one mic

T

tremblayj

Member
OK, my problem is that I only have one mic right now and it is a cheap dynamic. I find that i sound better when I sing and play a song at the same time. so I recorded a cover of a howie day song called "collide" in one take. I put the mic at about forehead level and pointed down a bit. This track has had no changes so what went in is what you are hearing.
Can somebody tell how to make it sound a little better? I usually only put a little bit of reverb on it and thats it but there has got to be more.

set up is cheap shure into 802A into delta 44. I am a poor high school student who just bought new acoustic so I am stuck hear a while.
 
Dude, that sounds pretty nice. You might play with some eq settings to make it more full, but it sounds very unplugged right now. Which is good. Nice and clean, for using only one mic.
Ed
 
I'm listening to "Complete". I like it. You have a nice voice. It sounds pretty good for just one microphone. Mess with some EQ to take out some of the space(mud) in the mix.
 
How exactly do I take some of that "mud" out of it. That is what i think needs to go to but I don't know how to take it out.
 
tremblayj said:
How exactly do I take some of that "mud" out of it. That is what i think needs to go to but I don't know how to take it out.
Click to expand...


Do you have parametric EQ? I don't know if you mix on a PC or through hardware? If so try a cut (about -3.2 or so) and slide it around the mids to see where it takes out the most of the dull sound. It's something you just kindof have to play with until you are happier with it.
 
Yes i do have parametric EQ and I do all mixing on the pc. I did what was suggested with the -3.2 and reposted. I am going to start playing with this so I can perfect it. I find it opened it up a lot and took some of the mudiness away. are there any other suggestions of what I could do to it in terms of effects or eq?
 
Sounds Good...

Honestly at this point you've got a great sound for one mic and what instrumentation you have going on.

The only thing you could mess with other than what everyone else has mentioned (toying with EQ) is mic placement.

You can obviously ripped this off without too much trouble..(one take..phew pretty damn good) so if you're looking for something more then take a swipe at the tune with the mic in one position move it and give it another pass. See if you're hearing something you like.

Also if you have the means run that one mic cable into a different room - The bathroom for example. Different rooms different mic placement will make quite a bit of difference.

But seriously dude, you got a great balance here.

You're vocals sound great by the way - I've only heard the original song a few times but this is a great representation of that song.

I am very impressed and geez now even more impressed that I see your age.

Really good work.
 
wow! thanks for the comments. I actually do have a bathroom right next door that I never thought of trying. I actually have a living room/dining room/kitchen all in one open room and cathedral ceilings. Maybe i might try that sometime when I do get a longer cord.
I actually just wrote a song last night and recorded it using the exact same technique but added some reverb. I think it opens everything up but it sounds to unnatural. Is there another way of opening it up without so much verb or maybe a different verb?
Once again thanks for the comments they are greatly appreciated as I am still new to music and have so much to learn (thats where all of you pros come in).
 
It really depends on what sound you are going for. I like to record my vocal and guitar tracks seperatly, toy around with mic placement, different size and types of recording spaces etc.. Do you plug directly into your PC?(I'm still learning so take everything with a grain of salt)

This is definitly the place to learn. There are a lot of helpful and very knowledgable people here that are always willing to help.
 
You're really close as far as the balance between the guitar and voice.

The recording favors the guitar (just a little) rather than the voice so my first instinct would be to tilt the mic up somewhat, and then orient it such that it picks up a little more bass energy from the guitar, meaning it should probabaly move towards the sound hole a little.

The balance between voice and guitar gets better during the chorus, probably because you're sdinging louder.

Is tracking the guitar and then punching in the vocal an option?

Nice voice, nice rhythm chops.
 
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I am actually trying to record the guitar and vocals seperate right now. I will try and post later tonight for comments.
Thanks once again to all those who have helped me out.
 
well I put up the new one. I am not sure what I did. Very little eqing. A little chorus on guitars and a little verb on the voice. One problem I had, and always have had, is how high the levels should be with voice related to guitar. Right now it seems as though maybe the vocals are to loud but maybe its the complete opposite. Like I said I don't know much thats why I am here. Any suggestions would be appreciated and I would probably try anything out.
 
The vocals sound very clear and nice, Try some high end EQ to see if it adds even more air (maybe 17k or 10k somewhere around there)! I'd like to hear the guitar more natural. Take off the chorus & add some slight reverb. The chorus is making it sound a bit out of tune.

As to the levels, that is a personal prefference . I think the guitar could come up a bit.

Nice vocals by the way. There are a few pops coming through your mic but your voice sounds solid. Do you use a pop filter?
 
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