Bob Dylan - You're a Big Girl Now (my version acoustic live)

[Klof]

Hey,
So I'm pretty new to recording and I'm trying some different aproachs to get the sound.

I used one condenser (IRig) in the middle, for both vocals and guitar.
Recorded in the bathroom.
No reverb just compressor.

What do you think? What could get better? I've tried some different aproachs using just one mic (different positions etc) and this is the best I've got so far

I don't know much about recording so any tips would be great!

thx!

 

[4tracker]

The sincerity and fun of music comes across and that's a good thing. You need to tame that high vocal note. It stands out in a negative way. The bathroom has given you a lo-fi+warbly/reverby sound. I personally dig it, but I doubt most would. What are your influences, besides Dylan? Were you aiming for a lo-fi sound?

I kind of love stuff like this...where people are just f'in around and having fun. I'm addicted to watching youtube covers just like this one.

Why are you recording in the bathroom? For reverb? If you are intent on that maybe dampen the bathroom so you don't get those harsh reflections. Maybe record the guitar in a different room. Also, maybe invest in an omni mic if you're going to use just 1 mic.

I'm learning how to record as well, so take this all with a grain of salt.

 

[Klof]

The sincerity and fun of music comes across and that's a good thing. You need to tame that high vocal note. It stands out in a negative way. The bathroom has given you a lo-fi+warbly/reverby sound. I personally dig it, but I doubt most would. What are your influences, besides Dylan? Were you aiming for a lo-fi sound?

I kind of love stuff like this...where people are just f'in around and having fun. I'm addicted to watching youtube covers just like this one.

Why are you recording in the bathroom? For reverb? If you are intent on that maybe dampen the bathroom so you don't get those harsh reflections. Maybe record the guitar in a different room. Also, maybe invest in an omni mic if you're going to use just 1 mic.

I'm learning how to record as well, so take this all with a grain of salt.

Hey, thx for your answer, I recorded in the bathroom for the reverb yes!

What you mean by dampen the bathroom? can you be more specific?

I'll invest in other mics soon. I don't really like the sound of recording with one mic only. So I pretend to record live with two mics.
But I'm experiencing some stuff to see what I can get with that before!

My influences in singing and playing are basically Dylan, Neil Young and perhaps Thom Yorke for his falsettos. I can say a ton of other artists that influenced my songwriting, melody making etc etc. like Leonard Cohen for example but I don't sing NOTHING like him hehe (at least his "new" voice).

About the lo-fi question.
I'm aiming on what I can do with this gear that is pretty lo-fi heheh

But I would like to get a sound similar to early Dylan's albums (Another side... Times they are...). If you hear Chimes of Freedom for example, or North Country Blues, where the voice really stands out and has what I believe to be a natural reverb from the room. His stuff from Bloods on tracks like Simple Twist of Fate also sound like this. And all this Dylan example sound pretty lo-fi to me... even though the gear was really expensive (he used a Neumann U87 if I'm not wrong).

 

[Armistice]

No reverb?

What do you think all the harsh bouncing-off-the-tiles echoing is? Reverberation. You mean you haven't added any additional reverb. Different thing completely.

What it sounds like is someone who doesn't know much about recording, recording in a bathroom. We all start somewhere.

First thing you should do is get out of the bathroom and into a larger, deader room. Second thing is get your mouth a bit farther away from the mic, or turn the gain down, or both - when you go for the big notes you're maxing your signal and clipping.

Get the mic further away from the guitar as well, or strum it more quietly - it's too loud in the mix.

Seriously, get into the largest room in the house, two thirds of the way back, pointing into a corner, put anything absorbent you can find behind you, turn the gain down, and turn your head a touch on the big notes and without even trying, you'll have about a 1000% improvement in your recording.

What you have so far is just plain painful to listen to - so let me be the person here who actually levels with you - it's not the way it's done. You can sing and play, now you just need to learn how to record decently, which is the easy bit. Really.

Welcome.

 

[Klof]

No reverb?

What do you think all the harsh bouncing-off-the-tiles echoing is? Reverberation. You mean you haven't added any additional reverb. Different thing completely.

Yes, I made that pretty clear on the second comment.

It should be pretty obvious to someone like you though

 

[4tracker]

Hey, thx for your answer, I recorded in the bathroom for the reverb yes!

What you mean by dampen the bathroom? can you be more specific?

I'll invest in other mics soon. I don't really like the sound of recording with one mic only. So I pretend to record live with two mics.
But I'm experiencing some stuff to see what I can get with that before!

My influences in singing and playing are basically Dylan, Neil Young and perhaps Thom Yorke for his falsettos. I can say a ton of other artists that influenced my songwriting, melody making etc etc. like Leonard Cohen for example but I don't sing NOTHING like him hehe (at least his "new" voice).

About the lo-fi question.
I'm aiming on what I can do with this gear that is pretty lo-fi heheh

But I would like to get a sound similar to early Dylan's albums (Another side... Times they are...). If you hear Chimes of Freedom for example, or North Country Blues, where the voice really stands out and has what I believe to be a natural reverb from the room. His stuff from Bloods on tracks like Simple Twist of Fate also sound like this. And all this Dylan example sound pretty lo-fi to me... even though the gear was really expensive (he used a Neumann U87 if I'm not wrong).

By dampen I mean hang up a blanket or paintings or foam. Sometimes to diffuse the reverbs from all hitting your mic at the same time from different angles.

I guess I misunderstood because I thought you were saying you only had one mic for this recording. If you have two, aim one at the guitar and one at voice, and try to keep them fairly close to soften the reverb (you can do this to taste). But I agree with the other guy that you'd be better off going into a different room. In a living room you'll still get some natural room ambiance/reverb, but it'll just be softer. Google search about all that. I record in a 1br apartment. If you look through my post history I recently uploaded some stuff I did in a 1br. What I learned is that these rooms sound completely fine, despite every audio blog saying you need thousands of dollars to treat a room (yes, to make it completely treated, but why is that the goal? For example, some great early recordings were done OUTSIDE with performers standing around 1 mic, and I listen to those more than many perfectly treated rooms). It somewhat depends on style. For folk you do not need much. So we all need to put things in perspective. You can do good things in any room, really, and even outside. The key is understanding as much as you can so you make good choices.

 

[Klof]

By dampen I mean hang up a blanket or paintings or foam. Sometimes to diffuse the reverbs from all hitting your mic at the same time from different angles.

I guess I misunderstood because I thought you were saying you only had one mic for this recording. If you have two, aim one at the guitar and one at voice, and try to keep them fairly close to soften the reverb (you can do this to taste). But I agree with the other guy that you'd be better off going into a different room. In a living room you'll still get some natural room ambiance/reverb, but it'll just be softer. Google search about all that. I record in a 1br apartment. If you look through my post history I recently uploaded some stuff I did in a 1br. What I learned is that these rooms sound completely fine, despite every audio blog saying you need thousands of dollars to treat a room (yes, to make it completely treated, but why is that the goal? For example, some great early recordings were done OUTSIDE with performers standing around 1 mic, and I listen to those more than many perfectly treated rooms). It somewhat depends on style. For folk you do not need much. So we all need to put things in perspective. You can do good things in any room, really, and even outside. The key is understanding as much as you can so you make good choices.

nono! You understood correctly, I used only one mic.
I'll be buying more soon so I can do that, one mic for vocal and one for guitar.

But for now one bad condenser is what I have So I'm just experimenting.

In my bulding we have a kind of big square room with nothig but one couch on it (but three walls are windows, from floor to ceiling, I don't know how that affects it). That'll do for something?

Or I have a kind of smaller one which is actually a gym with some gym material inside and only one window form floor to ceiling.

 

[4tracker]

Is it a small condenser? I find those to be brutal for vocals. Really pick up sibilant sounds and will pick up every reflection, etc. They are so sensitive. At least the ones I own. I'd buy a dynamic mic. They're most versatile, I think.

Try the room with a couch and lay blankets on walls, hang pictures, put up books to diffuse the reflections.

 

[Armistice]

Yes, I made that pretty clear on the second comment.

It should be pretty obvious to someone like you though

You're missing the point.

 

[Klof]

IK Multimedia | iRig Mic - Handheld microphone for iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and Android devices
It's this one. It has a switch with 3 levels, for really (REALLY) high sensitivity, middle (which is what I used for that record) and low sensitivity (which you have to be pretty pretty close to sing)

I intend to buy a good condenser large diaphragm for recodring vocals and use an Sm57 that I already have here for guitar... At least thats what I thought about but I'm trying to learn fast which ones cause I'll be traveling in ten days and need to buy then (I'm from Brazil, here it's too expensive )


Here's another take from a Johnny Cash song in another room with the mic much farther (and the switch for high sensitivity)
Take a look and tell what you think if you have the time!

 

[Bruthish]

Kudos for starting the recording process and getting something down. Everyone has to start somewhere and believe me, you will get much better at it as you research and learn. I am with Armistice, that bathroom is killing you. I am sure it was fun singing it in there with all the sound reflections bouncing around your head, but it just doesn't sound good recorded. Go with what he said about setting up in another room. Unless you have a great room to record in, it would be best to add reverb after getting a good sounding recording of your vocals and guitar.

 

[Klof]

Ok I'm out the bathroom