MEvansMusic
New member
Hello everyone,
I'm still a little new to the forum so I'm hoping this question falls under the correct sub-forum here. But anyways what I'm looking for is more advice/guidance than anything else. I've already tackled my fair share of recording issues and self-producing issues that I've had in the past, but still have one final battle to tackle in terms of getting a great recording: the vocals. I've been practicing and really honing down my singing (thanks to some of you on this forum), so singing on key, etc, isn't my primary struggle anymore; but it's more so the producing side of it now that always leaves me puzzled and increasingly frustrated. I'm looking for that distinct "pop" vocal sound, and although it's not my primary vocal style I still really want to crack this. A couple of examples of the vocal I'm looking to achieve from musicians who probably have a semi-similar setup to mine (obviously more high-end equipment however):
Hobbie Stuart - Put A Movie On - YouTube
Charlie Puth - Collide (Howie Day Cover) - YouTube
Although I'm going for a very "professional" sound, I really don't want to drench my vocals in reverb, delays, etc, correct? Isn't less in production usually more? I'm going to be doing mostly acoustic/electronic covers of popular songs (much like what the artists above are known for) and want a little rawness to my production. I can clearly hear small instances of auto tune throughout most of the above tracks, but I'm not sure if that creates that "professional" vocal sound or not. I know there's a lot more involved in this quality vocal (acoustics in the room, singers voice, mic type, etc), but can't pinpoint exactly what it is that I need. I record my vocals with an Audio-Technica 2035 Condenser mic and a Zoom H4N (don't use prefaces when recording with the Zoom), and then transport the audio tracks into Pro Tools 11 via an SD card. Finally I got Melodyne Essential and am becoming a little more familiar with it..I hope that using subliminal autotune might get things "tighter". How possible is it, do you think, for me to achieve this vocal sound with my given equipment? Maybe I should just book studio time and record there...any input would be greatly appreciated. Apologies for the length of this post. Thanks guys,
Matt
cliffs:
-Looking for tight, raw vocal sound.
-Analyzing the vocal effects these "cover" (and professional) artists use to achieve their sound.
-Do not have big issues with going off-key (not the problem I'm stumped over)
-Recording setup: AT2035 Condenser Mic hooked up with Zoom H4N; transport clips via SD card into Pro Tools 11
-Given the equipment I have^^, is achieving this sound even possible? Should I book studio time instead?
I'm still a little new to the forum so I'm hoping this question falls under the correct sub-forum here. But anyways what I'm looking for is more advice/guidance than anything else. I've already tackled my fair share of recording issues and self-producing issues that I've had in the past, but still have one final battle to tackle in terms of getting a great recording: the vocals. I've been practicing and really honing down my singing (thanks to some of you on this forum), so singing on key, etc, isn't my primary struggle anymore; but it's more so the producing side of it now that always leaves me puzzled and increasingly frustrated. I'm looking for that distinct "pop" vocal sound, and although it's not my primary vocal style I still really want to crack this. A couple of examples of the vocal I'm looking to achieve from musicians who probably have a semi-similar setup to mine (obviously more high-end equipment however):
Hobbie Stuart - Put A Movie On - YouTube
Charlie Puth - Collide (Howie Day Cover) - YouTube
Although I'm going for a very "professional" sound, I really don't want to drench my vocals in reverb, delays, etc, correct? Isn't less in production usually more? I'm going to be doing mostly acoustic/electronic covers of popular songs (much like what the artists above are known for) and want a little rawness to my production. I can clearly hear small instances of auto tune throughout most of the above tracks, but I'm not sure if that creates that "professional" vocal sound or not. I know there's a lot more involved in this quality vocal (acoustics in the room, singers voice, mic type, etc), but can't pinpoint exactly what it is that I need. I record my vocals with an Audio-Technica 2035 Condenser mic and a Zoom H4N (don't use prefaces when recording with the Zoom), and then transport the audio tracks into Pro Tools 11 via an SD card. Finally I got Melodyne Essential and am becoming a little more familiar with it..I hope that using subliminal autotune might get things "tighter". How possible is it, do you think, for me to achieve this vocal sound with my given equipment? Maybe I should just book studio time and record there...any input would be greatly appreciated. Apologies for the length of this post. Thanks guys,
Matt
cliffs:
-Looking for tight, raw vocal sound.
-Analyzing the vocal effects these "cover" (and professional) artists use to achieve their sound.
-Do not have big issues with going off-key (not the problem I'm stumped over)
-Recording setup: AT2035 Condenser Mic hooked up with Zoom H4N; transport clips via SD card into Pro Tools 11
-Given the equipment I have^^, is achieving this sound even possible? Should I book studio time instead?