GarageBand FOR DUMmIES‰ by Bob “Dr. Mac”LeVitus GarageBand FOR DUMmIES‰ GarageBand FOR DUMmIES‰ by Bob “Dr. Mac”LeVitus GarageBand For Dummies® Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc. 111 River Street Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774 www.wiley.com Copyright © 2004 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published simultaneously in Canada No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permis- sion of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, (978) 750-8400, fax (978) 646-8600. 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Library of Congress Control Number: 2004104563 ISBN: 0-7645-7323-3 Manufactured in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1O/QU/QY/QU/IN About the Author Bob LeVitus, often referred to as “Dr. Mac,” is considered one of the world’s leading authorities on the Macintosh, its operating sys- tems, and the iLife applications. A prolific author, he has written 47 popular computer books, selling millions worldwide. His most recent titles include: Mac OS X For Dummies: Panther Edition, and Dr. Mac: The OS X Files: Panther Edition (or, How to Become a Mac OS X 10.3 Panther Power User). Bob is known for his expertise, trademark humorous style, and ability to translate “techie” jargon into usable and fun advice for regular folks. Bob is a huge GarageBand fan, but one with real-world audio pro- duction experience. Long before becoming a Mac geek, he studied audio engineering with Grammy award-winning producer Bill Lazerus in Los Angeles while playing guitar and singing in bands, and producing other artists and bands. Dedication For my family: Lisa, Allison, and Jacob. I missed you guys so much. But now I’m done and you know what that means . I’ll be back! Can’t wait! Love, Daddy Summer 2004 Author’s Acknowledgments First and foremost: Thank you for buying my book. This book was a team effort. Though my name appears on the cover, it wouldn’t exist without the extraordinary efforts of that team. And so, before we go any further, I’d like to take this oppor- tunity to express my heartfelt gratitude to all of them . Major thanks to Andy Cummings and Bob Woerner at Wiley, for believing in this project and giving it the green light. Big time thanks to my project editor, Becky Huehls, who not only minded my Ps and Qs, but managed to keep me from using the word, “stuff,” on every page. I’d also like to thank copy editors John Edwards and Jean Rogers for their fine work, and all the folks in production for their efforts in putting together the book you hold in your hands. My super duper literary agent, Carole McClendon at Waterside Productions, deserves a double helping o’ praise for putting up with me all these years. Thanks again (and, you’ll always be Swifty to me). A heaping helping of thank-you to my tech editor, researcher, and all-around good influence, Bryan Chaffin. This book wouldn’t be the same without his massive contribution, and I can tell you with- out reservation, Bryan Chaffin rocks. And to my wife, Lisa, and my kids, Allison and Jacob, thanks once again for putting up with my all-too-frequent hibernations and giving me the space I need to do what I do. I love you guys. Whew. I’m almost done, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t thank some of the nice folks at Apple who helped this book along in some way including iLife Product Manager Peter Lowe, PR Specialist Nathalie Welch, and of course, the Czarina of Product Loan, Keri Walker. Last but definitely not least: Thanks to Apple, for creating GarageBand and pricing it right. Publisher’s Acknowledgments We’re proud of this book; please send us your comments through our online registration form located at www.dummies.com/register/. Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following: Acquisitions, Editorial, and Composition Media Development Project Coordinator: Maridee Ennis Project Editor: Rebecca Huehls Layout and Graphics: Andrea Dahl, Acquisitions Editor: Bob Woerner Lauren Goddard, Denny Hager, Copy Editors: John Edwards, Jean Rogers Joyce Haughey, Stephanie D. Jumper, Michael Kruzil, Lynsey Osborn, Technical Editor: Bryan Chaffin Heather Ryan, Jacque Schneider Editorial Manager: Leah Cameron Proofreaders: TECHBOOKS Production Permissions Editor: Laura Moss Services, Brian H. Walls Media Development Manager: Indexer: TECHBOOKS Production Services Laura VanWinkle Media Development Supervisor: Richard Graves Editorial Assistant: Amanda Foxworth Cartoons: Rich Tennant (www.the5thwave.com) Publishing and Editorial for Technology Dummies Richard Swadley, Vice President and Executive Group Publisher Andy Cummings, Vice President and Publisher Mary Bednarek, Executive Acquisitions Director Mary C. Corder, Editorial Director Publishing for Consumer Dummies Diane Graves Steele, Vice President and Publisher Joyce Pepple, Acquisitions Director Composition Services Gerry Fahey, Vice President of Production Services Debbie Stailey, Director of Composition Services Contents at a Glance Introduction .................................................................1 Part I: Starting on a Good Note......................................7 Chapter 1: In the Beginning: Introducing GarageBand ..................................................9 Chapter 2: Equipping and Setting Up Your Recording Space .....................................25 Chapter 3: GarageBand Preferences: How Do You Like Yours?..................................53 Chapter 4: Introducing Multitrack Recording with GarageBand................................67 Part II: Laying Down Tracks........................................93 Chapter 5: It (Usually) Starts with a Loop.....................................................................95 Chapter 6: Recording with MIDI and Software Instruments......................................115 Chapter 7: Recording Vocals and Acoustic Instruments...........................................133 Chapter 8: Recording Electric Guitars and Other Electronic Instruments .............153 Part III: Post-Production: Finishing Your Song ............169 Chapter 9: Editing and Polishing Tracks .....................................................................171 Chapter 10: Mixing Tracks into Songs .........................................................................193 Chapter 11: To Master Mastering . ..........................................................................215 Part IV: Sharing Your Creations with Others ...............225 Chapter 12: CD Recording, Reproduction, and Distribution.....................................227 Chapter 13: Creating Smaller Audio Files for iPods, E-Mail, and the Web...............239 Chapter 14: Using GarageBand Recordings with Other iLife Applications.............253 Part V: The Part of Tens ............................................261 Chapter 15: Ten Handy GarageBand Add-Ons............................................................263