A Singing Studio In Your Pocket
Every singer should be recording their voice on their smartphone. It’s simple to get started.
There are so many fantastic reasons to record on your smartphone, from rehearsing, creating demo tracks, sharing with friends and even making content for an audience to enjoy. By the way, do check out MIDINation for software and gear to produce better music.
But what app should you use?
Start Here for Simple
Let’s start off with the fastest way to record your voice on Android and iOS, iPhone or Samsung, etc. These may not be the apps to use for making hit songs, but they are the easiest way to get your ideas onto your smart phone.
on Android: Samsung Voice Recorder app
Samsung Voice Recorder – The best thing about Samsung Voice Recorder for Android: simply no ads. It’s simple to use. It’s actually very similar to the built-in voice recorder app on iOS. There are many other good voice recorder apps on Android, but almost all of them contain ads unless you pay for a subscription or one-time fee. Why bother? Start simple and cheap.
It shows a waveform view which is very helpful for recording vocal snippets. You can also change the recording quality settings, which isn’t offered on all recorders.
on Apple iOS: Voice Memos app
Apple Voice Memos – Apple iOS devices ship with Voice Memos pre-installed. It’s possible to delete the app, so if you’re missing the app, search for it on the App Store. Apple’s app is straight forward and works with no issues. No need to buy another app or put up with ads.
I Want to Make a Hit!
Well, maybe you’re not interested in having a hit. But, many singers are interested in making a song. Making a song requires some level of multitrack recording. At minimum you need to be able to have a backing track to sing along with while you record your vocal. The following apps are a good place to start for exactly that purpose.
on Android: WaveEditor or FL Studio Mobile
WaveEditor for Android™ Audio Recorder & Editor and FL Studio Mobile – Both these apps support multi-track recording and editing. Wave Editor is more focused on recording, mixing and editing. Whereas FL Studio Mobile also supports built in instruments and loops allowing you to create a track from scratch. But for recording over a backing track either app will do.
Both apps support external microphones via USB. So any popular USB microphone from companies like Blue, Shure, Audio Technica or Samson will work.
on Apple iOS: Garage Band or FL Studio Mobile
Apple Garage Band and FL Studio Mobile – Garage Band is a staple for mobile music production. Similar to FL Studio Mobile, it offers multi-track recording, mixing as well as instruments and loops. Getting proficient with Garage Band also helps with the introduction to Logic Pro. FL Studio Mobile is also a great app with similar functionality to Garage Band.
Both apps works with external microphones, although on Apple devices you often need to use a dongle to convert from USB to Lightning connection.
Read More About Producing Music Online
Singdaptive shared some of their tips on apps for recording in a Expert Roundup article on Porch.com with other experts – Expert Advise on How to Produce Music Online. Check it Out!
Kevin Alexander
Kevin Alexander is CEO and co-founder of Singdaptive, bringing his past experience as CEO of the singing technology company TC-Helicon, as well as live sound, recording and love of music. Recently, he has been a university instructor in Multimedia Learning and is helping to envision an exciting future with technology at the research firm Kinsol.io