Set up mics
Confirm that the mobile recording cart, and all of its pieces are powered ON.
- Power strip on left side of cart should be switched on.
- Power switch on Scarlett should be switched on.
Confirm that the microphones are plugged into inputs 1-3 on the Scarlett mixer. Inputs 1 and 2 are on the front, and Input 3 is on the back.
Confirm that the +48v button is turned ON for Mics 1-4 (recommended OFF for Mic 5-8).
Confirm that the red USB cable is plugged into the back of the Scarlett and the dedicated laptop.
Set mic levels
Set all mic levels with the gain around the same position to start. Any microphones not being used should be turned all the way down to 0.
Have each person to be recorded speak into their designated mic – have them speak a few sentences with their normal volume and intonation. Their mouth should be about four fingers distance from the mic.
Adjust the gain knobs on the Scarlett so the maximum volume for each person is hitting between the yellow and the red on the input screen (between –3 and 0 dB).
Set up headphones (if needed — otherwise skip to next step)
Plug each headphone set into the back of the Scarlett, outputs 7-10. DO NOT plug headphones into outputs 1-6; they will not work. You can map other output devices to these lines if you want using the FocusRite Control app on the laptop.
To set the volume of the headphones, or map the lines to other devices, open FocusRite Control on the laptop. In "Output Routing," find Line Outputs 7-8 and/or Line Output 9-10 in the Outputs list. Use the mute button to turn off an output, or adjust the volume using the slider bar.
Record Audio Using GarageBand
On the laptop, open GarageBand. Click File > New… and then Select an Empty Project.
Select the “Audio using microphone” track type.
Double-click in the track column to create tracks for each mic. Select each track and choose the input (mic number) under “Recording Settings” in the track bar at the bottom. The input number corresponds to the input number on the Scarlett device.
In the below screenshot, the mic plugged into input 1 on the Scarlett will be tracked to Audio Track 1 in GarageBand. Repeat this for each track.
Enable the tracks to record by click the red button on each track. They should blink throughout the recording.
Note: If these buttons are not visible, turn them on by right clicking on the track and clicking “Configure Track Header” or hitting Option+T. Select the “Record Enable” checkbox.
Click the record button at the top of the window when you are ready to record. It will capture anything the mic can pick up for the tracks that are enabled. When finished, click the white square at the top of the window.
If you intend to edit the file in GarageBand: Save the file to your personal USB stick for transport to your own computer.
If you intend to edit in any other software: Export each track individually to an MP3 file as follows:
Mark the track as a “solo” by hitting the headphones button (it will turn yellow and mute all other tracks).
Go to Share > Export Song to Disk > Name the file and select where you want to save it. Make sure the file type is MP3. Press export. This will take a moment to complete.
When completed, “unmark” the track as solo to unmute the other tracks.
Note: You have to do this process for each track you recorded – mark as solo, export, unmark.
Save the MP3 files to your personal USB stick for transport to your own computer.
