Recording Vocals: Harshness pls advise!

R

robf

New member
Hi there...

Can I please get some opinions on recording lead vocals? I am getting a little harshness when recording them and the sound is a little fuzzy when the letter S is pronounced. My setup is -- ADK CE mic into FatMan2 preamp/compressor, into KOrg d1600.

Things I was wondering about...is their an optimal setting between the input and output gain on the Fatman2? The singer is recording about 6-10inches away from the mic...dead centre and level. Should I be placing the mic at an angle downwards instead? How near to the mic should the pop stopper be?

Many thanks for any help or advice...

Robert
 
I'm just a home recorder (rather than someone running a studio), but here are a few thoughts, for what they are worth.

If you are not using a pop screen of any kind, the singer could be blowing on the mic...? Oh sorry, you said that....I like to have the popper stopper much closer to the singer than the mic.

Or maybe you should try backing the mic up, or moving up or down (this latter thing has been mentioned before around here to get different sounds).

If the Fatman has some sort of level meter, you should be able to rule out it overloading.

I had a Rode mic that I thought always sounded really harsh on highs. It may just be a characteristic of the mic to have lots of high end. So doing something weird to compensate may be needed (back it way up, move it to the side of the singer, put a foam thing over the mic).

Good luck!

smtcharlie
 
Try different angles. I've heard of many people who place the mic in such a manner that it is slightly below, or slightly above the lips of the singer. Just play arund with some different positions. That will help.

Do you have any de-essing software on a pc? I don't know if you use a pc at all, but if you do, try that also.
smtcharlie kind of told you the same stuff, so sorry for the repeat.
Ed
 
The problem is the Fatman. While I have one and like it, clean is not the way I'd describe it. A condensor with a hyped high end might not be a good match for it. I like it with a dynamic mic like an MD-441 or Shure 545 for screamers. Do you have access to a different preamp?
 
Hi there...

Sorry for the delay replying. Been away a few days. Thanks for the comments re: FatMan. I was wondering about that! I am no gear snob but I was worried this really wasn't a good enough/suitable preamp for my ADK CE mic. So I was interested to hesar your comments. Even with my Rode NT mic it didn't sound so great.

So I think I need to buy another preamp. Any suggestions? I was wondering about an ART MPA ?

thanks
Robert
 
The mic might also be a poor match to this vocalists (a presence peak in the wrong spot can be killer for example), or are you hearing this in general?
 
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