Nasal sounding vocals

[timboZ]

Next week I am going to record some vocals and this person has a sort of nasal sound.
Anybody have any tips or tricks for nasal sounding vocals during tracking or mixing.

 

[tarnationsauce2]

I have gone through this before. I'll share with you what I did to tame the nazal sounds.

Make sure the mic is away from the sinus area. Have it a bit lower, maybe aimed at the person's chin area.
Then ask them to hold their head up a bit and instruct them atht they are singing just above the capsule. Maybe give the person something to look at and keep[ the pop filter up as it should be.
Also, make sure the mic is back a bit, otherwise if they start to sing down into the mic you'll really hear the nasal sound. With the mic further back it equalizes the sound source a bit. By further back I mean about 1.5-2 foot or so. Not real close about 1-6 inch like some people do it.

Also take the time to listen to a a few of your mics to choose what is best suited.

 

[Ironklad Audio]

stay away from mics with a boost in high mids...this will only make the nasal-y sound stick out more

 

[Farview]

I tend to point the mic at the persons forehead and keep them back about a foot.

I set up a pop filter right in front of their mouth to give thme a target to sing into.

 

[Bobbsy]

All the above are good ideas because your best bet is to improve things at source.

However, if the best results are still too nasal, a bit of EQ cutting the right upper mid frequencies can help a fair bit. You'll have to play with the frequency and Q until you find the right combination...I find the easiest way to set this up it to actually put in some boost then adjust the frequency and Q until it gets badly nasal...then cut using those settings.

Bob