Nasally vocals, difficult to sit in the mix comfortably. Any tips?

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fandango92

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Hello,

This is my first mixing post here, so hello everyone!

I've been recording a five-track EP over summer, and I've finished them all and roughly mixed them, but I've never been happy with the vocal sound. At the moment, I'm using a standard ol' Shure SM58; not the best, I know... But the recorded vocals sound good when I play the music at high volume, but as soon you lower volume or go to some other speakers, they stick out like a sore thumb!

They sound more nasally, the lower the volume, which is annoying as my voice doesn't actually sound like that. Unfortunately, I'm a strapped-for-cash-student, so I can't really invest in a new microphone or anything else, and need to make to do with my current set up.

Could anyone possibly give me tips on compression, EQ and other mixing options I could use on the vocals in the song I've uploaded, please? I'd be extremely grateful. Would dropping frequencies around 1K help?

It's just volume, balance, and nasal reduction I need!

Thank you and kind regards,

Fandango92
 

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First off I thought this sounded real good. A little too much reverb on the rhythm guitars and snare for my tastes. But that's just a personal taste thing.

Yeah the lead vocals stick out a bit in the verses. When the backing vox come in I didn't hear an issue. Why can't you just set the vocals back a couple db's in the verses? Do they get lost in the mix?

I caught some static-y noise on the right side from 3:54 - 3:57. Sounded like clipping, but I looked at your wave form and didn't see anything. Must be internal in the mix somewhere.
 
another thought...

Maybe turning down the reverb on the guitars will bring them forward in the mix a little bit and therefore cause the vocals to not stick out so much.
 
Thank you very much for the advice. I'll look at that clipping problem and the reverb too. I guess I need to let it breathe a little! But in terms on vocal tonality, does it not sound too nasally at low volume, or is it just me hearing something and being paranoid because it's my voice?

Cheers again!
 
I just need some EQ advice for them, as I've only used a preset EQ setting. If you or anybody knows what I should tweak and where, it'd be awesome!
 
The only thing here is volume i think. Just turn down the vocals by 1 or 2 dB. And your voice really isn't that nasally, it sounds good.

And for EQ: Boost anywhere from 110 - 220hz for fatter, fuller vocals. Boost around 4khz or 5khz for presence (crispness). Mind that these are very general tips, and you need to mess around with it to find what sounds good for a specific song. :)
 
TripleM said:
. Why can't you just set the vocals back a couple db's in the verses? .
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Yep, thats all it needs, and its only in the beginning. (Your losin the drums a bit as the song goes on, the guitars are slowly taking over.)

Rockin tune and very good job overall.

As for the nasely sound, you may feel you have a better sounding voice and probably do, but an sm58 just isnt gonna have the "open air" a good condensor has. You may make it worse trying to make it different. As was said, it sounds fine, and really quite good.
 
Thank you all for your help! I've dropped 1k frequencies a tad and it sounds better. I'll finalise a second mix and upload it up soon when I'm happy with it.
 
2nd attempt!

Here's an updated version. I balanced out vocal volume and took 8-9db off frequencies around 1k. Does it sound less nasally/bellowing and fit in the music? Tell us what you think! Thanks guys.
 

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I liked the vocals better in the first version. In the second version they have a little "hollow" sound to them. To me, I still say to just turn down the lead vox in the verses instead of dealing with an EQ.
 
In the first version though, when the volume is turned down low, there's a sudden bellow to my voice which sounds like I'm singing awful. Volume's not an issue here as I changed all that and still had the same problem. Hmm, I'm really not sure what to do. :confused:
 
I like the first version better. The second sounds too thin.

I tried turning it down low, and I honestly don't hear anything wrong with your vocal at low volume.

This might be something you just have to live with. It's a great tune, really rockin' and well-mixed.

David
 
fandango92 said:
In the first version though, when the volume is turned down low, there's a sudden bellow to my voice which sounds like I'm singing awful. Volume's not an issue here as I changed all that and still had the same problem. Hmm, I'm really not sure what to do. :confused:
Click to expand...

There is a bellow that you *can* hear with the volume low, but you *can't* hear when it's turned up? To me that doesn't make sense.
 
Have you heard of the band 10 years? Your voice reminds me of their lead singer. It's good, I like it. Stop worrying so much about your vocals, I do the same thing all the time and occasionally I need someone else to tell me the same thing :)
 
Good rockin' tune.... !!! Yeah the beginning is louder vocally but turning it down just there may sound wierd. You need to get used to your own voice - it sounds fine :D:D:D:D
 
I also have a nasal voice, and found the SMfifty8 to be unacceptable. I use an Electrovoice RE-20. I love it. Tip: You'll need a preamp with plenty of gain.
 
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