Vocal Recording Essential Techniques
Before you record your next vocal track, take a moment to consider a few basic best practices which will improve any vocal recording. Keep in mind that once you get the performance down, you can always add effects or dirty up your track later, but starting with a clean track is always the best.
Good mic technique is easy to achieve. Keep two things in mind: First, remember that the microphone's diaphragm reacts differently to the subtle variations in your voice, and the intensity of your vocal delivery. Second, your body position and proximity to the mic should be adjusted throughout the vocal delivery depending on the dynamics of your performance.
For quiet, soft, intimate vocals, you can stay just a few inches from the mic from start to finish. If you plan to let loose and sing full volume, stand back a couple of feet from the mic. If your performance requires a mixture of both, move up and back off as needed, and learn to make subtle adjustments, even if it's just for a short phrase.
In a best case scenario, you should position your mouth just an inch or two from the mic, without overloading the levels. If this happens, two things can result. First, you will get digital clipping on your track. Two, you can temporarily shut down your mic in the middle of the performance. Both scenarios effectively ruin your recording, and both are easily avoidable. Just waste a bit of your vocals during loud bursts by pointing your mouth slightly to the side or slightly above the mic.
Be aware of mouth pops and lip noise. If you are using a a stage mic like a Shure SM57 or SM58, the its likely that the pop filter is built in. Stage mics usually have a foam insert just behind the ball shaped mesh protective grid. Studio mics on the other hand, usually have a foam sleeve that slips over the mic. Many musicians and engineers argue that the foam sleeves tend to kill high end frequencies and prefer the nylon O-ring pop-filters. Positioning on of these between the singer and the mic will stop intermittent blast of breath from overloading the mic.
Mouth noise can really make for a lot of clean up work afterward if you dont deal with it during the recording session. There is a surprisingly easy solution: drinking lots of water throughout the recording session will keep mouth noise WAY down. A few extra trips to the bathroom and no mouth noise Voila!
Follow these simple rules and you will get a nice clean vocal track. Once you have that, you can freely add reverb, effects, and whatever else you can think of without worrying about enhancing the bad stuff while you're trying to get at the good stuff. These simple best practices will save hours of fix-it time in the end. - 18423
Good mic technique is easy to achieve. Keep two things in mind: First, remember that the microphone's diaphragm reacts differently to the subtle variations in your voice, and the intensity of your vocal delivery. Second, your body position and proximity to the mic should be adjusted throughout the vocal delivery depending on the dynamics of your performance.
For quiet, soft, intimate vocals, you can stay just a few inches from the mic from start to finish. If you plan to let loose and sing full volume, stand back a couple of feet from the mic. If your performance requires a mixture of both, move up and back off as needed, and learn to make subtle adjustments, even if it's just for a short phrase.
In a best case scenario, you should position your mouth just an inch or two from the mic, without overloading the levels. If this happens, two things can result. First, you will get digital clipping on your track. Two, you can temporarily shut down your mic in the middle of the performance. Both scenarios effectively ruin your recording, and both are easily avoidable. Just waste a bit of your vocals during loud bursts by pointing your mouth slightly to the side or slightly above the mic.
Be aware of mouth pops and lip noise. If you are using a a stage mic like a Shure SM57 or SM58, the its likely that the pop filter is built in. Stage mics usually have a foam insert just behind the ball shaped mesh protective grid. Studio mics on the other hand, usually have a foam sleeve that slips over the mic. Many musicians and engineers argue that the foam sleeves tend to kill high end frequencies and prefer the nylon O-ring pop-filters. Positioning on of these between the singer and the mic will stop intermittent blast of breath from overloading the mic.
Mouth noise can really make for a lot of clean up work afterward if you dont deal with it during the recording session. There is a surprisingly easy solution: drinking lots of water throughout the recording session will keep mouth noise WAY down. A few extra trips to the bathroom and no mouth noise Voila!
Follow these simple rules and you will get a nice clean vocal track. Once you have that, you can freely add reverb, effects, and whatever else you can think of without worrying about enhancing the bad stuff while you're trying to get at the good stuff. These simple best practices will save hours of fix-it time in the end. - 18423
About the Author:
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