Bobbsy
Boring Old Git
You can view the page at https://homerecording.com/bbs/content.php?r=38-Mixers-and-Home-Recording
Article: Mixers and Home Recording
- Thread starter Bobbsy
- Start date
Noah Wilcox
New member
thanks for the help
Anima_Cantus
New member
any advice on getting vocals to stand out in a recorded mix?
Endorya
New member
Honored to serve you.
Endorya
New member
Sorry for my late response. I have no advices on that for now. I'm a noob on the sound recording field myself. I hope our paths may cross again when I get some experience on the subject.
iHawkSystems
New member
I have a few things to add to this thread.
1. Analog mixers work well for recording only if you know how to use them and can integrate them into your system.
2. You can get a decent used Roland VS workstation for about a tenth of what they cost originally, they are all-in-one digital mixer with good onboard digital effects with a hard drive and CD burner and digital display,
the effects are customizable, some even use mouse and monitor, hard drives are swappable, plus they sound really great and the cost is very low overall. Recommended VS880 or VS1680 ($100-$250) VS2000CD ($600-$700)
3. Older Macs with ProTools earlier versions using a Digi 002 control surface (digital mixer with motorized faders) can be had reasonably inexpensively and produce a very professional sound.
4. If you are recording on a computer I recommend using an interface, you can always route the outputs of just about any mixer into your interface if you want but beware that unless you have multiple outs into multiple inputs your track mix will be permanent.
I know this is probably old news but if you are just starting out and on a tight budget, it might be helpful .
1. Analog mixers work well for recording only if you know how to use them and can integrate them into your system.
2. You can get a decent used Roland VS workstation for about a tenth of what they cost originally, they are all-in-one digital mixer with good onboard digital effects with a hard drive and CD burner and digital display,
the effects are customizable, some even use mouse and monitor, hard drives are swappable, plus they sound really great and the cost is very low overall. Recommended VS880 or VS1680 ($100-$250) VS2000CD ($600-$700)
3. Older Macs with ProTools earlier versions using a Digi 002 control surface (digital mixer with motorized faders) can be had reasonably inexpensively and produce a very professional sound.
4. If you are recording on a computer I recommend using an interface, you can always route the outputs of just about any mixer into your interface if you want but beware that unless you have multiple outs into multiple inputs your track mix will be permanent.
I know this is probably old news but if you are just starting out and on a tight budget, it might be helpful .
jimmys69
MOODerator
Henry? Date?
Mike Stangroom
New member
advice on getting vocals to stick out in a mix
Usually, I find that carefully boosting mid tones can make vocals stand out quite considerably. Be careful though 'cos too much boost will make the voice sound super duper nazal.
Usually, I find that carefully boosting mid tones can make vocals stand out quite considerably. Be careful though 'cos too much boost will make the voice sound super duper nazal.
As a rough guide, the range of the human voice is approximately 150 to 7000 Hz, though the strongest components are usually in a narrower range of approximately 300 to 3000 Hz. Remember that when you try to boost the EQ in that range on a finalized mix that you will get distortion very quickly. When I am band-aiding a finalized mix, I bump the band where I find the vocals less than you might think necessary and then gently reduce the rest of the frequencies a tad...too much of either alters the recording enough that it sounds goofy.
Yusuf Mahardian
New member
come listen, thanks
pablofuente
New member
If I would just have read this before buying my mixer...
I do use a mixer for several reasons. It's nice to have more channels than you really need. Sometimes situations arise where you can use those extra channels. When you use outboard effects, it's easy to rout them through a mixer. I also rout one computer to another using a mixer. Mixers make for great direct boxes. Mixers can be plugged into the inserts of the interface and give you more mic inputs. This can come in handy if you're recording live also. I use a 4 buss mixer (with direct outs) that plugs directly into the inserts of my 4 X 4 interface. At this point I'm considering even going to an 8 or more channel interface. When I'm recording several musicians, it's good to have a mix for the headphones too. During the final mixdown, a mixer is less needed for me except for using different reference monitors. Depending on how elaborate your home studio is and what you need is the factor that determines whether or not to have a board. Some home studios will rival "professional studios". Most think of a home studio as just a "demo" type studio. I think we may have arrived at a point where home studios can go full blown production. With better and less expensive equipment, mics, computer software, interfaces and the demand that put this stuff on the market, ask yourself, "what can the professional studios do that I cannot?" If you find yourself not only a good musician/singer, but also a talented engineer, why not?
I'm going to add a little addendum to this mess. A lot of hype by manufacturers brag about having class "A" mic pre-amps. As if it's part of the GPA for mic pre-amps and that they are better. Most mic pre-amps are class "A". Your pre-amps in your guitar amp starts off class "A". Class "AB" (push pull) pre-amps/amps is usually reserved for latter stages of amplification. Yes there are class "AB" pre-amps for mics! And they're usually very high quality and do run a lot cooler. Not to mention, more expensive. I have seen them for under $400 each though. Preamps are an important factor when recording. Going through mixing board may not be your best choice when recording lead vocals, and recommend going direct into your interface pre-amps. That is of course if your interface has better quality pre-amps than the boards pre-amps, which is not always the case. Usding a mixing board is good for me, even if the pre-amps are not the greatest, especially if they only lack the higher frequencies and your miking the kick drum. Miking a guitar amp isn't as critical either, again the board comes in handy, because the noise level and sonic quality of the amp itself is nowhere near the boards quality. This of course depends on the mixing board you're using.Idealistically, we'd all like to record our lead vocals through a telefunken tube pre-amp plugged directly into our interface, well, most of us would I think. Pre-amps and mics do add a lot of "color" to the sound, and this is often a good thing. Otherwise, if accuracy was the only criteria, we'd all be recording with calibration mics, lol. I have a home studio, don't have tens of thousands of dollars to shell out for "the best". Can I still make professional quality recordings? I say "absolutely". There's some awesome gear, mics boards, outboard effects etc. that you don't have to take out a second on your house to purchase. One of my favorite vocal condenser mics cost less than $100. And in some cases sounds better than my U87! One thing I truly believe, making a great recording is not how much you spent on the equipment, but how talented is the engineer and the musicians. For me it's all about the music, having fun and keeping the dream alive. I wish all the best, rock on!
Here's another tip when using a mixer into the inserts of an interface. Unbalanced outputs (some mixers use these) into balanced line inputs of an interface can be risky business. Pushing the unbalanced jacks half way into the interface (balanced) can resolve this but can be risky. You'll be shorting the sleeve to the ring thus shorting out your mixer outputs. Best to always use ring tip sleeve (balanced/stereo type) connectors only, in case you do push them all the way in. It's good that this post did mention this. Most mixers nowadays, decent ones, utilize balanced line ins and outs, or both balanced and unbalanced. Ring tip sleeve (balanced) connectors work with both balanced and unbalanced lines. I also suggest power off when plugging these in! Note: Using an unbalanced line connected to a balanced line will still carry the signal and still work, but it will be an unbalanced signal.
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Chaplain Jerry
New member
My Mic Technique
Microphone Choice is subjective and using a good dynamic mic can give you good results but requires a lot of tweaking. A condenser mic usually gives better clarity especially in the mid (vocal) range. Stay as close to the mic as possible "when singing" and set your input levels between 60 to 75 %. or between 6 and 8 on a 1 to 10 scale. Breath control is important but more manageable in this range. Recording your music first and generally with the same settings will allow you a very clean final mix by simply reducing your final music mix to 20% lower than your vocals which should be just below 0 on your vue meter;(not over, which will add noise). I have found this technique works best for me. I hope this helps you.
Microphone Choice is subjective and using a good dynamic mic can give you good results but requires a lot of tweaking. A condenser mic usually gives better clarity especially in the mid (vocal) range. Stay as close to the mic as possible "when singing" and set your input levels between 60 to 75 %. or between 6 and 8 on a 1 to 10 scale. Breath control is important but more manageable in this range. Recording your music first and generally with the same settings will allow you a very clean final mix by simply reducing your final music mix to 20% lower than your vocals which should be just below 0 on your vue meter;(not over, which will add noise). I have found this technique works best for me. I hope this helps you.