I have recently picked up a technique in my vocal processing that I like a lot
the idea is basically making a duplicate vocals track and setting the eq to eliminate everything below say…8k and increase everything above that point. compress the heck out of it and mix that in with the regular vocal track.
so to be more specific lets start at the beginning
1. duplicate the vocal track
1.
within this example I am just using my scratch vocal track but I still process it to get the idea of the song and the tracking of other parts. Just a simple duplicate will work. You could also take a second take if you really wanted to add some difference. Or if you use melodyne or autotune you can take an unedited version for variation. but for all intensive purposes just a duplicate will work. so here I have “vox scratch” and “vox sparkle”
2. Eq the vocals
here I eq the vocals and as I call the “sparkle” track. what I am trying to enhance in the “sparkle” track is the high frequencies but do it in a controlled way. so what I do is use a high pass filter to eliminate everything below a certain point. typically between 5k and 10k is where it ends up. then I shelf the remaining frequencies above the high pass filter to be increased by anywhere from 6 to 12 db higher.
now keep in mind this will be different for every mic, every song, every singer and every engineers preference. I use different numbers for different songs. this song happens to have very few high ranged vocal parts so I increased the span of increased frequencies to enhance that range. some songs I use only everything about 8 to 10k and only increase it by 6db. depends on the song but this works to give you an example.
now keep in mind this will be different for every mic, every song, every singer and every engineers preference. I use different numbers for different songs. this song happens to have very few high ranged vocal parts so I increased the span of increased frequencies to enhance that range. some songs I use only everything about 8 to 10k and only increase it by 6db. depends on the song but this works to give you an example.
now my eq for the regular vocals tends to compliment the eq of the “sparkle” track. I like to take out a cut starting between 8k and 10k and use a low pass filter to eliminate this section. I had always liked doing this because it tends to work better with my voice. but now I can control those high end frequencies with the other track. here I cut out some other random frequencies I didnt like with the mic I used etc and I was attempting to create some holes for other instruments to fit. specifically here I have a cello part in the song so I was liking that cello at 200 so I cut out a little bit of the vocal eq there. but I can go more into that later.
3. compress the “sparkle” track
hI then proceed to compress the heck out of the sparkle track. this gives you more control and less flux in the range and dynamics. the sparkle track is to enhance but is not a stand alone tracks so compression works well here. I typically lower the thresh to almost all sounds and then have a really high ratio. play with it though. do it by ear to what sounds best based on vocal range and mic used.
4. work with levels
now I typically go back to the controls and play with the levels. I will typically “solo” the two vocal tracks and find the right balance. you want to use the “sparkle” track and pot it all the way up then all the way down to hear the difference. then go back and tweak any compression or eq. then go up and down until you find the right mix with your main vocal track. then press mute to see if it in fact is enhancing the vocal track. you have to be careful not to over do the sparkle as it might sound cool but then with everything else added back in it might be too much. once you get a good mix between main vocals and the “sparkle” then you should group them. then if you lower the main vocals then it lowers the “sparkle” in turn and stays in proportion.
I then pan the sparkle to be opposite a mono side delay or to fill a hole in the stereo spectrum or to give space from violins, piano or other areas that have high frequencies.
let me know what you think
I also use this on piano parts as well. it works great. let me know what you think and if this works for you. you can listen to some of my songs at
www.facebook.com/onematchleftmusic and while you are there hit “like” and stay up to date ;)
or just search for One Match Left
or check out my stuff here on www.onematchleft.com and be sure to subscribe. I also have an account on tumblr
www.onematchleft.tumblr.com
I also have a bunch of songs on youtube
www.youtube.com/onematchleft
I then pan the sparkle to be opposite a mono side delay or to fill a hole in the stereo spectrum or to give space from violins, piano or other areas that have high frequencies.
let me know what you think
I also use this on piano parts as well. it works great. let me know what you think and if this works for you. you can listen to some of my songs at
www.facebook.com/onematchleftmusic and while you are there hit “like” and stay up to date ;)
or just search for One Match Left
or check out my stuff here on www.onematchleft.com and be sure to subscribe. I also have an account on tumblr
www.onematchleft.tumblr.com
I also have a bunch of songs on youtube
www.youtube.com/onematchleft
