double tracking question

[jericho mile]

Double tracking is a technique that im new too, only been recording for a couple of years now, and im curious what kind of effect would you get if you simply did a copy and paste of your lead track and brought the volume down and panned slightly to one side. has anyone tried this or is there something that i'm completely missing here. that would give you an exact copy of your performance would it not? just thinking out loud. What say you!

 

[miroslav]

Splitting/panning exact copies doesn't get you anything other than an increase in level due to the combined/same tracks.
You would have to apply some delay or other type of effect...or change one of the tracks in some way...so that when you pan, there will be a difference between the two tracks and panning will bring that out.

 

[Steenamaroo]

im curious what kind of effect would you get if you simply did a copy and paste of your lead track!

Simply do it then! Your ears are the best judge.

But yeh, Miroslav's right.
Straight duplicate and wide pan = original twice as loud.
Adding effects can create choruses, delays, phase effects etc.

Nothing apart from playing it twice will sound like genuine double tracking though if that's what you're after.

 

[rfahey86]

IMO copying a track sounds like shit without an effect. I would just record them tight and edit the fuck out of them.

 

[miroslav]

IMO copying a track sounds like shit without an effect.

Actually...it sounds just like the original.
Now...if that sounds like shit, then so will the copy.

 

[rfahey86]

Actually...it sounds just like the original.
Now...if that sounds like shit, then so will the copy.

I'm talking about copying and then nudging it a little. It always sounds weird.

 

[TripleM]

You can do stuff with delays and chorus and such. But like the others said, nothing is as good at getting "that effect" as double tracking.

 

[grimtraveller]

What say you ?

What do you actually want ?

 

[miroslav]

I'm talking about copying and then nudging it a little. It always sounds weird.

Not always.
I've done split/pans with bvocals organ and even guitars that sounded fine. It depends on the song and what it is you are doubling and how it sits within the rest of the mix.
I'll play/sing it twice when that is the way to go...but sometimes it's about the "rhythmic pulse" of a doubled/delayed track that works, where you want the delay to be exact on every note/word phrase, which doesn't happen when you play/sing twice.

 

[arcadeko]

Not always.
I've done split/pans with bvocals organ and even guitars that sounded fine. It depends on the song and what it is you are doubling and how it sits within the rest of the mix.
I'll play/sing it twice when that is the way to go...but sometimes it's about the "rhythmic pulse" of a doubled/delayed track that works, where you want the delay to be exact on every note/word phrase, which doesn't happen when you play/sing twice.

+1 - i do both as well - sometimes 1 is all you need then you just add a few millisecond delay to one track and BAM you got yourself some surround sound

 

[grimtraveller]

Sometimes, doubling adds a certain 'presence' that's hard to describe, but very 'present'. Totally different to double tracking. I don't even think of them in the same breath.

 

[kentheriot]

Jericho,

You're correct. It would still sound the same. But if you delay one of the identical performances by 30-50 milliseconds, now you're talkin'. But in order for the human ear to get fooled into hearing doubling, stereo, and other stuff like that is if there is a difference in the two signals. You either have to sing (or play) the part again for the performance difference, or apply an effect to double it, which will create differences in timing, EQ, etc. Make sense?

Cheers!

Ken

 

[aaronmcoleman]

Hello, I'm new to the site, and really like this topic, as I'm currently working on a new guitar rig using gear I already have. I'm using two different mic sources and getting a rich, warm, full , 70's stereo sound with this setup. Here's the chain...

Martin D-18 with a Thinline Pick-up, one one channel, and a AKG C-1000 mic also on the guitar, on the other channel.

Tubessence Pre-Amp, Model 107

Rane DC-24 Compressor/Dynamic Controller

Teac A4010-S Reel to reel recorder (60's-early 70's vintage)(Just using it as a pre-amp and to create distortion)

Mackie 24 x 8 mixer

Adobe's Audition 1.5

I love the way this set up sounds !! Very 70's ish,

That will work because you basically have two different sounds, almost like stereo recording.

One of the big reasons your recordings come out sounding very 70's is the D-18. A good guitar to begin with is the key to a good guitar sound. All that other stuff is good, but the guitar is the key!

 

[jonesey]

Ive done this several times with vocals. I simply copy paste the original track to a second track but I place the pasted track a millisecond or two after the original track. This leads to a "double tracked" sound when panned center, which is similar to the Beatles artificial double tracking technique. When panned one track right and one track left, it produces the effect of two singers singing the same exact thing, but it is distinguishable to the ear. You hear this technique a lot on some Simon and Garfunkel songs, especially on the "Bridge over troubled water" album. Pretty cool when listening on headphones.

You can experiment with the sound by setting the copied track further off of the original track, but this produces a slappy echo sound that never suits my acoustic music needs. I have used it on acoustic guitars to get a fuller sound but not often. Its a fun technique to play around with.

 

[bouldersoundguy]

+1 - i do both as well - sometimes 1 is all you need then you just add a few millisecond delay to one track and BAM you got yourself some surround sound

While wrecking mono compatibility.

 

[mjbphotos]

Whatever works for you ....

I record my 73 Epiphone with the same technique - pickup and mic, then mix together to get the best overall sound. I don't add any compression or other fx during recording, though, - just the straight sound, then process as needed to get the sound I want (usually just some reverb)

 

[tatton777]

Hello,
To me, the cool part about double tracking is getting the slight imperfections side by side and then mixing them so that one one is the main track and the other is the supporting track.