Most people who have “home Studios” are fairly new to the
world of recording and engineering. Whether you’re an artist, beat maker or a
recording enthusiast It’s important to understand how digital recording works.
This goes beyond “make sure it doesn’t clip.”
When receiving files from home studios I often get vocals
that were recorded way too close to the microphone. Tell your vocalist to step
back from the microphone. Keep at least 8 inches between the vocalist and the
microphone’s capsule. By doing this you reduce proximity effect, and you
eliminate mouth noises. If you’re not sure what mouth noises are they are the
annoying sounds made by moving your mouth (lip smacks, spit sounds clicks etc.)
they happen mostly when a vocalist isn’t drinking enough water while recording.
By moving away you also avoid overloading the microphone’s capsule. Most home
studios don’t have expensive microphones that sound good when they’re pushed a
bit, so be safe and try not to distort the capsule. (Hint: Your microphone can distort
without your digital meters show a clip)
Make use of the bit depth available to you. One of the first
things most people learn is “Don’t hit the red.” Making sure you don’t clip is
important but in a system where we have 24 bits (144 dBs) we have to try to use
them as much as possible.
The lower you record the less resolution you are
actually using.
In Pro Tools 11 and 12 we have a few more metering options but
the following principles will work in any DAW. If you have an RMS meter
available try to record with your vocals centered at -20dB RMS full scale. If
your DAW doesn’t have an RMS meter available try to have the loudest peaks of
your vocals at -6 dB full scale. These metering principles have given me great
results through the years. They also make it easier on my analog gear since -20
dB full scale is very close to 0 dB VU which is the point where analog gear
sounds it’s best.
Make Great Recordings
The last thing I want to touch on for this post is the
following. Get the sound right at the source. The better you’re recordings are
the better your mix will sound and the better your final master will be.
Artists: Don’t be lazy in the studio. Be patient and make sure the recording is
as good as possible, don't settle for a mediocre performance. Engineers: make
sure you’re capturing everything the best way possible, and be as alert as
possible. You’re there to allow the artist to be as creative as possible so
stay on your toes and be 5 steps ahead of them so you’re never slowing them
down. Now go forth and make some awesome recordings.
Sources:
reading your post was very insightful and if I didn't know about the recording world and the basic rules this would have been very helpful. knowledge of where the vocals should in the meters and how far your artist should stand away from the mic is spot on and it really shows you are professional and know your way around a studio. good job bro, I'm going to recommend this to everyone who keeps asking me these types of questions.
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