Recording sound and making music 
Your Mac comes with audio line-in or a connection for an external microphone. Both are suitable to record sound, using the right software. First, check your specs whether your Mac has a microphone connection or line-in.
Microphone and line-in are both suitable for external sound sources, like cassettes, amplifiers and keyboards. However, an external microphone cannot be plugged into the line-in directly. You'll need to use a pre-amplifier to gain enough signal for the line-in to record.
In this case you can choose to buy a Griffin iMic. You can use this as a pre-amplifier. It has a microphone and an audio-out port, both mini-jack:
Connecting audio devices
Let's assume you have some old cassettes or lp's you'd like to put on cd. What do you need?
- cassette deck or record player
- a cable with stereo-RCA connectors and a mini-jack connector
- a sound recording program like Garageband (comes for free with a new Mac) or third-party software like SoundStudio
A record player has limited sound output, so you'll need an amplifier to connect it to your Mac. Stereo installations use so called tulip connectors. Your Mac's equipped with a mini-jack port, so use this cable: (you can find it at any audio shop):
Stereo RCA to mini-jack cable
A cassette recorder can be connected to a Mac directly. Use the 'play' connection:
A record player however, has less output, so you'll need an amplifier between it and your Mac. Use the 'phono' connection of the amplifier to connect the record player.
Guitars
To connect a guitar or guitar amplifier you can use a connector like this (jack to mini-jack):
WARNING
Be careful when you connect powerful amplifiers to your Mac. Always turn the volume to zero and power down the amplifier before connecting or disconnecting cables.
System software
After connecting the audio hardware, go to System Preferences => Sound. Choose the right input first:
Make sound or play to test if you have signal. You can also adjust the record level.
TIP
To adjust the settings of the midi- and audio equipment use the Audio and Midi configuration program:
Garageband, the semi-professional home recording studio by Apple
Anyone can make music with Garageband, with or without experience with an instrument or audio recording. Features of Garageband are:
- multi-track record studio for midi and real instruments
- library of midi instruments
- library of samples
- collection of amplifiers for guitars, voice and other real instruments
- pitch and other audio adjustment
- reading music
The multiple tracks principle.
Before working with GB you need to know about working with multiple tracks. This principle is well known in professional recording studio's. By recording every instrument on a individual track, you can adjust it afterwards. After recording all instruments, you can mix them all together in your own sound production. With this, you can play all the instruments yourself and sound like a band. While playing, you can listen to the tracks you recorded earlier.
The multiple tracks technology has been around for a while. The Beatles experimented a lot with it in the sixties.
Clipping
There are a few things important with digital recording. First, the gain of the incoming signal can't be to high. When the signal's too loud, 'clipping' will occur. The highest sound peaks will be cut off. So, before recording, test the loudness of your instrument or sound device as System Preferences => Sound - Input.
Garageband
First GB will ask you what Key, Time and Tempo your creation will be:
In the window that opens the tracks are on top. There's one track already, with a Grand Piano as instrument:
This Yamaha concert piano worth $50.000 can easily be converted to another midi-instrument. Just double-click on the piano icon. On the right, a window appears where you can choose another instrument:
You can play all these instruments with a USB midi keyboard. No keyboard present? Then you can use the on-screen keyboard. It has no less than 10 octaves!
You can play the on-screen keyboard with your mouse, but this is not very useful. Apple brings the opportunity to use your Mac keyboard. Go to the 'Window' menu and select 'Musical typing':
You'll need some practice, but it can be done.
Make music with GarageBand
Let's begin with selecting a rhythm.
In the lower part of the GB window you can see the icon of an eye. Click on it. The database with all the sound-samples opens. There are two ways to view the sample database:
As soon as you select a sample, the sample will play itself.
You can adjust the tempo if you like:
To add the sample, just drag and drop it into the main window:
In an instant a second track appears with the sample on it.
After clicking on the pair of scissors -icon, you can edit the sample:
Select a block to edit the pitch, time duration, etc. This can also be shown in musical writing:
Satisfied with your sample? Now multiply it by dragging its right-side to the right (a round arrow appears):
Now you have a rhythm by which you can play other instruments.
Use a USB midi-keyboard to play any instrument in GB's database or record a real instrument through microphone or cable.
In case you're not satisfied with the sound or the instrument of choice, you can always change it after you played your piece.
Record a non-midi instrument: the electric guitar
I've bought a converter: jack to mini-jack. With this I can plug my electric guitar into my Mac.
I go to the Sound panel in Preferences and check the audio-in preferences and input level:
If I get a signal I move to the GB program and choose 'New Track' at the 'Track' menu.
A new track appears. Double clicking on the track shows Track info. I choose 'Physical instrument' => 'Guitars' and a suitable guitar amplifier:
Note: turn the Monitor 'On' if you want to hear yourself play.
How about those guitar amplifiers?
In case you'd like to hear how a guitar can kick-ass with GarageBand, just listen to the Melissa-Jam I and my neighbor recorded a few years ago with my old eMac.
Build-in instrument tuner
First tune your instrument with the build-in instrument tuner:
Now you can start the recording by clicking on the Record symbol:
Adjusting volume
After recording a track, you can easily adjust its volume, part by part. Click on 'Track volume' to edit. A line represents the volume. Click it and drag the line up and down. For example fade in and fade out can be very useful:
After recording multiple tracks with multiple instruments, you can mix your own songs. When satisfied with you work, you can export your song to iTunes and burn it on a CD if you like. All samples are free to use, so in case you might record a hit, you can keep all those royalties by yourself! ;-)
TIP
Removing tracks
Go to the Track menu and select 'Remove Track':
Note: Shortcut: Command+Backspace
Remove metronome
On default, a metronome can be heard while recording. You can shut it down at the Control Menu:
Lack of talent?
Not a very good player? Record more 'takes' and combine them. You can even adjust pitch in case you sing or play out of tune!
TIP
Play along with your favorite song
You can import songs from iTunes to GB. Push the media button on the right to get into Media Chooser**. Use it to browse your iTunes library, or movies and images. How about composing your own soundtrack with your home movies
Expanding
With the Jam-Packs, GB can be expanded with a lot of samples and amplifiers. You can also find a lot of free samples on the Internet. Just Google!
BACKUP TIP
Where are the samples located on my hard drive?
For backup the Garageband files, just go to the User/Music/Garageband folder.
Want to hear what people created with GarageBand?
Surf to http://www.icompositions.com/
More information about audio on the Mac: www.osxaudio.com
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