Video Production

Gear & Studio Setup

To do certain things in your videos, you need certain gear & software. Some of it is even free. Here we'll discuss the bare essentials, along with some higher-end options you can go with (or upgrade to later).

You don't need the most amazing video studio setup to make great videos, but you DO need SOME equipment and software. Here are the 3 essentials:

For just doing Zoom lessons, if you have a decent mic (like the Blue Yeti above), then just having your amp in the room near you can be all you need. It may not be pristine sound, but it should be able to be clear enough.

However, if you want crystal clear audio for your guitar in videos, the best sound is to route your guitar audio so it goes directly from an amp modeling plugin to the sound source.

This is far more complicated than it should be, however, and requires several software programs and a recording interface: 

This is exactly the setup I used for my ShredMentor LIVE! series from 2021 to 2023, and it continues to be one of the main ways I record videos when I want the audio to be crystal clear right out of the box.

That said, lately, my audio setup is a little less complicated, but still more elaborate than most people's setup might be.

I have 2 computers involved:

This is very similar to close-miking an amp, but is admittedly a little lower quality than the direct audio approach using Voicemeeter I described above. It's MUCH easier to set up, though, IF you happen to have 2 computers.

Also, you have to do an audio check each time before you begin recording your full video, to make sure that the guitar volume and your voice volume are at the right levels, since you're likely to turn your audio computer's volume up or down constantly over time, so each time you set out to record a new video, it will probably have been changed.

But, that said, although the audio quality is SLIGHTLY diminished using this method, this allows me to run various audio setups on my desktop computer without complicated configurations. 

Whether I'm playing a simple guitar amp sim, playing it along to beats and backing tracks in my browser, or playing back audio in my DAW, all it has to do is come out of the computer speakers and the mic will pick it up, so the flexibility that this gives me is worth the trade-off.

Now for SUPER-POLISHED guitar tone, the best possible way is to record into a DAW while you record the video. (DAW = Digital Audio Workstation; this is multi-track recording software like Reaper, Cubase, Studio One, Pro Tools, Ableton, etc.)

You can record your voice AND the guitar at the same time (using an XLR mic instead of a USB mic; the Blue Yeti won't work here), and just have them on separate tracks in your DAW, or you can just record your guitar parts into the DAW, and use the USB mic to record your voice directly into OBS Studio.

Whichever way you do it, it's best if you wear headphones while recording your video (use in-ear earbuds if you don't want it too noticeable that you're wearing headphones). This way only the unplugged guitar is audible in the room and doesn't interfere with your voice being audible.

This lets you do a full professional mix on your guitar parts, and make them sound perfect even after the performance because you're only recording dry DI guitar parts, and running them through amp modeling plugins, so you can change your sound completely if you want to later.

However, this method FORCES you to import and align the guitar audio with the video's mic audio every time, so the video editing process becomes slightly more complicated, but not by much.

This is the method I used for my 201 ShredMentor Challenge of the Day videos, and the guitar tone was definitely clear and audible, and I was able to include accompaniment like beats and other instruments as needed for each idea, so the DAW approach gives you maximum musical flexibility.

Finally, for the simplest Barebones setup, you can simply put your amp close to where you are sitting and adjust the amp volume to match your voice volume (again, a quick test recording beforehand will be needed). You can use a compressor on the final volume after the fact to get the volume more even throughout the video if desired.

Now, for the Barebones Plus configuration, if you want to still keep this setup simple, but get more control over separating the amp volume from your voice so you can adjust the balance later, get a SECOND MIC and position that in front of your amp, and use your first mic for your voice.

The great thing with OBS is that you can record multiple audio sources & adjust OBS's settings so that the mics record onto multiple audio tracks, giving you more flexibility later.

One important thing in video is your background. Generally, there are 3 main options if you want a professional look:

If you use a green screen, it's important to light it evenly so that it's a consistent shade of green across the entire camera frame. We'll cover more about green screens in this lesson.

Having some decent photography lighting is kind of a must here. You're setting up a business specifically where you're going to be on camera all the time, and you need to be taken seriously. 

People don't just pay for "lessons," they pay for an experience. Give them one. 

It doesn't have to cost a fortune, either. 

Beyond that, I generally just have a single lamp off to one side providing some gentle, warm lighting, and that's it. 

If you're not using a green screen, a lot of people in the YouTube growth niche recommend having one visible source of light in the background, like a single lamp, lava lamp, artsy light fixture, computer monitor, etc. It's not actually lighting your scene, but rather adding slight interest to your otherwise dark background and adding depth to your scene. 

In general, your background should be darker than you in order to keep you in focus, much like a spotlight on a performer on stage. They can SEE your background, but that contrast between you, the well-lit subject, and the background, helps you stand out and makes the scene look balanced and pleasing to the eye. 

Since I'm using a green screen, I don't bother with that, since I'm either using the lesson content itself as my background, or some slightly-blurred AI-generated recording studio image (so that I'm in focus).

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