What do commercial artists use?

  • Thread starter Thread starter ThaArtist
  • Start date Start date
All of this just reinforces my point as well as that of several others...you just need to learn your tools. I had not heard you describe what you wanted so clearly as you did when bigwillz gave you an answer......Delay... Easy right? My point was not to bash on you for not having knowledge, my point was that if you knew a little about what your tools were used for you would be able to ask a nice specific question and you'd get a nice specific answer.
The key here is to stop acting like you understand all the fundamentals because you obviously don't, if you approached it from that angle you'd probably get better advice anyway. You've just got to take the time to learn. For example: Knowing what a delay effect will do comes from using it....alot. The same can be said of every tool at your disposal. A Delay effect is a fundamental tool. Yeah, I may do heavy metal but I do in fact often use delay on lead vocals. But you wouldn't listen to me anyway would you? ;)
 
LordSire said:
What exactly is that? Is it a plug-in, or an external piece that i have to purchase? If it's a plug in, can i find it using Cool Edit? (2.1)
Click to expand...
It's a pitch shifter. There are plugins and hardware units. They are commonly refered to as Harmonizers. Harmonizer is a trademark of Eventide, so everything that isn't an Eventide is a pitch shifter. (kind of like Kleenex is facial tissue)
 
Dimebag said:
Hmmm, I've only read about the first few pages of this thread, but has anyone stated the obvious???
...I mean, I'm pretty sure that "fat vocal" can be done as simple as this :
- Get your vocal-trak down.
- Make a copy of it.
- Nudge the copy forwards (or backwards for that matter) 4-5-6-7ms, and watch out for phasing issues.
- Turn the volume down a little on both tracks.
- Voila... ???
Click to expand...
No, this is wrong. Don't ever say this again.
 
I always kinda wondered what they put on Eminem's vox... sounds like some kind of doubling effect. A really tight delay? maybe he actually doubles the track? some other kind of processing like a vocoder/harmonizer/pitch shifter?? anybody know for sure?
 
Good Lookin'

metalhead28 said:
All of this just reinforces my point as well as that of several others...you just need to learn your tools. I had not heard you describe what you wanted so clearly as you did when bigwillz gave you an answer......Delay... Easy right? My point was not to bash on you for not having knowledge, my point was that if you knew a little about what your tools were used for you would be able to ask a nice specific question and you'd get a nice specific answer.
The key here is to stop acting like you understand all the fundamentals because you obviously don't, if you approached it from that angle you'd probably get better advice anyway. You've just got to take the time to learn. For example: Knowing what a delay effect will do comes from using it....alot. The same can be said of every tool at your disposal. A Delay effect is a fundamental tool. Yeah, I may do heavy metal but I do in fact often use delay on lead vocals. But you wouldn't listen to me anyway would you? ;)
Click to expand...


Right you are. Right you are. I don't understand ALL the fundamentals; just a lot of the ones being told to me, at that time. You are also right (and someone else who spoke on it), that my knowledge on my tools, and the uses for them; AS WELL as the EFFECT is it going to have on a particular sound after it is applied; is extremely limited. I will take time to broaden myself in this a.s.a.p, as i see it could give me a better understanding at this level of the "game".

And contrary to popular belief, I HAVE listened to you; learned some things as well. From alot of people so far, in that aspect. And im one of those cats that actually get "hyped-up" and "pumped up" when i learn something new. It feels good. And for that reason alone, i can't do anything but thank you!

GOD BLESS YOUR PROGRESS-
 
Hi_Flyer said:
I always kinda wondered what they put on Eminem's vox... sounds like some kind of doubling effect. A really tight delay? maybe he actually doubles the track? some other kind of processing like a vocoder/harmonizer/pitch shifter?? anybody know for sure?
Click to expand...

sounds doubled to me.
 
I can't believe this thread has gone on as long as it has.

We're talking about rap here. Track the lead ... double the hooks, bring in the posse to do the ad-libs. Pan the doubles 25/25 or 50/50. Compress and EQ the lead until it's sitting in front of you and you can understand all the mumbled crap that's coming out of the rapper's mouth ("yo," "holla,'" "bitch," etc. etc.). :D Bring in the whisper track until you can barely hear it, add a little verb (or the EQ'd slapback delay). Copy and paste the hooks and you're done.

It's the easiest genre of music ever. The lead vocalist doesn't even have to be able to carry a tune or be on pitch. And the engineer only has to set up one mic and worry about one thing throughout the session. If you can't handle that, then you need to go back to live sound, or audio books or taping corporate seminars or whatever (or heavy metal, since that's all just triggers :D ). Those pay better anyway.
.
 
Well....Just for fun

I see this thread has hit the 107 mark. Since i had a lot to do with the ranting, i might as well make it special.
 
And the way im going to do that is....

make the thread go to 110 posts. Why, you ask? KEEP READIN'
 
Because.....

January 10 is my birthday!!!! (110) Now THERE is some "corn" for your fritos!




GOD BLESS YOUR PROGRESS-
 
Vocal Technique During Editing Tracks

Hey I'm new here. So I thought I would make my first "post"
or whatever.
I would like to try to explain a neat technique I have learned
during editing a vocal track.

If you duplicate a vocal track and "pan" them both.
(panning is basically merging the sound from right to left/ vice versa.)
Lets say for example - You have 2 vocal tracks (one above the other)
and they are exactly the same.

You pan the top one 58% left and the one below it 58% right.
It does something to the volume as well as balance of your vocals.
(But that isn't the extremely cool thing)
If you understand what I am talking about and haven't tried it.-
Decrease the bass with your balancing tools on one of those
tracks and you will hear the tracks sound somewhat differant.

I've come up with some pretty neat sounds applying this technique.
If you don't understand what I am talking about sorry.
If you do. Try it with duplicated tracks sometime when your bored...

Thanks for your time. :cool:
 
RE: How ya feelin', Wolf?

Simply intreagued LordSire.
Simply intreagued...
Thank you...
 
metalhead28 said:
Knowing what a delay effect will do comes from using it....alot. The same can be said of every tool at your disposal. A Delay effect is a fundamental tool. Yeah, I may do heavy metal but I do in fact often use delay on lead vocals. But you wouldn't listen to me anyway would you? ;)
Click to expand...

I'll second this with delay on vocals... For awhile I was getting into alot of the neo-Rockabilly stuff, and alot of that has the sort of exagerrated slapback effect, reminiscent of the 50s sound and all... But I use a much more subtle variation of that sound on some of the other bands that play very different style, and now its like vocals sound almost naked without that touch of delay. It really seems to add a touch of depth to the vocal. I dunno, maybe its just because I'm used to hearing that way?


So maybe that will be helpful to you Lordsire. Try something like a stereo delay, with a tight delay on (about 100 milliseconds or so) on one side, and the other side a few milliseconds different...

Or from a more artistic standpoint, maybe you should stop worrying about what Dre and the other big producers are doing, and try to develop your own style? Usually, its the true innovators that get noticed, not the copycats. i think thats true in all genres, from jazz to rap to metal.
 
Hi_Flyer said:
Or from a more artistic standpoint, maybe you should stop worrying about what Dre and the other big producers are doing, and try to develop your own style? Usually, its the true innovators that get noticed, not the copycats. i think thats true in all genres, from jazz to rap to metal.
Click to expand...

When mentioning Dre we were not talking about his style but rather the quality of the sound. Dre was just used as an example because hes a popular and good producer in the hip-hop genre. This discussion started from the question of what are commercial artists or recording engineers using or doing that makes their "sound" so above the rest.

I'm really not totally sure still but I believe EQ'ing each instrument in a track to stand out and flow with the other instruments is probably key (Obviously) as well as vocals and other effects. There just so much to do with producing. That can be referred to as style... but none the less there is a certain high quality coming from commercial artists that I don't really hear anywhere else. But we've been talking about that, so whats new.

For some reason I'm thinking recording in higher bit depths and then converting to 16 bit before CD would help too. I'm reading more and more that 16 bit isnt all the same 16 bit. When recording at higher bit depths I guess when you convert to 16 bit the program you convert with picks and chooses the best bits and parts when converting. So maybe that would help? I personally don't know. I'm too new with recording to even get some of my gear to work right yet then to worry about different bit depths. I'm coo with 32 or 16...
 
Just to reiterate

Hi_Flyer said:
I'll second this with delay on vocals... For awhile I was getting into alot of the neo-Rockabilly stuff, and alot of that has the sort of exagerrated slapback effect, reminiscent of the 50s sound and all... But I use a much more subtle variation of that sound on some of the other bands that play very different style, and now its like vocals sound almost naked without that touch of delay. It really seems to add a touch of depth to the vocal. I dunno, maybe its just because I'm used to hearing that way?


So maybe that will be helpful to you Lordsire. Try something like a stereo delay, with a tight delay on (about 100 milliseconds or so) on one side, and the other side a few milliseconds different...

Or from a more artistic standpoint, maybe you should stop worrying about what Dre and the other big producers are doing, and try to develop your own style? Usually, its the true innovators that get noticed, not the copycats. i think thats true in all genres, from jazz to rap to metal.
Click to expand...


Artist pretty much told you, but i'd like to repeat: I, alone, have a very unique and original style from anyone in the industry. (modestly saying), so as Art said, we're just trying to emulate the QUALITY of the OVERALL sound after completion of the song. Not the actual style or delivery(ies) of any artist. Thanx for the insight,though: And for the info.
 
grn said:
a lot of people in this thread have a lot to learn
Click to expand...

yeah who are these people you are referring too? Lol... but i'll admit i do have a lot to learn. I'm still pretty new to recording myself... Anyway... yeah thanks for talkin me down... ;)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top