of your
song.
HERE IS THE HELP YOU NEED

NOTICE: You Do NOT Have the Right
to Reprint or Resell this Report!
This document ($10 value) - may be freely distributed to all musicians for a limited
time as a Promotional Gift to anyone who has a need for pro audio information.
The only requirement is that all the content contained within (including author and
contact information) MUST remain completely intact.
If you would like to include this information as an article,
please contact us at: info(at)Hypnotic-Audio-Secrets.com
Get COMPANION VIDEO at

www.PianoRecordingVideos.com
In this guide you will discover:

1) The parts of the Piano:
How each section of the piano is made and how they
work together to produce the sound that you hear.
2) The sound of the Piano:
How the sound resonates from each section of the
piano for different tones.
3) Miking and placement techniques:
How and where to place the microphones to best
capture the sound.
4) Equipment needed:
Using available equipment to get a quality sound
5) Recording Upright Piano:
Applying these techniques to record an upright
piano.
The key to getting the most out of this information is to experiment
as much as you can.
Also, only use this as a starting point to find your own sound since
there are as many ways of recording as there are piano players. Each
person has their own style and there is no such thing as doing it
wrong if it leads you to what you like.
(Even distorted piano could become the next big thing everybody
thought Jimi Hendrix was just making noise at first.)
The Parts Of The Piano:

The piano is made up of several parts that all work together to
make up the overall sound of the instrument.
As strange as it may seem, think about it for a moment - If you
attached a neck to it, the piano is almost just like a giant guitar
laid flat. Try to imagine it and youll see the similarities.
It has strings, a bridge, a neck nut (sort of), sound holes, and a
resonating board just like an acoustic guitar.
This similarity gives you some clues toward how to think about
miking and recording it.
Carefully study the illustration below and notice several things.
The frame of the body has sound holes (just like a guitar).
The strings a mounted in two main places at the bottom
end of the piano (away from the keys) is a bridge and by
the hammers (near the keys) just like the nut and bridge
position for mounting strings on a guitar.
Theres a soundboard underneath the metal frame that
helps the sound project.
The keys and hammers activate the sound by striking.
The lid reflects the sound toward the audience.
I found a fun game of Concentration that helps you

learn the parts of a piano at:
http://www.ptg.org/justForFun-concentrationParts.php
Another great resource to learn more about your piano is

The Piano Technicians Guilds Piano Learning Center at:
http://www.ptg.org/learningCenter/
The Sound Of The Piano

The notes of the piano cover a huge range of pitches. It is
almost as wide as our human hearing.
The actual sound of a Grand Piano varies greatly from
instrument to instrument. Even several pianos by the same
manufacturer, such as Steinway, can sound very different.
The first step to recording your piano is to actually listen to it to
see how it really sounds when youre in the same room.
Many people make the mistake of just putting up a couple of
mics and hitting the record button without listening to it first.
You need to listen to it in the room FIRST then listen to it over
your speakers while the real sound is fresh in your mind. That
way, you can assess what is different about the sound and
modify it for a closer match.
Some pianos are very bright and plinky sounding. Some are
very dark and thick sounding. Some are thin, weak, and wimpy
sounding. Some are out of tune, etc.
You should immediately figure out what kind of piano you are
dealing with before doing anything. This will help you chose the
right microphones and preamps for the job.

Miking and placement techniques

A great sounding piano recorded with great sounding
microphones and preamps makes for a wonderful recording.
Placing the mics in the right place makes all the difference in
the world in how balanced your piano sounds.
Moving microphones as little as an inch can make a HUGE
difference in the sound. Try different placements and you will
learn what works best for you and your particular situation.
Near the hammers will give you a brighter sound with more
attack that might be suitable for a pop or R&B song that has to
cut through a lot of other instruments.
Jazz and classical require a more natural sound and may need
the mics closer to the cut out section or elbow of the piano.
Maybe miking the sound holes is the answer. Maybe, placing
the mics outside of the piano for a more Classical sound.
Decide what kind of sound youre after then try a few things.
Check out the diagram below for some good starting points and
then move the mics around a bit to get the best sound for your
particular piano.
= Over the hammers

= Miked from the cutout section
= Close to the sound holes
= Outside the piano (Classical)
Equipment needed
If you are not a professional musician and you just play piano
for your personal enjoyment, you may not have any
microphones or equipment to record your playing.
Thats ok because there are several inexpensive solutions
available today that can get you a decent quality sound.
Maybe all you have are a couple of live performance mics
because you play in a band. Thats ok too, if thats all that you
have available. With careful planning and listening, you can still
get a decent sound.
I am lucky enough to use super high end microphones that can
cost as much as $20,000 or more, but many times I have had to
make do with a $100 mic.
If you take the time and move the mics around a bit, you will
surprise and shock everyone when they find out how you did it.
You will also need a microphone pre-amp to control the level of
the mic. There are inexpensive preamp options as well. You can
also use the preamps in a little tabletop mixer like a Mackie.
Youll also need headphones, mic cables, and the recording
machine or computer itself.
Here are a few things you may already have or can get cheap:
If you perform live you probably have access to Shure
SM57 or SM58 microphones. This is not an ideal choice but
you can make it work if its all that you have. Listen
carefully through headphones and move the mics until you
find the sweet spot where the sound suddenly comes
alive. Record a short segment and compare the sound.
If you can afford it you should buy whats called a
condenser microphone because it will record a more
detailed sound.
You should buy 2 mics for stereo recording. Affordable
condenser mics can be found for as low as $100 and up.
Go to www.Sweetwater.com and look at microphones by
Rode, MXL, CAD, Studio Projects, Audio-Technica, and
Shure, for inexpensive, but decent sounding solutions.
Recording Upright Piano
Recording upright piano is slightly different than

recording a grand piano. The upright piano still has
hammers, a bridge, and a soundboard, but they are
standing vertically instead of laying horizontally.
You have to adjust where you place the microphones but
you still use the same principles to capture the sound.
Open the top and aim the mics towards the high strings
and the low strings. Listen through headphones while
playing different low to high keys and chords to get a
good balance for the whole piano. There are more
advanced ways to mic it but this is the easiest way.
You can also mic the upright piano from the back of the
soundboard which will give you a warm and understated
tone. Sometimes this is a better sound for a particular
song that doesnt need a real present piano sound.
Other options include removing the front panel that is
above the keys to expose the hammers and strings.
This can give you a very aggressive sound with lots of
attack from the hammers.
You can even remove the bottom panel for a sound that
will pickup the lower and thicker sounds and the pedals.
A Fun Game of Concentration for the parts of a piano

http://www.ptg.org/justForFun-concentrationParts.php

Here Are Some Other Resources

If youd like more tips, videos, products,
articles, and seminars about recording
and making better music, just visit:
www.VocalRecordingSecrets.com
www.GuitarRecordingTips.com
www.HypnoticAudioBlog.com
You can find out more about Grammy Winning Engineer
Khaliq Glover aka Khaliq-O-Vision at:
http://www.Khaliq-O-Vision.com
Its So Easy, A Child Can Do It

5TipsForRecordingAcousticPiano FINAL PDF

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5 Tips For Recording Your

By Grammy Winning Engineer/Producer

The Piano is a wonderful and complex instrument that brings

HERE IS THE HELP YOU NEED

Get COMPANION VIDEO at

In this guide you will discover:

The Parts Of The Piano:

I found a fun game of Concentration that helps you

Another great resource to learn more about your piano is

The Sound Of The Piano

Get COMPANION VIDEO at

Miking and placement techniques

= Over the hammers

Recording Upright Piano

Recording upright piano is slightly different than

A Fun Game of Concentration for the parts of a piano

Get COMPANION VIDEO at

Here Are Some Other Resources

Its So Easy, A Child Can Do It

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