• Techniques
  • Is my Setup causing muddy vocals? (p.2)
2014/06/27 01:46:59
ns0529
i am a girl and thank you but I haven't mixed it completely I mean I am all about working to get something to sound beautiful or at least decent !! I mean you can't just expect to sound good on it's own you have to try!!
But here is some samples of it one with EQ and one without
 
The first one has we...nothing on it...just recorded vocals with sonitus noise gate

 
The second one have been eq'd qith fabfilter pro-q, compressed with sonar x2 track compressor, and breverb 2 cakewalk 64, but the speaking part has a classic chorus and the melody with it has a classic flanger you know to make it swirl 

 
I just don't want my vocals to be muddy and boomy, I don't know maybe my hearing is just dumb
2014/06/27 02:36:49
spacealf
A person can not post a link until they have 25 posts here on this forum. Perhaps you can type out the link and perhaps we can try and see if that will work. (forum is not working correctly nowadays either lately).
Perhaps you can load it up here, can sign up for free or just upload a file, but if you sign up, then you can take the file down also. I have used it several times in the Past.
http://www.fileswap.com/
 
(and I am not sure what KPOP means exactly either). ??
I think I may guess correctly though.
 
I see you have started other threads also in the recent past, seemingly all about the same thing just glancing at them. (??)
http://www.audio-issues.com/music-mixing/all-the-eq-information-youll-ever-need/
 
Muddyness is usually around 300-450 Hz in EQ. Look the charts over, it should be a guide on what frequencies you want.
 
 
 
2014/06/27 02:54:41
spacealf
There are more expensive microphones also, that cost a lot more. Those mics are not going to be duplicated by a cheaper microphone either. Only somewhat. Although there may be cheaper mics that sound pretty good, there is a reason recording studios use better mics - they can probably afford it.
 
2014/06/27 03:20:15
spacealf
Is this the mic you have?
http://recordinghacks.com/microphones/Audio-Technica/ATR2500-USB
 
Well, look at the charts on the link in the previous post and work with the mic and EQ. The charts should help on any music.
 
2014/06/27 03:35:56
spacealf
And you can save the images on that link by right clicking and "copy image" or something like that. Then since it is on the clipboard, open up Paint program - Paste the image (that is still on the clipboard in Windows) and then save it in the Paint program with a name you want to use for the image.
 
That way you do not always have to go to that website to see the charts.
 
2014/06/27 04:17:49
Karyn
Hi ns0529
 
If your vocals seem boomy and muddy...
 
Using Pro-q..
Start with a high pass filter around 150Hz,  leave the rest of the bass alone.
Turn the mids down a little.
Boost the hi a touch...
 
 
To find the best mid frequency band to cut.. start by boosting them and slowly sweep the boost frequency through the mids until you find the area that makes it much worse..  Now cut that frequency...
2014/06/27 11:55:13
AT
How many times have I heard "fix it in the mix?" No amount of mixing skill will turn a sow's ear into a silk purse, despite what you read.  Fixing it in the mix or in post is the most time consuming and least successful way of producing a good product.  Getting it right during recording (or as right as possible) is the first step to good sound.  If you learned in the old studio system the first real experience you got w/ recording was setting up mics, not mixing a paying client's masterpiece on a ssl board that you didn't know which button to push.  Which is why I suggested learning the basics of recording a  sound before learning how to fix a badly recording sound. 
 
If the sound is booming, judicious use of EQ can help, but not cure, the boom.  And since the OP has another open thread about "too much air" in the vocal, I suppose the fault lies within the recording technique themselves, not the stars, dear Brutus. If the same artist, same room and same mic produce such varying results, I'd start w/ the actual recording process. It is a learning process, so start at the source.  Get that decent, and it is soooo much easier to get a decent mix.  Get great sound, and the song mixes itself.  If you can't change the artist, or room or mic, find the technique that produces consistent results.  Then you can apply the same techniques to make the mix better.  Otherwise, you are just spitting into the wind and hoping something sticks.  Again and again.
 
Some practical mix suggestions for vocals in general, and your specific problem are:
 
Start w/ a high pass filter (which, as the name implies, passes the higher frequencies while cutting the lower ones).  For female vocals, you might go up to 200 Hz and higher without damaging the meat of the sound.  Play w/ the slope, if available, which is the curve of the filter. 
 
Muddy or booming usually apply to frequencies a bit higher, up to 400 Hz.  A separate notch filter, or for wide mud, a gentler dip, might help.  Reverb and other time-based effects will muck things up, so add those only after the track sound is good or you'll be fighting the vocals on two fronts.   For subtractive EQ like this, even the most basic EQ should work.  You ain't trying to add anything special, just take away.
2014/06/27 19:23:46
SvenArne
Some long replies here...
 
Your mic shouldn't cause mud. Poor quality mics can cause several issues, but muddy sound isn't something I would ascribe to a typical USB condenser, and Audio Technica makes good gear. 
 
Distance! Sure you're not singing too close to the mic? Start at 1 foot (~30 cm) and take it from there!
 
Sven
2014/06/28 11:06:46
Guitarhacker
hearing the example would certainly give us a starting point....
 
until you get 25 posts, you can't include active links. it's an anti-spammer thing.....
 
However,,, you can always type it out:  www dot yourwebsitelink dot com...and we can easily get there, then someone else can post the active link for you and for the rest of us to click on it.
 
 
2014/06/30 14:08:07
spacealf
I guess we will never know.
 
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