Recording vocals tricks

arsenaultk9

New member
Ok I'm currently making a demo for my band at our home studio. We have some good equipement and I know we have everything to record a good demo. I did guitar and bass tracks everything sounded superbe, but now I'm at making sound for vocals and things just do get out the way I would like it. So does anyone here have some good tricks for recording vocals. Anything is good here, but the type of vocals I'm trying to get are similair to Nirvana style of vocals. Thanks for you're help.

P.S. when I do vocals when we record live things sound good, not enough for a demo, but good.
 
arsenaultk9 said:
I did guitar and bass tracks everything sounded superbe, but now I'm at making sound for vocals and things just do get out the way I would like it. So does anyone here have some good tricks for recording vocals.
I don't know about Nirvana Vocals, but I think (and Harvey could probably answer this question) that you will need to include what is the problem you are encountering.
Is it acoustics, and how are you recording the vocals, as suppose to how did you record your instruments, and what equipment are you using. :)
 
Ok here is more specifications :
I use some effects, but I must be using them wrong because they don't help vocals so I would like to know wich effects will help them and maybe some little tricks for them to help my vocals.
The second prob is that I think that the singer is thinking to much will he sings because his vocals are much more different than when we play live so I would like maybe some little tricks to help the singer sing well.

These are my two probs, any other trick for vocals or vocals recording would be helpfull
 
arsenaultk9 said:
The second prob is that I think that the singer is thinking to much will he sings because his vocals are much more different than when we play live so I would like maybe some little tricks to help the singer sing well.

Have him pretend he's playing live or better yet...tell him he's not being recorded when he really is. I read many articles on Nirvana's recording techniques - apparently Kurt went thru the same stuff, at least early on.
 
thanks, but that still doesn't resolve that I'm not good at using my effects anybody some help. Oh and thanks for giving an example from kurt I think that it will help
 
What effects & equipment are you using? We need to know what you're using to record these tragic sounds. :rolleyes:

Is it done on the PC? If so, what program? Plug ins?

Microphone? Room? etc....

I'd recommend NOT telling the singer about the "nirvana approach to recording". That will defeat the whole purpose.

Good luck.
 
arsenaultk9 said:
The second prob is that I think that the singer is thinking to much will he sings because his vocals are much more different than when we play live so I would like maybe some little tricks to help the singer sing well.

Maybe the difference is that when you play live, your stage mix is so bad that he can't tell he sucks, :eek: so when he hears his voice so pristine in the headphones, it intimidates him. Happens all the time.
:D ;)
 
im not sure about Nirvana but here is my technique that i use and like :)
If you have a reverb unit with a pre-delay try it.I go in and turn the reverb effect way down you just want a little.Keep messing with the pre delay till you like the sound.Another thing i do is i dont print the effect, its on while I record the vocal to give the idea to the singer but it is not recorded till mixdown. that way im not stuck with it and i cankeep tweeking till the bitter end ;)
 
:D Methinks the Caveman has got it.

Giving the vocalists reverb while recording is kind of intoxicating, in a pleasant sort of way. Then, the real work comes when mixing and THEN adding the reverb to the vocal tracks.

My fave reverb is the Yamaha stage reverb--it's soft but "there." Not boomy or distracting--works for many vocals I record.

But, any other reverb box of some quality should give you a choice of suitable reverbs. What are "suitable" reverbs?

Do they suit you? The talent? The customer? Is the track clear or buried in echo?

Like they do at Steak and Shake--keep mixing until you get what you like. :eek: :D :cool:

Green Hornet
 
The most common problems I've encountered with vocal recordings in self-produced demos ... is that most people just don't sing good.

Just like with anything else, some were born with the gift, and others weren't. And I happen to think our world would be better if people would leave the singing to those who actually have pleasing voices. Or at least an intriguing or artistically relevent voice (like Dillan, Petty or Reed, for example).

Besides that, I don't think too many people really know how to work a compressor. Now this isn't such a bad thing, because, unlike singing, one can reasonably learn how to effectively and artistically use one over time and with practice.

Effects are there to help embellish something or to add a relevent artistic effect in some cases ... not to make something sound "better." Any time you start pulling out random effects in an attempt to make something sound "better," then usually the best effect is the mute button. :D Or calling in someone else who can actually sing. Most can't, and that's okay to admit.
 
Thanks for the tips. Actually I thoug using you're technics and also think that the singer has to define his voice before using any of the effects. I'm using a podxt to help define a bit the sound of the vocals but I think I will wait until I have more experience in vocal modeling before changing amp types for certain vocals. Anyway thanks for the tips !
 
arsenaultk9 said:
Thanks for the tips. Actually I thoug using you're technics and also think that the singer has to define his voice before using any of the effects. I'm using a podxt to help define a bit the sound of the vocals but I think I will wait until I have more experience in vocal modeling before changing amp types for certain vocals. Anyway thanks for the tips !

If you are using a POD as your vocal pre, that may be a large reason why your vocal tracks are not sounding as they should. Although something like a POD can be used for certain quirky results on vocals, you would probably have better results using a real mic preamp.

Good luck,
Terry
 
:cool: Yo Chessie:

Have to disagree with you. Let people sing if they want to. Many are not out to be stars or virtuosos or divas--they are just having fun and fun is a big synonym with MUSIC.

Also, reverb does make a good singer sound better. If this were not true, then why do almost ALL vocalists who record use reverb? Any type of music will sound good to those who like that type of music.

If you could record vocals in Orchestra Hall in Chicago, you probably would need NO reverb as the Hall is built so the sound really has SOUND. As well, when I heard Andre Segovia play and I was sitting about as far up and away as possible, I could hear every note he plucked with his fingers. Amazing.

So, those who have a home studio want to do the best they can. If you have a pro studio and you tell your clients to take a walk because you don't like their voices, well, you won't be in business very long. Your job is to record and make the talent sound as good as possible with the gear you have at hand.

Like I said, if we were not supposed to use reverb, why is it part of a DAW or why are there so many outboard reverbs.

Chessie, I think that you have forgotten that music is primarily fun, pro or amateur. Just listened to some of Rod Stewart's stuff--lots of reverb there, as well as most all commercial tracks.

:eek: Green Hornet :D
 
The Green Hornet said:
:cool: Yo Chessie:

Have to disagree with you. Let people sing if they want to. Many are not out to be stars or virtuosos or divas--they are just having fun and fun is a big synonym with MUSIC.

Hear hear! I sing like ass and I'll keep doing it!
 
Without actually hearing what you're encountering, we are only offering stabs in the dark about a possible solution... Throwing effects at a track sometimes isn't the best way to make it fit tho...
It could be that you're having problems getting the recorded vocals to just sit well with your 'superbe' sounding guitar and bass tracks...
Many times it's best to begin your mix with the vocals and then 'envelope' your music tracks one at a time (guitar, keys, bass, etc.) around the vox...
If you find things aren't meshing or sonic 'conflicts' start popping up, EQ can work better than reverb or delays in making things 'get out the way you like it'.

Again tho, I haven't heard what your experiencing, so this (as with most of my posts) could be way off base... lol :D

Good luck!
 
Yo Traveen:

If I had to make a living by "singing," I'd be in bad shape. However, I do enjoy taking a standard song, like "Summer Wind" and rewriting the words. My version is called, "Summer Gin."

GREEN HORNET :D
 
chessrock said:
Effects are there to help embellish something or to add a relevent artistic effect in some cases ... not to make something sound "better." Any time you start pulling out random effects in an attempt to make something sound "better," then usually the best effect is the mute button. :D

Well put Chessrock!
 
The Green Hornet said:
Let people sing if they want to. Many are not out to be stars or virtuosos or divas--they are just having fun and fun is a big synonym with MUSIC.

I agree 100% with that. I'm not talking about the guy who wants to get a little sloshy and sing a song or two at the karaoke bar or open-mic night. I'm talking about the guys who come in to my studio who actually join bands in the hopes of gigging out and getting paid. I even get guys in here who are dead-set of making a career out of it. Yet they have no clue that their voice sounds horrendous -- or they believe there's some studio magic that I can do to transform their voice and make it sound good. :D "Isn't there some kind of effect for that?" (How 'bout the "mute" button?)

Ironically, there are a lot of people I work with who have truly wonderful voices who should take themselves more seriously, but they don't for whatever reason, so it works both ways.

Also, reverb does make a good singer sound better.

It depends on the context. I've never heard it make a voice sound "better." Would Norah Jones' voice sound better with a big Celine Dion / Whitney Houston plate reverb? Some people might like it better that way, in the same way that one might like milk in their coffee or tea. A voice is still a voice, and it's basic tonal characteristics aren't changed by adding accoustic reflections or other ear candy.

If you have a pro studio and you tell your clients to take a walk because you don't like their voices, well, you won't be in business very long.

I'd say that's about the truest statement you've made so far. :D :D Now some people I've worked with have truly outstanding voices, no doubt about that. I've been lucky in that sense. Some truly kickass singers I've worked with, and they know who they are.

The problem is that most don't fall in to that category. Some are even flat-out tone deaf.

Now I try to be open-minded, but for cryin' out loud ... if you can't tell one note from another, you might want to try something else. Notes are important in music. And there aren't any studio effects that can reasonably help with that. If you have any serious aspirations in music, it's reasonable to expect that you understand things like notes. I don't think that's too much to ask.
 
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Hey chessrock

I see your point but do not agree with the statement that some have the gift and some do not. While correct some people are naturals and do everything well, I have seen too many people who are not naturals that have worked hard and become excellent players and singers. You can be taught to sing with the proper instruction, and with the proper work and practice most can improve significantly.

This is one thing that really bugs me about alot of musicians, especially rock and blues players. I hear comments that people are bad or whatever, like they should just give up. But if they do give up, they might never get good. My point is that I would never tell somebody to give up just because they sound crappy now, they might be new to singing or playing an instrument. Just because they don't have the magic now does not mean a year or two down the road they might knock your socks off with their playing or singing.

I just wish some muscians with big egos would try to remember way back before they got real good, I guaratee you 99% of them had to work many years to get real good. Most people do not have the gift, they have to work and earn the gift.

Just my 2 cents on the matter.
 
No one's saying you have to sound like a pro right out of the box in order to be taken seriously.

Just that there should at least a be a few basic traits one should have should they want to pursue music; and among these are pitch and a sense of timing or rythm. Those are natural inclinations. I've never known anyone without at least the most basic sense of either pitch (being able to match a note or discern a melody) or rythm/timing who's been able to practice themselves in to becoming even decent musicians.

But yea, on the flip side, if you have a basic sense of pitch and rythm ... then it's all a matter of how dedicated (and creative) you are, I suppose. Go for it; sky's the limit.
 
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