Trying to get a clear vocal recording with my Tascam DP24SD

[Guyotsmith]

Friends, I made my first studio recordings 52 years ago, and also continually recorded at home over the years, with Teac reel-to-reel recorders and Shure microphones – and was very pleased with the sound quality.



Decades have passed and I am now an old-timer, long retired from performing in public. Despite not being tech-savvy, however, I am fascinated with the contemporary concept of file sharing and urgently want to give it a try. Hence, I purchased a Tascam DP 24SD. Believing that my old Shure microphones would not be equal to the task of giving me a good sound on vocals on my fine new Tascam, I bought a Sennheiser MK4 condenser mic. I struggled with the lingo in the instruction book, then hooked up the Sennheiser for vocals and another condenser for my Martin guitar, and blithely performed an old 19th century traditional song.



I was deeply disappointed. I was primarily interested in the vocal, but my efforts to adjust the volume through several takes of the song still gave the guitar excessive prominence. Yesterday, I took away the second mic and just recorded vocal and guitar via the one Sennheiser – since my purpose is to send vocals to other musicians for file sharing and the adding of instrumentation. The sound on the vocals is not one-tenth as good as it was, decades ago, on the reel-to-reel Teac units! It is dull, muffled, and very unimpressive – far inferior to what I used to get on an old 4-track cassette Portastudio.



What am I doing wrong? I cannot find an on-line tutorial to guide me. I am performing very simple, extremely old-fashioned, historical songs. All I want is a clear vocal sound with some presence. The phantom power is activated, I have repeatedly adjusted and tweaked the recording levels, but the sound quality is not what I expected. It is…..well, miserable. The unit is superb and the fault obviously lies in my lack of technical know-how. Any advice would be sincerely appreciated. Thank you so much.

 

[Mickster]

Welcome Guyotsmith !!

First of all....don't worry....your investment was a good one. While I now use my DP24 mostly as a mixer......it's more than capable of making excellent recordings.....very much comparable to or better than what you're aiming for. That said.......

We need details about how your setup is. Your room....your mic placements....your DP24 settings.....your monitoring setup (monitors and or headphones)....etc...etc. Outline as best you can from step one what you're doing and what you settings are. If you once had a 4 track Portastudio....the DP24 won't be too difficult to understand.....but it will take some time. There are some tutorials out there....but let's get a better idea of where you're at right now.

So...tell us more.

Mick

 

[Papanate]

What am I doing wrong? I cannot find an on-line tutorial to guide me. I am performing very simple, extremely old-fashioned, historical songs. All I want is a clear vocal sound with some presence. The phantom power is activated, I have repeatedly adjusted and tweaked the recording levels, but the sound quality is not what I expected. It is…..well, miserable. The unit is superb and the fault obviously lies in my lack of technical know-how. Any advice would be sincerely appreciated. Thank you so much.

Now the question is (and pardon me for asking) but you do have the Mic oriented the correct way?

 

[rob aylestone]

I just had a thought. I wonder if you have the back and front of the mic the wrong way around. You sing into the Sennheiser logo?

 

[Guyotsmith]

Thank you so much for your kind words. I so much appreciate your sound advice. I am only using headphones at the moment to monitor the recordings. I have no home studio as such....just a 102-year-old farmhouse with small rooms, but no different from the exact spot where I was once completely satisfied with my Teac reel-to-reel recordings (with Shure mics) and the little 4-track Portastudio recordings, which totally satisfied me. Last night, I activated the phantom power and just used the Sennheiser mic (in the first channel) for vocal and guitar. It picked up the guitar better than I wanted (arthritis and the fact that I retired from performing so long ago have taken a great toll on my picking....but I really want fine young talent to add instrumentation via file sharing) but the sound on the vocal was flat and unimpressive - at least through the headphones which came with the Tascam unit! It sounded, to me, like something done on an old reel-to-reel analog unit in desperate need of head-cleaning. I think that is the best description. Brightness was lacking. Had I known how to "add brightness," I believe I would have been perfectly satisfied with the recording.

I adjusted the recording volume on Channel A so that there was no distortion, tweaking it as I did a few takes of an old song. The vocal lacked the brightness and presence to which I am accustomed. It seemed muffled, and flat as a tortilla. Having worked with microphones for so many decades, I am confident about that part of the recording process (though maybe not so confident that my Sennheiser is the best match for the Tascam DP24SD!!) -- but I know I am totally bungling the settings. Perhaps one is supposed to enhance the vocal later on, via mixing. Right now, I am just doing one channel - because I want to have others add instrumentation. In my day, I would overdub other instruments myself. No longer. I am looking for a clear, un-muffled, bright vocal track.

I spent decades with analog recording, and freely confess to being digitally-challenged. I do an old dramatic radio series which has been run for the past 46 years (just re-runs now), and I edited the old analog tapes myself, cutting out not only unwanted pauses and mistakes, but individual syllables when necessary. I got quite good at it. I could not do that job with a digital recorder if I were offered a million dollars. It is embarrassing to be trying to do such a simple musical recording job as I am doing now and to seem incapable of getting the sound I used to effortlessly obtain with far less sophisticated equipment. It isn't the equipment to blame, but rather my own contemptible lack of digital expertise. However.......I never give up! With your kind advice, I am hopeful that I can learn to get better results.

Best regards,
Jonathan

 

[Guyotsmith]

I just had a thought. I wonder if you have the back and front of the mic the wrong way around. You sing into the Sennheiser logo?

That is an excellent point. I do, however, have the logo facing me. After retiring from performing, I have worked as a schoolteacher - and was so impressed with the wireless Sennheiser microphones I used in school to put on some variety shows that I decided to buy the Sennheiser vocal mic to use with the Tascam. I really appreciate your observation, though, because the placement of the mic could definitely result in substandard recording. Many thanks!

 

[Guyotsmith]

Now the question is (and pardon me for asking) but you do have the Mic oriented the correct way?

It is an excellent question. I do have it correctly oriented - but you are absolutely right that such an error could result in substandard results. Thanks so much!

 

[rob aylestone]

I guess we need to hear it then - we might spot what the problem is if you could stick it on a sharing site for us.

 

[spantini]

My AT2020 XLR condenser mic always sounds muffled, lacking in clarity as I record my vocal. I record through my interface directly to my DAW. After recording, it can be brightened up and clarity brought out using EQs. As long as I get a good gain level while recording... it can be enhanced later.

Have you got one of your old Shure mics you can use for comparison?

 

[bouldersoundguy]

It could be proximity effect, the low frequency boost that results from being close to the mic. If you're trying to isolate sources (keep the vocal in the vocal mic and the guitar in the guitar mic), getting close it a good tactic, but it will probably result in some proximity effect. You can correct that using eq, a wide low shelf cut that affects frequencies below about 500-1000 Hz. A boost in the high end might also be useful. See pic for an example. You should be able to reproduce this on your device. Adjust to taste.

 

[Guyotsmith]

My AT2020 XLR condenser mic always sounds muffled, lacking in clarity as I record my vocal. I record through my interface directly to my DAW. After recording, it can be brightened up and clarity brought out using EQs. As long as I get a good gain level while recording... it can be enhanced later.

Have you got one of your old Shure mics you can use for comparison?

That is a wonderful idea - which, by the way, never occurred to me! I am going to hook up one of my old Shure mics which always gave me splendid analog records, decade after decade - and I used them for live performances as well. I am also going to experiment with the EQ idea. I am determined not to throw in the towel. Many, many thanks!

 

[Guyotsmith]

It could be proximity effect, the low frequency boost that results from being close to the mic. If you're trying to isolate sources (keep the vocal in the vocal mic and the guitar in the guitar mic), getting close it a good tactic, but it will probably result in some proximity effect. You can correct that using eq, a wide low shelf cut that affects frequencies below about 500-1000 Hz. A boost in the high end might also be useful. See pic for an example. You should be able to reproduce this on your device. Adjust to taste.

View attachment 111356

A million thanks! I am going to try to replicate what you have kindly shown me. O, to be more tech-savvy!!

 

[spantini]

It could be proximity effect, the low frequency boost that results from being close to the mic. If you're trying to isolate sources (keep the vocal in the vocal mic and the guitar in the guitar mic), getting close it a good tactic, but it will probably result in some proximity effect. You can correct that using eq, a wide low shelf cut that affects frequencies below about 500-1000 Hz. A boost in the high end might also be useful. See pic for an example. You should be able to reproduce this on your device. Adjust to taste.

A million thanks! I am going to try to replicate what you have kindly shown me. O, to be more tech-savvy!!

When you get in close with your condenser mic you'll want a pop screen, for sure.

 

[Guyotsmith]

Welcome Guyotsmith !!

First of all....don't worry....your investment was a good one. While I now use my DP24 mostly as a mixer......it's more than capable of making excellent recordings.....very much comparable to or better than what you're aiming for. That said.......

We need details about how your setup is. Your room....your mic placements....your DP24 settings.....your monitoring setup (monitors and or headphones)....etc...etc. Outline as best you can from step one what you're doing and what you settings are. If you once had a 4 track Portastudio....the DP24 won't be too difficult to understand.....but it will take some time. There are some tutorials out there....but let's get a better idea of where you're at right now.

So...tell us more.

Mick

Thank you, Mick, and all the wonderful folks who have so kindly helped me today. Progress has been made...........thanks to all of you. I did continue to experiment with the recording level, and then put the Sennheiser aside and hooked up an Audio Technica mic to do my main vocals --- using the Sennheiser for some harmony vocals. I spent virtually the whole day at this --- which, by the way, was good for me. I retired from performing 30 years ago and very seldom make music today....so all the takes I did this afternoon were good for awakening my voice and limbering up my arthritic, out-of-practice fingers. Because I presently work as a crumbling schoolteacher -- which job takes a major toll on my voice -- I really wanted to record a few things before the relentless strain causes me to grow perpetually hoarse. Today, I made progress.

Although the sound quality is nothing to boast about, I believe it may be good enough for me to embark on the file sharing adventure which so intrigues me - and which I have never attempted to do. When a few instruments have been added and it is time to do a final mix, I presume some EQ artistry can give the vocals enhanced presence, though they sound somewhat better than they did yesterday --- thanks to the good advice and encouragement of everyone here. I am extremely grateful.

I confess that I sometimes grow nostalgic for the days when I used to perform - and I did enjoy working with the Tascam unit today. There are few small-time recording studios yet in existence in my area, and the current health environment would make it extremely unlikely that I would enter one at present anyway, so it is this fine Tascam unit or nothing. I must now face the uphill climb of seeking to mix these tracks and getting them ready to send to some musicians whose artistry may possibly render them worth listening to.

Again, a million thanks to everyone! I have a long way to go......but things are definitely looking up!

Gratefully,
Jonathan

 

[Guyotsmith]

Again....thank you to everyone for your help. I recorded three songs yesterday afternoon, and managed to do the mixdown and mastering this morning - following the expert advice you all provided. The only thing my DP-24SD would not permit me to do is name the songs (I keep getting an error message, reading "Dup File Name"), but the naming of the songs is the least of my worries. I hope to get better with practice, but there's been much improvement since yesterday - for which I once again thank you all.

 

[grimtraveller]

I don't know how, but you should be able to name the songs.

 

[spantini]

I don't know how, but you should be able to name the songs.

Will She Ever Come Home (From You) - - There. I named one

 

[Guyotsmith]

I am so pleased to have learned - more or less - how to record fairly decently with the Tascam that fixing the song titles is the least of my worries! Tomorrow morning, I return to my current work - which is a lot more worrisome! So much for recording!!

 

[grimtraveller]

I am so pleased to have learned - more or less - how to record fairly decently with the Tascam that fixing the song titles is the least of my worries!

When I recorded on a cassette portastudio, obviously it wasn't a concern because each song was written on the cassette. But in a digital recorder, it's a pretty handy function. Just numbering them can become a hassle if you happen to record a lot of pieces.
The only thing I don't like about the DAW that I use {an Akai DPS12i} in terms of naming is that there aren't enough characters for some of my titles. I can understand there not being enough for "The great white rare crested spotted mysterious green bullfrog" or "The bizarre cavortings of the enchanted field mice" but there aren't even enough for "Ending the 7 year itch" or "Head of the tribe" so I have to get all creative in naming on the DAW because I refuse to be constrained by a naming function !!

Will She Ever Come Home (From You) - - There. I named one

Will she ever come and groan for you ?

 

[spantini]

When I recorded on a cassette portastudio, obviously it wasn't a concern because each song was written on the cassette. But in a digital recorder, it's a pretty handy function. Just numbering them can become a hassle if you happen to record a lot of pieces.
The only thing I don't like about the DAW that I use {an Akai DPS12i} in terms of naming is that there aren't enough characters for some of my titles. I can understand there not being enough for "The great white rare crested spotted mysterious green bullfrog" or "The bizarre cavortings of the enchanted field mice" but there aren't even enough for "Ending the 7 year itch" or "Head of the tribe" so I have to get all creative in naming on the DAW because I refuse to be constrained by a naming function !! ...

I'll agree with you on that one. My Tascam DP-03SD is the same. It's not a long lasting problem though since I don't keep stacks of SDs full of songs - I transfer everything to PC, adding full names.