Testing My New Mic. Please Comment!

[Nano905]

http://soundcloud.com/nano905/Random

I recently got a Samson CO1U USB Condenser Mic and I just wanna hear what you guys think of this recording quality. This is just something I quickly recorded so don't laugh at me ahaha.

Also:

When I put these lyrics to the instrumental you can tell the vocals and instrumental are two separate entities and don't blend that well but will all that be fixed at the mixing stage or should I be doing something to get better quality while recording?

Thanks!

 

[Phrasemaker]

Not easy to comment in a definitive way, it sounds ok to me albeit very dry. A better test for your mic would be record your vocals and play them on their own, if you like what you hear, job's a good un. A vocal can be manipulated so much that unless you really use it under demanding conditions i.e a fantastic vocalist recorded in ideal acoustic conditions and compare what it sounds like live and recorded, and then it will still be subjective. Do you like the recorded sound?

all the best

Tim

 

[Nano905]

Not easy to comment in a definitive way, it sounds ok to me albeit very dry. A better test for your mic would be record your vocals and play them on their own, if you like what you hear, job's a good un. A vocal can be manipulated so much that unless you really use it under demanding conditions i.e a fantastic vocalist recorded in ideal acoustic conditions and compare what it sounds like live and recorded, and then it will still be subjective. Do you like the recorded sound?

all the best

Tim

Thanks,

I also have this recording which has no instrumental: Test by Nano905 on SoundCloud - Create, record and share your sounds for free
To me I think the vocals sound dry and dead and I am just recording them in my bedroom; haven't done any acoustics treatment. Was wondering if all that can be fixed in the mixing stage?

I'm also concerned about how my vocals sound with the instrumental. To me it sounds kinda awkward and I'm not sure if it's just my voice haha or if this is expected from songs that haven't been mixed yet?

 

[Phrasemaker]

Personally I prefer to treat my vocal while I record it, so I can make best use of my vocal characteristics in that context. I do however often double mic and get a dry take at the same time on another track. My personal aim is to get the recording for each track as near to the finished article from the outset to eliminate the tinkering which has to be done afterwards. I am fairly new to this myself, but I find that approach works for me. My first recordings were played about with until I wondered if I was losing the plot, I now find that getting things to sound like they belong from the off, makes my life a lot easier.

regards

Tim

 

[Nano905]

Personally I prefer to treat my vocal while I record it, so I can make best use of my vocal characteristics in that context. I do however often double mic and get a dry take at the same time on another track. My personal aim is to get the recording for each track as near to the finished article from the outset to eliminate the tinkering which has to be done afterwards. I am fairly new to this myself, but I find that approach works for me. My first recordings were played about with until I wondered if I was losing the plot, I now find that getting things to sound like they belong from the off, makes my life a lot easier.

regards

Tim

So how would I treat my vocals in this situation? Adding all the reverb and what not is in the mixing stage correct? So what could I do to make my unmixed recordings sound better? I'm trying to make the vocals and instrumental properly blend with each other but to me it sounds like vocals and instrumental are spaced apart.

 

[Phrasemaker]

Firstly I don't know what equipment you are using to record with, but whatever you are going to add/or how you manipulate your vocal, you would certainly find it useful to know you can get it to work with the rest of the track before actually doing the vocal takes. With a lot of recording equipment you can add reverb, chorus ect and still actually record a dry signal. Insert effects on some equipment have that option too. If you prefer then I guess you can do the whole thing dry in the hope that your vocal will measure up when you start mixing in respect of levels to achieve a single track with your chosen takes. I don't know if there is a definitive rule which suggests that one has to record a vocal with it sounding completely dry and then alter it while mixing to suit the track.

This might sound off the wall but have considered doing multiple vocal takes, say one dry and one sounding how you want it. You would then have the two options to play around with. Your vocal in my opinion sounds out of place mainly because it's too dry. So have you tried treating it yet to see how it sounds then? Or are you asking that on the strength of listening to dry vocals that others can a have an opinion on how it will work in the final mix? A vocal take or three don't really cost anything to produce so it's not like trying different approaches will bankrupt you. Experiment and find what works because if you get hung up on a dry vocal not sounding right you'll be there on the same track indefinitely. The fact that one has the option to record wet or dry suggest to me that there is a likely-hood that either approach is an option.

good luck

Tim

 

[Nano905]

Well I am just using a Samson CO1U USB Condenser Mic so I don't have much options. Basically I plug it into the computer and use Sonar X1 LE to record (will use Ableton eventually when I figure out how to use it). So I don't think there is much I can do. After I record I can add reverb and what not.

I was concerned on why my vocals sound out of place and if that is completely normal for vocals which have not been mixed or anything.

 

[Phrasemaker]

Whether the vocal sounds like it belongs to the track or not is not always going to be dependent on the treatment you give it but in this case it's certainly an issue. The way the vocal behaves in respect of being mono or stereo in the overall field created by your left and right channels will also play a big part. Some tracks will work with a mono vocal which sits right in the middle albeit the left and right audio will make up that centrally positioned vocal as opposed to the time difference and other subtle variations which imply to the listener that there is a spatial context when using a stereo vocal which can be anything from central to wide, or panned. You also have to consider the tonality of your vocal, if it sounds boxy or harsh in comparison to your instrument tracks then again it'll behave like a ferret in a rabbit cage, and upset the overall impression. Even small amounts of chorus will harmonically enrich your vocal and give the effect that it sits better in the track, every note which is in your track that exists in same moment will have an effect on the other notes/sounds as the harmonic elements make the air vibrate courtesy of your speaker or phones sound drivers.

Play away would be your best mode of operation, keep copies at every stage and have fun without getting hung up on how it sounds before you have tinkered. Even if you download audacity and put your music and vocal up in front of you and add some effects to the vocal, it can be discarded or the changes at each stage can be undone if you find you are not where you want to be with it. Be bold and experiment because otherwise you'll not make a lot of progress. I can't give you too much advice with working mainly in software as I do most of my own treatment before a track gets anywhere near my computer. Yes the PC is a wonderful tool for working with audio and yes I do have certain things I come across where it saves me a lot of time and will do things I can't do easily with my hardware, but we all have to find what works best for ourselves after considering the advice which has come about by others spending many hours getting hands on experience, use every available resource and wisdom and also come up with your own ways of working.

To cut to the chase you just need to get on with it, because I'm gonna start charging by the paragraph unless you man up and get to work so you have something further along to offer up for additional feedback.

cheers

Tim