Vocal levels

[dobermandan]

Hi guys!

I'm a newbie on this board and a newbie to home recording. I have a Roland 1680 and recently recorded some vocal tracks with a Shure SM58. There are pretty wide variations in the vocal levels that were causing me fits at mix down. While trying to mix in some sections he's just too loud and I had to ride the fader like crazy.

He has to sing loud to support the notes in certain sections but it just jumps out too loud in the mix. Is there a way to keep the levels more even during recording while still maintaining the tone quality? How do the pros do it? Is there anything in the Roland 1680 that is built in (like a compressor or something) that can be used for this?

Thanks,
Dan

[Atwork]

evening out volume highs and lows is one of the main jobs of a compressor, particularly on vocals and bass. Doing a Search on 'vocals' and 'compression' or something similar might get you some useful info.

[tubedude]

Get an RNC and put it in REALLY NICE MODE and forget about it. $200.

I have a doberman!

[dobermandan]

OK, I'm a dummy. What's a RNC?

Aren't doberman's one of the most loya companions you could ever find?

[Vurt]

Originally posted by dobermandan
Aren't doberman's one of the most loya companions you could ever find?

Yeah...two of them attacked and killed my friends little brother who fed them every day for two years for their elderly neighbors. They're beautiful.

Here's a link for the RNC:
http://www.mercenaryaudio.com/realniccom.html

[dobermandan]

Thanks for the info about the compressors.

This isn't the forum for the dog stuff, but remember this...it's ALWAYS the responsibility of the owner when dogs do stuff like that. I'm sorry to hear about your friend's loss. The owner of the dogs should be held accountable and punished accordingly. I'm as responsible with my dog as I am with a deadly weapon.

[Gidge]

i had a friend that was killed by a black guy therefore all black people are killers?.....sorry wrong forum, but it started here.......

btw, i hate dogs, so that isnt what motivated my comment/question.......

[Vurt]

Originally posted by dobermandan
The owner of the dogs should be held accountable and punished accordingly.

Well, the boys dad thought the same way and decided to bypass the legal process by shooting and killing the old man. The whole situation was a sad mess.

That wasn't a very good analogy, Gidge, but nice try.

[tubedude]

Dobermans are naturally some of the friendliest, least viscious dogs of them all. They are MADE mean by the owners, on purpose.
The Red Dobes, on the other hand, do have a meaner dispostion, from my experience.
My dobe is less dangerous than anyone elses poodle. Chihuahuhas, however you spell that, are naturally more aggressive.
Oh yeah, sorry, this about compressors.

[dobermandan]

I'm sorry folks! I'm a newbie here and I just wanted to make a few good contacts. I feel responsible for starting this whole thread on the dogs. It wouldn't have mattered what breed I mentioned, SOMEBODY would have a prejudice and their mind would already be made up, and they don't want to be confused with the facts!

I apologize that I ever made the dog comment. Now let's get back to the business of recording. I have a lot to learn.

Best,
Dan

[Gidge]

Dont feel the need to apologize.....you didnt start it......

Vurt has a tragic loss to deal with and sometimes it helps to vent anger....and sometimes he's been known to talk out off his ass.....cut him some slack in the spirit of Christmas.....

[dr.colossus]

back to compressors, iv'e heard some good things about the behringer autocom (if your on a budget) $239aud ($125usd), or you could run the vocals through a software based comp- in cubase for instance...

i like dogs, they taste real nice with sweet chilli sauce and just the right amount of rosemary

[Gidge]

Oh yeah, this was about compressors....i wouldnt use the Autocom...i have one and hard compression isnt its best feature....id either use the compression built in (if it has it) or an outboard (RNC)...or you can cut out the hard to handle parts and paste it to a new track so you can even out the levels better.....

[dobermandan]

I've got a Roland 1680 and my drummer (who engineered the last recording) claims that the compressor in the 1680 makes our vocalists voice sound like shit. I personally don't know if that's true or not because he was adamant about not even TRYING it.

Do you guys think that compressor is adequate for keping vocal levels even or is the RNC the way to go.

Also, forgive my ignorance (like I said, I'm a newbie to all this) but am I correct in assuming that you compress the vocal mic BEFORE it's recorded?

Thanks a bunch!
Dan

P.S. Anybody have a cat? Just kidding. I REALLY don't want to start anything else off topic again!

[Freudian Slip]

Can you link me to RNC. Please, Thanks.

[c7sus]

My ex-wife has been killing me by degrees for years. Consequently I assume all ex-wives to be capable of causing grievious harm.

www.mercenaryaudio.com

[Vurt]

*sigh*

You know, sometimes it just doesn't help to give a person the benefit of the doubt or simply be polite. Gidge, I apologize. I should have addressed more closely your stupid analogy meant to fabricate a moral divider from which you could plant yourself on one side of and point fingers. The hell with it, though. You must be one extremely bored man with too much time on his hands if you can extrapolate racial prejudice from a personal opinion on a breed of dog. In fact, looking at your post count, I'd say a problem beyond simple boredom probably exist. Maybe it's time to drop the Cyber-girlfriends, get off your dead ass, and get a life instead of prowling around bbs's looking for some imagined high moral ground to be had. Anyway, your posts are usually quite dull.

For what it's worth, I'm relativelly fond of dogs in general and used to have a Labrador. Now I've got two cats. I never thought this thread was heated at all until Gidge made it that way, but apologize if my opinion upset anyone.

[Gidge]

Vurt,

again, I feel for your friend...very tragic....

but it was YOU that started all this with your opinion about a dog in a compressor thread.....

i think the analogy fit....you reacted to the comment "loyal comapanions" by letting us know what other dogs did....all dobermans arent killers.....

this is the only bbs i frequent, so i do have time for a life with a job, a beautiful wife and an amazing 5 year old daughter.....

at what point did I make this heated?.....

[dr.colossus]

back too compressors..... gidge, you say you have an autocom, i am looking at getting one, i need a general purpose compressor (drums, vocals, bass, mix) and the autocom is about the only one in my price range, pc based is not an option, as i may eventually use it live.... anything else in this price range you could recommend? more info on why its no good for vocals (my mic technique sucks)? do you use yours on vocals?

[Gidge]

i havent really played with mine a whole lot im too busy posting here ....

anyway, i find that for hitting the compressor really hard, it isnt all that smooth....RNC's perform great in that area, but obviosly out of the price range.....

basically, i just use mine for limiting, helping me get a good level to hard disk without clipping and in this aspect it works great....i think its best to use as little compression at the tracking stage, so that youll have more options later...you can always compress more when mixing, but you cant un-compress....i have some decent plugins that kiss some ass so i let them do the major work.....