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Why do you record yourself and what do you listen for?

#2
vvbudh said:
I've been looking around for some information on why you record yourself, and I found a good article about it. But I wanted to know more about why you record yourself and what exactly you are looking for from a bassist perspective. What exactly are you trying to hear in your recording when you practice?

Why Is It So Important to Record Yourself?
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The obvious reasons for me is to have a 100% ear for what I'm listening to. While we play our mind is not all set to hear the whole thing because a part of our brain is busy at playing and not listening.

So here some points you can focus on when you are listening to your playback:
-The sound Do you like it? Does it cut thru, too bright, too muddy, too much eq, can you improve it and how...
-The tightness Try to record with a metronome, click, beats or loops and see if you are really tight with it. This is so important and too often overlooked by beginners
-The phrasing and dynamics Do you like the way you play each note? Do you control your overall dynamics? Is it even or not? Each note is well-defined?
-Muting Do you have open strings that ring in the background?
-Musicality Does it groove? Do you deliver the right feel? (attitude, emotion, etc)?

Good luck and have fun and most important don't be afraid to do it. It is a humbling experience.
 
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#3
I agree with Groove Master, and I'll add a couple more. I record rehearsals and performances.
I listen for intonation problems. I did this especially when I first started playing fretless. Sometimes just being conscious of the problem notes solves the problem. Other times, different fingering helps.
I've mostly played in cover bands, and I record to capture the ending we agreed on when the original version faded out. I spend too many times where we couldn't agree on what we all agreed to.
Sometimes a friend or family member wants to hear the music, and attending a live performance isn't possible.

Sometimes the recording sounds better than I remember hearing it in real time. Other times, it's worse.
 
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#4
i get to hear my playing on recordings. without regard to what others think: sometimes i'm satisfied that my performance is the "best i could have done" and sometimes i'm not. the difference between the two should 'narrow' with experience. and then: sometimes you just have to forgive yourself! :D
 
#5
Our band just started out a few months ago and I record our weekly rehearsals. The next day I post the recordings for all band members. Everyone gets to hear what we/they sounded like and will adjust accordingly. It really helps us get our sound dialed in and gets everyone up to speed faster.
 
#6
I record our practice sessions and jams as it helps with getting some kind of record when we get a good groove going or a good jam that we might want to re-visit. Also helps me with timing and how some phrases are voiced and how they sit in the band mix as well if I screwed up my intonation or if I'm not muting well enough.
It also helps see how the mix and sound is and how well effects sit in that mix as well.
 

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