QuickTime won't record in stereo

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Level 1

10 points

QuickTime won't record in stereo

ChallengerSteve noted in a post from 2016 or so, that when using an iTrack Solo to make a new QuickTime audio recording, the audio is on the left channel only - not both channels.

I have the same problem, and after reading the posts from back then (you can search for it BTW), I decided to try using the MacBook microphone as a test - instead of the iTrack Solo.

Sure enough, the audio was on both left and right channels, as desired. Therefore - the problem is in the way the iTrack Solo is sending audio through USB, only on the left channel. Not good. I might try an iTrack Scarlett.

Like ChallengerSteve, I was unable to use GarageBand or iMovie to move the file's audio onto both channels. Very annoying. I have a nice MXL990 microphone, which doesn't pick up "poppin' p's". I was trying to record audio and PC game video separately - using OBS to capture game video and audio, but having a separate channel for narration using QuickTime. OBS doesn't allow that since it mixes all audio sources together. Thus the need to record onto a separate device for narration.

I know that recording a separate file for narration will drift over a long video, but that is easy to fix in iMovie - just shift the audio segments a bit as needed.

MacBook Air (M3, 2024)

Posted on Nov 21, 2024 8:37 PM

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Answer 1

conedera Author

Level 1

10 points

Nov 22, 2024 1:00 AM in response to conedera

I found a solution

Use an iPad running GarageBand to record your microphone audio, while using your Mac and iMovie to record the video. You must first go to settings on your iPad, and search for "mono". This ends up in Accessibility, and there is a switch to turn on "Mono".

Also, in GarageBand, set the recording length to Automatic; otherwise it will stop at 8 bars.

Then, select a microphone as your source, and have your USB device - like iTrack Solo - plugged in.

Now, you can record your narration on your iPad, while simultaneously recording your game video and audio on your Mac using iMovie. (Again, this is so that you have a separate audio track for narration, while still having game play audio recorded with the video on iMovie).

Use Airdrop to send your recorded audio track (or save to a USB drive) to the Mac. Import that audio file into iMovie. The tricky part is to sync your audio file with the video file, but this is not really that difficult. Use a video and narration cue at the beginning of the recordings, so that you have a single point of reference to match audio to video. This is similar to the old days of movies where a tech would close a slate or "Clapperboard" in front of the camera for each take, allowing audio to be match to film in editing. In iMovie, you can drag the imported audio file left and right against the video file in the timeline.

For very long videos, you can select your audio track and add the occasional break to have segments, which then allows you adjust the audio to match the video later on in the project.

This is how I am going to proceed with my YouTube videos. I am just starting my channel - The Artful Codger. I haven't gone live yet.

Now - if you use Final Cut Pro, I imagine it has much better audio tools. Above my pay grade :)

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