Adobe Audition 1.5

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mikec

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Hi. I'm very new with home recording. I'm a young musician/producer who's trying to get into NYC's Tisch School of Recording Arts. The competition to get in is pretty high, and in order to get in, I have to send a creative music recording created, written, performed and produced by me. I already have the song writing part out of the way. I also have a beat created by me using my cousin's Yamaha Motif ES8. I guess my problem is how to record the vocal track. I bought a fairly inexpensive but highly rated condenser mic (MXL 990) and downloaded a free audio software (Audacity) to attemp recording my song. But, I guess I didn't get the sound I wanted. Plus it is very hard to control the effects from Audacity, so I spent a lot hours trying to get the sound I want. With this, I went to ebay and bought a copy of Adobe Audition. Adobe Audition is a lot better than Audacity but I still couldn't get the sound I want. Maybe it's my inexpierience, my lack of equipments and/or maybe it's just my ear being strained (I get headaches from sitting in front of the computer listening to my song over and over again). The song that I'm trying to create is a pretty dark rap. Maybe it's like Pink Floyd and Eminem mixed together. The sound I'm trying to get is the sound of the vocals of from Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb" verses, and Eminem's "Stan" verses. I know that I will not sound like them but I guess that I want to know is what effects I need, to get as close as I can to sound like those songs. I read the tutorial of Audition but I couldn't really learn anything. I also want to know how to hear effects in real time while recording. I tried finding it from the manual but no luck.My parents suggested me to just record everything from a professional studio (tehy too are tired of hearing my song playing over and over again) but I guess that I have too much pride with my work that I believe that I should build the whole song with my own hands. So please, I really need and really would appreciate any help.
 
The software you use will have little effect on the sound you get. i.e. Audacity and Audition will both faithfully reproduce what you send into the computer. Now, the software fx availible will be different and thats part of the equation to get the sound you're after. It sounds like you want to be looking in the compressor setting and reverb to get the sound you're after.
Also, try doing a few vocal tracks and layering them on top of each other. Try different mic positions. Maybe do a take like- from all the way across the room and blend that with a few takes up close to the mic- expereiment.
It sound like you have the "vision" in your head of what you want- you'll have to experiment to create it.

Good luck
 
For a "Comfortably Numb" sound record two vocal tracks. Record one. Record the 2nd one. It's easier to sing when you've got another track to coach your voice along. So keep re-doing them until they're both good. Let 2 play while you record over 1. Let 1 play while you record over 2. Mix the best one in the highest and the lesser one as the phase/doubler track lower (in volume) in the mix. That's one way to do it. Two different performances on two different tracks makes a different and more natural kind of phase/doubler than artificially sterile delay would.

You picked out good stuff for what you're doing. I'm thinking you've probably gone overboard for what the school expects you to do, but you got stuff you'll keep on using no matter what.
 
Thanks, jdavidb. Maybe I am going beyond what the school expects me to do, but I guess that is really what I'm aiming for. I'm applying to a school/program that only takes 24 students a year. I want to be able to stand out of the competition. I have disadvantages that I'm trying to compensate (ie. english is my second language as you can tell) with my creative talent. I drove to New York to talk to one of the people who screens admissions and he let me hear some of the past student entries. He told me that they are not looking for the best engineered songs, but the most creative ones. With that, I wrote the song that I believe will be good to send to them with my application. I guess I bought the software and bought the mic not to create a crisp perfect sounding song, but instead to create the creative kinda dark sound I want for my song. I think the beat is pretty dark, I just need to learn how to make my vocals darker. I will try to post the beat later so that maybe you guys can give me your opinion about it. Thanks again.
 
Any more tips on recording a good vocal track?

Any other tips on recording a good vocal track?
 
i would play with it more, if you are not strained for time. Use a pop filter for that condenser if you aren't already. also check out some of blue bear's artcles on mixing, they are quite helpful.
 
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