The perfect vocal track

[brra]

Hi everybody,
I have a trident s20 and neumann M147 tube. I record the voice thru a motu 896HD and i run logic pro with a dual g5. But i don`t know much about compression, eq and recording tecniques :
So if someone can be so kind to give a hand, I have a few question..

1)To record the perfect vocal track, should i compress the voice while i`m tracking? Can i do this with a the compressor plug in in logic? How much i have to compress while i`m tracking?

2)How much is the distance between the pop shield and the microphone? How much is the distance between the pop shied and the singer?Is it true that the mic must be at the same height singer s nose?

3) On my s20 i have low cut knob but i don`t know how it`s works...Wich freq. should i cut when i`m tracking?

4)About when i mix, how much i have to compress? And about attack and release? Should i set soft or hard knee?

5)Can U guys reccomend me the best compressor for logic audio?
Peole say waves renaissance is the best..

6)After i recorded the voice should i put some eq? Wich freq. i have to boost for get a clear, warm and present voice?

7) Someone have some other suggestions or tips to get the perfect vocal track?

Thanks to everybody!

 

[ez_willis]

Hi everybody,
I have a trident s20 and neumann M147 tube. I record the voice thru a motu 896HD and i run logic pro with a dual g5. But i don`t know much about compression, eq and recording tecniques :

Ohhhhh the injustice! It's not fair, not fair I tell ya!

7) Someone have some other suggestions or tips to get the perfect vocal track?

Call Aretha Franklin, she'll get you closer than anyone else I've heard, and you won't have to figure out how to use any of that gear.

 

[crankz1]

You just gotta love the internet and Google searches.
Check it out ... bet you find more than you ever cared to know.

 

[chessrock]

1)To record the perfect vocal track, should i compress the voice while i`m tracking? Can i do this with a the compressor plug in in logic? How much i have to compress while i`m tracking?

There are many ways to go about this, and the long and short of it is you just have to do what works. The first step, obviously, is finding out / learning what works. This can take several years of learning experience and practice.

2)How much is the distance between the pop shield and the microphone? How much is the distance between the pop shied and the singer?Is it true that the mic must be at the same height singer s nose?

You position all of these things wherever it is you get the best-sounding track. That's all I can tell you. Again, you're going to have to spend a lot of time experimenting in order to figure that out.

3) On my s20 i have low cut knob but i don`t know how it`s works...Wich freq. should i cut when i`m tracking?

I wouldn't go any higher than maybe 80 or 90 hz on your low-cut.

4)About when i mix, how much i have to compress? And about attack and release? Should i set soft or hard knee?

I'm painting a picture right now. Should the background be blue or grey? How much of it should I use? Can't tell me? Why not? Because you don't know anything about the rest of my picture. Either one could change it somewhat, but neither is necessarily a better color than the other.

5)Can U guys reccomend me the best compressor for logic audio?
Peole say waves renaissance is the best..

Outboard comps are generally favored if your goal is to get the "perfect" vocal. They can be pricey, but based on the rest of your equipment, I'm guessing price isn't much of an obstacle for you -- or perhaps it didn't used to be?

6)After i recorded the voice should i put some eq? Wich freq. i have to boost for get a clear, warm and present voice?

Whichever ones give you a clear, warm and present voice.

7) Someone have some other suggestions or tips to get the perfect vocal track?

It all starts with a perfect performance. If you can get that, then the rest will come much easier.

 

[rane]

stop giving the guy ambiguous responses^^

honestly, the vagueness is bleeding through my computer screen.

 

[chessrock]

stop giving the guy ambiguous responses^^

honestly, the vagueness is bleeding through my computer screen.

It's a vague subject to begin with. How can you get anything but vague answers? Do you honestly think that straight-forward, universally-applicable answers even exist for these questions? If they did, we all would have been passing that knowlege around by now. And we'd all be master recording engineers.

 

[guhlenn]

a no name cheap ass chinese condensor took me a long way. The female vocalist was amazing, this really seemed to bleed through to the recording

 

[Richard Monroe]

Well, I'll split the difference and try to be somewhat (a little) less vague.
The pop filter should be 2-3" from the mic. The distance of the singer from the mic varies according to the proximity field of the mic and the material, but 8-10" is a good starting point. Many people have had success with the mic at nose level angled down toward the mouth, with the mic hung upside down, but that's just one way to skin a cat. Many other positions have worked for somebody. Nothing is going to save you from having to move the mic around while listening. Generally, don't use compression on vocals while tracking unless the singer is dynamic and your level indicators are all over the place. The better the singer is at using mics, the less likely it is you will need to compress going in. If you do, don't exceed a ratio of 3:1, and use the highest threshold you can without clipping. Compress later, to match the mix. Can't help you with the plugins. For outboard compression, do a google search on distressor. For cheap and effective, consider FMR Audio RNC. EQ- EQ is used mostly to shelve uneeded frequencies. In other words, to separate tracks that are competing for the same frequency bands, causing a confused muddy competition for the same frequencies. If you have a good mic, a good room, a good pre and a good singer, you shouldn't need any EQ unless the voice is fighting for acoustic space. In that case, it may make more sense to EQ the guitar, piano, or whatever the voice is competing with, including other vocals. Sorry, but the questions you have asked do not have correct answers (What's the best way to paint a portrait?), and my answers are only my opinion. There are competent audio engineers who will disagree with everything I have said, and it doesn't make them wrong.-Richie

 

[ds21]

True, the vagueness come from the fact that different circumstances call for different techniques, and you don't exactlly know what will work best till you try it, who know maybe the best mic for the vocal track will be a cheap radioshack mic. I just got done recording my sisters CD and had the mic off-axis and about 10" away with a pop filter, hard compression after the fact and lot's of deesseeing (I still need a good ribbon mic), when I record myself I'm about 4" away, no pop filter and little compression after the fact, and no deeseeing.
I do mainly use Waves Renaissance, but have used others, including multibands.
If you just try it a certin way because that's the norm, then you might miss out on what is really called for for that particular song/singer. It won't be uncommon to spend an hour setting everything up only to find you don't have the mic you need.

 

[Middleman]

Hit record, listen, evaluate. Pick a vocalist or track made by a pro which closely emulates what you want to acheive and then try to emulate it.

In general, you want to limit or lightly compress the vocal with an external unit prior to hitting the hard drive. But that's all I can advise. You have to learn why this is true which means learning what compression does and how it can be used. You have to get to a point of hearing sounds, analyzing their transients and understanding how to control them with compression and limiting. This means there is no universal answer; every voice, room, temperature gradient, humidity and sea level condition varies transients and vocal performance. You have to learn how to adjust for these.

Regarding EQ, get a chart which show where instruments and voices fall in the range of human hearing. That's the first step in understanding what is needed to EQ properly. Here is the hard part, every voice is drastically different. You have to be able to hear it, know where it spans the frequency scale and then know which mics can enhance or control it in the mix. The same is true of any instrument. The next challenge, if you really work a lot with EQ is to know how to carve your sounds pre hitting the record button.

Pop filters - Sometimes I use Richie's method, other times I put the pop filter 2 inches from the vocalist and the mic 10 inches away. Recording is understanding a range of variables and making your best calls with the knowledge you have.

And the final best answer.....

Post something you have recorded so others can evaluate it and really give you the type of accurate information you are looking for.

 

[Strange Leaf]

I can mail you all the answers if you mail me your gear.

 

[lpdeluxe]

back to the original question: perfect for what?