In this post, I will demonstrate how I record audio for screencasts and video tutorials. I’ll show you a FREE application that allows you to record audio for screencasts with separate audio feeds for my microphone and system sound.
Why do I need separate audio feeds?
Most screen recording applications will record a mix of microphone and system audio. This means you don’t have any control over the individual levels once the screencast has been recorded.
In my videos, I like to demonstrate audio techniques by playing audio and talking at the same time. If I record my system audio too loud people won’t be able to hear my voice and there is no way to fix this afterwards.
How to record separate audio feeds
In this video, I walk you through the process that I use to record audio for screencasts using separate audio feeds.
I use two applications that make it possible to record separate audio feeds. The first is a free application called: Groundcontrol Caster.
‘Caster’ is basically a virtual mixing console for routing audio from microphones and audio applications and sending them to different physical or virtual outputs.
If you download the free version of Caster and then decided to buy the full version please use my affiliate link: https://gingeraudio.com/?fpr=jon16
The second application I use is Camtasia. This screen recording software allows me to capture my webcam, my screen and my microphone. But it also allows me to record separate audio for my microphone and system audio.
So, you may be wondering why I need Caster? In my video, I explain how the audio input options in Camtasia are quite limited. I am not able to select individual microphone inputs. So I can only record an overall mix from my audio device. If I play music from applications using the same audio device then the music gets mixed with my microphone/voice. So, we’re back to the original problem!
What Caster allows me to do is send my microphone signal to a virtual audio output. Subsequently, I can select this virtual output in Camtasia as my microphone input. Therefore I am able to record my microphone and system audio independently.
Final Thoughts
If you make video tutorials for demonstrating audio then having a separate audio feed for your microphone is important.
Camtasia is one of the few screen recorders that allows you to do this. However, using the Caster application was essential for getting this to work for me.
If you don’t want to purchase Camtasia then another option is the free application OBS. I haven’t fully tested OBS so cannot guarantee it will work in the same way. I found OBS to be overly complex for what I needed to do. Therefore it made sense for me to go with Camtasia.
Not only is Camtasia simple to set up and use, but it also has a fully functioning video editor built into it.