Need help fixing some extremely stressed "s" sounds.

  • Thread starter Thread starter TheMH
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TheMH

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Ok I used a shelf to fix most of the verse but there is a place where the guy says "Success" (think that may be the worse word to mix) and the hiss is kinda bad. I could just ignore it because its so minor of an issue in this song but i figured i would learn from it now for future reference.

I've done a little work on it but i know it could be better. When i tried doing a kind of spot treatment it altered the sound of that section and made it sound noticeably different from the next word. should i just ignore it or is there a way to fix this.

http://limelinx.com/files/38ef89c322c2ffc28c97a978a599728e

its between 35-40 sec
 
That's kind of a tough one because the sibilance, while not real strong in amplitude, is pretty broadband there. You're bumping at about 8.5k or so, but the bump stretches from something below 7k to past 9k. You might try an EQ or multi-band compression dip of just 2-3dB or so in that range, but it'll be hard to get rid of the bathwater without getting rid of the baby that way, I think.

What might work the best is to take maybe three or four bands of parametric EQ set to an extremely narrow bandwidth, and punch a couple of narrow holes like swiss cheese in that range, to take away much of the overall "oomph" in that range without removing a lot of the content.

Just an idea.

G.
 
moresound said:
Yeah I ran into nubs last night. Who is that MSH?
Click to expand...
Hoo boy, that's a loaded question! :rolleyes: :p Just stick around, you'll find out soon enough, more ;):D

EDIT: Or maybe not; it looks like Nubsey may have been eradicated.

G.
 
Really Glen, nubs is kind of like big foot?
Last night it was weird,slash posting then running away....spooky stuff.
The whole persona was that of an alias that had been waiting in a dormant stage for years then raising it's ugly head.



:cool:
 
moresound said:
Really Glen, nubs is kind of like big foot?
Last night it was weird,slash posting then running away....spooky stuff.
The whole persona was that of an alias that had been waiting in a dormant stage for years then raising it's ugly head.
Click to expand...
If bigfoot shaved his *entire* body smooth, you might not be too far off ;).

G.
 
I've had many issues with stressed "S and Ch" before and I've done 2 different things to really fix and tame them without using a de-esser or Multi-band Eq'ing.
1. I usually first duplicate the vocal track.
2. Insert an Eq plugin. (Use a high pass filter anywhere from 100-200 Hz.)
3. Insert a Compressor plugin
4. Insert another Eq plugin to give the vocals life. I boost 2k, 12k for presence and air (which of course makes the sibilance worse. But wait, here's how I correct it.

5. Zoom in and look/listen for the high frequencie "S."
6. Automate the volume at these problem areas. (I never use fade ins cause I'm too lazy to zoom all the way in into the wave form)
7. Automate a Bypass on the 2nd EQ plugin at the Beginning and End of the "S" consonants.
8. Automate a Bypass on the compressor at these problem areas too.

You can also cut and paste the sibilance onto another track and attack them that way.

If you go bananas with big volume dips on the "S' sounds, you'll get a nice lisp, so be discerning with this. Other then that, that's the best and easiest way to fix problem sibilance. When your happy with how it sounds, write it to a new audio track. Make sure you keep a copy of the original track too, just in case.
 
jonslaten said:
I've had many issues with stressed "S and Ch" before and I've done 2 different things to really fix and tame them without using a de-esser or Multi-band Eq'ing.
1. I usually first duplicate the vocal track.
2. Insert an Eq plugin. (Use a high pass filter anywhere from 100-200 Hz.)
3. Insert a Compressor plugin
4. Insert another Eq plugin to give the vocals life. I boost 2k, 12k for presence and air (which of course makes the sibilance worse. But wait, here's how I correct it.

5. Zoom in and look/listen for the high frequencie "S."
6. Automate the volume at these problem areas. (I never use fade ins cause I'm too lazy to zoom all the way in into the wave form)
7. Automate a Bypass on the 2nd EQ plugin at the Beginning and End of the "S" consonants.
8. Automate a Bypass on the compressor at these problem areas too.

You can also cut and paste the sibilance onto another track and attack them that way.

If you go bananas with big volume dips on the "S' sounds, you'll get a nice lisp, so be discerning with this. Other then that, that's the best and easiest way to fix problem sibilance. When your happy with how it sounds, write it to a new audio track. Make sure you keep a copy of the original track too, just in case.
Click to expand...

Other than the specific examples of EQ and compression (as this would be specific to the recorded material at hand) the advice on volume automation is one of the best ways to attack this as it allows you to be more targetted and gives more transparent results.
 
jonslaten said:
I've had many issues with stressed "S and Ch" before and I've done 2 different things to really fix and tame them without using a de-esser or Multi-band Eq'ing.
1. I usually first duplicate the vocal track.
2. Insert an Eq plugin. (Use a high pass filter anywhere from 100-200 Hz.)
3. Insert a Compressor plugin
4. Insert another Eq plugin to give the vocals life. I boost 2k, 12k for presence and air (which of course makes the sibilance worse. But wait, here's how I correct it.

5. Zoom in and look/listen for the high frequencie "S."
6. Automate the volume at these problem areas. (I never use fade ins cause I'm too lazy to zoom all the way in into the wave form)
7. Automate a Bypass on the 2nd EQ plugin at the Beginning and End of the "S" consonants.
8. Automate a Bypass on the compressor at these problem areas too.

You can also cut and paste the sibilance onto another track and attack them that way.

If you go bananas with big volume dips on the "S' sounds, you'll get a nice lisp, so be discerning with this. Other then that, that's the best and easiest way to fix problem sibilance. When your happy with how it sounds, write it to a new audio track. Make sure you keep a copy of the original track too, just in case.
Click to expand...

Good lookin. I never used the automation techn other than to fade out sometimes. I used to go in and just turn down parts on the actual audio track. Sure enough once i saved i couldnt undo so i just altogether stopped adjusting the volume. Thanks for the tips.
 
I fix it two ways...sometimes using a little of both.

1.) Slice the meat of the "S" section at both ends...then apply cross-fades on both cuts (usually done with the slice move)...then I will lower the volume of just that portion until the "S" is tamed.

2.) Apply narrow/deeper notch EQ in the 6-8kHz range...just dial through until the center band is found.

Yes...lisping can result if either method is too strong...but with a touch of one or both, it's really not that hard to do. I use the 1. level drop most often, as I find that even cutting the level a small amount, it's enough to remove the strong "S" while preserving the normal sounds of the pronunciation.
The key is how/where you surgically apply the cross-fades...just a couple of ticks one way or the other can make all the difference.
I don't even bother copying the track, as in my DAW (Samplitude) each edit is treated as an nondestructive Object edit...so you can do what you want as many times as you want... and still go back to what you originally had...the original WAV is never changed.

I don't bother with any type of automated compression...as the above two actions give a more controlled result.
 
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