Saturday, August 17, 2013

4 Audio Changes To Make The Difference In Home Studio Vocal Recordings

By Frank Lubsey


Sure you can buy beats with superb quality for your hip hop mix but if the vocal recording is bad, your final mix will be a disaster. This is one of the reasons why we need to emphasize the need for great vocal recordings especially in hip hop. Why should you go into a lot of trouble to buy beats that are cool when the quality of the vocals ruins the entire mix? Producing records with flawless quality using cheap equipment in your studio may not be easy but it is possible. To help you out in creating the perfect mix, here are some tips.

Make use of noise gates. When recording tracks in your home studio, you need to keep in mind the fact that background noise will always be present no matter what measures you take to reduce it. You will therefore have to find ways to deal with this noise during recording. Today, you can use software to eliminate background noise from the recording. Noise gates are example programs that help you eliminate this noise. Majority of the recording programs such as the open source software, Audacity come with this tool. Noise gates are used to eliminate background noises during silent periods. However, such noises are still present when the noise gate is switched off and vocal recording continues. This tool is great for elimination of small background noises such as an overhead fan. You should be careful when using noise gates as they can result in the production of unnatural sounding recordings. If the background noise is very loud, intervals might sound too quiet after recording is complete.

Use noise reduction tools. These tools are also featured in majority of the music recording software. Its advisable to use this tool sparingly and only when it's a must. This feature reduces any background noise. It's just like the recording is being recorded under water. For the best results, indicate what noise sounds like. However, this tool works best if the noise is barely audible. Loud noise elimination using this tool can result in poor recording.

Use compression. This is a tool that makes the track louder or quieter without necessarily having to use the volume switch. Like the noise reduction tool, use the compression feature sparingly as excessive use can ruin the whole track. Simply use this tool to select the maximum loudness of the track. After this, adjust volume using the volume controls for sounds that are over the selected volume. This tool regulates track loudness and simultaneously gives over the vocal recording volume. The visual effect created by this tool can be seen as waves. Your goal should be to ensure that the voice recording takes up most part without touching the edges. If the waves touch the sides, the loudness is too high resulting in distortion.

Tweak #4. Know the powers of normalization. This can increase the audio to its peak volume without distorting the sound. This is especially useful when track level is so low that you would not be able to use gain and volume faders for increasing the record's volume and you don't have any choice but to salvage the track. You can also appreciate this tool when you have to set the peak level.

It's best to first decide which tool to use and why it's necessary before using it in your recording. The choice of tools to use depends largely on your recording. Use these tools wisely to ensure that the vocals and beats blend in perfectly.




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