Welcome to Sage Audio. Today we’re talking about the Top 9 Vocal Processing Hacks
But first If you have a mix that you need mastered send it to us at SageAudio.com
to receive a free mastered sample of it.
Combine Ambience and Room Reverb
Reverb can be used to create a sense of realism - if you’re recording vocals in a dry room,
try combining ambience and room reverb types to create a
full vocal. I’ll typically combine studio room emulation with general ambience.
Liquid Sonics Seventh Heaven is a good option for this,
but use whatever reverb plugin you liked and offer these styles of reverb.
Use a Subtle Harmonizer
Like reverb, harmonizers can be great for creative effects, but they can also serve a very practical
purpose - by setting up a send, harmonizing your main vocal, and subtly blending it in,
your vocal will become full without the harmonies be consciously perceivable.
I typically use full octave harmonies but use any that work with the track’s key.
De-ess and Subtractive EQ First
before you introduce processors that amplify the signal, you need to de-ess and use subtractive
EQ. This way, you attenuate any aspect of the vocal that shouldn’t be amplified,
resulting in a more balanced vocal down the line.
If you use these processors later in your chain,
you’ll be fighting against your other forms of processing.
Use a Limiter for Cleaner Attenuation
If you’re finding that your compressor is causing too much of a shift to your vocal’s timbre,
try a limiter and increase the gain and lower the ceiling simultaneously.
Limiters are often better at handling the full frequency spectrum without
making noticeable changes, so they work well for this purpose.
Since the voice is the most recognizable instrument,
changes to its timbre are easy to hear, so find a super transparent limiter for the job.
Combine Upward and Downward Compression
Upward compression will increase the volume of your vocal from the floor up,
and downward from the peaks down - by combining the 2,
you can find the right balance between dynamic control and increased detail.
I’ll combine the oxford inflator with the FabFilter Pro-C 2 for an example.
Keep Reverb as Sends
Although most processing will go directly in the vocal chain,
there are some good reasons to keep your reverb as sends - mainly, it gives you greater control. I’m
often shifting the balance between my reverbs, so it’s much easier to simply adjust a channel strip.
Additionally, it makes automating your reverb easier,
since you can automate the channel’s fader, instead of a function of the reverb.
Attenuate 2kHz on Side Image
When you’re processing a vocal bus, it can help to use a mid-side EQ, and attenuate some
of the vocal range around 2kHz. This way, the mid image of the vocal can cut through a little more.
Doing this can alleviate masking in the range,
so just listen intently to the side image to find the best part to cut.
Accent Vowels
Sometimes a vocalist doesn’t enunciate as much as needed,
making the lyrics or general vocal indiscernible. To remedy this, a small bump at 500Hz
can help to make the vowels cut through, making the vocal easier to understand.
Be careful not to amplify much for 300Hz
or 700Hz, since this can have a negative effect on your vocal.
Remove Nasal Frequencies
A nasally vocal recording is pretty common,
fortunately, this is pretty easy to remedy - if you want to get rid of a nasally tone,
slightly attenuate around 700Hz, and listen to find the exact center frequency.
This will vary from vocalist to vocalist,
so be sure not to always stick with 700Hz, but use it as a starting point.
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at SageAudio.com to receive a free mastered sample of it.
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