"S" and "T" Woes

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kc0jsj

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Hey all,

Anyone have any tips on fixing S's and T's in vocal recordings? I've gotten everything elst about where I want it, but just cant get passed my S and T sounds scratching up my song! I know it's just not me because it happens with all the vocalists that I record (I've tested it on three other people with the same resluts)

I have a M-Audio Fast-Track Pro interface, Cubase SX3 and a MXL 990 condense mic (with a pop-filter)

So that being said, please throw out any unrelated tips that you find usefull in recording - I'm fairly new and somewhat stupid:)

Thanks!

Michael
 
You're experience what's called excessive sibilance. This is not too uncommon of a problem, especially with many cheaper condenser mics that have a high-end bump in their response.

Try positioning the mic so the singers are not singing directly on-axis into the mic. For example, try placing the mic slightly higher or lower than mouth levels, angling up or down if necessary to get a good sound without getting the direct-on sibilance. Or, if necessary, rotate the front of the mic slightly left or right.

Some folks also like taping a pencil vertically to the direct front of the mic as a bit of a sibilance blocker.

Once it's already recorded, sibilance tends to fall somewhere in the 5.5k to 8.5k frequency ranged, and can be decreased from the recording by sweeping a narrow-bandwidth parametric EQ or multi-band compressor band through this area to find and suppress the offending frequency(s).

G.
 
If you're stuck with the material or just can't get the sibliance under control during tracking then:

For S souds you can also try a de-esser theres a very good one available for free called spitfish here www.digitalfishphones.com

for over the top T sounds I usually find the offending piece of the waveform and automate the volume down a couple of db just for the duration of the T sound

If you're doubling or tripling then panning the vocals for effect then you may want to cut the S & T sounds out of the doubled and panned tracks altogether so you don't end up with a huge sibliant mess
 
This forum ROCKS! thanks for the quick and great responces guys!

Michael
 
kc0jsj said:
This forum ROCKS! thanks for the quick and great responces guys!

Michael
Click to expand...

Nothing works better than volume automation. You can try de-esser or like Glen suggested a multiband compressor (where you have only one band enabled and targetting the sibilant frequencies). But I tend to get the best results with automation. Yeah, it's tedious and you gotta zoom in to see those "S"s and plosives, but man, it's worth it.
 
Try a better mic

You may want to try another mic. You really can't buy a decent condencer for $49. Possibly borrow something a bit better to try on vocals. I have an MXL 990 that I would just about give to you. If that is all you can afford right now, hey, we all understand that, but there are much better sounding mics out there for not alot more money. A Rode NT1-A is a good example and has very low self noise. Only downside is no pad or high pass filter. Many newbs may not realize that you can get a decent vocal sound using a dynamic mic such as a Shure 58 or even better a Beta 58. With a dynamic you don't have near the problem with sibilance, plosives, or background noise. I've gotten some pretty decent vocals with a Beta 58 even though many people consider them to be only for live applications.
 
Try a better mic

You may want to try another mic. You really can't buy a decent condencer for $49. Possibly borrow something a bit better to try on vocals. I have an MXL 990 that I would just about give to you. If that is all you can afford right now, hey, we all understand that, but there are much better sounding mics out there for not alot more money. A Rode NT1-A is a good example and has very low self noise. Only downside is no pad or high pass filter. Many newbs may not realize that you can get a decent vocal sound using a dynamic mic such as a Shure 58 or even better a Beta 58. With a dynamic you don't have near the problem with sibilance, plosives, or background noise. I've gotten some pretty decent vocals with a Beta 58 even though many people consider them to be only for live applications.
 
doorslammer said:
You may want to try another mic. You really can't buy a decent condencer for $49. Possibly borrow something a bit better to try on vocals. I have an MXL 990 that I would just about give to you. If that is all you can afford right now, hey, we all understand that, but there are much better sounding mics out there for not alot more money. A Rode NT1-A is a good example and has very low self noise. Only downside is no pad or high pass filter. Many newbs may not realize that you can get a decent vocal sound using a dynamic mic such as a Shure 58 or even better a Beta 58. With a dynamic you don't have near the problem with sibilance, plosives, or background noise. I've gotten some pretty decent vocals with a Beta 58 even though many people consider them to be only for live applications.
Click to expand...

That just seems to easy. lol
 
SouthSIDE Glen said:
You're experience what's called excessive sibilance. This is not too uncommon of a problem, especially with many cheaper condenser mics that have a high-end bump in their response.

Try positioning the mic so the singers are not singing directly on-axis into the mic. For example, try placing the mic slightly higher or lower than mouth levels, angling up or down if necessary to get a good sound without getting the direct-on sibilance. Or, if necessary, rotate the front of the mic slightly left or right.

Some folks also like taping a pencil vertically to the direct front of the mic as a bit of a sibilance blocker.

Once it's already recorded, sibilance tends to fall somewhere in the 5.5k to 8.5k frequency ranged, and can be decreased from the recording by sweeping a narrow-bandwidth parametric EQ or multi-band compressor band through this area to find and suppress the offending frequency(s).

G.
Click to expand...

Your like a human text book. You cover all the angles and I enjoy reading your posts. Thanks. I record a lot with mxl 990 and you need to back off it a bit for sure. I leave mine high pointing downward.
 
timodell7 said:
Your like a human text book.
Click to expand...
Which is exactly why so many folks here want to break my spine and tear out my appendix. :cool:

Thanks for the tip o' the hat though, and welcome to the board :).

G.
 
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