Streamline your computer for optimum performance. Recording music is very demanding of your computer's processor, so disable all unnecessary programs. Music files tend to be large, so if possible, record to an external hard drive so that your computer's hard drive doesn't fill up. To avoid interruptions to your recording sessions, also disable automatic updates to your operating system.
Ensure that microphone and instrument cables are in working order. Faulty connectors can lead to unwanted hum, crackles and pops on recorded tracks. Trying to troubleshoot malfunctioning cables while recording can inhibit the creativity and flow of a session, so get into the habit of checking all cables on a regular basis and replacing worn or damaged ones before they spoil your recordings.
Give instruments a tune-up. An instrument that sounds poor acoustically will sound that way regardless of the quality of your recording equipment or your skill as a recording engineer. Make sure that guitars are restrung on a regular basis to keep them sounding bright. Even more importantly, tune them before each session. If you're recording drums, make sure that old and dull drum heads are replaced and tuned.
Connect a digital interface to your computer via USB or Firewire connectors and then plug instrument and microphone cables directly into it. Each channel on the digital interface will have pre-amplifiers that boost low-level signals such as those from electric guitars and keyboards so that they can be recorded at acceptable levels. If you're recording solo, then a simple and inexpensive two-channel unit will be adequate. For multiple musicians, you'll need more channels.
Set up your microphones and experiment with different models for each instrument until you get a sound you're happy with. If your budget doesn't allow you the luxury of trying different microphone models, you can still perform most tasks with a single condenser and one dynamic microphone. Use the condenser to capture the detail in vocals and acoustic instruments and the dynamic mic to handle the explosive sound pressure levels of louder instruments like electric guitars and percussion. Experiment with microphone placement to get the best possible recorded signal. Even small changes in placement can have a dramatic effect on the recording. Working to get a quality sound while tracking will make things much easier for you at the mixing stage.
Set all recording levels carefully. A good strong signal is desirable, but watch the meters on your recording software to ensure that the peaks don't exceed 0dB. To be on the safe side, use the "gain" control to keep them at around -12dB so that the signal doesn't clip at even the loudest spikes in volume. Clipping is the digital clipping of any part of the signal above 0dB, and the result is a very harsh distortion that can ruin a recorded track.
Plug powered studio monitor speakers into your digital interface. When you play back your recorded tracks for mixing, headphones and home audio speakers will color the sound by boosting and cutting various frequencies. This makes it difficult to know exactly how your music really sounds. Studio monitors are "flat-response," which means they give you an accurate representation of your recordings, making mixing simpler.