recording voice, total wannabe newbie

[dustin_kovich]

Hello everyone,

I really need a lot of help as I have a lot of ideas in my head and have come up with some really wicked (in my opinion anyway) hooks and melodies.

Problem is, I have no idea how to record voice, my equipment is as follows and I've built this up over the many years and even had my mates stealing some of it.

I use a DAW, P4 with 2GB RAM, M-Audio 192 Sound Card, Mackie 1402VLZ, a pair of Roket 8's, a Shure SM58 and a M-Audio 88ES Midi Keyboard.

I'm currently using the free version of Cubase that I got with my sound card and I know it quite well and I think it's all I need for now, maybe when I get my next pay cheque I'll buy SX4?

The kind of music I'd like to record is House but I have no idea how to get that bass track laid, drums and stuff always sound too tinny and not real from my VST instruments etc... Where do I get the GOOD sounds from?

But onto the voice recording, what is the best way to record voice and what effects if any should be used to bring out the real tone?

I was a classical musician so I've got a good ear, I just need to be pointed in the right direction now to help me bring out my ideas to life.

Thanks a bunch.

dustin_kovich@hotmail.com
(a real wannabe newbie)

 

[scrouch]

First, if you want good drums check out Battery 3. A good sample library and really good control and features. In general I like stuff from Native Instruments and also have Absynth 3, which is pretty sweet. If you want a good Moog sound check out Minimonsta from m-audio. Great for the price. All of these have downloadable demos so you can try before you buy them. Problem is that the demos show you how good the programs really are and you get hooked pretty quick. Same with waves plugins. Don't test those until you're ready to spend a lot.

Vocal recording has a number of variables. You can get a pretty good sound from a SM58 with a good preamp but you'll need to take a bunch of stuff into account. The Shure website has some articles with their recomended placement, etc, but then there is the room accoustics and the singer's technique. If the room is boosting certain frequencies you can run into issues. A good mic and transparent preamp will get you a really good replication of how the person sounds but in a lot of cases people add effects to make them sound warmer or fuller or just less harsh in general. If you end up doing any compression to the track a de-esser can be really important. Compressors tend to not tackle high frequencies very well so sibilance is magnified when you compress. There are a lot of places on the net that have EQing guides what can be helpful.

 

[TimOBrien]

First off, immediately get a good beginner recording book (spend $20 before spending hundred$/thousand$) that shows you what you need to get started and how to hook everything up in your studio:
Home Recording for Musicians by Jeff Strong - $15
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/07...ce&n=283155&n=507846&s=books&v=glance
(Wish I'd had that when I started; would have saved me lots of money and time and grief)

Good Newbie guides that also explains all the basics:
http://www.tweakheadz.com/guide.htm
http://www.computermusic.co.uk/page/computermusic?entry=free_beginner_pdfs

21 Ways To Assemble a Recording Rig:
http://www.tweakheadz.com/rigs.htm

Also Good Info:
http://www.theprojectstudiohandbook.com/directory.htm

Other recording books:
http://musicbooksplus.com/home-recording-c-31.html


Plenty of software around to record for free to start out on:

Audacity: http://audacity.sourceforge.net

Kristal: http://www.kreatives.org/kristal/

Other freebies and shareware: www.hitsquad.com