Welcome to Sage Audio. Today our topic is How to Make Clean Vocals, pt. 2
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.
Remove Vocal Clicks
One of the hardest things to remove from a vocal recording are vocal clicks, or the sounds
made by a singer’s mouth - to get rid of these I’d recommend opening Izotope RX and
using their De-click module. Make the detection random, emphasize measurement in the high
frequencies, with low sensitivity.
You can then preview the processing and monitor which clicks are getting removed from the
vocal.
2. De-Clip Your Vocal
If you received a vocal recording in which clipping is a problem, say the engineer hit
the preamp too hard resulting in unwanted distortion, you can use another RX module
to repair some of these clips. Set the right threshold, use the highest quality rendering,
and preview the processing first.
Once your signal has been repaired, import it back into your DAW and continue mixing.
3. Use a Vocal Rider
If you don’t want to compress your vocal, you can use a vocal rider - it works somewhat
similarly to automation in that the full signal is turned up or down depending on the level.
You can also sidechain the full instrumental mix to have the vocal respond to its level.
This way you avoid some of the artifacts and timbre altering aspects compression can cause.
4. Clip Gain Plosives
Plosives can typically be attenuated by using a high-pass filter, but if their frequency
goes higher than you’d like to cut, this can be an issue. In this case, you’ll need
to find the plosives in your vocal track, isolate them, and attenuate them using clip
gain.
This ensures a plosive free track that still retains its low-frequency response.
5. Remove Hum
Hum is usually located around 60Hz, but unfortunately, it often includes harmonics that exist higher
up the frequency spectrum. If your recording has a hum, you’ll need to create multiple
notch filters to remove the hum - in this example, 60Hz, 120Hz, 180Hz, 240Hz, and possibly
higher.
When you have to use notch filters on your low frequency, be sure to use a linear phase
setting to avoid aggressive phase shifts to the signal.
6. In-time Compression
In-time reverb and delay are helpful ways to create a clean vocal, but in-time compression
can be just as beneficial - use 60000/BPM to get a quarter note in milliseconds. Then
divide this number by 8 to get a 32nd note resulting in quick, in-time compression.
It’s best not to use a quicker note than this since you’ll likely distort the vocal’s
low frequencies.
7. In-time Limiting
Sometimes, you’ll want to aggressively attenuate your vocal’s dynamics and make it as controlled
as possible - when this is the case, it’s better to use a limiter with a lowered ceiling
than a compressor. Additionally, if possible, time the release of the limiter to the BPM
of your track.
Just like with the compression, avoid super quick notes, since this can cause distortion
to the vocal’s low frequencies.
8. Turn Your Vocal into Midi
This is a somewhat unique and unorthodox trick, but if you convert your vocal performance
into midi, you can use that midi as a support for your vocal. With the right instrument,
your vocal will sound brighter, a little cleaner, and definitely a lot stronger pitch-wise.
To do this, follow these steps:
Double click the track Enable Flex, and then Flex Pitch
Click Edit and select ‘Create MIDI track from Flex Pitch Data
Select a backing instrument that makes the vocal sound clear, cleaner, and more in tune
Lastly, blend the new midi track in with the vocal
9. High-Pass Chorus
If your vocal is sounding weak, but boosting it with heavy compression and makeup gain
is introducing too much noise or bringing out distortion, try using a chorus effect.
Set up a send and insert an EQ with a high pass filter around 300Hz - then insert a vocal
chorus effect.
This way you can increase the power of the vocal without resorting to noisy processing.
If you have a mix that you need mastered send it to us at SageAudio.com to receive a free
mastered sample of it.
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