Hoping this will turn into a helpful thread for me, if anyone out there has started basic podcast editing with Reaper from the ground up.
I think this is the forum I've been looking for. No question too basic? I'm in.
OK so a friend and I are starting a podcast. We'll be working remotely, him a coupla' hundred miles away, no time difference. We both have Samson 2QU mics, and I have the Podcast P4 for recording audio.
Having no prior experience with editing software, and being able to see it's benefits long term, I've decided on reaper for editing, but I'm gonna need plenty of help to start. I aim to spend approx 2hrs a day on it to try to get to grips.
As you'll see by the image I'm attaching, I've imported my single test audio track, and figured out how to make cuts, take out pauses & unwanted noises, and drag the pieces back together. A little messy right now but I'm getting there.
The next thing I need to know is, how do I rearrange sections of audio to change the order. I can see how it works editing them in the same order on the horizontal, but when I try to do what instinct tells me, which is drag a section below to switch things around - like you might with a piece of physical tape - it just seems to create another track...
OK, couple smaller Qs... the red arm/disarm button in the track box (left), is that only for if I'm using Reaper to record? I notice there's also a big red record button at the top too... next to play/pause/stop. What are these for?
Can I move markers or do I need to delete them and place a new one?
Can I reverse the left/right scrolling direction within Reaper?
Thanks in advance, I really appreciate any help offered.
First things first -- I really wouldn't record your vocals as stereo. Drop them to mono when recording; and give them width using features in Reaper. Also, why bother with different recording software? Why not just record straight into Reaper?
Anyway, all that aside, there are so many things you raise that I think a crash course in getting started with Reaper is the thing to do. Although it's mainly about recording music, at a beginner level the best way to learn about Reaper and its powers is to call on the great god himself, Kenny Gioia. He makes all the official Reaper videos. I earnestly suggest you watch them. They're nicely paced, very engaging, and tell you everything you ever need to know with a gentle enthusiasm and an eye for keeping it simple. Nothing better for the fine art of recording and mixing audio etc. Can I suggest you start with his Reaper 6 series? You can find it here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL...t3balft4nVki39
I notice he's just updated it in January (Kenny's good like that!). Have a look, and if you still have questions, let us know how you get on. In fact, let us know how you get on anyway. Good luck!
PS. There's one called "Editing Basics" if you're impatient to get to that (you might be, given your questions). But if you have time, and since you're a beginner as you said, I earnestly suggest watching them all in order -- just a few hours out of your life, and you'll get context and hints and tips and... well, you'll feel like a Reaper expert by the end, trust me. Well, you will be, bluntly. You can give us some tips!
First things first -- I really wouldn't record your vocals as stereo. Drop them to mono when recording; and give them width using features in Reaper. Also, why bother with different recording software? Why not just record straight into Reaper?
Anyway, all that aside, there are so many things you raise that I think a crash course in getting started with Reaper is the thing to do. Although it's mainly about recording music, at a beginner level the best way to learn about Reaper and its powers is to call on the great god himself, Kenny Gioia. He makes all the official Reaper videos. I earnestly suggest you watch them. They're nicely paced, very engaging, and tell you everything you ever need to know with a gentle enthusiasm and an eye for keeping it simple. Nothing better for the fine art of recording and mixing audio etc. Can I suggest you start with his Reaper 6 series? You can find it here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL...t3balft4nVki39
I notice he's just updated it in January (Kenny's good like that!). Have a look, and if you still have questions, let us know how you get on. In fact, let us know how you get on anyway. Good luck!
PS. There's one called "Editing Basics" if you're impatient to get to that (you might be, given your questions). But if you have time, and since you're a beginner as you said, I earnestly suggest watching them all in order -- just a few hours out of your life, and you'll get context and hints and tips and... well, you'll feel like a Reaper expert by the end, trust me. Well, you will be, bluntly. You can give us some tips!
Hi.
Thanks for the reply.
I got the P4 because I started my investigations into a podcast setup by asking about hardware and everyone said get the P4 for always having a backup on SD and it would be handy if I ever wanted to go mobile with the podcast.
When you say stereo, is that why there are two lines on the image I provided, as opposed to the single line I've seen on some videos? Does stereo make it more complex?
See, I really don't know much!
The problem I'm having with a lot of the video tutorials out there - and why I'd hoped to raise questions point by point - is that I'm autistic, and I'm finding so much information not relevant to where I am right now, it's blocking the small percentage of stuff I DO need from going in.
Likewise with screens shown in instructional pages, I find it hard to relate what's on their screen to what's on mine, when theirs has multiple tracks and all kinds off different windows open that are alien to me.
A pain in the ass, I know, but at least you responded, so thanks again.
I got the P4 because I started my investigations into a podcast setup by asking about hardware and everyone said get the P4 for always having a backup on SD and it would be handy if I ever wanted to go mobile with the podcast.
When you say stereo, is that why there are two lines on the image I provided, as opposed to the single line I've seen on some videos? Does stereo make it more complex?
See, I really don't know much!
The problem I'm having with a lot of the video tutorials out there - and why I'd hoped to raise questions point by point - is that I'm autistic, and I'm finding so much information not relevant to where I am right now, it's blocking the small percentage of stuff I DO need from going in.
Likewise with screens shown in instructional pages, I find it hard to relate what's on their screen to what's on mine, when theirs has multiple tracks and all kinds off different windows open that are alien to me.
A pain in the ass, I know, but at least you responded, so thanks again.
Well, I appreciate you telling us about your autism and I'm happy to try to help -- but the problem is that you expressed such little knowledge it's slightly difficult to know where to start.
I will say now that Reaper is Pro Strength software. Professional musicians and producers use it, and there is lots of professional stuff out there in the world; Spotify songs, film and TV sound tracks, and, yes, podcasts, that have all been made using it. In the right hands, the results are, obviously, excellent. That's the good news.
The bad news is that, as Pro Strength software, there is an kind of assumption that you come to Reaper with a level of Music or Audio Production knowledge to get you started. That doesn't mean necessarily you automatically know how to use Reaper itself, but that you do know some audio or music production basics so you know the kind of things you're trying to do. You need to know about music or audio production itself, and then you can learn to apply Reaper to that activity as your tool of choice. Does that make sense?
Now, it seems to me (and I don't work for them!) that Justin and the guys do still want to encourage newbies too, and for this reason they have invested in a multi-hundred page user guide (updated after every new Reaper software update -- a better record than the much bigger, better staffed DAWs often manage!), and a constantly updating and expanding set of tutorial videos made by Kenny G. You don't even have to pay for your Reaper license to get these things -- they're just freely available on the internet. Even as a product offering in total, Reaper plus all these resources at a cost of about US$60 every four or five years is STUNNING value. Stunning.
And that's why I'm trying to tell you to go to them in truth. I really want to help you, but I guarantee you I can't do a better job than Kenny G. He will tell you about Music and Audio Production using Reaper -- and that combined set of things, judging by your questions, is very much what you need to know. And I hope you accept this advice in the spirit in which it's offered, I am absolutely not trying to be unkind, I just don't know a better way to help.
I will try to answer your question though. I can see that's a stereo track for the reason you have inferred. There are two waveforms. It's valid in some cases for there to be two waveforms -- recording a synth or a drumkit or an orchestra in stereo makes a lot of sense. But a voice is a monophonic sound source -- recording it in stereo is perfectly possible, and in your case unlikely to make much difference, but for me as a sound engineer I'd roll my eyes as a mono waveform for a mono sound source makes much more sense. Then I can apply my mixing skills to it. It's no biggie, don't sweat it! It's just a bit of advice right off the bat.
So I Googled the Podcast P4 -- it's fair enough. Essentially it's a hardware audio recorder with various controls. It looks like you move audio from it into your computer using USB, either directly or via a thumb drive or something, right? Quite honestly there's nothing wrong with it -- and if it works in your studio set up, fine. I only asked as it seems slightly redundant to me to record on something else then move it to Reaper when you can record straight into Reaper. But everyone's workflow is different, and you won't find me criticising the way other people work because EVERYONE's got their own needs. No two people do this the same way (another bit of good news -- there's no such thing as doing stuff wrong, there's only the path you need to travel to discover the best way of working for you). It looks like a good bit of kit -- go for it!
I feel I've said enough. My intent has been to try to be kind and non-patronising, so I hope this has come across, and I hope it's helped. I wish you well, and do please report back here if you have further questions, and I'd also like to know how you're getting on.
Well, I appreciate you telling us about your autism and I'm happy to try to help -- but the problem is that you expressed such little knowledge it's slightly difficult to know where to start.
I will say now that Reaper is Pro Strength software. Professional musicians and producers use it, and there is lots of professional stuff out there in the world; Spotify songs, film and TV sound tracks, and, yes, podcasts, that have all been made using it. In the right hands, the results are, obviously, excellent. That's the good news.
The bad news is that, as Pro Strength software, there is an kind of assumption that you come to Reaper with a level of Music or Audio Production knowledge to get you started. That doesn't mean necessarily you automatically know how to use Reaper itself, but that you do know some audio or music production basics so you know the kind of things you're trying to do. You need to know about music or audio production itself, and then you can learn to apply Reaper to that activity as your tool of choice. Does that make sense?
Now, it seems to me (and I don't work for them!) that Justin and the guys do still want to encourage newbies too, and for this reason they have invested in a multi-hundred page user guide (updated after every new Reaper software update -- a better record than the much bigger, better staffed DAWs often manage!), and a constantly updating and expanding set of tutorial videos made by Kenny G. You don't even have to pay for your Reaper license to get these things -- they're just freely available on the internet. Even as a product offering in total, Reaper plus all these resources at a cost of about US$60 every four or five years is STUNNING value. Stunning.
And that's why I'm trying to tell you to go to them in truth. I really want to help you, but I guarantee you I can't do a better job than Kenny G. He will tell you about Music and Audio Production using Reaper -- and that combined set of things, judging by your questions, is very much what you need to know. And I hope you accept this advice in the spirit in which it's offered, I am absolutely not trying to be unkind, I just don't know a better way to help.
I will try to answer your question though. I can see that's a stereo track for the reason you have inferred. There are two waveforms. It's valid in some cases for there to be two waveforms -- recording a synth or a drumkit or an orchestra in stereo makes a lot of sense. But a voice is a monophonic sound source -- recording it in stereo is perfectly possible, and in your case unlikely to make much difference, but for me as a sound engineer I'd roll my eyes as a mono waveform for a mono sound source makes much more sense. Then I can apply my mixing skills to it. It's no biggie, don't sweat it! It's just a bit of advice right off the bat.
So I Googled the Podcast P4 -- it's fair enough. Essentially it's a hardware audio recorder with various controls. It looks like you move audio from it into your computer using USB, either directly or via a thumb drive or something, right? Quite honestly there's nothing wrong with it -- and if it works in your studio set up, fine. I only asked as it seems slightly redundant to me to record on something else then move it to Reaper when you can record straight into Reaper. But everyone's workflow is different, and you won't find me criticising the way other people work because EVERYONE's got their own needs. No two people do this the same way (another bit of good news -- there's no such thing as doing stuff wrong, there's only the path you need to travel to discover the best way of working for you). It looks like a good bit of kit -- go for it!
I feel I've said enough. My intent has been to try to be kind and non-patronising, so I hope this has come across, and I hope it's helped. I wish you well, and do please report back here if you have further questions, and I'd also like to know how you're getting on.
Hi.
Thanks again, I am going to go through all the videos you mentioned above. It can't hurt. While I'm away from Reaper, I'm not learning anything, so there's nothing lost. I'm sure the information I need will be there somewhere, I just need to find it without getting continuously overwhelmed by the amount of info.
What I need to know is a very small amount of what Reaper can do. If I split it into 3 parts, I'd say I'd gotten the hang of one part already - inline editing on a linear track. Part 2 is cutting sections on the track and arranging them in a different order, and part 3 would be adding a theme tune to play in and out with, but that can wait until I have everything else covered.
Some bits I've figured out myself, like the little <> arrows at each end of each part of the audio, which behave much like a clipping path in Adobe Illustrator. You've cut around something and can't see beyond the path parameter anymore, but pull one of the edges of that path, and you'll reveal more of the image below... like an elastic stencil - you haven't actually deleted what's underneath, only cropped it.
Well, I appreciate you telling us about your autism and I'm happy to try to help -- but the problem is that you expressed such little knowledge it's slightly difficult to know where to start.
I will say now that Reaper is Pro Strength software. Professional musicians and producers use it, and there is lots of professional stuff out there in the world; Spotify songs, film and TV sound tracks, and, yes, podcasts, that have all been made using it. In the right hands, the results are, obviously, excellent. That's the good news.
The bad news is that, as Pro Strength software, there is an kind of assumption that you come to Reaper with a level of Music or Audio Production knowledge to get you started. That doesn't mean necessarily you automatically know how to use Reaper itself, but that you do know some audio or music production basics so you know the kind of things you're trying to do. You need to know about music or audio production itself, and then you can learn to apply Reaper to that activity as your tool of choice. Does that make sense?
Now, it seems to me (and I don't work for them!) that Justin and the guys do still want to encourage newbies too, and for this reason they have invested in a multi-hundred page user guide (updated after every new Reaper software update -- a better record than the much bigger, better staffed DAWs often manage!), and a constantly updating and expanding set of tutorial videos made by Kenny G. You don't even have to pay for your Reaper license to get these things -- they're just freely available on the internet. Even as a product offering in total, Reaper plus all these resources at a cost of about US$60 every four or five years is STUNNING value. Stunning.
And that's why I'm trying to tell you to go to them in truth. I really want to help you, but I guarantee you I can't do a better job than Kenny G. He will tell you about Music and Audio Production using Reaper -- and that combined set of things, judging by your questions, is very much what you need to know. And I hope you accept this advice in the spirit in which it's offered, I am absolutely not trying to be unkind, I just don't know a better way to help.
I will try to answer your question though. I can see that's a stereo track for the reason you have inferred. There are two waveforms. It's valid in some cases for there to be two waveforms -- recording a synth or a drumkit or an orchestra in stereo makes a lot of sense. But a voice is a monophonic sound source -- recording it in stereo is perfectly possible, and in your case unlikely to make much difference, but for me as a sound engineer I'd roll my eyes as a mono waveform for a mono sound source makes much more sense. Then I can apply my mixing skills to it. It's no biggie, don't sweat it! It's just a bit of advice right off the bat.
So I Googled the Podcast P4 -- it's fair enough. Essentially it's a hardware audio recorder with various controls. It looks like you move audio from it into your computer using USB, either directly or via a thumb drive or something, right? Quite honestly there's nothing wrong with it -- and if it works in your studio set up, fine. I only asked as it seems slightly redundant to me to record on something else then move it to Reaper when you can record straight into Reaper. But everyone's workflow is different, and you won't find me criticising the way other people work because EVERYONE's got their own needs. No two people do this the same way (another bit of good news -- there's no such thing as doing stuff wrong, there's only the path you need to travel to discover the best way of working for you). It looks like a good bit of kit -- go for it!
I feel I've said enough. My intent has been to try to be kind and non-patronising, so I hope this has come across, and I hope it's helped. I wish you well, and do please report back here if you have further questions, and I'd also like to know how you're getting on.
I'm actually getting on OK with the videos. He's very good.
One thing I must have missed, the play/arm/record buttons.
I still don't quite get how they work. Is the red button on each track, just to play that track, and the big red button on the main control panel plays all the tracks together? As we established earlier, I'm not recording my audio through reaper...
One thing I must have missed, the play/arm/record buttons.
I still don't quite get how they work. Is the red button on each track, just to play that track, and the big red button on the main control panel plays all the tracks together?
Thanks.
Hello my friend, welcome to reaper!
I'm an audiobook guy and a reaper newb as well but I hope I can help a bit...
Ok "play/arm/record" buttons.
(photo attached)
basically, the big record button is what actually starts recording but ONLY when a track is armed which means the little record button on the specific track is activated.
I attached another labelled photo of the 'main' play/stop/record..etc controls (also called the 'transport bar') from the reaper manual.
As for the scrolling. I changed it because it had that stupid "natural scrolling" thing by default haha... I hate it.
so here is a short video that helped me.
I went to Actions > Show action list then typed "view: scroll horizontally reversed" and overrode the default 'horizWheel' natural scroll action.
(I have a magic mouse which is nice for my workflow because it allows me to scroll from side to side as well as up/down).
Anyways I hope this helps somewhat. Reaper can be a bit of a learning curve but don't get discouraged my friend. Best you you!
I'm actually getting on OK with the videos. He's very good.
One thing I must have missed, the play/arm/record buttons.
I still don't quite get how they work. Is the red button on each track, just to play that track, and the big red button on the main control panel plays all the tracks together? As we established earlier, I'm not recording my audio through reaper...
Thanks.
Lazimodo has had a decent crack at outlining this, but I'll have a go too.
If you're not recording Audio in Reaper, leave them all so they're NOT lit up red. You don't need them -- they're only for recording (audio or MIDI).
I'll explain them anyway. The red button on each track is a "Record ARM" button. In other words, you are telling that specific track to be ready to record, in the event you trigger recording. You can ONLY record (in real time, anyway) on a track if its "Record ARM" button is lit. You can hit (or switch off) "Record ARM" on as many tracks as you like -- you can have any combination you choose.
To actually start recording for real, you still have to hit the Record button in the main transport control. So, imagine you have a project with ten tracks. You might press "Record ARM" on five of them, and leave the other five alone. Then, if you hit Record on the main transport control, you will record ONLY on the five tracks with "Record ARM" switched on, and the other five would simply play back (or do nothing, depending on mute settings etc).
This simulates the old fashioned recording studio "tape" paradigm. Once upon a time, us old farts in real recording studios with physical hardware would be using devices such as 32 track tape recorders. If we were recording, we need to control which track (or tracks) on that tape machine we're recording to (and you really DIDN'T want to record over your singer's extraordinary vocal performance -- and trust me, that sort of stuff used to happen, and if you did it, there was no going back and recovering it!). So you would set things up on your desk etc to accomplish that -- there would be various visual indicators on a little LED display or similar which lit up if the track was armed on the tape machine. The "Record ARM" and "Record" buttons are Reaper's software implementation of that, basically.
Glad to hear you're starting a podcast and using Reaper for editing. Don't worry, there are no dumb questions here, and we've all been beginners at some point.
To rearrange sections of audio, try dragging the section to the left or right instead of up or down. That should move it horizontally and keep it on the same track. The arm/disarm button is indeed for recording, and the big red button at the top is the main record button. You can also use it to pause and stop recording.
If you're looking for some great marketing podcasts to listen to while you're editing, check out the top 10 marketing podcasts of all time. They're packed with tons of useful tips and tricks.
Last edited by Restaurateur; 03-13-2023 at 07:07 AM.
Glad to hear you're starting a podcast and using Reaper for editing. Don't worry, there are no dumb questions here, and we've all been beginners at some point.
Thank you, friend. Trust me, if there ever was someone to push the boundaries of what could be considered a stupid question - I'm your Huckleberry!
Hello my friend, welcome to reaper!
I'm an audiobook guy and a reaper newb as well but I hope I can help a bit...
Ok "play/arm/record" buttons.
(photo attached)
basically, the big record button is what actually starts recording but ONLY when a track is armed which means the little record button on the specific track is activated.
I attached another labelled photo of the 'main' play/stop/record..etc controls (also called the 'transport bar') from the reaper manual.
As for the scrolling. I changed it because it had that stupid "natural scrolling" thing by default haha... I hate it.
so here is a short video that helped me.
I went to Actions > Show action list then typed "view: scroll horizontally reversed" and overrode the default 'horizWheel' natural scroll action.
(I have a magic mouse which is nice for my workflow because it allows me to scroll from side to side as well as up/down).
Anyways I hope this helps somewhat. Reaper can be a bit of a learning curve but don't get discouraged my friend. Best you you!
Hi. Thanks for this, I'm chewing my way through all the responses. I'll have some actual audio to practice on soon, so no doubt I'll be back with more questions!
Lazimodo has had a decent crack at outlining this, but I'll have a go too.
If you're not recording Audio in Reaper, leave them all so they're NOT lit up red. You don't need them -- they're only for recording (audio or MIDI).
I'll explain them anyway. The red button on each track is a "Record ARM" button. In other words, you are telling that specific track to be ready to record, in the event you trigger recording. You can ONLY record (in real time, anyway) on a track if its "Record ARM" button is lit. You can hit (or switch off) "Record ARM" on as many tracks as you like -- you can have any combination you choose.
To actually start recording for real, you still have to hit the Record button in the main transport control. So, imagine you have a project with ten tracks. You might press "Record ARM" on five of them, and leave the other five alone. Then, if you hit Record on the main transport control, you will record ONLY on the five tracks with "Record ARM" switched on, and the other five would simply play back (or do nothing, depending on mute settings etc).
This simulates the old fashioned recording studio "tape" paradigm. Once upon a time, us old farts in real recording studios with physical hardware would be using devices such as 32 track tape recorders. If we were recording, we need to control which track (or tracks) on that tape machine we're recording to (and you really DIDN'T want to record over your singer's extraordinary vocal performance -- and trust me, that sort of stuff used to happen, and if you did it, there was no going back and recovering it!). So you would set things up on your desk etc to accomplish that -- there would be various visual indicators on a little LED display or similar which lit up if the track was armed on the tape machine. The "Record ARM" and "Record" buttons are Reaper's software implementation of that, basically.
Thanks for this. I'm having a dry run over the next few days with some actual audio, so no doubt I'll be back with a million more questions! :-)
What I've found is that your approach works with Reaper. In that you kind of have to know WHAT you need to do next and seek that info either from Kenny or the forum.
If you come in new, there are TOO many right-click options to make sense of it all, and if you try to watch ALL of Kenny's vids you get bombarded with too much info to take in all at once.
So yes, ask some questions to get you through, and then you will get a little further and need to learn a new thing, rinse and repeat
keep us posted, and eventually, share your podcasts?
__________________
Have a GOOD time....ALL the time !
What I've found is that your approach works with Reaper. In that you kind of have to know WHAT you need to do next and seek that info either from Kenny or the forum.
If you come in new, there are TOO many right-click options to make sense of it all, and if you try to watch ALL of Kenny's vids you get bombarded with too much info to take in all at once.
So yes, ask some questions to get you through, and then you will get a little further and need to learn a new thing, rinse and repeat
keep us posted, and eventually, share your podcasts?
Of course! I'll definitely share the podcast when it's ready.
I feel like I'm sort of there with what I'm doing in some areas, and sort of not in others.
At the end of the day, I'm not gonna be using a fraction of the features that Reaper is cabable of, I have to just not get snow blinded by stuff I don't need.
All I'll be doing is cutting out sections of rubbish, and unwanted noise, and swapping the order of parts around to create a better flowing narrative.
One thing I am concerned about, is if my Podtrak P4 records mine and my guest's audio as two separate tracks, bot letting them get away from each other as i edit.
In my mind, what I plan to do is use regions as a first, broad stroke edit, to keep all section elements together as I swap them around, and then go through each region with a fine toothed comb, taking out bits I don't want, noises etc, and then right at the very end, once everything is cleaned up and in order, go through the whole podcast and add my music and sound effects....
What I've found is that your approach works with Reaper. In that you kind of have to know WHAT you need to do next and seek that info either from Kenny or the forum.
If you come in new, there are TOO many right-click options to make sense of it all, and if you try to watch ALL of Kenny's vids you get bombarded with too much info to take in all at once.
So yes, ask some questions to get you through, and then you will get a little further and need to learn a new thing, rinse and repeat
keep us posted, and eventually, share your podcasts?
OK I already have another question.
I'm getting to grips with it pretty well. I did about 3 hours practice on some dummy audio today and I'm confident I could step up to working on the actual podcast audio - as soon as we record it.
One thing that I'm struggling with is, when you have to zoom way up close to perform very fine edits, what I hit play to test, because I'm zoomed up close, the track shoots off like a rocket.
Is there a better way to manage editing up close, like maybe some kind of setting where it slows playback as you zoom in so you don't have to do it manually...
Or alternatively, perhaps a way of locking the work area view to restrict it to only work on the area of the track visible on screen?
Thanks.
*UPDATE
How do you copy & paste back-to-back? Like with your audio track to go underneath your podcast... say it's 4mins long and you want to repeat it right along your track timeline...
At the moment I'm copying and placing it next-to... then dragging it back to the end of the previous copy, but I know there must be a way to be like.... paste, paste, paste, paste...
Thanks
Last edited by nightofjoycafe; 03-17-2023 at 03:08 AM.
Well, I appreciate you telling us about your autism and I'm happy to try to help -- but the problem is that you expressed such little knowledge it's slightly difficult to know where to start.
I will say now that Reaper is Pro Strength software. Professional musicians and producers use it, and there is lots of professional stuff out there in the world; Spotify songs, film and TV sound tracks, and, yes, podcasts, that have all been made using it. In the right hands, the results are, obviously, excellent. That's the good news.
The bad news is that, as Pro Strength software, there is an kind of assumption that you come to Reaper with a level of Music or Audio Production knowledge to get you started. That doesn't mean necessarily you automatically know how to use Reaper itself, but that you do know some audio or music production basics so you know the kind of things you're trying to do. You need to know about music or audio production itself, and then you can learn to apply Reaper to that activity as your tool of choice. Does that make sense?
Now, it seems to me (and I don't work for them!) that Justin and the guys do still want to encourage newbies too, and for this reason they have invested in a multi-hundred page user guide (updated after every new Reaper software update -- a better record than the much bigger, better staffed DAWs often manage!), and a constantly updating and expanding set of tutorial videos made by Kenny G. You don't even have to pay for your Reaper license to get these things -- they're just freely available on the internet. Even as a product offering in total, Reaper plus all these resources at a cost of about US$60 every four or five years is STUNNING value. Stunning.
And that's why I'm trying to tell you to go to them in truth. I really want to help you, but I guarantee you I can't do a better job than Kenny G. He will tell you about Music and Audio Production using Reaper -- and that combined set of things, judging by your questions, is very much what you need to know. And I hope you accept this advice in the spirit in which it's offered, I am absolutely not trying to be unkind, I just don't know a better way to help.
I will try to answer your question though. I can see that's a stereo track for the reason you have inferred. There are two waveforms. It's valid in some cases for there to be two waveforms -- recording a synth or a drumkit or an orchestra in stereo makes a lot of sense. But a voice is a monophonic sound source -- recording it in stereo is perfectly possible, and in your case unlikely to make much difference, but for me as a sound engineer I'd roll my eyes as a mono waveform for a mono sound source makes much more sense. Then I can apply my mixing skills to it. It's no biggie, don't sweat it! It's just a bit of advice right off the bat.
So I Googled the Podcast P4 -- it's fair enough. Essentially it's a hardware audio recorder with various controls. It looks like you move audio from it into your computer using USB, either directly or via a thumb drive or something, right? Quite honestly there's nothing wrong with it -- and if it works in your studio set up, fine. I only asked as it seems slightly redundant to me to record on something else then move it to Reaper when you can record straight into Reaper. But everyone's workflow is different, and you won't find me criticising the way other people work because EVERYONE's got their own needs. No two people do this the same way (another bit of good news -- there's no such thing as doing stuff wrong, there's only the path you need to travel to discover the best way of working for you). It looks like a good bit of kit -- go for it!
I feel I've said enough. My intent has been to try to be kind and non-patronising, so I hope this has come across, and I hope it's helped. I wish you well, and do please report back here if you have further questions, and I'd also like to know how you're getting on.
Hi.
I'm just mixing our first recording and have a couple of questions.
The save function is completely flummoxing me. As I finish a section, I'd like to save it off as its own WAV, as a solid block - connecting all the cut pieces, but leaving the spaces as real-timepauses.... how do I do that?
Also, as I'm cutting pieces out, I know there is a setting which, when you delete a section, it snaps the next piece automatically back to the edge of the last piece.
I don't exactly want to do that, but is it possible to select the remaining section and hit a keyboard shortcut to snap it back? I only ever need it for when I remove really large sections, smaller cuts I'm happy dragging around by hand.
If you have looping set to ON for that item (I think that is the default), you should be able to just click on the right edge of the item and drag and it will loop out a second and third copy etc. of the original audio.
Quote:
Originally Posted by nightofjoycafe
The save function is completely flummoxing me. As I finish a section, I'd like to save it off as its own WAV, as a solid block - connecting all the cut pieces, but leaving the spaces as real-timepauses.... how do I do that?
That is called Gluing. Select all the pieces you want glued together, right click on one of them and go to glue.
Quote:
Originally Posted by nightofjoycafe
Also, as I'm cutting pieces out, I know there is a setting which, when you delete a section, it snaps the next piece automatically back to the edge of the last piece.
That is a setting called ripple editing. It is on the toolbar.
Quote:
Originally Posted by nightofjoycafe
I don't exactly want to do that, but is it possible to select the remaining section and hit a keyboard shortcut to snap it back? I only ever need it for when I remove really large sections, smaller cuts I'm happy dragging around by hand.
There is a script for that in Reapack called:
amagalma_Close gaps (remove space) between selected items.lua
If you have looping set to ON for that item (I think that is the default), you should be able to just click on the right edge of the item and drag and it will loop out a second and third copy etc. of the original audio.
That is called Gluing. Select all the pieces you want glued together, right click on one of them and go to glue.
That is a setting called ripple editing. It is on the toolbar.
There is a script for that in Reapack called:
amagalma_Close gaps (remove space) between selected items.lua
OK thanks, I'm tackling these one by one... so, I've got the hang of Gluing. Really simple, thanks.
What I want to do with the pasting thing, is say I put a music effects track below my main track - where you can add points and drag them up and down to adjust the volume.... say the sample file is way shorter than the part of the main track I want to use it with, so I want to copy it back-to-back until it reaches a length i'm happy with...
Is there a shortcut where I copy the sample piece and then just hit paste-paste-paste-paste-paste until it's the length I need?
Right now I'm copying the piece, clicking to the right, pasting, and dragging the edge back to meet the last part....
Is there a shortcut where I copy the sample piece and then just hit paste-paste-paste-paste-paste until it's the length I need?
That is what looping is for:
If you have looping set to ON for that item (I think that is the default), you should be able to just click on the right edge of the item and drag and it will loop out a second and third copy etc. of the original audio.
That is what looping is for:
If you have looping set to ON for that item (I think that is the default), you should be able to just click on the right edge of the item and drag and it will loop out a second and third copy etc. of the original audio.
That is what looping is for:
If you have looping set to ON for that item (I think that is the default), you should be able to just click on the right edge of the item and drag and it will loop out a second and third copy etc. of the original audio.
Sorry, I actually had another question I forgot...
What are your thoughts on Levelator? My recording is a bit choppy in parts with it's erratic highs & lows.... I know some people use Levelator.
If you do recommend it, at what stage do you use it? I've got the audio chopped up and edited where I'm happy to be, next comes adding music and effects. Do I use Levelator now or at the end once music has been added?
Ah, ok, so I can add a plugin to Reaper that does a similar job... but I guess that would be something I'd have in place before I started the edit? I guess if it's something I'd try to use at the end it isn't much different from the Levelator thing...
I've finished adding music and effects now. All done.
I just watched Kenny's video about outputting a master mix, but there were a couple of things he didn't touch on, from the render to file window.
For non-musical podcasts, are the save settings OK right out of the box? I notice you can change stuff like sample rate, bit depth - from their defaults. Is that for more advanced content than my standard two person conversation podcast?
I also think Ive been editing it in stereo. Should I output in mono?
My next questions I guess will be about publishing - which will be another googling session, and I suppose it will answer some of my next reaper queries, like which type of file is best to output.... and will it need compressing to get below a certain size limit according to the hosting platform's demands (it's currently 1.8 gb
I've finished adding music and effects now. All done.
Congratulations!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by nightofjoycafe
For non-musical podcasts, are the save settings OK right out of the box? I notice you can change stuff like sample rate, bit depth - from their defaults. Is that for more advanced content than my standard two person conversation podcast?
I also think Ive been editing it in stereo. Should I output in mono?
My advice would be to look to the help section of whichever platform you will be publishing to. They each have their own requirements/suggestions.
It's used by thousands of podcasters around the world. So maybe by you too.
PS:
There's a workflow for audio normalisation in Ultraschall that brings the audio to standard broadcasting-volume(AMP-Workflow). So no need for levelator, which is outdated anyways.
What I've found is that your approach works with Reaper. In that you kind of have to know WHAT you need to do next and seek that info either from Kenny or the forum.
If you come in new, there are TOO many right-click options to make sense of it all, and if you try to watch ALL of Kenny's vids you get bombarded with too much info to take in all at once.
So yes, ask some questions to get you through, and then you will get a little further and need to learn a new thing, rinse and repeat
keep us posted, and eventually, share your podcasts?
OK well I'm said I'd be back to share the finished podcast, so here we go.
It's hosted on Buzzsprout, but rather than link there, could you try just searching Reclining Pair on Apple or Spotify please? If you listen on there it feels more like it's being seen. It'll eventually turn up on Google too... just takes longer.
Alternatively, links below.
It's an hour, and it's very northern British humour, and TV reviews...
Went and searched it on Spotify and listened to a bit.
Nice that you pulled it off and published your first podcast. I'm not much of a podcast fan but listened since following this thread.
Maybe a pop filter would help in a couple of spots. Might just be the difficulty of having US ears. Just attempting to provide some constructive feedback. Overall sounded good.
Went and searched it on Spotify and listened to a bit.
Nice that you pulled it off and published your first podcast. I'm not much of a podcast fan but listened since following this thread.
Maybe a pop filter would help in a couple of spots. Might just be the difficulty of having US ears. Just attempting to provide some constructive feedback. Overall sounded good.
Reaper Podcasting absolute beginner
Linear Mode
