Black dog noise sample

  • Thread starter Thread starter rayc
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rayc

rayc

retroreprobate
Hello folks,
Terry & I thought we had the vocal noise problem sorted. He's now bypassed his soundcard with a USB device so the signal chain is Mic, Mixer, USB to AUDACITY.
Here's a sample from Terry's latest vocal.

http://www.soundclick.com/util/getplayer.m3u?id=7594618&q=hi

The main noise probs we've had have been about fundamentals taking over & drowning things - that does seem to have been dealt with by & large but this sample provides a clear demonstration of another problem.
I THINK it may be proximity to the mic as in the whispered bits the problem isn't as obvious.
I tried to treat this with a triple filter using a high pass at 170, a wide-ish notch at 350 and a low pass at 17005.
This owrks reasonably well BUT leaves the voice pretty thin and without the male roundedness.
The sample at the link is raw & untreated.
Can some of you help with diagnosis & treatment suggestions?
You can download the very small MP3 from here:
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/page_songInfo.cfm?bandID=469622&songID=7594618
 
His problem is that he doesn't belt anything out. I'm no singer, but I know you gotta move air past your vocal chords to make em work right and sound full. Tell him to step back from the mic a little and really sing it! :)
 
Greg, you're accurate in stating that Terry doesn't belt his songs out - he reticent to make a noise - very polite fellow.
Would extra force address the noise issue though?
Thanks for your obs.
 
rayc said:
Would extra force address the noise issue though?
.
Click to expand...

Not directly. But if you're having to crank the preamp way up and normalize to boost the signal because the track is so quiet, then you can introduce all sorts of weirdness.
 
Ray it's hard to judge when hearing the voice on its own. I didn't hear any noise problems, but I agree with Greg that Terry HAS to use his belly and his chest when singing and move away about a foot from the mic. This sounds more as if he 's whispering into the mic, but that all depends on what kind of song he's singing on. How about a sample with the backing? The voice is such a variable instrument and whether one has to whisper or belt it out really depends on what you're going for.
 
What I hear is a sound that makes me think the track is processed with fx...like chorus...and some kind of verb. Room effects? Is this a stacked stereo mic placement???
 
Put a windscreen on the mic. It sounds like air buffeting the mic while he sing. Since he is singing so quietly, the air coming out of his mouth is louder than the note he is singing.

He really does have to learn to project better. You have to get the sound out of your mouth, otherwise it isn't really singing.
 
Jeff, No stacking - no effcets just a mic and a man really.
Joey - did you listen with h/phones? there's a strong noise that comes only when Terry is singing - not when he's not singing & not when he's singing very quietly.
I think Farview is possibly correct - breath on the grill with a quiet voice.
Pop screen and some ergs may be the answer - I was hoping to process the vocal takes I have & use them but may have to wait for a retake.
Greg, I've not normalized and - judging by the non singing spots the pre isn't spewing this particular noise into the recording.
Thanks for the ideas folks.
 
I'm not hearing any noise in the quiet parts either so the set up seems to be pretty good in that regard. Try adding a pop screen/filter for the wind noise.
 
Farview said:
Put a windscreen on the mic. It sounds like air buffeting the mic while he sing. Since he is singing so quietly, the air coming out of his mouth is louder than the note he is singing.
Click to expand...

+1

Ciro
 
rayc said:
Hello folks,
I tried to treat this with a triple filter using a high pass at 170, a wide-ish notch at 350 and a low pass at 17005.
Click to expand...

You, my friend, are hilarious. Sounded more like 17k to me...
 
89gtsleeper,
The & 5 is funny BUT funnily enough it was precisely where it needed to be.
I listened and adjusted then looked at the reading & there it was!!
Now, can you help?
CIRO,
I get the point.
Ido,
Yep, Terry admits that on this particular rough draft he used no puff profilactic. Hopefully he'll get another pass at it soon.
 
I like the mellowness of this song. Kind of reminds me of a more rockified, energetic Nick Drake's "Black-Eyed Dog."

Yeah, I agree that he could sing a little more from the gut to avoid having to sing so close and having his breath batter the mic. I think it takes some skill to sing this way but still have it be intelligible and not have rampant popping. He didn't use a pop filter for this?

I actually think the vocals work fine, just too loud in the mix.
 
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