Help with vocal harshness

[sonatataster]

So I posted about this in the Newbies forum but didn't get much of response so I thought I'd repost it here.

Not sure what's going on here. Here's what I'm talking about: Distortion Problem by Sonata Taster on SoundCloud - Create, record and share your sounds for free. You'll notice the problem on "famous". It seems like the mic is being overloaded. I used an AT2035 connected to a ZOOM H4 recorder using the ZOOM ASIO drivers through Ableton Live. The room it was recorded in was my bedroom which doesn't have any sonic optimization. There's a monitor about a foot and half behind the mic and a wall about 2-3 feet behind the mic. The peak level of the vocal is -11.61 dBFS and the RMS is -21.82 dBFS. I was 6 inches away from the mic when I recorded this and the mic was angled down about thirty degrees. The mic is a bit lower than my mouth. I tried a few other positions (mic above my mouth, further away from the mic, closer, etc.) and this was the least harsh. I did use a pop filter. I've tried playing with EQs and compressors without any effect.

From the research I've done, I have two main suspects: it could be that the mic is defective (I just bought it) or it could be that the interface is faulty. Perhaps it is something else?

Help is greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

[sonatataster]

I should add that the interface only records at 16-bit, if that makes any difference.

 

[mixsit]

Sounds processed. Pinched, odd tone. Compressed and eq'd?
And yes some hash where you pointed out.
Shouldn't be mic overload at that distance.
Not a 16bit issue.
Any other mics you can compare with?

 

[sonatataster]

There's no processing. My voice is kinda nasal

The only other mic I have is the one the stereo mic built into the H4 and it has the same harshness. Here's a sample: http://http://soundcloud.com/sonatataster/distortion-problem-mic-b. Any thoughts?

 

[Tim Gillett]

It sounds like a deliberate EQ boost around 1 to 2khz but only for the "fa.." part of "famous".
Sounds like human intervention to me...

 

[sonatataster]

Holy crap. Both of you were right! Apparently, I had an effect turned on on the H4. It still seems a bit off, but I'm not sure if it's my voice or if it's the mic/pre-amp. Could you take a listen? Check out a new sample: http://soundcloud.com/sonatataster/distortion-problem-c. The problem seems to be on "love". Here's one with me a bit closer in the mic to get it at a slightly higher level: http://soundcloud.com/sonatataster/distortion-problem Thanks guys!!!!

 

[RockinRobby]

Have you looked at your .wav file? Or used a spectrograph to look at the frequencies? Everyone says "use your ears" however, God gave us eyes too...

And you can use an EQ with a sharp Q and high boost and sweep it around to find offending frequencies? And then make small cuts at those points.