recording vocals

[bigvernthearkitekt]

I'm interested in what everyones normal approach to laying vocals is. I've got a project I'm starting that needs to shine and I'm trying to step my game up on vocals.

I've been recording vocals for a few years now and I get decent results, but I taught myself and just learned as I went. I've never actually watched a professional engineer record vocals.

When you are recording vocals, how many tracks do you typically lay down for verses and hooks?
Lets say the mc sticks the verse all the way through, do you have them double it? How many overdub tracks do you use?

What plugins do you typically use for vocals and in what order in the chain do you use them?

I understand that there isn't a "make your vocals hot" preset on any plug-in and depending on the track, the vocals could be approached differently.

I'm just looking for the normal steps you take when trying to get the best possible results for recording vocals to make sure I'm not missing anything.
Thanks.

[substratumsounds]

Yo! This is just my way of doing shit!
I normally do 1 full vocal track, a "bac up track" for word emphisis and if they want a ad lib track for any extra shit in the background (fillz and punches excluded). Really it depends on the artist if they've done this shit before they'll pretty much tell you what they want and you add in what you think they need.

On the FX end your really gonna need to practice to hear and be able to apply correctly the proper fx to make it sound "right to you." I can tell you my general formula, but on the real it depends on the sitiuation, different artist, different vibes all make for different sounds.

I normally record dry then (in pro tools) create a aux/send track for a compressor, a reverb, a delay, a stereo imager and a doubler. By using sends you can control the levels of each fx individualy on the tracks.

On the master track I'll normally run a light compressor and a maximzer as the final fx on chain. This is a real loose formula (actually I try to stay away from formulas, but whatever) and only practice and ear devlopment make it "really right" (I really don't trust my ear right now for mastering)

Just remember that the vocals should be about where they need to be before the fx and that you want to hear the natural sonud of the artist " no matter how much they want to hear the dubs and ads.

I'll check back to see if you have any other questions.

[Desertease]

When I record vocals The emcee spits his/her verse fully....I don't do none of that record some of it and stop shit. if the emcee can't spit the whole verse there's no reason to be there anyway.. but back on topic now... record the whole verse in 1 track and have it where it needs to be (using a compressor) and i do 2 ad lib tracks one panned left and one panned right for a more entertaining vocal verse. i can't remember the compression settings right now but if you want one let me know and as was said before make sure the vocals are where they need to be before any reverb or fx.

[bigvernthearkitekt]

"On the FX end your really gonna need to practice to hear and be able to apply correctly the proper fx to make it sound "right to you." I can tell you my general formula, but on the real it depends on the sitiuation, different artist, different vibes all make for different sounds.

I normally record dry then (in pro tools) create a aux/send track for a compressor, a reverb, a delay, a stereo imager and a doubler. By using sends you can control the levels of each fx individualy on the tracks.

On the master track I'll normally run a light compressor and a maximzer as the final fx on chain. This is a real loose formula (actually I try to stay away from formulas, but whatever) and only practice and ear devlopment make it "really right" (I really don't trust my ear right now for mastering)"


This is exactly the type of response I was looking for. Thanks a lot!
That formula will give me a different place to start and I might find some of the elements I'm missing.

I think I'm leaving my vocals too dry and not paying enough attention to their placement before I add fx.

[bigvernthearkitekt]

desertease--I'm feelin you on emcees not being able to spit their verse. I lose interest immediately when that shit starts happening, especially if they talk a lot of shit before we actually start recording!

[rhomboid]

In my experience, the most important thing is the environment that you record in, rather than than the effects chain. . .

If you are recording in an untreated room (which the majority of home/project producers/engineers are) then you need to ensure that the sound of the room is not colouring the vocal in a bad way.
The reason being, is that if your vocal track sounds "roomy" i.e. it contains unwanted reflections from walls or hard floors/ceilings then when you apply dynamic processing like compression/limiting to the vocal track it will "pump up" the level of the room sound. This makes it really hard to "sit" a vocal in a mix and if you are layering a lot of vocals then the room sound begins to dominate and the vocal sounds "boxy" and unprofessional.

Personally, I use an SE Electronics Reflexion filter BEHIND of the mic and have built a free-standing frame which has a duvet draped over it BEHIND the vocalist. Pop shield of course, about 3cm in front of the mic (AKG C3000B) going into my channel strip, a little compression just to take the extreme peaks off the signal. I will ALWAYS have the high-pass activated unless the vocalist is a baritone as anything below 100 Hz on a hip-hop vocal will clutter the mix. This will also help to reduce any "rumbles" from the mic stand being knocked by emcees that like to get physical during a take.

I'll double track vocals if the track is sparse enough to allow it, otherwise just have a single lead vocal. In the same way as desertease does, I'll do two tracks of BVs on the verses and pan them at 9 and 3 o'clock, HP them at 200Hz and give them a bit of ambient reverb to get them out of the way of the lead vocal.
For hooks/choruses I will do AS MANY VOCAL TRACKS AS POSSIBLE as it is the BVs that can give punch to a hook and bring the lead vocal right out. These will be panned around the spectrum (not too far from centre, though), heavily compressed and EQ'ed to allow them to be stacked without "fighting" eachother.
I would NOT use any kind of stereo imaging or enhancing effects as these can mess with the phase relationships in your mix.
I will ALWAYS RECORD VOCALS IN MONO UNLESS USING TWO MICS TO RECORD AN ENSEMBLE. I'd have two delays set up as aux send to "ride in" on specific words or phrases, usually one short and one a little longer.

My chain of FX would be something like this ; HP filter or "the best EQ that you have", Compressor to take out the big peaks and even out the levels and maybe a limiter if the vocal needs to be really upfront. I would not use the limiter on sung vocals, usually only on rapped vox.

Oh yeah, I'll punch stuff in like crazy. The studio is not the stage. . . You need to get the tightest vocal performance possible so if that means that your emcee needs to punch that one line where he/she runs out of breath, DO IT!!! Punching can also be used as an effect where the vocalist uses different tones or voices to say one line or one word. OR you can get the vocalist to run through the verse(s) a few times and then make a composite vocal out of the best bits.

EVERY "pro" studio will punch vocals and that is how they are able to acheive the consistant vocal sound because, to be honest, a lot of "big-name" rappers fall flat on stage.
I saw some shit on emptyV one time where Usher was in the studio with some girl and he made her do her lead vocal ONE WORD AT A TIME. . . so you can assume that he does the same.

b8g

[bigvernthearkitekt]

rhomboid- thanks for all of that. I have have never recorded my vocals mono- I 'm going to try it . Good input on recording the hooks- I need to record more tracks to bring my hooks out.

[Truthmusik]

this is all very helpfull advice.

but about recording the verse in one take...that was an ignorant way to put, it saying 'there's no reson to be there'...i feel you on the aspect of being confident enough to spit your whole verse in one take, with breath control & all that. but sometimes if you break verses into sections you can really get some original sounding mixes, i.e. different effects and doubling methods for a kind of 'back and forth' feel to a track...Tech N9ne's "Imma Tell" is a perfect example of what i mean.

no disrespect, but punch-ins are a part of the recording process.

[Derock]

cosign that rhomboid. Perhaps the cut-offs have to be mention. I usually cut-off at ~100hz and ~12khz, dependends on the rapper ( male or female). Also add a slight deesser in the fx chain - on the recording track. On the recording track, use sparingly fx, maybe a comp, a deesser, and the filter for your cut-offs. All other fx have to be added later. Stereo imaging, delay and reverb r difficult to handle and need experience. I think panning the doubled vocal tracks will give your vocals a good blast - no need for special stereo imaging plugs. When using reverb and delay, i lay it down on one of the vocal tracks. Often i lower this track and add some extra lows with the eq to give the vocals a nice touch.

Peace

derock

[bluevelvet]

this is a reply to if you can't spit it in one take:

if u actually listen to the good mc's they punch in crazy amounts of times (excluding qwel...who has great pattens and topics but sounds whiny at the end of his verses) ill bill punches in every 2 or 4 bars...copywrite punches in...wordsworth punches in methodman punches in...i haven't been around a long time but i do pick up on others mixes...listen, that is what you have ears for...

everything i have read from people on this thread has been excellent advice...thank you...

true true on the deesser...most cats now-a-days want to have that aesop rock-ish sound and this is where a deeser comes in handy...hahaha

I DO HAVE A QUESTION THOUGH:
i have just bought a presonus eureka pre amp + compressor + 4band eq. can anyone help me with good settings for male vocals (not sung) like how much impedance should i be working with?where should the gain be on the preamp compared to the master output/input of my sound card (m-audio 1814)?? i wont ask about the compressor right now...but i do wonder about the EQ..where should my frequencies be on the hi's mid's & low's and should the gains be uniform??

and there is a button right below the master output volume control that says"GR to meter" when i press it the the voltage meter goes from far left to just right where the red is (or the middle)...i just got this piece of equipment and have only used it to record differnent synths so far....i want to put some vocals through it sometime soon and am a just a little lost with how to utilize my new equipment to the best of my ability....

thanks so much...

[Derock]

Basically, for every singer/mcee you have to tweak the settings.
i have a doc with specific freqeuncy ranges for eq'ing and comp presets to start with. If ya want, ill post it on rapidshare the next days. Or, you google for the docs, not that hard to find

Pz

derock