(Remember that since you're recording straight to your PC or Mac, you'll need a compatible external mic or some kind of audio input device.)

Free software recording programs tend to be very straightforward and simple, taking shortcuts in certain places clearly so as to keep the recording studio software free. Even with their limitations however, free software recording programs are able to meet most of the basic recording needs of musicians. Keep in mind though that it's in many ways meant to be a bridge to the next step of advancing to more capable studio recording software programs. (Note: the programs listed here are shareware/demo versions. They're listed here as free software recording programs because they're basically fully functional demos, and in all honesty, the price of the software--should you want to purchase the complete version--is so inexpensive it's practically free anyway.)

So with that said, here's an overview of several free software recording programs that you can download and start using in minutes:

Well this is a favorite free software recording program among a lot of home studios, for many reasons. What most people look for in recording software is A) an easy-to-learn-and-use format and B) affordability. In this case, this free software recording program pretty much exceeds both expectations. MixCraft includes a professional-quality loop editor, several audio effects including Chorus, Delay, Reverb, Flanger, a Compressor and a 10-band Equalizer. There's also high pass and low pass resonant filter automation, which allows you to bounce frequencies up or down to achieve special effects. As with the free recording software programs listed below, you won't know how many tracks you'll be able to record on one song until you download the studio recording software because it'll depend on your computer's processor... but you'll almost definitely be able to pile as many tracks onto one song as you need. Each track you record will be a 32- or 24-bit WAV file and can be panned, soloed, or muted. (You'll have control over the levels of each track individually as well.) This free software for recording also allows you to import compressed MP3, WMA, OGG and external WAV files.

Perhaps the best feature of this program however is the ability to implement cross fades. Why is this so important? Let's say you are recording and you're almost done with the song when suddenly your phone starts ringing. Normally you'd have to go through the tremendous hassle of re-recording the entire song all over again just because the ending is screwed up, but not with this program. You'd simply record a sound clip of the part of the song that needs to be fixed, drag and drop that new sound clip on top of where the mistake in the song is, and then create a cross fade between where the old track stops and the new clip starts. (This free software recording program includes a tutorial on how to do this. It's simple, don't worry.) If done correctly, this creates a seamless track from beginning to end, and no differences between the two overlapped tracks will be audible. This is a feature that's offered in studio recording software programs that cost hundreds of dollars.

The best thing about this software is that every operation is done in one window. In just about every studio recording software program out there, there's always one window for recording, a separate window for mixing, an additional window for effects or editing, etc... So eventually when you're juggling several different operations at once, (which is often the case,) you're spending too much time minimizing and maximizing window after window just to find what it is you're looking for. (It should be noted that a lot of free recording software programs don't even offer some of the features like editing or mixing that often require separate windows.) What this studio recording software has done however is bring everything together in one simple layout that makes editing, recording, mixing and other operations very easy to manage and operate.

Its recording and editing capabilities are probably the biggest factors that make this such appealing free software for recording. It allows users to edit an audio file visually, where you'll be able to cut, copy, paste, delete, trim, and apply fade ins and outs on tracks. This allows for multiple takes, which can free you up immensely during the recording process. (The recorded audio is displayed in full visual waveform, and the program allows for several zoom functions: you can zoom in and out, and/or vertically.)

When recording a song with this free recording software program, you can continue to layer more and more instrumentals or voices into your mix by recording separate tracks and setting their levels through the program's audio mixer. (The limitation on how many tracks you'll be able to record will depend on your computer's processing power.) There are numerous effects you can apply to your tracks: Reverse, Delay, Amplify, a 10-band Equalizer and Compressor, Fades, Invert, Phaser, Reverb, Vibrato, etc... and the program allows you to set the settings for each effect so they're all fully customizable.

This free software recording program also includes quite a large number of audio filters that can add very interesting effects to your audio tracks. The great thing about all these effects that you put on your tracks is that they can be applied in stereo or mono- a feature lot of free software recording programs don't include. You can also work with several different audio files separately but at the same time, which can be useful when duplicating or extracting material from another song or previous take in another file. An unlimited undo/redo feature keeps your cut and paste operations worry-free. And finally, when you're done mixing and editing your tracks to perfection in this free software recording program, you can convert your songs to a number of different audio formats, such as WMA, WAV, MP3, AIFF, and several others. So you could either transfer the songs on your hard disk to a CDR, or you could upload them online as MP3s, or WAV files for example.

This free software recording program is listed last because it's the least recommended. That doesn't mean it's not decent audio software. Music recording may not quite be its specialty though, as its name might indicate. Although this free recording software offers many of the same features as the studio software recording programs mentioned previously, the whole layout and format can be somewhat time consuming to work in. That statement is more applicable to recorded music more than anything else, simply because music often demands tedious editing sessions. And the editing process in this free recording software program is not as straightforward or simple as it is in the MixCraft and DB Audio Mixer and Editor software programs. It is worth checking out however, because in terms of final product, for the most part it has the potential of producing close to the same quality audio as the previously mentioned free software recording programs. And for just simple recording needs, this studio recording software will do the job.