Music Production Tips

[john]

 

Hi Gang

 

I thought I would starte a new thread, to collect together current music production tips. Feel free to add yours!

 

 

 

Vocals. 

 

Avoid Reverb. They will make your vocals muddy and distant. Instead, learn how to use a stereo slap back delay properly. Trust me, you will thank me. Your vocals will sound more current and more professional... at least in terms of production.

 

If you still feel it needs a touch of reverb, use it minimally on the side chain.

[gradual]

Regarding vocals again, one thing that I find works really well is to record the lead vocal (or at least a vocal scratch track) as the very first thing (apart from the chordal/rhythm instrument that it will be necessary to sing to.) That way all subsequent arranging and mix decisions will be made in support of, and not interfering with, the lead vocal.

 

The vocal is for me the most time consuming element to mix, because not only is it the one thing that everyone pays attention to in a song, but it also has the most inconsistencies in volume, tone and timbre, not only between song sections, or vocal lines, but often right down to the individual vowels and consonants of a word. So my solution to that is automation, automation, and more automation. (That, and proper vocal compression.) Usually, it takes about a week for me to do all the automation on the vocal and make sure it sits properly in the mix. But that extra time and effort to get it right is definitely worth it.

[TCgypsy]

On 3/23/2018 at 2:53 PM, gradual said:

Regarding vocals again, one thing that I find works really well is to record the lead vocal (or at least a vocal scratch track) as the very first thing (apart from the chordal/rhythm instrument that it will be necessary to sing to.) That way all subsequent arranging and mix decisions will be made in support of, and not interfering with, the lead vocal.

 

I second this ^^

This is very important so you don't step all over the vocals in your quest for an interesting arrangement.

 

Another tip along the same lines

DRUMS

If you are doing drums in your song don't wait until the end to 'add' them. Just like in the preceeding tip, lay down the groove once you get the skeleton of the song down. I use scratch tracks for the harmonic progression (guitar or keyboards) and vocals while I lay down the drums. I will usually end up going back and doing some editing on the drums as the arrangement/production gels but having the grooves laid in for the various parts helps tremendously. When you build on a solid foundation and play to the actual grooves you get better results than using a click track or trying to freewheel the tune.

 

--TC

[Mahesh]

2 hours ago, TCgypsy said:

DRUMS

If you are doing drums in your song don't wait until the end to 'add' them. Just like in the preceeding tip, lay down the groove once you get the skeleton of the song down. I use scratch tracks for the harmonic progression (guitar or keyboards) and vocals while I lay down the drums. I will usually end up going back and doing some editing on the drums as the arrangement/production gels but having the grooves laid in for the various parts helps tremendously. When you build on a solid foundation and play to the actual grooves you get better results than using a click track or trying to freewheel the tune.

I vouch for this as well.

 

When recording for my EP, we did it this way. 

 

Our drummer played the song to a click track while I was outside the booth singing the song and play the acoustic with him (we used just an SM58 and sent it to his headphones ) just for context. We also preferred recording the whole song a couple of times and then recorded only what is needed if there were any changes afterward. He is an extremely skilled drummer but he wasn't exactly on the dot with the clicks but that was what we needed. Something more human than 'perfection'. Laying the acoustic guitars, vocals and the bass over it was a much more natural and organic process after that.

 

EQing

 

This is quite an obvious tip but I'm sure it'll help people who are starting out with recording and trying to EQ their tracks. 

 

Find the frequency you don't want by ear before touching the EQ plugin to notch it out. It will help avoid any compromise of the tonal quality of your recording. Furthermore it'll help you detect and remove the right frequencies instead of experimenting.

 

For example, if your guitars are sounding harsh because of the way the plectrum is hitting the strings, play the track and find that harsh frequency by ear and keep your attention to that sound as you do a sweep (push up the gain and the Q at max ie., the slope is steep) across the frequency range with your preferred EQ plugin (You'd need a parametric EQ for this). There will be a point where the harsh frequency you're paying attention to will merge with the sound that you get out of the sweep. When that merge happens, stop. That's the frequency you're looking for. All you've gotta do now is notch it out as you need.

[ImKeN]

On 3/15/2018 at 1:45 PM, john said:

Avoid Reverb. They will make your vocals muddy and distant. Instead, learn how to use a stereo slap back delay properly. Trust me, you will thank me. Your vocals will sound more current and more professional... at least in terms of production.

 

If you still feel it needs a touch of reverb, use it minimally on the side chain.

 

Gonna have to look into this, thanks for the tip, John!

 

Ken

[Jordan]

I have noticed on the radio that reverb is making a huge comeback and also gated reverb on snares, like the 80s production style is on a comeback. They can do it without it cluttering the mix. I do prefer to go for delay first though and adding a slight reverb to the delay can be quite interesting.

Most of the mixes that are reverb heavy I find a light on arrangement and the reverb fills the spaces and makes it full. And on busy mixes delay often sounds like reverb is being used. 

 

 

[john]

15 hours ago, Jordan said:

I have noticed on the radio that reverb is making a huge comeback and also gated reverb on snares, like the 80s production style is on a comeback. They can do it without it cluttering the mix. I do prefer to go for delay first though and adding a slight reverb to the delay can be quite interesting.

Most of the mixes that are reverb heavy I find a light on arrangement and the reverb fills the spaces and makes it full. And on busy mixes delay often sounds like reverb is being used. 

 

 

 

I think you will find that is implemented using a stereo slap back delay, with some additional low levels of reverb on the side chain. The sense of space is more profound, but no muddy element, no distance.

[Roymega]

If you guys ever get the chance, grab Izotope's Tonal Balance Control plugin and slap it on the master track to get a great visual of whether your track is balanced or not. It really opened my eyes to how important balance is in a mix.

[Glammerocity]

On 3/23/2018 at 6:53 PM, gradual said:

Regarding vocals again, one thing that I find works really well is to record the lead vocal (or at least a vocal scratch track) as the very first thing (apart from the chordal/rhythm instrument that it will be necessary to sing to.) That way all subsequent arranging and mix decisions will be made in support of, and not interfering with, the lead vocal.

 

The vocal is for me the most time consuming element to mix, because not only is it the one thing that everyone pays attention to in a song, but it also has the most inconsistencies in volume, tone and timbre, not only between song sections, or vocal lines, but often right down to the individual vowels and consonants of a word. So my solution to that is automation, automation, and more automation. (That, and proper vocal compression.) Usually, it takes about a week for me to do all the automation on the vocal and make sure it sits properly in the mix. But that extra time and effort to get it right is definitely worth it.

 

I wholeheartedly endorse this message, because it's all about the song. In fact, my general tip is do not get too hung up on technicalities. You can listen to an old Ella Fitzgerald recording and your ear tunes out the scratches to just hear how great she sings a great song.

 

I spoke to other engineers when I had a studio and we all had tracks on our shelves that were never finished. We'd remix and remix because we could. Then we'd get a band in who'd do three songs in six hours and we'd take the demo home to listen to, because we loved the vibe.

 

If I had to give a specific tip, I liked recording acoustic guitars by double tracking, panning them wide L and R and removing some middle eq. This gives the warmth in the bottom end and the rhythm in the top while leaving eq room for everything else. Obviously this is for a strummed wash rather than any finger-picked style.

[childed]

i'm setup verbs/delays in according to a tempo of a song.
i take it in mind when i set my room mics for drum recording, if i set it correctly i will have superb delay on a record.

[Glammerocity]

I was reminded of a tip an engineer once gave me when I was doing a vocal to pull funny faces. I was reminded by The Key of Awesome's Tribute to Ridiculous Voices. It might seem silly but it certainly works for some people.

 

 

[Capo3tanya]

Ok... I am the newbiest of newbies, flaky, technically challenged, have no idea about anything.  Yae!  Here's where I'm at, I'd appreciate any kind of help or response/advice.  Pretty pretty please 😂

 

I was told recently to get Audacity.  I did a little research, it seems to me that Mulab is a better choice.  Do you guys have any opinion?

 

This is the equipment I have at home.  Do not know what brands/how old.  I have a huge amp.  I have a microphone, most likely poor quality.  I have a laptop,  decent headphones.  Have bass guitar, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, mandolin.  Piano.  Looking to get decent Yamaha keyboard. One of my significant others plays drums, he has an ok set (I'm a unicorn, whatever lol).

 

I was told to plug guitar and mic into amp, plug amp into laptop, there you go.  

 

I know perhaps I should start out small, just figuring out how to record nice acoustic sound (my voice, guitar,  harmony tracks and of course multiple guitar parts).  But my goal is to play with synthetic sounds, I am clueless about VST's and midi sequencing etc.  

 

If any of you brilliant guys and gals have a moment to give me some advice, again I'd really appreciate it.  I have been so stubborn for so long, refusing to even attempt this.  Thanks guys have a great day!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

[ImKeN]

On 6/13/2018 at 12:21 AM, Capo3tanya said:

I was told recently to get Audacity.  I did a little research, it seems to me that Mulab is a better choice.  Do you guys have any opinion?

 

I don't know those DAW's so I can't offer any opinion on that. I don't think Audacity is suited for midi sequencing, though.

Starting out small sounds like a good plan. If you haven't already, try looking into acoustic treatment - it goes hand in hand with recording.

 

Best,

 

Ken

[Capo3tanya]

6 hours ago, ImKeN said:

 

I don't know those DAW's so I can't offer any opinion on that. I don't think Audacity is suited for midi sequencing, though.

Starting out small sounds like a good plan. If you haven't already, try looking into acoustic treatment - it goes hand in hand with recording.

 

Best,

 

Ken

Ok awesome Ken I certainly will! Thanks so much. Yeah... So my plan right now is to get an interface, have $200 budget. Do you have any suggestions? Also, for a sad laugh lol, I downloaded a free n--track android app on my phone. Figured at least I could play with multi tracks. Watched the tutorials, and couldn't figure out how to hear my recordings. Sound waves showed up, it recorded, but man I'm discouraged. I'm not stupid by any means but DAMN I don't know what my deal is 😢 Thanks for answering me!!! ❤

[ImKeN]

20 hours ago, Capo3tanya said:

So my plan right now is to get an interface, have $200 budget. Do you have any suggestions?

 

Maybe this video can help you with that:

 

 

 

Can't help you with the phone thing but keep looking into it, I know you’ll eventually figure it out.

 

Ken

 

 

 

 

[ehgore1978]

Id say Hi and Low pass filtering is a must most of the time and cutting around the 400hz area a few db this will stop a build up of mud.  Straight away Ive noticed a difference in clarity from doing this