Here are some tips and techniques for treating vocal tracks with EQ while mixing.
Most importantly: Every voice is different, and every song is different. That advice bears remembering, even if you’ve heard it dozens of times. When you find yourself approaching a vocal mix on auto-pilot, applying effects “because they worked last time,” consider disabling the EQ altogether to gauge just how badly the adjustments are needed.
Reasons to EQ: The 3 main reasons to filter a vocal with EQ are
1) to help the voice sit better in the mix,
2) to correct a specific problem, and
3) to create a deliberate effect, like “A.M. radio voice.”
If you’ve EQ’d a vocal track for some other reason, be sure the result is improving the mix.
Gentle boosts: The “cut narrow, boost wide” guideline applies to vocals perhaps more than any instrument. Our ears have evolved remarkable sensitivity to the sound of human speech. (Consider how easily we pick up a single conversation in a crowded noisy room.) So we’re immediately, instinctively aware when a voice has been processed unnaturally.
High-pass: Most vocals – though of course not all – benefit from a low cut filter. The average fundamental frequency in an adult male voice is 125Hz, and often you can roll off up to 180Hz without affecting the sound. (If your mic or preamp has a low-cut filter, consider engaging it when recording vocals, as most subsonic audio in a vocal track consists of mic-stand noise, breath rumble, popping, and other undesirable sounds.)
Bypass: Especially with high-pass filters, it’s easy to remove too much body from a vocal, as our ears adjust so quickly to new sounds when mixing. If your EQ has a bypass option, use it periodically to make sure you haven’t gone too far with an adjustment.
Common fixes:
- To reduce a nasal sound, try dipping a few dB around 1kHz, and moving the center frequency slightly up or down to find the most effective point.
- To treat popping P’s and T’s, cut everything below 80 Hz.
- For a little extra clarity and presence, try gently boosting the “vocal presence range” between 4kHz and 6kHz.
Reasons NOT to EQ: EQ can’t make your voice sound like someone else’s.
See Also: Better vocals improve your recordings, Great free vocal plugins
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Great tips. I’m not a pro sound engineer, so these specific eq tips will be a huge reference point for me in my home recording adventures. It’s amazing how the same vocal source and mic can present different eq and mix challenges from song to song. Again, thanks. This will be a great help!
If the fundamental frequency is 125, why would we roll off up to 180 ?
I’m not clear on this.
(Your blog is awesome, by the way)
Thanks Matt & Todd!
[@Todd] > It’s amazing how the same vocal source and mic can present different eq and mix challenges from song to song.
No question! But then, if it was easy, it wouldn’t be very much fun :-)
[@Matt] > If the fundamental frequency is 125, why would we roll off up to 180 ?
I could have emphasized the words “average” and “often.” As in, the average fundamental frequency is 125Hz, but often you can go all the way up to about 180Hz.
Some voices have more low-frequency energy than others. The key is to recognize that while many male singers never go below 125Hz (roughly low B,) a lot of voices won’t get anywhere near that low. And the more low frequencies you remove from a vocal track, the less that track will interfere with the bass instruments.
Good Post. I often find that my vocal recordings have a very “nasal” sound, and cutting around 1Hz is a good suggestion. Most of the time this can be corrected by changing how I hold my head while singing… making sure my chin/head is level instead of facing down. This also helps to get rid of the “kermit the frog” effect lol.
Always a good idea to bypass the EQ and give it a listen for what is really necessary. I know i’m guilty of going with ‘what always works’ when it may need some tweaks.
Good stuff
Vocal eq can be a mare sometimes, good advice ill be using it!
I would like to add that very dynamic performances, I typically use subtle parametric EQ and more aggressive multi-band EQ to control various words and phrases that have dramatically different frequency responses.
I find the 2-3K area has a way of leaping out on certain words on loud singers and a multi-band is my preferred tool for capturing that.
Brandon
i record fairly fast rapping-based sort of music and i really really need good plugins for de-essing. i’m going to try the spitfish as recommended here. at the moment i have fairly shit mics / ports / leads or maybe only one of those, but either way i have to run at bare minimum a compressor, a de-esser, and noise reduction on every vocal track i record. as i’m pretty short of cash for new equipment i have found some primitive methods such as singing down into the mic have done wonders for getting better raw takes without so much siblance. i find as well subtly tweaking the EQ on small patches of siblance can be helpful too.
Waves deEsser is pretty good
I have tried your hi-pass filter advice and using the bypass button, it definetely makes the vocals sound clear and I also feel it makes it fit in better with the music. I have also tried the filter on other instruments and I have noticed that the mix in general is more clear. Thanks for the interersting above article.
I kind of like a little high-shelf from 5khz and up, by a couple db as well, and a db of 3khz (about one octave width, on the lead singer only), in addition to what Des mentions. Not as a general rule, mind you, just something to try.
The high shelf seems to bring out the “air” a bit, but is dangerous with regard to making the S’s sound louder and such.
I totally agree with using a high pass to lift the vocals up in the mix.
Any advice on how to mix a male and female vocal together? at the moment I’m just going with the Lennon/McCartney slight left to righ pan.
Check my Vocal Microphoneblog just got it up and running.
thank you!!!! You are so right! boost the frequencies specified!!!!!
I find that generally (and only generally) that the rolloff for men is 120 and below, and that for females it is closer to 180.
Also, more often then not, the character and polish of my vocals has everything to do with how I treat the “weightiness” band of 400-800hz. Instead of high end boost (for polish) I seem to get the same effect by dipping this area out to taste.
http://www.littlefishaudio.com
Getting the vocals to sit in the mix right is one of the most important parts to get spot on as it is what generally holds the melody and what most people listen to.
If mixing in different vocals, mix them in mono and cut (boost in extreme moderation if needed) EQ around each one to give them proper separation. By doing it in mono you can hear the separation better as it is coming from one plane. Then pan to suit the mix.
A lot of Lennon and McCartney vocals were recorded together either side of a figure of 8 mic. Their voices naturally suited each other (which was nice).
http://www.carbon-studios.com
Any advice for eq’ing a crappy mic? I have a sm57 which i use to record my vox, which is a great mic for recording guitars, but doesnt seem to do my voice justice. I sound boxy and cant seem to get it to sit right in the mix.
Thanks
this is useful tutorial .how we can find best space for the vocal track between other tracks?
Great blog Definitely going to try this EQ with my vocals…….
@scilf
The boxy sound your hear may not be the sm57. That is a great all around mic. Usual suspect here is the room. Try recording your vocals in a different location. Even simply moving a few feet in any direction can help. Also try hanging some blankets in your recording location if you currently don’t have any treatment and on that note if have a room that is too treated things can sound dead and boxy.
T.
I usually remove everything from 40hz and below. Just to eliminate the room rumble that is found in most homes. I also find giving myself a slight boost around 6khz to brighten up the sound of my voice. It makes it sound much more alive but I’m sure that really depends on the voice.
It need a lot of practice for understand how to really make it.
Def some good advice. I mostly record underground hip hop artists. I find that using the low cut on my MXL 4000 condenser mic can make the more high pitched nasal emcees a little too earsplitting or sharp and I have to compensate later during post. This technique, however is really effective on someone with a more boomy, deep voice. It all depends on the artist and the beat being used. I’m still in the process of learning and threads like these def help us learn techniques that would take years of trial and error otherwise. Thanx
Thanks this is good advice, I often have trouble with vocal EQ, since I record bands playing live all together, and the vocals get pushed back in the mix, very helpfull.
Thanks for all the great tips
Good article and tips. I always think that even if one has experience it’s always good to read new info. There is so much to learn.
I have a question; How do I EQ a lead vocal track (My Voice) by taking the bass out, but not making it sound like a telephone effect? I have been working on this for weeks, and have had no luck. Please help me. Thanks in advance.
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