Penny for your thoughts - Acoustic and Vocals Original

[Stone Tones]

Hey HomeRecording community!

New member, first-time poster. Saw a couple others post originals here and get feedback so figured this is the place to do so. Also, as with a couple other users, pretty pumped I stumbled across this forum. Lots of sage advice floating around out here so hoping to become more of an active member down the road. But this post isn't about that.

Disclaimer: I'm a hobby musician.

Brand new to recording, mixing, and really - everything to be honest. Got a Focusrite Scarlett 2i4 about 13 months ago and working in Ableton Live Lite 9. I write tunes, I guess there's a trend developing in the stuff I write. But I'd like to hear what you hear.

Acoustic and vocals were recorded with an MXL V67g condenser mic. Total novice, and have been learning tricks along the way but too late for this recording. Proximity effect is noticeable in vox and as will be obvious from the guitar, I need to back it away from the mic. Amateur move - sound is loudest from the soundhole - let's stick the condenser 2" from the source! That said, I worked with the recorded material best I could for being self-taught (also working through Coryat's Guerrilla Home Recording - hopefully subsequent recordings will improve).

Let me know what you hear. EQ muddling guitar too much / not too bad? Levels sound decently balanced or way off? I've sent it to friends and such, but trained (and fresh) ears hear things that mine have not become accustomed to.

Hoping to improve my songwriting, recording techniques, mixing, and really just general craftsmanship as an individual who makes and shares original music.

Thanks everyone and have a good one!

https://soundcloud.com/coreyanco/practice-makes-perfect


Cheers,
Corey

 

[BroKen_H]

The balance between the guitars and the vocals was okay, the guitar is a bit overbearing at points, but not at others. Having said that, you're guitar has a harmonic resonance around 400Hz. I can literally hear it a G# ringing out any time I stop the song in my well treated room regardless of the chord being played. Oddly the guitar TONE is still nice. I kind of like the sound of it. I think that could be tamed by aiming less at the hole and more at the neck...say around the 12th fret. Try giving yourself about 8-10 inches. Same when you sing. Once you get miking down, it's easier to mix.
Lots of performance issues in the vocals that make it sound sloppy, which is unfortunate because some of those harmonies were actually quite nice. Nice is good. Tight and nice Rocks!
Well, I'll leave you alone. Happy recording

 

[BroKen_H]

If you want a simple to follow guideline, try this: Follow the signal path.
The mike is the beginning. Get your miking technique down and you'll have an easier go...said that. I'm repeating my self...repeating myself.
Your interface is the next stop. Make sure the gain is set to where you NEVER see the red light. There's lots of makeup gain at other stages, and a small waveform can be made bigger without worry about noise floor.
Once you've got a well recorded track, your DAW is the next point. That's where the worms come in...whole cans of 'em.

Dynamics, Space, and Timbre
Dynamics is loud and soft. That aspect covers Volume, Compressors, Gates, Limiters
Space is where it sits in the mix. That aspect covers Reverb, Echo, and Pan
Timbre is how it sounds. That aspect covers EQ (including high- and low-pass), Modulation (i.e. phasers, flangers, and other such things) and pitch.
Mixing tracks together sometimes requires any and all of the above being manipulated...

 

[Stone Tones]

Thanks Broken_H! Appreciate the feedback. I've hardly scratched the surface with the controlling dynamics. Definitely a topic I'm excited to get a better handle on. There are a number of mic placements I'm interested in investigating as well. Over the shoulder, or head level pointing down at a 45. Researching the specific mic folks suggested a good 15-16." All things to experiment with as well.

Unsurprisingly, vocals are usually the 'sloppiest' not a trained singer, but self-training's a thing so let's go with working on that as well. Thanks for the compliments on the harmonies, always was a fan of The Beach Boys. Not a comparison, simply an appreciation/inspiration.

Here's to tight and nice!