Zephy’s Recording Guide
By Zephysonas�Background by @ikuhsgw
Version 2
Recommend Products!
Studio Microphones Brands
Audio Interface
Sellers
AKG
Aston Microphones
Audio-Technica
Behringer
Beyerdynamic
Blue Microphones
Electro-Voice
Lewitt
Manley
MXL
Neat Microphones
Neumann
Rode
sE Electronics
Sennheiser
Shure
Studio Projects
Universal Audio
Warm Audio
UAD (Universal Audio)
Behringer
M-Audio
PreSonus
Tascam
Arturia
Steinberg
Focusrite
SSL (Solid State Logic)
Mic Activators
(Good for low gain microphones such as the Shure Sm7B and the electrovoice re20)
CloudLifter
sE Dynamite
Sweetwater
Amazon
Guitar Center
(This is not a comprehensive list, but here are some things that I can personally vouch for from experience )
Recommend Products!
Small Diaphragm Condenser Microphones (PAIR of two)
Good for ASMR Stereo Recording Note: You need an audio interface with at least 2 channels (since you are using two mics), so the Scarlet solo, for example, will not work.
Price for 2:�Studio Projects C-4 $399�Universal Audio SP-1 $349�sE7 $219�Rode M5 $199 �AKG P170 $198 �Blue Ember $198 �Golden Age FC4 $168 �Presonus PM-2 $129 �Behringer C-2 $59
(This is not a comprehensive list, but here are some things that I can personally vouch for from experience )
Contents
-Your Voice is an Instrument
-Practice your song because…
-Prepare your space
-Proximity Effect
-Distance is important
-Gain Staging
-Common problems and solutions
-How do I record myself?
-Audacity Quick Start Guide
-Don’t Clip
-Record and Export Vocals in Mono
-Do not process the audio
-Exporting the File
-Export Multiple
-What’s the deal with file formats
-Garbage In Garbage Out
-So…what do mixers actually do?
-Comping, Tuning, Timing, and Automating
-EQ (Equalization)
-Compression
-Reverb
-De-esser
-Etcetera
-Where do I find a mixer?
Your voice is an Instrument !
Before you grab your microphone it is important to think about yourself first! Take a moment to warm up your vocal chords. Ensure that you have good posture and practice your breathing and maintaining breath support. An easy exercise is to take a deep yawn-like breath and then blow the air out in a steady stream (pretend you’re blowing through a straw) while keeping it as controlled as possible and doing it for as long as you (safely) can. There are a myriad of tutorials available online that can improve your singing massively with very little time investment.
I recommend looking into Classical, Operatic and Bel Canto style singing techniques. Even if you do not want to sing in those styles, they will give you the proper breathing techniques to build your style upon. Breathing by expanding the ribs and singing from your diaphragm can also help you sing longer from a single breath and improve pitch and volume consistency. Do your own research to find a routine that works for you.
TLDR: Sit or stand upright with excellent posture. Take deep yawning breaths to open up your throat. Make sure you have drinks on hand, a warm cup of tea and water is always a good choice. Prepare with some vocal warm ups.
Practice your song because...
It’s amazing how many people sit down to record a song that they have never sung before in their life. You may not think you need to practice, you may not have the time, or you may simply just not care enough. However remember, again, the voice is an instrument and like any instrument it's helpful to practice.
Run through the song a few days before you record, record yourself singing along with the original vocalist and comparing your pitch, make notes of where you are going to take breaths so that you don't run out of air. You can even record a first draft yourself and listen back for what improvements you can make on the final recording
You may be able to sing a song just fine with very little practice, but if you practice a song and feel comfortable with it, it gives you more room to inject your own personality and character into the music. Singing a song with good pitch and phrasing is great, but it becomes special when you make it your own and sing as an artist and not just a vocalist.
TLDR: The more comfortable you are with a song the easier it is for your to put your personality into singing.
Prepare your space
Flat hard surfaces are the enemies of clean audio recordings. Whenever you make noise the sound waves travel outward and bounce around your room. The harder the surface the more audio will bounce back and unfortunately...walls are pretty hard. Having these reflections can cause certain annoying frequencies to become more prominent. High frequencies move more quickly than low frequencies and will bounce off parallel walls repeatedly and make your recording sound strident and overly bright.
You have probably seen pictures of studios with expensive sound foam on the walls and extravagant sound diffusion panels, but you don't need a superstudio to get good recordings. Try placing big and soft things on the wall behind you, such as a curtain or blanket to absorb some of the reflections. Bookshelves and cabinets are also great for for diffusing sound, instead of absorbing the frequencies they will bounce them off at different angles. Even hanging pictures on the walls or placing a rug beneath you can help. Try to break up as many flat hard surfaces as you can. (This includes music stands and computer monitors, try lowering them and angling them upwards so they are not getting direct reflections). If you want to get some acoustic foam don't go overboard, 25% of your walls covered in foam for absorption and 25% with bookshelves or shelves for diffusion should serve you well.
TLDR: Face away from or cover hard surfaces, turn off your air conditioner and fans, distance yourself from computer fans.
Proximity Effect
When using directional microphones there is an interesting quirk of physics, the closer you place a microphone to the sound source, the more it will increase the low-frequency response of that microphone. Have you ever heard the classic “Late night jazz radio voice”, it’s bassy and warm. Sometimes this is a great effect, but unless you specifically want it for artistic reasons it can make your voice sound boomy and muddy. It is important to establish optimal distance from your microphone, not just for volume consistency but for frequency response consistency. �TIP: Use your pop filter to measure the ideal distance from your mic (every vocalist sounds different so there's no standard distance that works for everyone but generally about 6-8 inches is a good place to start.) Once you place your pop filter about 5 inches from your mic you know that you can get as close to the pop filter as you want without entering proximity effect territory. �NOTE: You may need to be closer for Dynamic mics such as the SM7b.
TLDR: If you get really close to your mic it will increase the BASS in your voice. Generally avoid it unless you specifically want to use it as an effect. Check in with your mixer before recording
Distance is important….
We know if you get close to a mic it boosts the bass, but the reverse is also true. The further away you get from the mic the more bass you lose. If you are too far away your voice will sound thin and weak. Remember, everyone's voice is unique! Any guides that tell you “Do this exactly and it will work every time,” are full of it. That said, there are general best practices that provide you with a good starting point. Experiment with different distances and mic angles. Moving an inch or even a few centimeters closer or further can make a big difference. Also try subtly changing the tilt of your microphone, angle it towards your mouth, towards your forehead, towards your chest, towards your nose, towards your upper lip, towards your chin. Try things out and see what works for you. Different songs may call for different placements. Is it a fast high energy pop song? Maybe move a few inches further back. Is it a slow intimate ballad? Maybe move a bit closer.
TLDR: Don’t get too close, but also don't get too far away.
Common technique for finding a reasonable starting distance.
Gain Staging
Every part of your recording chain has a gain control. (BTW trim and gain are both just terms that refer to input or output volumes). Your microphone (MIGHT) have a gain control, your interface will have a gain control, your computer might have an incoming gain control and your recording program will have a gain control. It is important that each level in the chain is healthy. You don't want to have your microphone and interface gain knobs maxed out and your computer gain really low. Be mindful of each stage and check that the incoming volume is not too quiet or too loud. A common strategy is to turn up your interface and sing loudly until a red “clipping” indicator comes on (if your interface has one), and then dial it back a few degrees. A common idea tossed around is to aim for -6 on your dB meters. There's a ton of different dB (Decibel) scales so this isn’t ALWAYS true, but for the sake of not confusing anyone...yea, try to aim for around -6dB. (more on gain staging later)
Red means clipping(BAD). Green is good. But there's no indicator for too quiet. So even if you see green your levels may still not be perfect.
TLDR: Make sure every part of the recording chain is at an optimal volume. Avoid clipping at ALL COSTS, there is very little a mixer can do to repair distorted audio.
Common problems and solutions
-Problem: Voice Sounds Muddy and has too much bass : Move further away from the microphone.
-Voice is harsh and Edgy : Try angling mic slightly to the side of the mouth (off center)
-Pops and hard “P” sounds (plosives): Buy a pop filter. They are cheap and amazing. If you don't have one try placing the mic at forehead height and angling it towards your mouth. Try taping a pencil in front of the mic capsule to break up the air blasts.
-Lots of lip and mouth noise : move further away from the mic. Increase gain to compensate. Also try to minimize these noises on your end by being properly hydrated.
-Excessive dynamic range: If you know you are going to be singing a song that has very quiet and very loud passages, try stepping back a bit for the louder passages and closer for the quieter ones. But be careful, do this in moderation and try to stay consistent.
-Audio sounds distorted: Check your gain staging.
How do I record myself?
You may or may not have heard of the program Audacity. Audacity is a free program with incredibly simple controls and some solid programing under the hood, that has made it the industry standard for beginners. If you only need to capture a raw recording and export it, Audacity is great place to start. If you have a more powerful audio editor like Adobe Audition or even Garageband, feel free to use those, Audacity is not the ONLY option. As Audacity is free for everyone though it will be the program we cover for the recording process. As a side note I would like to mention the difference between an audio editor and a Digital Audio Workstation or DAW. Your mixer will probably not be mixing your song in Audacity….it simply lacks powerful tools for post processing work. They may use a more advanced Audio Editor or a DAW which will be much more advanced and full of many more tools.
TLDR: Audacity…
Audacity Quick Start Guide
-Navigate to the toolbar in the top middle of the screen.
-Open the drop down menu next to the microphone icon and choose your microphone. If you are using an audio interface box to record choose that.
-Select “Mono Recording Channels”
-Select your headphones/audio interface. If you have your headphone plugged directly into your computer it may be displayed as “computer speakers” or “system sound”
-First download and open the program. You should restart your computer before using it to be certain it syncs and recognizes your audio devices.
Audacity Quick Start Guide
-Simply drag and drop your instrumental from your computer onto the dark gray area of audacity.
-It should look like this, with two blue waveforms.
-If you only see one blue waveform and not two stacked on top of each other see picture left, then your instrumental may be in MONO which is a problem. Your instrumental should be in stereo.
Audacity Quick Start Guide
-Press click the mic volume meter to start your mic check and look at the gain level of your incoming audio.
-You want the LOUDEST part of your song to be around the “yellow area” in the volume meter. (-6)You don't want to be too quiet or too loud.
-Sing a few lines of your song if you are exceeding -6 you have to turn down your gain if you are below -18 you need to turn it up.
Don’t clip
Clipping is when you exceed the volume that your system is capable of recording, causing distortion. If you're clipping your recording is pretty much ruined and you will need to re-record, so save yourself the trouble before it happens. Before you start recording do some test recordings, singing the loudest part of the song, if your loudest part doesn't clip you are good to go.
TLDR: It is better to be a little too quiet than to be too loud.
Record and export vocals IN MONO
Mono means one. When you record with one microphone you should be recording and exporting that audio in mono. If you record a mono signal in stereo it will either only record the audio on the left channel (left ear) or it will double the audio to make a pseudo-stereo. �Stereo means two sound sources. Two speakers, or two mics, or two ears. Final tracks and instrumentals are stereo because they use audio from many different mono sources (instruments) to create a ‘stereo image’ . Can you just convert a stereo file into a mono file? More or less, yes. But you should still maintain best practices and do things correctly.
TLDR: MONO- Your voice� STEREO- The backing track/instrumental
Do not process the audio!
I know you are tempted to denoise/remove silence. Resist! Any experienced sound engineer will have tools for doing that kind of thing manually and at a higher quality than the denoise button in your audio editor. You are (hopefully?) paying your mixer to process your audio for you. Most intermediate (and above) level mixers have probably spent several hundred or even thousand dollars on equipment and softwares. A single piece of software, or audio plugin, that specializes in ONE thing can easily cost hundreds of dollars and SHOULD work a lot better than a built in audio editor plugin.
TLDR: That is what the mixer is there for. Do NOT normalize, do NOT remove silence/denoise. Instead try to minimize background noise and maintain consistent audio levels in the “real world” using the techniques we have already discussed.
Exporting the file
Place all your files in a folder to send your mixer. Discuss with your mixer if they want you to zip the folder and what file sharing site they would like you to send it on. If you are recording for a duet or chorus make sure your file name has your own name in it! Make sure to label your files clearly. Here are some common naming conventions you can use. But really, just make �things clear and that will be fine!��-Instrumental/karaoke/off vocal/’full song name’ �-Voice/vox/lead/’Your name’ �-Harmony/backing vocal
-Scratch Vocal/backup takes/ vox3/extra
-Some mixers may specify a higher sample rate �such as like 48 or 96 kHz. there is an ongoing debate�on whether higher sample rates are actually worth using, �but just use whatever your mixer asks you to.
TLDR: .Wav files with Encoding 44.1kHz, 32 bit float (Or 24bit).
Export Multiple
Export Multiple will ensure that the audio is in synch and will save the mixer time when aligning the tracks. It will also ensure that the mixer has the same instrumental that you used.
TLDR: Export both your recording and your instrumental as WAV Files for your mixer.
What's the Deal with File Formats
I am sure you have heard of mp3. With the popularity of portable music players like the I-pod, storage space was at a premium. MP3 became popular for its small size despite its lower quality. Generally speaking there are 3 types of audio file formats: ��-Uncompressed audio: this is as pure as you can get. The file size is LARGE. Formats include .WAV and .AIFF
-Lossless Compressed audio: This audio is compressed but indistinguishable in quality from uncompressed audio. Best for listening when you don't care about storage space The file size is MEDIUM. Formats include .FLAC and .ALAC
-Lossy Compressed audio prioritizes storage economy over audio quality. File size is SMALL. Formats include .MP3 and .AAC
-Twitter, youtube etc. are going to compress your files anyways, but compressing a High quality file is better than compressing a file that has already been compressed. Sometimes you have to upload with mp3 but if a mixer is asking you for mp3 recordings of your voice you should question why they are not using the best quality audio source to mix your voice.
TLDR: .WAV files are high quality uncompressed audio files. Mp3 files are low quality “lossy” compressed files. Mp3 is fine for listening, but when mixing you should always work with the best quality you can.
Garbage in Garbage out
Mixers, tuners and timers are not magicians. The better you do in the recording stage the better your audio will come out. A recording engineer could spend 10 hours mixing a poor singer and make them sound okay (maybe) but if you gave that same engineer 10 hours to mix a strong performer they could spend their time highlighting the performers strengths and making artistic mixing choices instead of covering up mistakes. If you want an excellent product it is important to be excellent yourself. This means taking everything we have discussed: preparing your space, positioning your microphone, warming up your voice, getting proper gain on your audio interface and computer, using quality equipment and using high quality audio files. I truly believe everyone can, and should, have the opportunity to sing and perform. You don't have to be the Phantom of the Opera, but if you treat your performance with respect you may be surprised with what you are capable of. But most importantly, be yourself and try to have fun!
TLDR: Do your best and have fun!
So...what do mixers actually do?
There is a certain degree of mysticism that surrounds the mysterious art of mixing, simply because many people don't know what it entails. At its core mixing has a few primary stages. �The first stage is clean up. It doesn't matter how expensive your recording setup is, no recording of a singer will ever sound exactly the same as the singer in real life. A mixers first task is to minimize all those little problems that arise in the recording process. Flattening the microphones frequency response, reducing the influence of the room, correcting aspects of the performance that were disproportionately accentuated. �The second stage is corrective. Fixing subtle pitch and timing oddities, controlling the volume and dynamics in relation to the instrumental, reducing unattractive frequencies in the singers voice, reducing plosives (hard Ps) sibilants (sharp Ss), and cutting breaths and mouth noises and clicks. �The third stage is complimenting. Giving the vocalist a more full and powerful sound or a crisp and clean sound with EQ, adding reverb to give distance, layering parts to fill out thin arrangements. �A good mixer may stop there, but a great mixer will go on to an extra and final stage, artistry. This is when the mixer puts on a ‘producers’ hat and makes artistic choices to elevate the performance. Tools are no longer used with the goal of making the most clean sound but are instead used specifically to create cool colors and flavors in the song. This may entail creative uses of effects such as saturation, parallel compression, chorusing, delays, doubling, panning automation, distortion etc. etc. I know I am throwing out a lot of terminology you may not be familiar with but suffice to say that the possibilities with creative mixing are literally endless.
Step 1: Cleaning Step 2: Correcting Step 3: Complimenting Step 4:Artistic Expression
Comping, Tuning, Timing, and Automating
-Comping: If you sent the mixer multiple recordings of the same track, the first step in the mixing process is often to composite/compile/comp together all the best segments of each version into one single track. Some singers will comp their own tracks, some will send several tracks to the mixer to comp and some will just send over their single best recording. Discuss with your mixer on what method they would prefer. MOST mixers would LOVE to have multiple takes of your vocals to layer.
-Tuning and Timing: This comes in many flavors, from T-Pain autotune to subtle pitch correction. The vast majority singing you hear in any context has at least some editing done to either tighten up the timing or the pitch. The process is fairly easy but can be time consuming.
-Automating: Automating, specifically volume, is the process of making sure volume is consistent throughout the recording. Perhaps a quiet section needs to be turned up or a loud section turned down. Maybe the singer kept a consistent volume but needs to be boosted during the chorus when other instruments come in.
-Panning: Adjusting how much of a signal is coming from each side (left or right). If every sound is playing directly in the middle it can make things messy and cluttered. Sometimes you want something to sound like it is coming more on the left side or right side. A good example is having the main vocal balanced in the center but putting the harmonies on the left and right ear.
Comping: Taking the best parts. �Tuning and Timing: Tightening up pitch and phrasing.
Automating (volume): Making sure the voice is at a good ratio to the instrumental throughout the whole song.
EQ (Equalization)
EQ is the primary bread and butter tool of any mixer. It can take a large chunk of the mixers time and separates the good from the great. Whenever you make a sound it is not just one single pitch, but many pitches or frequencies stacking on each other. The main frequency that determines the pitch of a note is called “The fundamental” But there are many other resonating pitches called overtones that give the notes its ‘color’ or ‘timbre’. EQ can be used to increase or decrease the volume of specific frequencies. EQ is also used to filter out some unwanted noise such as the low rumble of machinery.
TLDR: Removing unwanted/unflattering frequencies and boosting ‘good’ frequencies.
Compression
Compression as an audio process (not to be confused with compression on file quality) is the act of lowering the dynamic range of a signal. To put it more simply, making the quiets louder and/or the louds quieter. Why would you want to do this? Compression can make it so there is less volume inconsistency throughout the track. When you don't have sudden loud parts or sudden quiet parts you can boost the overall volume of the entire track. Compression also adds a lot of “color” to the sound, it can make things sound warmer or more snappy. Compression can be very nuanced in its application.
TLDR: Making the volume more consistent and adding color.
Reverb
You know how when you sing in the shower it sounds better than if you sing in your room (depending on your bathroom)? Or if you sing in a big empty church vs if you sing in an open field. That is because of reverb. Reverb is NOT the same as echo, but you can think of it in the same way, it is the bouncing back of sounds in a pleasing manner. Any recording without reverb will sound very odd and dry to the human ear. It may sound like the vocalist is singing 4 inches away from our face. Reverb gives some distance to the sound and artificially places it in a place with good acoustics. Part of the reason it's important to get dry recordings is so that your mixer has full control over the reverb that they add to your track.
TLDR: Takes your dry recorded signal and makes it sound like it was recorded in a space like a concert hall or a studio etc.
De-esser
The letter S is very powerful. To vocalize it we push air past our teeth at very high speeds, however this can create problems when recording. Because our air stream is much faster and more directed when saying an S it can be disproportionately loud when recorded. A De-esser uses a combination of EQ and Compression ideas to quickly lower the volume of ‘S’s when they are spoken. A de-esser can help make S sounds less noticeable but remember that it cannot completely get rid of them so try to be careful and control Ss and Ps when recording.
TLDR: De-esser reduces the volume during harsh “S” sibilant sounds.
Etcetera
Saturator- Like distortion but ‘good’ Can make things sound bigger.�
Distortion- Sometimes you want things to sound dirty and heavy and violent. �
Delay- Doubles (or more) your signal and plays it back underneath at a slightly delayed intervals. Can be used in tandem with reverb to make things sound more wide and full.
Multiband Compressor- Works a bit like an EQ but using the techniques of a compressor.
Chorus: Takes a pitch and slightly modifies its pitch, timber and timing and layers it with the original pitch.
The list goes on...
There are many more techniques and effects that I use regularly that I could go into but we covered the bare basics. Here are a few other basic fundamental effects, covered even more briefly.
Where do I find a mixer??
You may be someone who would like to start recording covers but simply don't know any audio specialists. You can always put out a post on social media advertising what you are looking for, or even head over to a service like fiver that has a wide selection and very competitive prices. However I don't recommend either option. Posting “open calls” can sometimes work, but scammers prowl social media looking for exactly those kinds of opportunities. I have had personal experience with scammers trying to take my money without delivering when I advertised I was looking for commissions on twitter. You can sometimes find good options on fiver for really low prices but mixing is a process that really benefits from repeat customers. As a mixer works with a vocalist they learn a lot about their voice and can build a set of effects custom to that vocalist that will make future projects even faster and more efficient. Also you tend to get more value for your money, better communication and more revisions when you reach out to a mixer vs when you use a commissioning service. For that I recommend finding mixers through word of mouth! Ask your friends who they used, go to people that you like and look who they credited on their recent projects. Go to mixers social medias, even if their commissions are full or they are out of your budget you can check who their friends are. Mixers frequently have groups of other mixers that they are friends with and share mixing work in progress criques.
TLDR: Look at who your friends and idols use. Be a detective and poke around.
If you have any questions or topics you want added let me know!�Also if you are a mixer and would like to contribute a passage(credited ofcourse) shoot me a message!
Zephyzephyrum@gmail.com