Before recording audio in GarageBand on Mac

You can record your voice, an acoustic instrument, or any other sound using your computer’s built-in microphone or a microphone connected to your computer. You record sound from a microphone to an audio track.

Before you start recording audio, do the following:

Connect a microphone, an electric guitar, or another instrument to your computer and make sure the microphone or instrument is working.
Select the audio track you want to record to, or add an audio track. Be sure to set the input source, input volume level, and monitoring for the track.
Set the recording bit depth, which is the number of digital bits each sample contains. The higher the bit depth, the greater the dynamic range of the audio data.
Tune any instruments that you are recording to ensure that your audio recordings are in tune with any software instruments, samples, and existing recordings in your project.

In GarageBand on Mac, select the track you want to use, then click the Smart Controls button in the control bar.
In the Recording Settings area, adjust the Record Level slider.
Note: If the Record Level slider is dimmed, you can’t change the input volume in GarageBand. Instead, adjust the volume control on the connected device.

You can also select the Automatic Level Control checkbox to have the recording level adjusted automatically. It lowers the level to prevent feedback, and raises the level if too low.

Helpful?

Before recording audio in GarageBand on Mac

Set the input source for the track

Adjust the input volume level for the sound source

Hear your microphone or instrument as you play and record (monitoring)