Mixng Vocals...Where do I start?

[Vice]

Okay, so I decided I want to learn the process of mixing vocals.(which I probably should have done a long ass time ago.lol) I usually just mess around with effects until it sounds decent enough to show people, but after hearing the quality of a well mixed song compared to my version it's got me thinking. Are there any basic golden rules to mixing vocals? Where do I start? I need like a step by step or some shit to help me out. Somebody? Anybody?
Take me through your process from beginning to end.

 

[Ash Holmz]

Well the first, and most important thing u should do with your vocals imo is edit them PRECISELY. Most people are just toooo lazy to properly do this or even learn how.. when i say edit i mean comb over every single word and phrase. Remove pops and clicks, odd mouth noises, lip smacks, rumbles, spikes...etc.. My vocal edits have TONS of lilltel millisecond crossfades,fade outs and ins, and cuts and other shit in them. Take advantage of that ZOOM tool and get all up in the nitty gritty of the vocal and take out what sux and leave whats good. It takes time, and patience, and a capacity to listen to the same shit over and over again for a long time lol. Seems like u dont really need it on first listen, but trust when u really critically listen to ur vocal take, even on a good one, there is bound to be alot of shit that the mic picks up that u didnt intend it to. Esp if u record at a home studio or less than ideal environment. eliminate dead noise in between verses and fade out the ends of verses. Trim the fat. It takes some skill to get really good and quick with it, but the results are dramatically improved. And u didnt even touch the eq or compression yet. U need pretty good monitors and a sensitive ear to do it well. I always edit with the vocal way louder than the beat so its easier to hear mistakes. If u can get it sounding good extra loud like that, then when u blend it in its gonna sound even iller. I dont have time to break down how to this step by step but try googling for tips related to what DAW u use. Or just start experimenting. Again im not even talking about plugin and effects, Im just talking about how PROPERLY use the basic audio tools cut,fade,crossfade,volume, nudge ..etc... I use pro tools and imo thats the best DAW for doing audio edits. I always tell people but they dont seem to believe me, that your vocals should already sound good before u reach for eq,verb,delay,comp ..any of that shit. Alot of little tiny improvements leads to a much bigger and better overall result.

 

[LDB]

Mixing vocals is not that complicated. "Recording" vocals can be. Go to the resource section and read my sticky on recording vocals. Applying some of those techniques alone will get you in the game.

You can only get out what you put in i.e if the recorded vox are shitty the mixed vocals will be shitty as well. If you have good vox recorded all you have to do after that is get them balanced in the mix (not too loud, not to low), some creative panning and a little reverb. It's nothing too fancy especially for hip hop/rap vox. You can be a bit more creative when mixing RnB, Pop, Rock etc vox.

 

[Vice]

Thanks for the tips fellas.... I have been reading the recording sticky that was up to get some ideas. I'm going to try what you said Ash and zoom in and eliminate any unwanted noise. I only really do that for the dead space in between verses right now, but I should take the time out to clean it up 100%. I googled vocal recording tips and nothing comes up but I'll keep searching.

I'm using Cubase Sx3, M audio studio pro 3 monitors, and a Shure sm58 mic, with an Art Tube mic pre amp.
but my set up for recording is garbage. It's just a computer room and I got some foam up... but nothing fancy at all.

 

[Sanova]

Hit me up dog, i'll roll thru to your crib and show you some techniques i've acquired over the years. I'm no professional, but i'm in my second year at a cal state univ. for audio engineering / graphic design so I might have some tips that can come in handy.

plus i'm sure you've heard my tracks, if they sound somewhat decent for an mxl990 mic then hit me up.

you still got my number?

 

[Vice]

hell yeah man, check your p.m.

 

[H&R]

Hit me up dog, i'll roll thru to your crib and show you some techniques i've acquired over the years. I'm no professional, but i'm in my second year at a cal state univ. for audio engineering / graphic design so I might have some tips that can come in handy.

plus i'm sure you've heard my tracks, if they sound somewhat decent for an mxl990 mic then hit me up.

you still got my number?

I just picked up an mxl990 ... Curious to hear any recordings you've done with them as
I havent really tried it on recording vocals for a track yet ... just did hosting for mixtapes with it.

 

[DJ Redrum]

I would usually start with a general EQ sweep of the bands, so that I can local any frequency problems which need fixing. Once that as been checked I start to rolloff some of the unneeded low-end (60-90Hz), also depending on how well the highs sound I often like to rolloff from around (16Hz).

Because of each session being different there will be slight changes, but this is a template that i have found to work the best before i begin to work with any other plugins.

I'm going to try what you said Ash and zoom in and eliminate any unwanted noise. I only really do that for the dead space in between verses right now, but I should take the time out to clean it up 100%.

It is best to leave the room tone in the track than completey remove it from the acapella.

 

[Ash Holmz]

I wouldnt agree with that, but to each his own. If you do cut the room tone, (like I suggest) def dont do it sloppy though.. use the fade outs/fade ins. Not obviously i dont mean cut evry little milisecond of dead space in the track, but just make it really clean. When u start adding compression and reverb to vocals with background noise and lip smacks.. shit starts sounding unprofessional real quick. a good reverb can provide the illusion of the room tone. Rap is pretty dry, room tone isnt as important as like in rock or other genres.

 

[Vice]

Thanks again guys...

I recently have been messing around with the recording after it's laid out and it does make a BIG difference to cut off the lip smacks, clicks and other little behind the scene noise. I am still working on this though, but I guess it just takes practice.

Here is another queston, How do I get the vocals to sit back in the mix? It sometimes comes off like my vocals are on top of the beat rather than inside the track. I have a setting for room panning, but the way my set up is at the moment i'm running everything basically through Mono and can't hear any changes.

 

[Ash Holmz]

Glad that workin out homie! keep practicing u will get better and quicker with it... assuming u have a decent set of monitors and a decent room, mixing in mono is one of the best things u can do actually.. esp vocals.... imma believer that ur vocals should stick out some, to me there is nothing worse than vocals that are buried in the instrumental, although like u said u gotta be careful they dont take everything else over. What u might wanna try though is fucking with the release time on ur vocal compressor if ur using one.. if u use a slower release sometimes u can hit that "magic spot" where the vocal is a little lower but still very clear and understandable. Also reverb and delay do that too. IN really small amounts. Reverb and delay can also make ur vocal more "stereo" sounding. If u pan the sends left and right of teh vocal it gives the illusion of ur voice being "wider" . But again u gotta use small amounts.. Matter fact u shouldnt be able to hear it working, only hear the difference when u bypass the effect if that makes sense.

 

[Vice]

Glad that workin out homie! keep practicing u will get better and quicker with it... assuming u have a decent set of monitors and a decent room, mixing in mono is one of the best things u can do actually.. esp vocals.... imma believer that ur vocals should stick out some, to me there is nothing worse than vocals that are buried in the instrumental, although like u said u gotta be careful they dont take everything else over. What u might wanna try though is fucking with the release time on ur vocal compressor if ur using one.. if u use a slower release sometimes u can hit that "magic spot" where the vocal is a little lower but still very clear and understandable. Also reverb and delay do that too. IN really small amounts. Reverb and delay can also make ur vocal more "stereo" sounding. If u pan the sends left and right of teh vocal it gives the illusion of ur voice being "wider" . But again u gotta use small amounts.. Matter fact u shouldnt be able to hear it working, only hear the difference when u bypass the effect if that makes sense.

Good advice man, I'm going to try that. I was actually just adding the effects straight on the track and not through a send fx track. I'm going to try that out. Thanks man, these tips are very helpful. I tried googling vocal mixing and kept getting the same formula which was really for singers....nothing like this.
I appreciate it!

 

[Relic]

I vacuum the shit out of my vocal tracks.. I cant STAND to hear the room in there, it drives me nuts!! lol

 

[Shonsteez]

The first response from Ash was spot on.

Ill just add this:

Where u place your mic, the room you record in, and how the performer controls himself in position to the mic and his dynamics are the first factors I always consider before finalizing my choice on what sounds good. Ash already made a good deal of comments on that sort of thing so ill leave it at that.
Its important to remember that a HUGE amount of how good your vocal is going to sit in your mix and sound relies on those things first.

Next, once you've got a good mic position and your performer is positioned correctly, make sure that you have him/her rhyme/sing to the beat all the way through at least once...
While they're spitting to the beat its critical that you give them the best monitor mix possible so that the beats not overpowering what their hearing back in their headphones. I often frequently ask if their levels are sounding good to make sure they can hear everything clearly otherwise a poor headphone mix tends to render a shitty performance.
All the while this is happening you should be constantly monitoring your Mic Pre's output making sure that your not clipping ever but setting his vocal as HOT AS POSSIBLE.
This gives u the best ratio of noise to signal.

The reason i have the emcee go through the entire piece at least once is because the dynamic of their voice can change dramatically at more emotional parts so its important to know where those parts occur and to prepare for them by getting your gain structure right.

So assuming your ready to mix in the vocal now:

The first thing I like to do is critically listen to the entire thing through.
After im once through I insert a channel eq and begin to roll off the low end as much as possible while making sure Im leaving the power of the voice intact. This immediately adds a great deal of clarity to the mix (watch your Q tho, too hard of a Q value will be easier to spot sonically as a cut in comparison to a medium to soft Q). Then later if needed I boost somewhere in the 3k-5k area to add a little presence. This is all according to personal taste. Also, i always compress & Eq my lead vox differently than my doubles to give them their own space in the mix.

After the EQ i always use a bit of compression.
Usually a ratio of 4:1 is fine but often I can get away with 2:1...It really depends on the performance.
I favor a FET circuit for processing vocals usually, and those of you that have Logic are prob familiar with what im talking about.
The trick here is to not squash the life out of the vocal but to add more presence in the quitter passages, so be sure to watch your gain reduction and adjust your threshold accordingly.

I could ramble on for days about this shit, so ill stop there.

 

[DJ Redrum]

I wouldnt agree with that, but to each his own. If you do cut the room tone, (like I suggest) def dont do it sloppy though.. use the fade outs/fade ins. Not obviously i dont mean cut evry little milisecond of dead space in the track, but just make it really clean.

I guess it depends on how well the recordings have been for the amount of room noise which can be present. I used to remove it when I was first learning, but having spent more time testing and reading the different theorys on room tones i find it to sound more natural with it being kept in the mix. Using slow fadeouts after about 5-6 seconds as you've mentioned can work fine if done right, depending on the track and any reverb/delay if used so it isn't noticeable.

Here is another queston, How do I get the vocals to sit back in the mix? It sometimes comes off like my vocals are on top of the beat rather than inside the track.

If you are having problems with your vocals not sitting in the pocket correctly, it is usually because of the volume being higher than needed for where you can't notice the slight changes. Using headphones can often help for these fine checking, till you get more used to it.