The Girl Had Syphilis
- Thread starter dwillis45
- Start date
dwillis45
Número sesenta nueve
That mix is nothing to clap about.
But really that 3K-4K could use a little reduction.
Pretty good mix, I didn't think you were really creating songs, just puns.
Yeah, they are real mixes and I am actually looking for comments. Just having a little fun along the way and wondering why my musical choices are all based on sexual innuendo.
That 3-4k region always give me troubles. It's kind of harsh and I find that I'm constantly cutting db's at that point on the final stereo track. I think a lot of the issue comes from my vocals. They tend to be accentuated in that range. It may also be a question of mic/preamp choice or perhaps just singing too close to the mic.
For vocals, I normally use a Soundelux U195 through a Great River pre. So maybe maybe a cheaper signal chain would deliver better results. Muhahahaha! I'm also guilty of cutting a little too much of the low end at 220hz which may leave nothing but harshness. This gets back to the close singing distance issue I tend to move close to the mic to accentuate subtleties in my voice. It's a style thing and I find that if you are not a good technical vocalist, it's all about styling. Closeness leads to proximity effects which leads to low end cutting and then harshness.
DM60
Well-known member
That is where I struggle, and it is my voice. I have tried different mics, but it is my voice. I try finding that area of my voice that just sounds like s%$^ and reduce that area (around 3-4K), and to your point, not taking so much out on that 200-400 range.
I have found recently, gently rolling off the guitars 1K, give the bass plenty of room, rolling bass of around 60 for the kick. Seems to improve everything over all. Fighting mud is my weakness. I think you are right, the more you take out on the lower end, gives that area too much room and sounds harsher as there is nothing to counter it.
Fun song.
The vocal is pretty far out in front of the instruments. It's a little harsh - maybe notch something out in the mid-2Ks. It's much dryer than the other tracks.
The banjo and mando are contributing to the harshness a little too.
Some pitchiness in the backing vocal around 2:02-2:03
The vocal is pretty far out in front of the instruments. It's a little harsh - maybe notch something out in the mid-2Ks. It's much dryer than the other tracks.
The banjo and mando are contributing to the harshness a little too.
Some pitchiness in the backing vocal around 2:02-2:03
dwillis45
Número sesenta nueve
I fear the mud more than I fear the reaper. In fact more than I fear harshness. And I think that's how I got to this point.
I've been down the mic road, too. First, I switched to a dynamic mic (SM58) and it helped a little. So I got an SM7B. It's a nice mic but I find that it's not as full bodied as my large diaphragm condenser mics. Now i'm toying with some adjustments to how I address the mic. In particular, I've tried a bunch of material using a slightly off axis position. That and pulling back 6 inches or so seemed to help. Plus it's a lot cheaper than mic shopping!
I'm also finding that I can control some of the harshness by adjusting attack and release times on my compressor. It's a subtle process, but if you listen intently and change attack and release you begin to hear the vocal become less harsh and actually move in the mix. The other thing I found was that using the EQ section of the reverb also helps. Sometimes filtering the reverb at 3-4k solves the problem.
dwillis45
Número sesenta nueve
Yeah, the background vocal definitely needs work--even before the end. The first time it comes in, it doesn't fit with the main vocal. I'm not sure if it's too low in volume, too compressed, or too dry. I'll have to listen to the mix again and see what I did.
On the pitch, I may have to re-track. I think there is a rule against using autotune on the same song as a mandolin and a banjo.
At this point, I think I may be able to push the vocal back into the mix by changing the attack and release times on the compressor. That may alleviate some of the harshness, too.
I'll take a second look at the reverb. I usually run towards dry, especially with this style of music. But it might be possible to add a touch of reverb to the master track. Sometimes just a hint will allow all the tracks to sit more evenly in the same space
dwillis45
Número sesenta nueve
dwillis45
Número sesenta nueve
Welcome to the world of resonator hell. Where even the mandolin has a tin can in the middle
Attachments
VomitHatSteve
Hat STYLE. Not contents.
That was the first thing I noticed. Comedy music tends to be pretty vocal-forward ('cause otherwise you can't hear the jokes), but this is probably a bit much even for that genre.
dwillis45
Número sesenta nueve
I tried pulling back the vocal and addressing the harshness issue, but I'm still having problems. This may be one for the junk pile or something worth re-tracking, especially the vocals.
And thanks for the heads up on the genre. I'll move it from Americana to the Comedy section right next to all my Bill Cosby records.
DM60
Well-known member
Try turning up the gain and sing lower in volume, I am working on that and it seems the less I push my vocals, the less harshness. Maybe, definitely maybe.
dwillis45
Número sesenta nueve
Yeah, perhaps a different headphone mix might be an option. At times, I've also tried singing using just a minimal arrangement with one or two tracks. Just enough to get the melody but nothing to compete against.
The irony about vocals is that to sing (rather than speak) you have to push your voice. When you push, all sorts of bad things can happen. There is probably a vocal technique for controlling this, but I'm not about to take singing lessons. I'll turn to spoken word or the talking blues before I go down that road.
DM60
Well-known member
Yeah, perhaps a different headphone mix might be an option. At times, I've also tried singing using just a minimal arrangement with one or two tracks. Just enough to get the melody but nothing to compete against.
The irony about vocals is that to sing (rather than speak) you have to push your voice. When you push, all sorts of bad things can happen. There is probably a vocal technique for controlling this, but I'm not about to take singing lessons. I'll turn to spoken word or the talking blues before I go down that road.
I think though, the difference is, you can still control how loose your vocal cords are. Now, I can't say I am good at it, but if I am a little tighter in the throat, then if doesn't have as much of the nasty artifacts. But that requires really training your voice and singing. Which, I don't do because, well, because I don't
dwillis45
Número sesenta nueve
I think though, the difference is, you can still control how loose your vocal cords are. Now, I can't say I am good at it, but if I am a little tighter in the throat, then if doesn't have as much of the nasty artifacts. But that requires really training your voice and singing. Which, I don't do because, well, because I don't
I've never thought too much about warming up or loosening the vocal chords. But that adds an interesting variable to a large and growing list. I actually sat down today and started writing a list that could lead to harshness.
-Type of preamp/mic nomination
-Quality of AD converters
-Type of vocalist including gender and range
-FET mic versus tube versus dynamic
-distance from mic to vocalist
-Height and position of mic relative to chest, mouth, nose, etc.
-EQ (duh!)
-Compressor settings including attack and release
-Reverb settings, including EQ
-distortion caused by improper gain staging
-Mac versus PC
-Altitude
-Air pressure
-Humidity
The list became so long it made be scream and my voice became even more nasal and harsh
So tomorrow I'm going to buy some honey and drink warm tea before I sing about Syphilis again
DM60
Well-known member
dwillis45
Número sesenta nueve
There might be better things
I don't drink or smoke anymore. So Valium is the only thing in my arsenal. That might work with a cup of coffee, although coffee makes my voice sound more sibilant. And there is probably nothing worse than sibilance on top of harshness.
dwillis45
Número sesenta nueve
I tried this again with the old vocal track. I tried to push the vocal back slightly and I did some tweaking to address the harshness issue--primarily by adding back some low end and cutting a little in the 3.5-6k range. I also made some slight changes to the compressor by playing with attack and release times.
Then, since I'm an idiot and can never leave well enough alone, I added a vibraphone software instrument to match the original version. It's a little cheesy but sometimes covers should be covers. I also added a real accordion at the end. The old version had been done with a accordion plugin and I like the idea of real--especially in this sort of music. Too bad I play like a guitar player playing accordion.
The differences between this version and the first post are minimal, though, and I'm still not sure about the overall sonic balance. Like I said above, this may need a complete set of new vocals.
Then, since I'm an idiot and can never leave well enough alone, I added a vibraphone software instrument to match the original version. It's a little cheesy but sometimes covers should be covers. I also added a real accordion at the end. The old version had been done with a accordion plugin and I like the idea of real--especially in this sort of music. Too bad I play like a guitar player playing accordion.
The differences between this version and the first post are minimal, though, and I'm still not sure about the overall sonic balance. Like I said above, this may need a complete set of new vocals.
YellowDwarf
Dismember
Alright, love the humour - it's hard to do right and you did a great job.
On to the songs, I listened to both. Enormous difference between the two, with the second being much better. The vibraphone fits perfectly. This mix I can blast without getting that gritty harshness.
My only nitpick is that I liked the vox forward, IMO I'd bring it forward again!
Timbo
On to the songs, I listened to both. Enormous difference between the two, with the second being much better. The vibraphone fits perfectly. This mix I can blast without getting that gritty harshness.
My only nitpick is that I liked the vox forward, IMO I'd bring it forward again!
Timbo