How I Record Piano Videos

What do you need to record a piano video for KZbin?
Well, I don’t know if I have the “best” way to do it, but I have learned a thing or two about what you need to do so. Of course, I’m always improving my setup and my skills (which is arguably the largest part of getting a good recording), so this is just what I have as of this recording. Oh, and my audio skills are definitely much better than my video skills (I’m still figuring out how to color grade properly lol), so my opinion on audio equipment is probably going to be better than my opinion on video equipment.
I’m always looking to upgrade my setup and try out new things, so let me know if there’s anything you want me to review or demonstrate how to use! It was actually pretty fun trying to shoot b-roll like this for the first time.
Quick note, this is my setup as someone who’s decided to invest into it. Your needs may vary.
Equipment (affiliate links):
Lights: 2:10
GVM 80W LED Video Light - amzn.to/3zKD2oS
Walk Fly Softboxes - amzn.to/3zFFhtt
Tripods:
Neewer 72.4 Inch Tripod - amzn.to/3bkSPkQ
Amazon Basics 60 Inch Tripod - amzn.to/3beIffc
Cameras: 4:51
Nikon D3400 w/kit lens- amzn.to/3Bs1E6V
Canon M50 w/kit lens - amzn.to/3Bpd3EF
Audio Interface: 7:55
Behringer UMC404HD - amzn.to/3OPOqnn
XLR Cables: 10:38
Cable Matters 15ft. - amzn.to/3SgnBM7
Mics: 12:13
sE8 Stereo Pair - amzn.to/3cQtMq2
Mic Stand: 14:14
Amazon Basics Tripod Boom Stand - amzn.to/3Bpd9w1
My Keyboard (Yamaha p-125) (affiliate link):
amzn.to/3zbCqXy
Interested in lessons? Contact me at: [e-mail]
Join my Discord!
/ discord
My recording setup:
kit.co/WattKeys/grand-piano-r...
My keyboard setup:
kit.co/WattKeys/digital-piano...
Support me!
www.buymeacoffee.com/WattKeys
Get more content!
/ wattkeys
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/ wattkeysofficial
Catch my livestreams on Saturdays!

[@claudiomenchinelli7465]

Even though this channel is still relatively small, both the video and sound quality are noteworthy. The amount of professionalism my man Watts puts into this is ungodly🔥

[@Caliko]

Man, this video would have saved my life 5 years ago haha, these things took me SO LONG to figure out! And this makes me think I really should take care of my video quality, and actually get a tripod and a lamp lol. Super valuable video!

[@fruitanimeonpiano]

I know that I'm definitely coming back to this when I do record on a grand piano one day. Thank you for these wonderful tips and the in depth explaination!

[@ChrisLuan]

Can't wait to hear what you can do if you record on a grand piano in a suitable conservatory-like hall/environment btw. Watt is elevating the community here with this "meta" content.

[@miguelsalgueiro3265]

Thank you so much! You are awesome man. I hope we can hear you actually playing unravel someday.

[@killempiano6745]

Watt bringing the very useful content. Great as usual!

[@MarnixMohrmannPiano]

Mixing/mastering engineer and pianist over here, so about that audio setup... I'm not gonna flame you haha! Thank you for the overview of your setup! It's going to come in handy when I'm finally able to record my own piano in a few weeks!

[@VinLudens]

Wow very nice and easy to follow video! My teacher also has quite the hefty piano recording setup but I always have a hard time understanding what each component does and why it's needed. Even for something as seemingly "basic" as an interface I have a hard time seeing why it's actually useful; but I'm sure that's due to me never having had to deal or use any of it (since I don't have or record on an acoustic piano) and never actually looked into this matter. Audio has always felt mysterious to me as I've rather delved into imagery in the past. It would be very interesting to see you go into more detail and do demos on all the audio stuff you showed before getting to the mics! Or share resources to dig a little deeper.

[@CharlesMaPiano]

Awesome video! I always love seeing other people’s behind the scenes :)

[@Tsuki-Music]

Ahaha just said ayy because ayyyy but this is really helpful for people that wants to get started with recording even with upright pianos and grands!! If only you made this video 3 months ago so that I didn’t have to figure it out myself ;-; But thank youuuuuu

[@MingysPianoLounge]

Nice informative video on covering the things that go into content creation! The nice thing about all of this (except for the bit about setting up mics to record a grand piano) is that this doesn't just apply to making piano videos. You can use all of this knowledge in whatever type of videos you make or livestream (as Wattkeys mentioned). It's surprising to find someone who went over almost everything that I learned in the past few years. Have fun with whatever future gear you inevitably will acquire haha. I'm still interested on how you mix your acoustic grand recordings, because I feel like that could be an entire video itself with going over how and why you EQ and/or comp the way you do. I was reminded of Nahre Sol's "Recording a grand piano is TRICKY" video during the bit where you went over your grand piano recording setup, and I think you'd enjoy that video if you haven't already seen it

[@philcibley1804]

Here's a mic stand tip for you. Use light stands. With the proper adaptors you can attach a boom and you're all set. I've found light stands to be much more stable than any cheap mic stand. They should do just fine until you can afford some Latch Lake or Triad Orbit stands, which are in an entirely different price strata.

[@ashleehill2942]

this video was extremely informative, efficient, and very “get-to-the-point”. very appreciative of this. thank you!

[@onebigteddybear]

Thankyou for this!

[@rogerross4391]

Saving this video for the day I actually own an acoustic piano and I want to record on it🥲. Jokes aside, great video, I always find these interesting. Would you think about making a video like this one but on digital pianos? I think that would be more about software but idk how wide is the topic when it comes to digital recording or how many options are there for it.

[@musicalessence3936]

Thanks for the video! I’m a pianist learning how to record on my grand…. This was very helpful🧡

[@charliebucket53]

Thank you so much for this video it really helps me so much... And I love your anime figures! 超ー可愛い！

[@HayashiStudios]

Nice setup 😯😯😯

[@MadPianoLife]

Really cool video, even though I’m a gear dumbass who uses a simple iPhone. You definitely give your channel a lot of care. Vid idea: Review your own merch haha

[@perlcamel]

Can you show us how to mix the video and audio in post prod please? Software, process, etc. Thanks!

[@gnostie]

Thank you for this very informative video. I am very new to recording stuff, and all I want is to record my demos played on Casio PXS1000 to put on KZbin for my fellow club members. Something's telling me that I won't require equipment as sophisticated as yours, and yes, you've guessed it, I'm not a millionaire, so please could you advise something not super-expensive that gives a faithful representation of the sounds as I'm hearing them in my headphones as I'm playing. If you have any videos on post-production, those would be very useful too, though my preference is be minimal in that area, both because of ignorance and not wanting to mess with the sounds too much.

[@bonemealmc]

My biggest problem with your setup is the Behringer. I have a strong hatred towards them... If you ever plan to upgrade, maybe a mixer with USB would suit you needs. Some great USB mixer with 4-6 Channels are allen & heath zedi-10fx, Yamaha MG10XU and Soundcraft Signature 10. I have tried out all of the aforementioned mixers and all of them are built really well and sounds great. Great video and keep up the good work!

[@WattKeys]

Lol Behringer always used to draw my ire as well

[@bonemealmc]

@@WattKeys xD :D

[@Heptah]

Great vid! How do you connect your interface with your camera/phone to record image?

[@WattKeys]

I record them separately and then sync everything together when I'm editing

[@Tsuki-Music]

Ayyyyyyyyyyyy :D

[@pianofortellc2052]

Plz help! What should I do to avoid buzzy sound when I play high register keys.

[@mae8202]

subscribed done. =)

[@gabrielliberman8247]

Hi, thank you for your video. Would the Behringer UMC202HD work as well to connect to a DSLR? If so, does the lack of stereo input cause any problems? (I think I'm phrasing that correctly?)

[@WattKeys]

Not sure, but off the top of my head I don't think so because most dslrs or mirrorless cameras I'm familiar with have an 1/8inch jack for a mic while the UMC is a USB interface that's designed to work with a driver on your computer

[@gabrielliberman8247]

@@WattKeys thank you! I ended up purchasing the Focusrite 2i2 3rd gen instead, so as soon as I'm able to get past the problems of getting my laptop to recognize it, I'm sure it'll be great.

[@Tonal.Harmony]

Do you have your sync the video to the audio during editing? Or do the camera and mics record directly to the laptop?

[@WattKeys]

I sync everything in post

[@gabrielliberman8247]

Which audio software do you use? I have the Focusrite Scarlett 3rd gen 2i2 - Ableton seems very complicated for just recording the grand piano - I don't need to do tracks. Thank you for your advice.

[@WattKeys]

I use Studio One, they have a free version of their DAW, Reaper is also a good pick and what I'd probably recommend

[@gabrielliberman8247]

@@WattKeys thank you! I'll check out Studio One - I'm more comfortable with that, merely based on the name, to be honest, lol.

[@leonardsmith9870]

Yes, but how do you record you recording piano videos?

[@angelacalloway2002]

Is it possible to film myself playing keyboard while wearing headphones so that only I can hear what I'm playing? Can the audio be heard in the video?

[@WattKeys]

Do you mean for an electronic or acoustic instrument?

[@angelacalloway2002]

YES!@@WattKeys

[@thomastereszkiewicz2241]

can I suggest beautiful piano music in the background instead of that machine music.

[@theannanway]

Too much talking l had to skip

[@trevorrams]

I wanted to start off with thank you for making this video. it was amazingly for capturing all the elements to help me and my son for recording him. I am a system engineer this put all of it together for me. If you can check out the results @CezairPiano Would love to hear any recommendations

[@WattKeys]

I took a listen and the videos sound and look solid! Glad this helped :)