First Recording. Bash Please. +help with vox.

[etcd32@missouri.edu]

Well, im 18 years old, goto university of missouri.
Been recording since this summer. worked on Cubase LE abit, then bought a macbook pro, used garage band for a bit, loved it, so i
Just bought Logic Pro an Edirol FA-66, have a Audio-technica 3035 and havent been taught to record so i kinda wing it and go by ear. here goes nothin haha.


ALSO, I cant seem to get my vocals to be full, the vocal track was improv/demo take, and i only did one, along with the guitar.

i was mostly curious about howto get the vocals more...full?? should i sing closer to the mic or what?


Thanks!
-evan

[darrylm]

You do sound a little distant from the mic... how close were you? The acoustic guitar sounds nice though. The song could use a bit more bottom end to it as well, but it sounds like you've got a really neat thing going here. It'll be cool to hear this as it progresses. :-)

[scooterlow]

Well if your just getting started your doing a great job!
Sometimes fuller vocals are created at the source. You might need to sing it a bit more aggressive. Like Imagine if you were in front of 10,000 people and were rocking out. that emotion, singing from your gut. If your going for dry in your face type of vocal you may want to compress the track a bit more making sure to do some de-essing also to keep it from getting hissy.You can always try some different EQ, maybe dropping a bit of the mids might give it a fuller sound.then brig the track volume up a bi to compensate.
Just one persons opinion. Good job overall. Keep it up!

[etcd32@missouri.edu]

Hey guys! thank you for the input, ive been in studios and such, so i really wanted to try it on my own, spend the money to fix getting bad mixes from people i dont know...

the guitar and vox are both demo takes so they have NO positioning or really me trying on either haha i actually held my AT 3035 when i sang because i left my stand at home (im in a dorm room)

i JUSt brought it up today so now ill have positioning and my shit will sound amazing.

im more of a writer, been writing for like....8 months now.


Once again, i appreciate your response and anything more i record, ill send you guys the recordings!

My band is highland circus we are from St. Louis ...well I am..hahah i kicked everyone out of my band because i did EVERYTHING.


anyways,
let me know if u think of anything else!

-evan

[lolzgreg]

You should be only about 4 or 6 inches from the mic (in front of the popscreen, which I'm assuming you don't have and should buy immediately).

Sounds like mic positioning is the issue with the guitar as well, the lows are non existant. Try to get the mic about 8 inches from the guitars sound hole and point the mic's face toward the fretboard a little.

Songwritings good, you just need to track this sucker for real.

-Greg

[whiterabbit_the]

Great track man! I really dig the vibe! The acoustic has a nice feel, but is a little bit too thin for me. Definitely give it a little more bottom end so it can hold it's own in the mix.

As for the vocals, I would disagree with doing them a bit more aggressive. This track really does not call for agressive vocals at all...definitely stick with the smooth style.

Now lolgreg is right about the distance, although for me, it depends on what type of vox I am working with (screams, casual singing, BELTING IT singing (haha). Like he said, get the pop filter, and as I tell all of my clientel...try to eat to pop filter, literally, haha. Keeps the mix consistent and requires less automation work from me

Again, awesome song

--Aaron

[garageband]

First off: This is great. Really. Drum programming has a couple of unreal spots and could be dialed back a hair.

NO! You don't need to sing more aggressively. You are singing plenty hard and have a really nice instrument. That mic is good but doesn't suit you very well. Try a couple others, maybe KSM32, NT2A, TLM103, AT4033 or perhaps one of the 414 family. No Chinese mics! You're already way beyond that. Come up on it a hair more and work some proximity effect in. The mic is a vocalist's instrument as well as an engineer's instrument. Use a pop screen so you don't have to worry so much about take-ruining plosives.

Reaaly creative work.

[etcd32@missouri.edu]

well, white rabbit, the vox are a demo take, and i didnt really get up to the mic (i was being really professional and holding it hahahaha because i didnt have my stand)



and for garageband, thank you. i appreciate the compliments and tips as well! and haha the snare roll off is unrealistic (i know) haha.


i am going to re-record both vocals and guitar tomorrow or wednesday if i can.

(its finals week at Mizzou)

then ill show you guys how it usually sounds when i record.

i was wondering if it was possible to make vocals sound good even if it was coming from a bad source and a person who doesnt sing very up front (i didnt sing my fullest and i sang a bit far from the mic because i am recording a band soon and saw them live, and the singer is not very...how do i say...confident?) and was trying to see if anyone knew howto fix this problem...obv theres no way, and im guna have to push the fool.


Also i noticed that autotune on Logic Pro 8 sucked considering i sang outa key on a few notes lol


ANYWAYS i will get back to you guys ina few days with the new recording!



Thanks again!
-evan

[garageband]

A quick word about your shopping list.
Don't.
Sure, everyone needs an SM57. Fine, whatever. The D6 is a very expensive specialty mic. That ART thing is horrible. You'd do much better in the pre department to get a Mackie VLZ mixer of any size. eBay has tons of clean units of a bunch of sizes for practically nothing. They are fab and you have to spend lots to do much better. 2035 = Chinese = a waste of your money and time. If you are looking for an overhead pair, KSM109 or SM81 are real mics and will last you until you have that major label deal and then someone else can hang their Shoeps/Neumann/DPA fancy mics for your session. If you are "saving up" save for the Dynaudio BM5a. Those are professional quality boxes and you'll get way better results. For any of your 1" condenser needs, ref. the mics I mentioned earlier.

My advice is to run with what you have until you can get real equipment. Not that what you have is bad, but your wish list will still cost you money and not get you any farther.

[etcd32@missouri.edu]

hey garage band, thanks for that! haha, i am a newbie to recording stuff...



Can you tell me why exactly everything i picked out is shit?
And what shall i do if im starting my own small record label and need a small studio to build up from

-evan