PRO Vocal Sound in Just 1 Hour? I Did It and You Can Too!

➡️ FREE VOCAL EQ Frequency Guide

Vocals are typically the most important part of a song, but can be challenging to get right in the mix.

Every vocalist, room, mic, mix, and song are different, so there aren’t very many “set it and forget it” recommendations.

That said, there are a few strategies that can help you get that pro vocal sound, and that’s what I’m sharing with you in today’s video!

Don’t forget to grab your free Vocal EQ Frequency Guide, and if you have additional questions, leave a comment below!

➡️ FREE VOCAL EQ Frequency Guide

Timestamps
0:00 Intro
0:32 Strategy 1: Evaluate the vocal
2:30 Strategy 2: Clean up the vocal
2:40 How to clean up the vocal
7:50 Strategy 3: Enhance the vocal sound
8:15 Adding “air” to the vocal

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Some of the gear and plugins I use in the studio:

STUDIO MONITORS:
HEADPHONES:

VIDEO FILMING GEAR
Video gear shared in this video

[BCEVER]

1. Get rid of the low end


everything below 50hz is going awayyy....mainly rumble noise or unwanted sounds..

2. Focus on 100 to 400hz

this is where the fundamental of the vocal lives so it is a very important band of
frequencies..
it is where we get:
a) Intimacy
b) Warmth
c) proximity effect
but also some mud so you need to be careful when cutting down the region..
this will surely make higher frequencies more present and you will notice
sibilance problems...which is why you should look for that right after.

3. Look for sibilance problems that might be on your vocals

these frequencies are mainly at 4k to 9k depending on if it is a female/male..

NB: WHEN YOU GET S's AND T's THAT ARE OVERWHELMING THAT REGION OF FREQUENCIES
YOU NEED TO TAME THEM DOWN WITH A DEESER OR A DYNAMIC EQ OR DO IT MANUALLY
MR CHRIS SELIM HAS A VIDEO ON HOW YOU CAN MANUALLY DO IT THE LINK OF THE
VIDEO IS ON THE DESCRIPITION SO BE SURE TO CHECK IT OUT..IT IS VERY IMPORTANT
TO TAKE CARE OF THESE PROBLEMS.

4.Look for some tiny problems between 400 and 600hz

This is where we get the boxy sounds if you recorded in a small room.
if indeed there is clean up to do in these frequencies PLEASE BE CAREFUL
because we are dealing with the fullness of the sound at this point.
So if you cut too much it is not going to help your vocal in any way
so BE GENTLE WITH YOUR CUTS BUDDY. A gentle cut can actually do the trick
to remove the boxiness without affecting the fullness off the vocal.

NB: IF YOU END UP WITH AN AGGRESSIVE VOCAL SOUND AT SOME POINT DURING THE SONG.
MAYBE WHEN THE SINGER ON THE LAST CHORUS SINGS HIS/HER HEART OUT AND YOU
END UP WITH MORE ENERGY IN THE UPPPER MID RANGE, THAT CAN CREATE A MORE
AGGRESSIVE TYPE VOCAL A.K.A HARSHNESS. NOW WE TALKING ABOUT 2.5K TO 4K.
THAT CAN BE AN AREA WHERE YOU CAN TAME THAT DOWN TO GET A MORE SMOOTH
VOCAL SOUND AT THAT POINT. USING A REGULAR EQ MIGHT NOT WORK BUT WORKING
A DYNAMIC EQ MIGHT HELP A LOT WHERE YOU CAN ONLY FOCUS ON COMPRESSING
ALL THE UNWANTED AMOUNT OF FREQUNCIES WHEN YOU EXCEED THE AMOUNT OF THE THRESHOLD
IF YOU WANT TO KNOW MORE ON DYNAMIC EQ THE LINK OF THE VIDEO IS ON THE DESCRIPTION.

THE 1K TO 2.5K is a frequency range that is most sensitive to humans because
we know how a vocal should sound like because we meet up with a lot of
people with different voices so trust me we know how it has to sound like.
SO BE CAREFUL WTH THAT REGION MY FRIENDS..DO NOT CUT OR BOOS TO MUCH, SOMETIMES
JUST LEAVE IT. BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY IT DEPENDS ON THE VOCALS..

NB:IF YOU ARE DEALING WITH A NASAL SOUND THIS WHEREBY A VOCAL CAN SOUNDS AS
THOUGH THE SINGER WAS SINGING THROUGH A CLOGGED-UP OR RUNNY NOSE..
IN SINGING THOUGH WE CAN SAY IT A RESULT OF A SOFT PALATE WHICH IS NOT LIFTED
PROPERLY. CHECK WHAT IS HAPPENING BETWEEN 800K AND 1.5K


5. WHEN DONE WITH EVERYTHING CHECK IF YOU NEED TO ENHANCE THE VOCALS SOUND
WITH SOME EQ BOOSTS.

if you need to add some brightness to the vocal you would do so between
5k to 6k. but be careful since it can increase some sibiliance..IT IS ALWAYS
A MATTER OF BALNCE. SOMETIMES YOU CAN ADD AIR TO YOUR VOCALS BETWEEN 16K AND ABOVE
AND FOR THAT A VINTAGE TYPE EQ CAN BE USED WHICH GIVES YOU MORE CHARACTER AND COLOUR
AND WHICH WILL SOUND A BIT MORE MUSICAL COMPARED TO A SURGICAL TYPE EQ

[peterorullian]

I appreciate the strategy. I’d love to have had audio examples of each tactic at the various places to hear what you mean.

[TonyMass]

Ok I subscribed 🙌🏾 Your good bro 😎 I’ll definitely watch you more often

[J_a_k_e]

THANK YOU!!! Going through the frequencies on the EQ is great, really appreciate it!!

[maroangel]

I have the molding method
0. cutting = eq cut, wave splitting(silent, breath, sentence, syllables, esses, harshness)
1. 3 band eq = low/mid/high = balancing
2. 4 band eq = low/low mid/high mid/high = more detail
3. 3 parts of each band
-low = sub/boom/bass
-low mid = body/boxy/muddy
-high mid = as/you/wish
-high = as/you/air
4. resonance
5. repeat until it works perfect

don't do everything at once then everything will be easier.

[projectffo]

Fantastic explanation !! Thank you Chris also for the EQ frequency pdf guide. Cheers

[Bonzvy]

I saw coutless "vocal eq trick" videos but this one is so well explained. thank you!!

[BrofUJu]

Dynamic eq has taken my vocal mixing from meh to amazing. Especially containing low end build up and build up in the 3k region which can start to get harsh.

[siriusfun]

Nicely done, Chris. Depending on the type of EQ(s) used, I like boosts at 200Hz, 800, 1.2/1.5, 5k, 8k and 10-12k (generally a shelf).

[billirwin]

Thanks Chris..
It's helpful to see where your going by making reference to the highlighting parts..in the video.
Also it's a great reminder to sing with a certain level of emotion that suits the song..

[ClydeneBalkeMusic]

Great info!! Thank you for sharing your expertise. The free guide is gold!!

[mystikrebel]

Actually a few days back i was looking for videos from Chris on vocal production as im about to do a few songs so this video is extremely helpful. Thanks Chris for this

[CeeBeMac]

These insights and strategies are immensely helpful, thank you very much!

[LupoDog]

Very useful video, very useful, thank u so much!!

[lloydmiller]

Superb info thanks keep making great content

[regaudieguillaume]

Thank you very much Chris! Ce document est un «keeper» :)

[timmacdonald]

Thanks…..amazing insight! You explained it super well! Took me 51 years of life to know this…..I shoulda listened to this 50 years ago. Lol. This is why I hate isotope because there are no such thing as rules or presets.

But yeah wow you know your stuff and explain it quick and well.

This is awesome ! Boxeness vs fullness is great info.

Mic choice and distance is key from my perspective. I have many mics and many singers and never could I make an eq suggestion or a vocal chain suggestion because every mic and every singer and every genre or song key or whatever changes everything. This guy is good.

Nasal sound is what I am cursed with when people critique my crappy talent. Lol.

Good tips. Enjoyed it!

[NoEasyFeet]

new to the channel. super helpful stuff, man. thanks!!!

[Electricowlworks]

More great ideas! Thanks for sharing your strategies! -chaz

[ingadgets]

Great video, Chris - some very important points in there. And I love your descriptions of those key frequency areas. Thanks!!