How To Record Your Band Live 

This is a great tutorial although it did feel a little misleading. I only clicked because I thought the thumbnail title said “Record your bard”.

I’ve had my Zoomh6 for 8years now and I agree one of the best for film makers and audio engineers. Literally can take it everywhere.. Great video on recording audio for bands. I’m from Portland Oregon

Dude. That outdoor jam made me wanna jamm ! Awesome stuff I just ordered an H6 seems so versatile! Like a must have for any musician or content creator of any kind. Thanks for the video!

Dug that opening jam.

Thank you! Very helpful and as a beginner, it was very easy to understand

Awesome tool that zoom man, cooking a new project and this is the way to go Great vid as always Jason Saludos desde Puerto Rico! 💪🏼🔥🤘🏼

Back from The Bay State Thanks so much for this! I’m between projects at the moment, but am looking into home recording to shop my chops around the intergoogles! This looks like a great catch-all! Thanks again, Jason! Cheers!

thank you! you answered all my questions about H6 with this!

about to use one of these tonight for the first time to record demos. thanks!

Great content! This is exactly what I was looking for.

Thanks bro, this was really helpful

Watching from SA. This was helpful. Big thank you 🙏

Good stuff man! I literally just got the Zoom H5 over the weekend. Used it in church on Sunday so far, still figuring it out really but so far so good

Realy helpful! Good vibes:)

Pittsburgh checking in. Great info Jason, your setup is remarkably similar to the way my band records. Only difference is that we don’t mic the snare separately. The overhead SM 58 seems to get the snare and cymbals pretty well. We got pretty good results with 4 mics total, ad we are just a 2 piece, drum, guitar and vocal. I’ve been considering one of those Zoom recorders, so this was a particularly interesting video for me. Great job as always!!! 🤘🏼🤘🏼🤘🏼

Thanks for this video, there's not enough of this specific material available. I also been recording live jam room recording for quite a while . I've was using a H4 when they first came out with two 57's up in the middle of the room. The biggest reason for this was the frequencies captured were closer to the finished recording. Because these recording are essentially meant to be passed around to the members in the band swiftly for reference, this technique creates a more standard recording. When the built in stereo mics where used the stereo field was consistent but the low end had to be taken out to not bog your car stereo or whatever playback device the listener will use. This isn't a big deal but once you have to process every jam individually down the road every recording has a different sound and volume and hi pass. For me dealing with these recordings as sketches, some will never be used some will prove very important reference for future material.

From Kentucky brother . Appreciate the info. Just got started with some guys last night and we were brainstorming on how to get some decent live recordings so we can listen back and polish up some tracks and all that. This will be useful . Thanks.

Thanks, I needed this

Hi watching from South Africa .. Your vid really helped thank you ...

Very helpful… THANK YOU 🙏

Hey Jason this is awesome! Thank u for going into more detail about this. I was very curious how you recorded everything from your 30 minute how to mix live video. My drummer and I are currently figuring out how to record live ourselves. I recently received an analog mixer and using the outputs, we can plug it into an audio interface to pick up the signals. The only problem is that we can’t separate the tracks for mixing. I think a zoom h6 is in my future. Thank you for uploading!

Greetings from Hungary. I am not a musician, nor do I record music. I clicked because of the H6 recorder in your hand. I love this machine. By now I have a few more recorders, but the H6 is a classic. I liked your video.

This was the defining video in my purchase

Awesome video!!! My band uses a Zoom H4n to record our rehearsal and it works great - would definitely go with the H6 for the extra tracks and to separate the tracks. The mics on these things are awesome and super easy to use 🤘

Very cool 😎 information.

Have used a Zoom H6 for several years. Best portable recorder I have ever owned...

Just bought a Zoom H8 in London, returning to Brazil in some days. Can't wait to rehearsal and make some tests!

Thanx a lot! 😎

Great video and exactly what I was looking for. You should definitely gives us a tutorial on how you would edit the audio from the zoom h6. Definitely subscribing.

Another handy live tool is the TC electronic WireTap. If you don't like how the mic captured one of the instruments or if you had an issue with an amp or your tone, you can replay your performance at home through whatever you were using live and basically have a chance to re-record it.

Great video Jason! Jeremiah from Houston checking in. I have been using Zoom multi track recorders going back to 2006. I produced all my early recordings with my Zoom MRS12-66. I still have it in storage in fact. These days I track most of guitars in Pro Tools using a Scarlett 18i20 interface. Unless I am working mobile and I use an IPad with a Behringer U-PHORIA UMC1820 interface using the Cubasis 3 app. I can track up to eight channels pretty much anywhere with that rig. The same app and rig can be run from my IPhone.

Thank You 🙏 for all the knowledge. I’m from India.

Great video. The band sounds great too. I was just about to buy the ZOOM Q8 for the video function and 2 XLR mics ... Its so great i can now just use my phone and the H6 with 6 mic inputs :-) thanks for the great video.

Very helpful recording my band with the same device on Monday

I was using a Tascam 4 track tape recorder for years, I loved that thing, lend it to a friend and never saw it again. I have been debating on getting a new multi track recorder like that Boss one or a Tascam with the cd burner type. I don't really want to dive into the computer type recorders. I might have to look into this one. Thank you for this video. Good stuff.

thx a lot! Sm58 as an overhead for drums I will consider. Im using a H4 now but for a sixperson band I need to think of new ways to record.

I bought a zoom recorder right before the quarantine, can‘t wait to get back to band rehearsal to test it!

Great video

You guys sound awesome :) Heavy AF...

Jorge here from méxico. Thank you Jason for this practical video. I also record my band with a Zoom H4n and a Canon Rebel T7.

Seems like the right setup for budget

This is the most helpful video I've found talking about the Zoom h6 gor live music recording. I picked one up for a project that I'm shooting next week as a bit of a demo/pitch video. Starting out with just a guitar. Do you just position your mic in front of the amp ?

I usually just use my iPhone, but I may have to upgrade to this system. Thanks for the knowledge!

Hey man - great video and thank you. One quick question if I may - in your set up, how do you rig to PA to hear your vocals over the sound of the other instruments or what runs through the PA and how is this all set up to allow it to record as well? Whenever I have tried this with my band, I have taken everything into the PA and then direct outs from the PA into the H6 (or sometimes the Zoom R24) for more inputs. That allows us to both hear our rehearsal at the time and for me to mix back home after the practice session.

Hey, great video 😊 we were wondering if you've ever tried to bypass plugging in instruments and connecting the device to a mixer via USB cable?

We record a lot of our live shows using the ZoomH6. Great little piece of gear.

Kie from London, we use an old Zoom with the mics on top, it's good, but the H6 opens the door to more options, for recording jams, and doing over dubs for a potenital relase. Great work as always, thank you for sharing.

thank you- Just got the H6 and looking for different ways to record live

Great video! Super informative! I’d definitely consider using a zoom recorder for certain settings now that I know the inputs record to separate tracks! We record our live shows using the Behringer XR18. It’s serving as our front of house mixer, our monitor mixer, and our interface to my MacBook where I’m recording into Logic Pro X! It’s a great system too!

This sounds absolutely awesome! I've been trying to record a blackened doom band with the Zoom H8, but no matter how low I turn the gain (well under -12db), pads on, pads off, I'm getting constant digital clipping on everything that's close mic'd. Using new 57s, Beta 52A on the kick, cables are all good, etc. X/Y and overheads have no clipping. Just the close-mic'd stuff: P

Awesome! Thanks from Duncan BC. How did you monitor your vocals with that set up?

Thank you for the tips! From Singapore. I was looking at the H8 but H6 seems much more affordable.

the last channel i expected to come across during my search for portable recorders lol

Hi from Wellington, New Zealand Jason, and thanks for another interesting video. I've been using my Android phone's built in voice recorder and splitting our two hour rehearsals with Lexis Audio Editor. The sound quality isn't good enough for anyone outside the band (the bass guitar especially never comes through well), but it is super quick to set up and the recordings are helpful as a reference/reminder even at that quality. I'm interested in multitrack recording for the reasons you give, but time is always of the essence. How long do you spend setting up all the mics and levels? I have a JamHub Tracker MT16 (8 channels, $50 used), and I modified my 6 channel mixer to give me the line level outputs it needs from each channel, but it's sat in a drawer because I don't want to burden my band mates with the extra setup time. Our drummer has an electronic kit, so that should simplify things a little if I do get around to multi track recording.

I have an analog/digital hybrid 48 channel in home studio, never had a problem recording jam sessions.

Nice Jason. I have zoom Q8. Zoom makes some good gizmos.

I record onto a zoom H5. That thing is my baby. I love that it has Separate tracks 1 stereo 2 Mono 4-tracks I like to ask since I didn't know that the zoom 6 had six tracks apparently with that module you're talking about that gives you 2 extra line in's can you record all six tracks separately?

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️🔥🔥🔥🔥from Australia..

Do you know if you can record vocals through the Zoom H6 (on its own track) but while performing live also? Loved the video and your band!

Awesome video. Exactly what I was looking for. But how were you able to connect the feedbacks? Monitor Speakers, Sub....

Got a Zoom H4N. Still trying to figure out how to use it to record my band, then there's Reaper (or Audacity), etc. Your video helps, tho! Thanks!

Hello, I am new to audio recording, but I also have purchased the H6. I have written dozens of original songs and I would like to start a RU-vid channel to present them to the world. There is a large knowledge base (learning curve) to accomplish this. My primary instrument is the acoustic guitar, but I also play piano and I am learning keyboards. The H6 seemed to be the best option if I had a keyboard, a guitar, vocals and so forth that I want to record. With all of the accessories, I will spend around $500.00 to get up and running. I just got my H6 and I am researching how to use it effectively. Thanks for your video.

The clip qt 5 mins has me convinced lol that fuckin bass sounds do good

This is one of the only helpful videos I’ve seen on this, (as I am not tech savvy.) So I actually just plan on running a beat maker or the beat on a keyboard through an amp for the drums, I have a small guitar amp which I loop on, vocals, and a bass. Can anyone tell me of some cheap condenser mics that would work well for that?

I used the Zoom H2 for many many years, and, although that only has one internal microphone, it is rather a good little unit. I agree they produce great quality results. In fact we used them also for live recording, and interviews at the BBC, which I think says quite a lot about the broadcast level quality they are capable of delivering.

What would you recommend when it comes to hooking up the H6 to a mixer in a concert to capture all the channels?

Hey there! Great content. May I ask what mic set up do you use in a standard drum mix recording set up?

Wow that's interesting what your saying about using a 58 mic instead of condenser mic. I'll try that thx

Can you use this recorder with mixer. Is there any line, mike feature?

Would you recommend using a microphone splitter for recording live shows? I’m in a 7 piece -Guitar -Harmonica -Bass -Clarinet -Percussion -Drum Set -Vocals I wanna be able to send our sound out to the PA’s and still get crystal clear recordings greetings from CT!

New Sub... via Metal Head Hippie! Cool video! 😎🎸🤘

I can’t decide between Zoom H6 or Sound devices PreMix 6 ii . What’s the pros and cons?

I went and used my H4N Pro before. 4 piece but we only have 3 live players so the drums are prerecorded. Me on bass, jerry on guitar then the stereo mic capsule captured the sound coming off the speakers for drums and vocals. Wasn't terrible but my F8N is much better suited to the job.

nice video; hi from Australia. What would you do if the band you want to record (with their permission) is playing live at a club?

Could you let us know which microphones you use with the H6?

Hi do you use some kind of attenuator or di box?

Whats the best option today to record?

If we give record from like in into dslr...will the quality differ??

Can the podtrak P4 be used for the same purpose?

How do you supply electricity to all the amplifiers in nature?

Am worching from Germany,

Checking in from Chicago I just Got the H6 but I meant to buy the H8 but after seeing your video I may only need the H6 but I was curious can you do any mixing directly on the unit or do you have to download it and do that on the computer because I know on the H8 you can do it on the unit itself.

Watching from Iran. How about audio capture on instagram or RU-vid lives? Does zoom h6 connect to the phone camera while the band plays and catch the audio by itself instead of the phone mic?

When recording vocals live the mic will pick up everything so how do you eliminate everything else except vocals?

Hej, watching from Germany. Maybe I missed it...but did you record the band having plugged in all the instruments/mics and then ...? Plugged in the zoom into a monitor?

what was your method to apply vocal effects to the live vocals before going into the zoom?

So I'm looking to go from my mixer to the Zoom and from the Zoom to my speakers. Does the Zoom allow for that?

I wish you would have shown how though... like plug things in and set it up.

Can someone tell me if and how different instruments show up as separate tracks in the software to work with? I can't seem to find the specific answer to this.

Hello from KY again! I don’t currently play in a band, so I record each instrument separately using a focusrite Scarlett->iPad. Being in a rural area really makes it hard to put a band together unless you’re only wanting to do classic rock covers & stuff like that. Anyway I’ve really enjoyed all of the informative vids you’ve been posting lately, so thanks! Have you ever considered putting your recordings on Apple Music/Spotify? I would totally jam out to the song from this vid while driving to work haha✌️

I am newbie to recording. I have 5 person band....vocalist, two guitars, bass and drums. It sounds like I would need a recording device with 7 SLR inputs if we use 3 mics on drummer. It doesn't sound like the Zoom you are using would work.

How does the recorder catch music from a speaker?

I use Zoom H1 for everything. I really like it. And it's really cheap.

I would have to disagree that "it's not that difficult" to mix video and audio of a performance that are captured in separate devices. I am still learning about this problem, but when I tried this with my band, the video and audio got so out of sync about halfway through a 3-hour recording that it was unusable. My setup consisted of direct audio recorded out of my Yamaha MG10XU mixer into a new Quicktime audio recording on my mac. The other audio and video that I wanted to mix with that came from a simple iPod touch video recording. Turns out they didn't sync up well at all when I tried to mix them together in iMovie. It has something to do with differences in sampling rates, but I'm not a video production expert, so how am I supposed to know that? Curious how you have addressed this for longer shoots.

..the vocals...so do you mic a pa speaker?

how do you output live while recoding. probably not gonna reply as lots of unanswered questions in this comment section

Can you mix it when you done recording?

How do you set up the cables?

What can I just press record and put in middle of the room? Some kind of voice recorder?

Although this is a great video, it is not helpful to me or anyone in my situation. I am a gigging musician in a busy urban environment. Here in NYC and Long Island; we are usually rushed on and off the stage in between acts or after the dinner crowd. I do not have time to independently mic all of our instruments. I bought the Zoom 6 to quickly and easily record without having to hire a sound person to wire into the establishment's sound board. They hate when I do that so I can't ask that anymore. I wish you spoke more about the xy condenser mic and the limiter settings to avoid clipping.