Library

ClockToday's Hours:
8 a.m. - 6:30 p.m.
 
 Screen10 computer(s) available in Doyle 317

Audio Recording Booth Instructions

  • Musical Recordings

  • Screencasting

  • Sound Design

  • Video Podcasting

  • Voice recordings

  • Voice Overs

 

Table of Contents

Introduction

Mac Software

Windows Software

Appendix I - Choosing a Deliverable

Appendix II - Video compatibility

 

 

Policy & Procedure

  1. The Audio Recording Booth may be used for Musical Recording, Screencasting, Sound Design, Podcasting, Voice recording and Voice Over only.
  2. Reservations may be made for up to 1.5 hour time periods.  Please be mindful that it is a shared resource.
  3. Check out the Audio Booth Kit from IT Media Services, Moody Hall 308, (512) 448-8663.
  4. If you see any broken or missing equipment or any other problems with the Audio Booth report it to IT Media Services, Moody Hall 308, (512) 448-8663 right away.
  5. St. Edward's is not responsible for files lost due to hard drive failure or for any other reason. Save and back up your work often.
  6. Leave the booth how you found it:
    • Do not leave any items that you brought in.
    • Reboot the computer.
    • Place all the items from the Audio Booth Kit into the bag.
    • Turn off the light using the remote switch.
  7. The last person to use the booth is responsible for any damage or loss to the Audio Recording Booth and it’s contents.  Lock the door behind you!
  8. Return the Booth Kit right away. Late return of the kit may result in late fees.
  9. Use of the Audio Recording Booth is a privilege which may be revoked for any reason.
Back to Table of Contents

Sound Isolation Booth: Pre-Amp Settings

 

Position the Microphone



 

Dual Boot iMac

The iMac in the Audio Recording Booth boots to both Windows 7 and Mac OSX.  When the Mac boots, it will arrive at a screen similar to the one in the picture (below) instead of a log in screen.

Once you choose Mac or Windows by clicking on a desktop picture it will load to the log in window of the operating system that you chose. Log in with you SEU user name and password.

In Mac OSX you have the option of using the following software:

In Windows 7 you have the option of using the following software

  • Audacity
  • Camtastia​
  • Snagit
  • Jing
  • Windows Media Player
  • Quicktime
  • iTunes

Back to Table of Contents

 

Back to Table of Contents

iMovie

Summary

FireWire interface on most MiniDV format digital video cameras, the USB port, or by importing the files from a hard drive. From there, the user can edit the video clips, add titles, and add music. Effects include basic color correction and video enhancement tools, and transitions such as fade-in, fade-out, and slides.

 

Record a voiceover

  1. Click the Voiceover button.
  2. In the Voiceover window that opens, choose USB Audio CODEC from the Record From pop-up menu.
  1. Speak at the volume and distance from the mic that you will be recording. Adjust the slider in the Input Volume so that you see that it is picking up all of your words but does not exceed the orange color into the red.
  2. If you need to listen to audio cues in your video while you record your voiceover, select the checkbox labeled Play project audio while recording and wear headphones plugged in to the computer so that the microphone doesn’t pick up the project audio while you’re recording your voiceover.
  3. In the Project browser, click the video frame where you want the voiceover to begin.
  4. iMovie beeps three times to give you time to prepare to speak.
  5. Click anywhere in the project to stop recording.
  6. A purple Voiceover soundtrack bar appears below the video track.
  7. Click the close (X) button in the Voiceover window to close the window before clicking again in your project.
  8. Clicking in the project again without closing the Voiceover window initiates a new voiceover recording.

Publish to your YouTube Account

  1. In iMovie, open a project or select it in the Project Library (by clicking its name), and then choose Share > YouTube.
  2. Click Add and enter your YouTube account information.
  3. Select a size of movie to publish that’s compatible with YouTube as indicated in the Sizes to publish table.
  4. Larger sizes typically offer higher quality but may take longer to upload.
  5. For YouTube, to allow your video to be viewable by anyone, deselect make this movie personal.
  6. Click Next and Publish.
  7. iMovie uploads your movie to YouTube; depending on website traffic, the movie may not be available on YouTube or Facebook right away.
  8. To see your movie online, click View in the window that appears.

Export Movie to File

  1. In iMovie, go to Share > Export Using QuickTime.
  2. The Share menu appears in a light gray bar across the top of your computer screen.
  3. Type a title for your movie in the Save As field.
  4. Choose the folder that you created in the Thaw Space to save your movie.
  5. If the Thaw Drive doesn’t appear in the pop-up menu, click the blue Arrow button to the right of the Save As field, and then navigate to the folder you want.
  6. Choose the file format you want to export to from the Export pop-up menu.
  7. Select Movie to QuickTime Movie as your export format and do either of the following
  • Click Save without adjusting anything in Options.  Your Movie will export using H.264 compression. This file format is a good standard for most purposes.
  • If you will be using the file with other video software such as Final Cut Pro you may choose the compression format that you will be working with. Select Options.  In the Movie Settings window for Video select Settings... > Compression Type. Select the video compression format that matches the video format of the files in your other project.  Use HDV 1080i60 if you are working with footage from a HV Series Mini-DV Camcorder (available on loan in the Library or Media Services) Select OK > OK > Save.

 

GarageBand

Summary

GarageBand is a part of the iLife software package on Mac OS X that allows users to create music or podcasts. The streamlined digital audio workstation and music sequencer can record and play back multiple tracks of audio.

Saving your project

  1. Open GarageBand, or choose File > New.
  2. In the Project Chooser, select Podcast.
  3. Click Choose.
  4. When the Save As dialog appears, type a name for the project, and browse to the Thaw Space drive and save it in a folder that you label with your user name.
  5. Click Create.

Recording in GarageBand



A.  Record in a current track
  1. Double click the track to activate the track settings window.
  2. At the bottom of that window make sure the Input source is Stereo 1/2 (USB Audio CODEC)
      1. You may change the audio recording preset if you like.
      2. Click the Add Track button (with a “+”) in the lower-left part of the GarageBand window.
      3. The Add Track Dialog appears, with an icon for each track type.
      4. In the Add Track dialog, select Real Instrument.
      5. Click the disclosure triangle next to Instrument Setup.
      6. Choose the input source from the upper-left pop-up menu Stereo 1/2 (USB Audio CODEC)
      7. Under “I hear sound from,” choose the audio output you want to use to hear the sound from the microphone only IF you are using separate headphone for the computer.
      8. Turn off monitoring for the track
      9. Click Create.
      10. The new track appears selected in the timeline.
      B. Start Recording
      1. To start recording, click the red Record button in the control bar.
      2. The playhead moves across the timeline, and a new, red region with the recording appears in the selected track.
      3. When you're finished, click the Play button in the control bar to stop recording.

      Add Sound From Apple Loops

      1. Click the Loop Browser button (with the “eye” icon) in the lower-right part of the GarageBand window.
      2. Click the Button View button (with two musical notes) in the upper-left corner of the loop browser.
      3. Click keywords for the instrument, genre, or mood you want to search for.
      4. Loops matching the keywords appear in the list below. You can click multiple keyword buttons to narrow the search criteria.
      5. To preview a loop, click it in the list. To stop a preview, click the loop again.
      6. To add a loop to your project, drag it to the timeline (the main part of the GarageBand window).
      7. You can drag it to the empty area below the existing tracks.
      8. To have the loop play from the beginning of the project, drag it to the left edge of the timeline. You can also drag it to another point in the timeline if you want it to start playing later.

      Import a movie

      You can import an iMovie project, or any QuickTime-compatible movie file, into your GarageBand project. You can preview movies in the Media Browser to find the one you want to import. You can play the movie in GarageBand, and edit the movie’s audio.

      1. Click the Media Browser button in the control bar.
      2. In the Media Browser, click Movies to show available movie files.
      3. Select the folder or location with the movie you want to import.
      4. Drag the movie to the GarageBand timeline.
      5. If the movie track is not visible, choose Track > Show Movie Track.  In the header of the movie track, click the movie frame.
      6. The movie opens in a preview window. You can move the window by dragging its title bar, and resize the window by dragging its lower-right corner.
      7. To play the movie, press the Space bar, or click the Play button in the control bar.

      Send Audio to iTunes

      1. Make sure the project sounds the way you want it to, and that the tracks you want to hear are not muted.
      2. Choose Share > Send Song to iTunes.
      3. In the Share dialog, you can add artist, playlist, and album information, and choose AAC compression settings for the exported song.
      4. Click Share.
      5. iTunes opens, with the song added to the playlist. In iTunes you can burn to a CD or share on the Internet.

      Save to File

      1. Share > Export Podcast to Disk
      2. Choose AAC compression settings.
      3. Choose your folder in the Thaw Space or external drive to save it to.


       

      iDVD

      Important:  Creating a DVD from iMovie or GarageBand will take 2-3 times the length of video that you are burning.  Burning other movie files may take 4 times the length of the video file. You may need to export or save to external storage and burn a DVD at another location.

      Summary

      iDVD is a DVD creation software application made by Apple Inc. for Mac OS X. iDVD allows the user to add QuickTime Movies, MP3 music, and digital photos to a DVD that can then be played on a commercial DVD player. It is often considered the last step of Apple's iLife suite, bringing together all the other iLife applications' results onto a removable medium.

      iMovie or GarageBand to iDVD

      1. In iMovie or GarageBand, follow the same steps.
      2. Choose Share > iDVD.
      3. A finished version of your project is generated and sent it to iDVD
      4. iDVD opens with your movie in a new iDVD project, which you can burn to a DVD immediately.

      Create a Project

      1. Open iDVD
      2. If a Menu pops up, select Create New Project
      3. Label your project and set the save location to your folder in the Thaw Drive.
      4. Next to Aspect Ratio:
        • a. Choose  Standard (4:3), if your video is SD or square.
        • b.  Choose Widescreen (16:9) if you video is HD or wide.
      5. If you need to swich Aspect Ratio later go to Project > Switch to...

      Choose the Theme

      1. Click the Themes button at the bottom of the iDVD window.
      2. Choose a theme you like. In 7.0 Themes, Soft Frame is one suggested theme for general use.
      3. Click the triangle next to the theme, and choose a menu theme template.
      4. When you drag a movie to a menu, iDVD automatically adds a button to the menu that users click to play the movie. The button’s label is the name of the movie you added, but you can change this.

      Add a Movie:

      1. Click the Media button.
      2. Click the Movies button at the top of the Media pane, shown below.
      3. Select the your folder in the Thaw Drive.
      4. Drag the movie thumbnail to the menu background.
      5. You see a green circle with a plus sign when you can drop the movie.
      6. When you drop the movie, a button appears on the menu that has the same name as the movie file.

      Editing Title and Button Text

      1. In the main menu, slowly double-click your movie button or title to highlight the text.
      2. You’ll notice that an in-place editor, shown below, appears below the text.
      3. Type a new name.
      4. Use the controls to change the typeface, style, and size of the button label.
      5. To change the color of the text, press Command (x)-I while the button is selected.
      6. To change the appearance of all button labels at once, select one button and then choose Edit > Select All Buttons. Then press Command (x)-I to open the Button Info window.

      Burning Your Project to DVD

      1. Click the Preview button.
      2. Use the DVD remote control to select the menu buttons one by one to view the results.
      3. When you’re done, click Exit on the DVD remote control.
      4. Burn a disc only when you’re sure that you’re finished with your project.
      5. You can use the following media types to burn a disc in iDVD; DVD-R (recommended) or DVD+R.

      6. Click the Burn button,
      7. When prompted, insert a blank disc into your computer’s Disc Drive by pressing the eject button on the keyboard.
      8. iDVD burns your disc.
      9. The time it takes to create the disc depends on the size and complexity of your project, it could take a half an hour or up to several hours.
      10. While your iDVD project is burning, a progress dialog shows which of the five burn stages is in process:  Prepare, Process Menus, Process Slideshows, Process Movies, and Burn.
      11. If you can’t burn a disc right away, or if you want to back up or move your project to another computer, you can archive it or save it as a disc 

       

      Final Cut Pro 7

      Overview

      Final Cut Pro is a non-linear video editing software that allows users to log and transfer video onto a hard drive (internal or external), where it can be edited, processed, and output to a wide variety of formats.

      Saving

      Go to File > New Project.  Name your project and save it to your folder in Thaw Space.
      (Now a folder that named with your project is created in the folder Capture Scratch in the Thaw Space.  Recordings and captures within Final Cut Pro will be found here.)

      Backing Up Your Project

      1. In your Browser, select all items in the project.
      2. Make sure the Browser window is active. In the Media Manager, choose the following options, for backing up your project to external storage.
      1. To preserve media referenced by any affiliate subclips, select “Include master clips outside selection” and “Include affiliate clips outside selection.”
      2. These options may increase the amount of media copied. If you are trying to reduce the amount of media you back up, deselect these options.
      3. Click OK.
      4. Files moved by the Media Manager are placed in a folder named after the project name, which is placed in a folder called Media. The clips in your project are reconnected to the media files in their new location.

      Moving your Project Files

      Follow the same steps as Backing up your Project (above) except select Move in the pop up box and make sure that the Duplicate selected items and place into a new project is not selected.

       

      Working with an External Project

      You may be working with an on-going project with files that take up a large amount of space.  If you have an external hard drive that can playback video smoothly in FCP while you run your project on the local C: drive you can simply set the capture scratch to your external drive and move your project back to it when you are done using the computer.  
      If you do not have a high bandwidth external drive you can do the following to prevent you from having to move your entire project with large movie files to the local drive and then back again when you are finished.  It’s several steps but it’s likely to save you quite a bit of time and some wear and tear on your drive.
      1. Save a copy of your Final Cut Pro project to a folder that you create in the Thaw Space.
      2. Open your project in the Thaw Space and click to highlight the sequence to which you want to record.
      3. In the File menu select Media Manager...
      4. In the Media Manager window choose the following
        1. Copy media referenced by duplicated items.
        2. Base media file name on existing file names
        3. Check Delete unused media from duplicated items. and Duplicate selected items and place in a new project.
        4. Using handles is optional.  This will allow you time on each end of your timeline clips to make small adjustments.  Otherwise the source media is cut to the exact size of the timeline clip.
        5. Deselect all other check boxes
        6. Set Media Destination to /Volumes/Thaw Space/your folder
      5. Label the project and save it to your folder in the Thaw Space and Open the new project and set the Capture Scratch to your Thaw Space folder (Instructions: see Saving) and alter the name of the copied sequence.
      6. Proceed with recording Voiceovers to the newest copied sequence
      7. When you are finished click to highlight the sequence (with your new recordings) in the Browser.
      8. Copy and paste the sequence into the Browser of the project that you originally saved to the Thaw Space in Step 1.
      9. You may save and close the project that was created with the Media Manager in Step 5.
      10. Open the sequence with the recordings.
      11. Highlight all of the voiceover clips that are in the timeline
      12. Open the Media Manager and use the following settings....
        1. Copy media referenced by duplicated items.
        2. Base media file name on existing file names
        3. Deselect all check boxes
        4. Set Media Destination to your external drive project folder
      13. Now select all clips in the timeline and open File > Reconnect Media
      14. Use the following settings:
        1. Check Search Single Location, browse to your external drive, and click Locate...
        2. Reconnect should have located the source files on your drive. Click Open.
        3. In the File Attribute Mismatch pop-up box click Continue.
        4. Click Connect.
      15. Move or copy the project file to you external drive.

      Voiceover Recording

      1. In an open sequence set your In and Out points in the section of the timeline that you would like to make a voice over recording.  To do this, place the timeline play head at the point in which you want to begin recording. Type “I” on the keyboard to create the in-point. Then place the the play head on the point where you’d like the recording to end. Type “O” on the key board to create the out point.
      2. Open the Voiceover tool by opening the tools menu on the top menu bar.  Select Voice Over.
      1. In the Voice Over Tool Bench you may label your track.  Source and Input should be set to USB Audio Codec and the input level meter should appear to be active.
      2. If you want to listen to the other tracks in the Sequence as you are recording, use a separate set of headphones plugged into the computer. Otherwise, you will need mute the computer volume.  When you are ready click on record and begin speaking after the count down.  
      3. The result should be that a single mono audio track is created in the timeline. The track will playback to left and right channels and you may use stereo paired tracks in the same time line.

      Exporting

      YouTube
      1. With the sequence you’d like to export active, choose File > Share.
      2. Choose the folder you create in the hard drive or and external drive as the Destination.
      3. In the Output Type pop-up menu, choose YouTube.
      4. Double-click the filename to edit it.
      5. Optionally, you can select the Publish to YouTube checkbox to automatically upload the output media file to a YouTube account on the web.
      6. If you choose to automatically upload the output media file to a YouTube account, enter the account information in the appropriate fields.
      7. Do one of the following:
      8. Click Export.
      9. The Transcoding Progress window appears and the output media file is processed. Click the Cancel button in this window if you want to stop the export process.
      10. Per 5 minutes of video, allow for 250MB space plus 5-20 min processing time.  If you do not have time to do this in the booth, back up your project to an external drive and complete this step on another computer with Final Cut Studio installed.


       

      Soundtrack Pro

      Opening Files to a Multitrack Project

      In order to edit non-destructively and save a file with actions, you need to convert standard audio files (such as AIFF or WAVE files) to Soundtrack Pro audio file projects with the .stap file extension.
      You can easily do this by opening an AIFF or a WAVE file in Soundtrack Pro and then saving it as a Soundtrack Pro audio file project.
      1. Go to File > Open > Save a Copy As...
      2. Rename and choose Audio Project File as the File Type.
      3. Save the file in a folder you create in the Thaw Space.
      4. You can now access the file in the Soundtrack Pro Browser.
      5. Drag and drop the file into a track in the Multitrack Project

      Enabling Tracks and Recording

      1. Click the Arm for Recording button (the red letter R) in the track’s header (or Mixer channel strip)
      2. The Recording tab becomes active and shows the current settings. You can adjust the settings before you start or between recordings.
      3. Set the playhead to the point where you want recording to start.
      4. Click the Record button in the transport controls to start recording (or press Command–R).
      5. As you record, the level meters in the Recording tab show the levels of the input signal being recorded. Lower recording levels, if the input signal lights red.
      6. To stop recording, do one of the following click the Play/Pause button or press the Space bar.
      7. You can punch in and punch out while recording a single take using the Record button. For example, you can start the project playing, then punch in at the point where you want to start recording by clicking the Record button. To punch out, click the Record button again. When you click the Record button while recording, recording stops, but the project continues playing. You can punch in and punch out multiple times while the project is playing.
      8. When you click the Pause/Play button, both recording and playback stop.

      Export

      You can export AAC audio files directly from Soundtrack Pro by choosing File > Export and choosing AAC/Podcast File from the File Type pop-up menu.


       

      Audacity v. 1.2.6 (Windows version)

      Summary

      Audacity is a free software, cross-platform digital audio editor and recording application  It can be used for post-processing of all types of audio, including podcasts by adding effects such as normalization, trimming, and fading in and out.

       

      Saving your Project Files

      To get started, we recommend creating and saving your Audaicty project in a new folder that you create in in the Thaw Space folder on the Desktop. When you save your project, a folder with the extension _data is created automatically in the same destination as your project. This is where Audacity saves your raw audio recording.  These files do not play in other programs. If they are lost so will be the tracks that you recorded in your project.
      To save your project and project files to an external drive open the File > Save Compressed Copy of Project... You may download Audacity for free on another Windows computer and continue editing your project. To create files that can be uploaded as audio and played/edited in other programs, it will need to be exported.

       

      Recording


       

      Export

      1. Check that the microphone settings match the settings in the picture below.
      2. Activate audio meter by clicking in the middle of the meter.
      3. Speak at the volume and distance from the mic that you will be recording. Adjust the slider in the audio meter so that you see that the maximum level is not completely filling the meter.
      In the File menu select Export. Your track will be compressed in to one file.
      • By selecting Export Selection, only the current track (or track highlighted in yellow) will be exported
      • By selecting Export Multiple, tracks will be export to separate files
      • By default it will export to .wav file type. You may choose a different file type to export to in the drop down menu below the file name.  Save in your folder in Thaw Space or to your external drive.  AC3 format provides a good quality and low file size that works well for most uses.

       


      Camtasia Studio 7

      Summary

      Camtasia Studio records websites, webcams, and software demos easily. Then the user can edit screencasts by cutting, splicing, adding transitions, and captions. It can produce video in many formats, or share to YouTube or Screencast.com.

       

      Saving your project files

      We recommend creating and saving your Camtasia project and recordings in a new folder that you create in in the Thaw Space folder on the Desktop.  Your SEU user name is a good label for this folder.
      When you save your project, save additional resources like images or audio clips in this folder to keep all the pieces of your project together and easy to find and work with.

       

      Recording

      1. Click the Record Screen button.
      2. Select area Full screen, or Custom to record only a portion of the screen.  (The suggested dimensions are 1024x768 when using a custom screen setting.)
      3. You should see a green check box next to the microphone icon, which indicates that audio will be recorded.  
      4. Click the down arrow next to the audio button.  Check that that it is set to Microphone (2-USB Audio Codec).
      5. In the audio device list, leave Record System Audio unchecked.
      6. Speak at the volume and distance from the mic that you will be recording. Adjust the slider in the audio meter so that it is picking up all your words but does not exceed the orange color in to the red.
      7. When you are ready, click the red record button (or use the hotkey F9) to start your recording.
      8. Next you will see a countdown. This will give you a chance to prepare for your recording.
      9. To stop recording keyboard use the hotkey F10
      10. When you stop your video, a preview window opens for you to review your recording and see the length of your video.

      Save and Edit

      Click Save and Edit to name the recording, save it to your folder in the Thaw Space, and then add it to the Camtasia Studio timeline.  If you prefer to save your recording to edit later, click the arrow below the Save and Edit button and choose Save As. This saves the recording for later use.
      Produce
      1. Click Produce to save your recording, bypass editing, and open the Production Wizard. The production process allows you to render your video into a format that can easily be shared.
      2. Click delete if you do not want to keep the recording. Remember that once you delete a recording, it cannot be recovered.

      Export

      Click on Produce and Share, found just above the Clip bin window.
      Video File
      1. Choose Custom Production Settings and click Next.
      2. Choose your preferred video format and give your video a name and choose your folder in Thaw Space to save your produced video.
      3. Click Finish to begin rendering your video.
      4. Review your produced video.
       
      YouTube
      1. Click the dropdown arrow next to Produce and Share. Find and click on the Share to YouTube option.
      2. Enter your User name and Password for YouTube.
      3. After you log in, you can add a Title, a Description, Tags, and Category. Click Finish.
      4. Your video is rendered and uploaded to YouTube.


      Appendix I - Choosing a Deliverable

      For most audio projects you will be able to export and create your final project whether it be burning a CD, copying to external storage, or uploading to the Internet.  When working with video It could take much longer than expected to produce your final project for some projects you need to export your project quickly recompress the video into the desired format at another computer in a video editing lab.
      Video Compression and File Size
      Native - Fastest export time in Final Cut Pro (more or less the length of your movie) and the file size is roughly 150MB/min of video.
      H.264 - Creates a file optimized for smooth playback on both Web and Computer. About 3 times or more the file size of native and greatly increased compression time
      MEG-4 Creates a smaller video with less quality. About half the file size of native compression for HDV format and slightly increased compression time than native.
      DVD Burning- Compresses all video to the same format. It can take up to 4 times the length of the video to encode the file and burn it.
      Keep in mind that time in the Recording Booth is limited to the length of your reservation (up 1.5 hours.)  Prepare your projects so that during your reservation you are spending your time recording and doing some editing.  
      Articles
      AAC Versus MP3 for Podcasts
      Audacity File Export Dialog
       

       

       


      Appendix II - Video compatibility

      You can import QucktimeX Audio and Built-in cam Movies recorded at Maximum quality.
      Screen capture video files will not import into Final Cut Pro.  To convert a QuicktimeX screen recording into a file that works with the audio and video QuicktimeX recordings in an Final Cut Pro7 timeline, import the Screen recording file into an iMovie event, drag footage to the Project window. Select share at the top menu select Export using QT. Click “options” next to the export drop down box change to the following settings:






      In Final Cut Pro, change the Sequence settings to:

      St. Edward's University Library - 3001 S. Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78704 - (512) 416-5869 - Find us on Facebook - @SEULibrary - SEULibrary on YouTube