Right now, a USB microphone included for rock band connected directly to a laptop. Used to record with a Shure mic with a Behringer interface, and will again as soon as possible.
As someome who has recorded in untreated rooms for over a decade, I strongly recommend thick blankets & using old bed frames to hang them on. It can be dangerous if someone bumps into the bed frame lol but other than that you can buy portable clothes hanging racks(itll be bigger though & cost more than taking someone's old bed frame as free junk). The worst offender in most small rooms is the ceiling btw...so many unwanted reflection bounce off it more so than walls(often blocked by shelves etc) or the floor(usually carpeted) in most cases. So yeah you can get a real nice dry recording if you find a way to shield reflections from the ceiling. Next time you see a garage sale, buy all their blankets, wash them at a laundry mat, & store them where they can stay clean & ready for building your "vocal tents". Its kinda fun recording solo in a tent/fort lol.
I been raping on stage for ten years. And recording music for twenty years. I’ve used lots of different things. Best cheap thing I had was egg crates. I sprayed them with a spray on fabric and they worked wonders for the ghetto studio
Funny thing. Once I had to record vocals at somebody's house in an untreated room and I was so surprised when it turned out that these recorded vocals sounded really outstanding. It had some natural reverb, what pretty well suited to the record. So... Sometimes some experiments are good;)
I tend to find it needs natural diffusion, so shelving helps, open any cupboards, doors to other rooms, etc to let the sound out. Lots of things for the sound to bounce on seems to work best in that environment
I had a music stand with the lyrics and a wireless keyboard, the mic, a small lamp and a comforter over my head and equipment to record vocals. I later used a closet and stapled mattress pads over the walls and ceiling and created an amazing dead room.
Great advice as always Warren! My room is treated but in the process of learning about my room, I have found that just like you said, using any combination of blankets cushions or anything of the like is often times significantly more effective than low or even mid tier acoustic treatment. You can have some pretty crazy looking home recording set ups that actually sound great in the end. If it works, it works!
made a whole load of mixes that have done really well with the bedsheets and wardrobe combo. our pop shield started as a pair of tights on a coathanger. iv now played at every major rave in the uk and done gigs abroad. seriously underrated not about your kit, it’s about the will to succeed 😎
Use a good dynamic instead of a condenser. Record in the closet with your back against the clothes. Those two things will get it done. FYI Deftones white pony album was an SM58 in the live room using speakers not headphones. So using the right mic is very important. I like my RE20 the best. If your recording live band in the same room. Youll have bleed on everything so mic the room as well if youre doing everything live 8n the room. Dont use a condenser. Nothing wrong with a dynamic for vocals. Its totally fine a lot of people really like an SM7 its also a good choice. I like the RE20 best though. Good question!
Yeah....this. I've gone back to using a 58, until I get my room sorted. I know it's missing some nuances, but it misses a lot of the reflected garbage as well!
It’s amazing what can knock down sound. We had a room with a bookcase in it, and we moved the bookcase out and suddenly the room sounded like a concrete box.
@@Producelikeapro I love it. I use a TLM 103 and sing very close with a TOTALLY dry signal. It's such a clean approach I hear my voice without anything to hide behind. It gives me very responsive takes.. makes me a very honest technically conscious singer. Lots of takes man... lots of takes ...
All reflection filters are NOT created equal. Get the SE “space” filter. It’s amazing and doesn’t add too much woof to the vocals. Most important place to treat is always the sound coming from the vocalists mouth. Which is the energy that will make reverberation. That’s why the shields work. Your face and head will diffuse and absorb some the opposite direction. Cardioid hears only close to the mic anyhow not 20 ft away. Hence, cardioid. So no worries there. The shields are wonderful. Any engineer that doesn’t understand why, simply doesn’t understand why. They’re great.
I made a very affordable vocal booth with blankets and pillows and plywood from my local hardware store and it’s amazing! Would love to share! I also added some lights and a laser show on the ceiling 🎉
AT4050 LDC (set cardioid, no pad); Black Lion B173 or UAD 4-710d; into Presonus StudioLive Pro (full, recent); (following plugins are always approximate): Presonus’ own in-box parametric EQ as a “problem solver” (if needed); a multiband dynamic EQ just to tame errant “freq-peaks”; 2 comps, one high-ratio, high-threshold, one low-ratio, low-threshold; then a nice EQ like a Manley Massive Passive to sweeten it up. Other effects depend on the track. Sounds excessive in theory, but sounds great in the mix. None of these are used very heavily, if possible.
To be honest, I have a lot of shelves full of weird decor and stuff around, but no room treatment at all... I just use primarily dynamic mics. I do mostly rock, punk, blues, etc. so I don't know if it would work as well for a pop vocal, but I've still yet to get a studio vocal recording that I actually liked as well as the recordings I get in my untreated living room/studio.
The bottom line is how we define ‘treated’. My studio which created the biggest albums I’ve done was completely hap hazard! Whatever works! Spending money isn’t the only definition of ‘treated’
@@Producelikeapro True that! If it breaks up the reflections and dodges any frustrating issues, I suppose that's more or less functionally "treated". All that matters is the recording you get out of it, really.
Yep... Blankets. Throw blankets. Even towels can work. I've even used styrofoam & that plastic-y type "foam" sometimes used for packing packages for shipping when I've had enough of it lying around. There are quite a few things that, while they might not be pretty, can work. Improvise & experiment
Is there a website where learning engineers can try a mix on various consoles just learning purposes and maybe building a mix template for live events ?
I did one thing that actually worked great: I have this armoir filled with sheets and towels all folded. The person recording would be facing the open armoir. I have The fortune of having single size mattresses!! One mattress on each side as walls, and finally a few blankets on top for the "ceiling". Dry AF!!!
I turned a big box on its side and stuffed two sleeping bags in it. Then I made a cave and stuck a mic in the back. I twisted it around until I found a dead spot, and there it was. They were cheap sleeping bags, if that counts for anything. I have had good luck with closets, too. (:
Also, if you REALLY want to or have to record vocals, maybe think of spending some money on buying or (even more economically) making yourself some acoustic panels, and read about where to hang them around your room, and look into using dynamic mics - having a dreadfully slap echo refelctive untreated roon but buying an expensive studio condenser mic and preamps etc because you think you have to or it looks cool is absurd. 🤷🏼♂️
I’ve been using an sm7b into an 18i20 and using UAs new native plug ins it’s been playing in an untreated room but I want to expirement more. I grabbed some warm audio preamps and want to get a better mic something brighter but the room treatment is holding me back
This may sound stupid but I recorded without any acoustic treatment in my room. I put a lot of work into this and I don’t know if any room killer plugins exist or I need to re-record it.
It’s not rocket science guys …okay well maybe it is but the more furniture 🪑 you have in your room the better. I have foam mattress pads in the corner where my mic is. Then I have a bed loft close to that corner with a blanket on the end that creates a kind of booth like space. Then across from that corner I have a green screen on one wall, huge curtain drapes on one wall and a book shelf and a huge shoe rack on another wall so it’s virtually impossible for sound to bounce around and I get professional studio recordings on both my AKG 214 and Shure SM7B🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
I'm surprised you didn't say use a sm57 or sm7b they are not picking up as much of the room. Since i got my sm7b i record wherever whenever and usually i get pleasant result, but maybe that's just me!
I never use booths or anything close to one. I record vocals in a treated room right smack in the middle making sure to cover any glass or smooth reflective surfaces and take advantage of the whatever natural air and reverb there happens to be. It always comes out better than getting a signal in a dead space and having to add too much reverb in later.
Sound treatment for recording is overrated. Unless you're in an echo chamber, your mic won't even pick up the reverberation of the room. A rug and some drapes is more than enough
why do you never talk about using dynamic mics? best way to start is a cheap interface and second hand dynamic mic. no need for acoustic treatment, still great quality. plenty of pros that record with an sm58, even for studio recordings
@@Producelikeapromy bad, haven't seen all your shorts I suppose but I saw this one and another one a while ago about a starter mic where it wasn't mentioned. wasn't trying to be negative, just feedback as it would be my first answer on these kinds of starter questions without a second thought. but saying "never" was defo wrong choice of words, thanks for everything that u do!!
When I listen to modern songs on the car radio for some reason I can almost tell they are in an enclosed space or vocal booth. I don't know if its the car sound environment but maybe too much dampening in the vocal booth makes it dry
Love that he actually teaches rather than just show off and say to spend a bunch on equipment. He has taken my mixes to another level. Thank you seriously.
@@Producelikeapro lots of good advice, especially to start with the least destructive (expensive) options and then gradually upgrade 😂 after seeing what it’s like with the blankets
@@marquisedreams8812 Short answer: No, not really. Long Answer: Almost nothing for that cheap will be worth keeping or deliver a decent sound imo. Save up a few hundred more and get a Blue Baby Bottle SL or, if your dead set on a dynamic and don't have a treated space get an SM7B. Theoretically you _could_ use a Shure SM57 and it is a great utility mic, but it has a very specific sound, big dips and peaks in it's response, and doesn't have much high or low end and so you end up with a sort of harsh, nasal, midrange quality that doesn't sound good on most vocals most of the time imo.
More important than any of that... get close to the mic! Every time you half the distance to the mic you will get 4:1 (6dB) reduction in room reflections.
@@Davo198 for years I used the blue shipping blankets from Walmart. Here lately I have been using some black and orange ones I found on Amazon. It’s really inexpensive temporary/modular solution. And don’t let the cheapness scare you away. It’s super affective. Also I really only converted to the black and orange ones for the looks. I wouldn’t make any claims that one is better than the other.
I once stacked boxes and covered those with blankets, and had the singer's back to that, and placed the null of the mic into the room. It came out great. Also, I mix in my "office" room that has a wall to wall bookshelf lined with books. That works well, too.
@@Producelikeapro it's my pleasure and I really do mean what I wrote above! I have been following your channel for some years and every time I see a new one I only can confirm what I wrot above. Thumbs up from Milan - Italy.
I second that. Love Warren's selflessness in these gold nuggets of advice, he could easily push whatever products or tell people to book time in a studio, instead his straightforward and considerate tips make one feel encouraged and inspired to get to work and make music, which is all that matters. Thank you, Warren!
The 'surround blanket' trick is an oldie but a goldie. It works very, very well today. Costs nothing (appart from a few blankets/towels/duvets) and gives you a near pro-level result. Would be good if Warren could maybe do a little piece on this technique in the future, and how to transform the vocal capture into a great end result (reverb etc).
I agree, except you left out the cost of 'hanging' blankets in a room. Most folks won't just nail the top edge to the wall or ceiling. A budget-friendly boom stand 'may' work, depending on blanket weight, but in my experience it doesn't.
Waves NS1 is perfect for an untreated room. It gates any un wanted noise, reflection, or room noise. You just have to find a balance and have a good pre amp/emulator to make up for gain. But my chain right now = Preamp>NS1
purely untreated (as in, zero hope of treating it and you need the product RIGHT NOW) > record in your closet, or put a thick blanket over your head. Don’t move and don’t fuss about the heat Some effort > a carpet goes a long way, and hang up dense blankets in the room.
Brilliant Question. Just what we all need as Home Producers. Even doubts and concerns arise imagined or real I has cross vertical ceiling beams. I will work out a "Curtain System" Whats your view on the opposite approach like Crowded House did an album in a Victorian House using Floor boards big ceilings and the Bathroom. Tim Finn talked about it so..Im asking Insulate to Dead or use a Bathroom. And dont be in the Middle. And Nothing inbetween?
We did this very thing just two weeks ago. Mic boom stands and some packing blankets to make a make-shift vocal booth. We even hung some white Christmas lights in there for some ambience. It actually worked much better than I anticipated. I'm very pleased with how our first vocal session turned out.
Great, practical advice from Warren here. Do whatever works to control the echoes bouncing around. Also, you could try an isocube. Not used one in a completely untreated room, but it works great in mine. Also Sonible smart:EQ will help clean up a vocal recorded in a not ideal room.
just sit in the middle of the room with a towel over your head , make sure to cut out the clipping before you start your recording don't bump the mic, but sometimes a little verb is good, you always fix an audio clip even if its reverby, bathroom is reverby if that's what you like, a good size living room or room with carpet should be fine
I honestly don’t get it. Jimmy Page wanted to capture “the air” between the mic and the instruments or Plant. Let’s have no room sound…. Then add a plugin later with a room sound. Then you add ten layered vocals, drench them all in effects and ketchup - I just don’t see how it matters. Am I nuts? 😅 👂 💩?! I’ve been recording for years and never treated anything. No one complained about the room. They just complained about my singing.
idk what the obsession is with having the driest vocal possible. i always put up room mics no natter what room it is and it sounds a lot more natural. you dont listen to someone speaking to you with your ear right up to their mouth. you hear their voice and you hear the sound of that voice in the room. so why would we record vocals in such an unnatural way
What is your vocal recording chain?
Warm Audio 47jr > JBL/UREi 7510a > Klark Teknik eqp > Black Lion seventeen
Shure SM7B or AKG 214 to my Scarlet 2i2 to Studio One Professional🙂👍
Neumann U87 Ai, Neumann TLM102 or Røde NTK through an RME UFX.
Right now, a USB microphone included for rock band connected directly to a laptop. Used to record with a Shure mic with a Behringer interface, and will again as soon as possible.
SM7b or U67 -> BAE 1073 -> LA2A -> 1176LN -> Apogee -> ProTools
As someome who has recorded in untreated rooms for over a decade, I strongly recommend thick blankets & using old bed frames to hang them on. It can be dangerous if someone bumps into the bed frame lol but other than that you can buy portable clothes hanging racks(itll be bigger though & cost more than taking someone's old bed frame as free junk).
The worst offender in most small rooms is the ceiling btw...so many unwanted reflection bounce off it more so than walls(often blocked by shelves etc) or the floor(usually carpeted) in most cases. So yeah you can get a real nice dry recording if you find a way to shield reflections from the ceiling.
Next time you see a garage sale, buy all their blankets, wash them at a laundry mat, & store them where they can stay clean & ready for building your "vocal tents". Its kinda fun recording solo in a tent/fort lol.
A rapper did that round the corner
I been raping on stage for ten years. And recording music for twenty years. I’ve used lots of different things. Best cheap thing I had was egg crates. I sprayed them with a spray on fabric and they worked wonders for the ghetto studio
@@purplerider2362you might wanna add an extra p there buddy
Thank you
@@bf4lvr no it’s correct. I’m notorious for raping on stage. And I’m front of millions
I used to take a thick blanket, spread my arms and sing like a Halloween Phantom in my stupid concrete squary little room
Hell yeah
That's the spirit.
😆
Lmao I love that
Excellent tips Warren! I used to use my walk-in closet for guitar cabs and vocals. Worked great! Cheers! 👍🏻
Thanks ever so much
You’re the man Warren I love these little clips
Thanks ever so much!
My ex-girl friend grew up in Tehachapi, CA with Dwight Yokum. she said that he and his band packed a garage full of old mattresses to sound proof.
Lots of good advice in these short clips. Thanks.
Glad it was helpful! Thanks!
Funny thing. Once I had to record vocals at somebody's house in an untreated room and I was so surprised when it turned out that these recorded vocals sounded really outstanding. It had some natural reverb, what pretty well suited to the record. So... Sometimes some experiments are good;)
you didnt mention any details of what they used
exactly. i think untreated rooms sound better.
Billie Eilish.
I tend to find it needs natural diffusion, so shelving helps, open any cupboards, doors to other rooms, etc to let the sound out. Lots of things for the sound to bounce on seems to work best in that environment
I had a music stand with the lyrics and a wireless keyboard, the mic, a small lamp and a comforter over my head and equipment to record vocals. I later used a closet and stapled mattress pads over the walls and ceiling and created an amazing dead room.
Wardrobe!
Haha indeed
A friend of mine used her long closet to record some vocals and they turned out really well! Plus you could check out all her clothes while singing.😅
“Greg why does it sound like your sniffing something in the recordings?”
Thank you very much. You spend a lot of time explaining a lot of recording techniques and giving monitor reviews / comparisons. Very much appreciated.
Great advice as always Warren! My room is treated but in the process of learning about my room, I have found that just like you said, using any combination of blankets cushions or anything of the like is often times significantly more effective than low or even mid tier acoustic treatment. You can have some pretty crazy looking home recording set ups that actually sound great in the end. If it works, it works!
made a whole load of mixes that have done really well with the bedsheets and wardrobe combo. our pop shield started as a pair of tights on a coathanger.
iv now played at every major rave in the uk and done gigs abroad.
seriously underrated
not about your kit, it’s about the will to succeed 😎
Use a good dynamic instead of a condenser. Record in the closet with your back against the clothes. Those two things will get it done. FYI Deftones white pony album was an SM58 in the live room using speakers not headphones. So using the right mic is very important. I like my RE20 the best. If your recording live band in the same room. Youll have bleed on everything so mic the room as well if youre doing everything live 8n the room. Dont use a condenser. Nothing wrong with a dynamic for vocals. Its totally fine a lot of people really like an SM7 its also a good choice. I like the RE20 best though. Good question!
Yeah....this. I've gone back to using a 58, until I get my room sorted. I know it's missing some nuances, but it misses a lot of the reflected garbage as well!
Personally I don't have a walk-in closet or wfen a closet I could fit into.
@@crazymelomanka Use what you got.
It’s amazing what can knock down sound. We had a room with a bookcase in it, and we moved the bookcase out and suddenly the room sounded like a concrete box.
Bookshelfs are not only fantastic absorbers, but also great diffusers, if some places are left empty etc.
I've been throwing a robe over my head
Haha how does it work for you?
@@Producelikeapro I love it. I use a TLM 103 and sing very close with a TOTALLY dry signal. It's such a clean approach I hear my voice without anything to hide behind. It gives me very responsive takes.. makes me a very honest technically conscious singer. Lots of takes man... lots of takes ...
Use a dynamic mic in the centre of the room. That's is other advice I've heard that seems to work well.
All reflection filters are NOT created equal. Get the SE “space” filter. It’s amazing and doesn’t add too much woof to the vocals. Most important place to treat is always the sound coming from the vocalists mouth. Which is the energy that will make reverberation. That’s why the shields work. Your face and head will diffuse and absorb some the opposite direction. Cardioid hears only close to the mic anyhow not 20 ft away. Hence, cardioid. So no worries there. The shields are wonderful. Any engineer that doesn’t understand why, simply doesn’t understand why. They’re great.
I made a very affordable vocal booth with blankets and pillows and plywood from my local hardware store and it’s amazing! Would love to share! I also added some lights and a laser show on the ceiling 🎉
AT4050 LDC (set cardioid, no pad); Black Lion B173 or UAD 4-710d; into Presonus StudioLive Pro (full, recent); (following plugins are always approximate): Presonus’ own in-box parametric EQ as a “problem solver” (if needed); a multiband dynamic EQ just to tame errant “freq-peaks”; 2 comps, one high-ratio, high-threshold, one low-ratio, low-threshold; then a nice EQ like a Manley Massive Passive to sweeten it up. Other effects depend on the track. Sounds excessive in theory, but sounds great in the mix. None of these are used very heavily, if possible.
I just book out my community hall when it matters. Untreated but amazing large room sound. Booths sound boxy because they are boxes😅
I used the blankets on instinct. It does work well
Thanks for sharing!
Yup, ..and use a dynamic microphone to pick up less room sound/reflextion, instead of a very sensitive condenser mic.
Awesome Tip
Thanks ever so much
Instructions not clear - ended up looking for a couch on Thomann webshop
Waves dereverb seems pretty good in hotel rooms he he
Thanks for sharing!
To be honest, I have a lot of shelves full of weird decor and stuff around, but no room treatment at all... I just use primarily dynamic mics. I do mostly rock, punk, blues, etc. so I don't know if it would work as well for a pop vocal, but I've still yet to get a studio vocal recording that I actually liked as well as the recordings I get in my untreated living room/studio.
The bottom line is how we define ‘treated’. My studio which created the biggest albums I’ve done was completely hap hazard! Whatever works! Spending money isn’t the only definition of ‘treated’
@@Producelikeapro True that! If it breaks up the reflections and dodges any frustrating issues, I suppose that's more or less functionally "treated". All that matters is the recording you get out of it, really.
Yep... Blankets. Throw blankets. Even towels can work. I've even used styrofoam & that plastic-y type "foam" sometimes used for packing packages for shipping when I've had enough of it lying around.
There are quite a few things that, while they might not be pretty, can work. Improvise & experiment
Is there a website where learning engineers can try a mix on various consoles just learning purposes and maybe building a mix template for live events ?
💯💯💯💯
thank you sir!
Thanks ever so much
Can we do this for drums? And correct chain before sending to the drum bus?
What about the Waves plugin that will remove the reverb in the room.
I did one thing that actually worked great:
I have this armoir filled with sheets and towels all folded. The person recording would be facing the open armoir. I have The fortune of having single size mattresses!! One mattress on each side as walls, and finally a few blankets on top for the "ceiling". Dry AF!!!
Upside down table, thick blanket, million dollars studio
I've recently discovered my refrigerator has great "room tone" for recording male vocals - unfortunately it's too noisy...
Fenna try using a couch
U87ai into A-Designs Pacifica; in the middle of a very big room, early reflections are not that early - for me it works well...
Thanks ever so much for sharing Tom!
I turned a big box on its side and stuffed two sleeping bags in it. Then I made a cave and stuck a mic in the back. I twisted it around until I found a dead spot, and there it was.
They were cheap sleeping bags, if that counts for anything.
I have had good luck with closets, too.
(:
kaotica eyeball!
Also, if you REALLY want to or have to record vocals, maybe think of spending some money on buying or (even more economically) making yourself some acoustic panels, and read about where to hang them around your room, and look into using dynamic mics - having a dreadfully slap echo refelctive untreated roon but buying an expensive studio condenser mic and preamps etc because you think you have to or it looks cool is absurd.
🤷🏼♂️
For starters we can use good dynamic microphones instead of using a condenser one for an untreated room.
True! The tighter the cardioid pattern the better!
I’ve been using an sm7b into an 18i20 and using UAs new native plug ins it’s been playing in an untreated room but I want to expirement more. I grabbed some warm audio preamps and want to get a better mic something brighter but the room treatment is holding me back
This may sound stupid but I recorded without any acoustic treatment in my room. I put a lot of work into this and I don’t know if any room killer plugins exist or I need to re-record it.
It’s not rocket science guys …okay well maybe it is but the more furniture 🪑 you have in your room the better. I have foam mattress pads in the corner where my mic is. Then I have a bed loft close to that corner with a blanket on the end that creates a kind of booth like space. Then across from that corner I have a green screen on one wall, huge curtain drapes on one wall and a book shelf and a huge shoe rack on another wall so it’s virtually impossible for sound to bounce around and I get professional studio recordings on both my AKG 214 and Shure SM7B🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
Waves clarity Vx first and Deverb the second is the solution😊😊😊😊😊
I'm surprised you didn't say use a sm57 or sm7b they are not picking up as much of the room. Since i got my sm7b i record wherever whenever and usually i get pleasant result, but maybe that's just me!
Use dynamic mics instead of condenser mics.
I never use booths or anything close to one. I record vocals in a treated room right smack in the middle making sure to cover any glass or smooth reflective surfaces and take advantage of the whatever natural air and reverb there happens to be. It always comes out better than getting a signal in a dead space and having to add too much reverb in later.
Depends what your going for
Bed Duvets with three Mike stands in a triangle shape ,
The way I do it and the cheapest way
Just use a 58 simples
Sound treatment for recording is overrated. Unless you're in an echo chamber, your mic won't even pick up the reverberation of the room.
A rug and some drapes is more than enough
why do you never talk about using dynamic mics? best way to start is a cheap interface and second hand dynamic mic. no need for acoustic treatment, still great quality. plenty of pros that record with an sm58, even for studio recordings
I mention an SM57, SM7 and 58 multiple times a day and in multiple videos.
@@Producelikeapromy bad, haven't seen all your shorts I suppose but I saw this one and another one a while ago about a starter mic where it wasn't mentioned. wasn't trying to be negative, just feedback as it would be my first answer on these kinds of starter questions without a second thought. but saying "never" was defo wrong choice of words, thanks for everything that u do!!
why not pull a blanket over your head
When I listen to modern songs on the car radio for some reason I can almost tell they are in an enclosed space or vocal booth. I don't know if its the car sound environment but maybe too much dampening in the vocal booth makes it dry
Love that he actually teaches rather than just show off and say to spend a bunch on equipment. He has taken my mixes to another level. Thank you seriously.
Thanks ever so much for your wonderful comment
@@Producelikeapro lots of good advice, especially to start with the least destructive (expensive) options and then gradually upgrade 😂 after seeing what it’s like with the blankets
You could use a Shure SM7B too, those things pick up hardly any room reflections and sound pretty darn good a lot of the time
Thanks for sharing!
What about kms 105 Neumann?
@@SingerNeoStar It's a condenser and more sensitive so it will pick up more room reflection than a dynamic, but a bit less than a large diaphram.
@@OdinOfficialEmceeany dynamic you recommend for 100 dollars that’s good for recording vocals?
@@marquisedreams8812 Short answer: No, not really. Long Answer: Almost nothing for that cheap will be worth keeping or deliver a decent sound imo. Save up a few hundred more and get a Blue Baby Bottle SL or, if your dead set on a dynamic and don't have a treated space get an SM7B. Theoretically you _could_ use a Shure SM57 and it is a great utility mic, but it has a very specific sound, big dips and peaks in it's response, and doesn't have much high or low end and so you end up with a sort of harsh, nasal, midrange quality that doesn't sound good on most vocals most of the time imo.
More important than any of that... get close to the mic! Every time you half the distance to the mic you will get 4:1 (6dB) reduction in room reflections.
Saw an episode of MTV Cribs, Lil John had mattresses up, to make a booth.
Boom stands and shipping blankets make great modular vocal booths. Done it a hundred times.
Which particular blankets do you recommend?
@@Davo198 for years I used the blue shipping blankets from Walmart. Here lately I have been using some black and orange ones I found on Amazon. It’s really inexpensive temporary/modular solution. And don’t let the cheapness scare you away. It’s super affective. Also I really only converted to the black and orange ones for the looks. I wouldn’t make any claims that one is better than the other.
I once stacked boxes and covered those with blankets, and had the singer's back to that, and placed the null of the mic into the room. It came out great.
Also, I mix in my "office" room that has a wall to wall bookshelf lined with books. That works well, too.
Also, use a dynamic mic, like an SM7b, rather than a condenser.
I’m guilty of using the couch method many times! Also found a lot of things in the couch I thought lost!
What I also appreciate, a part from your competence, is your honesty! Thank you very much.
Thanks ever so much
@@Producelikeapro it's my pleasure and I really do mean what I wrote above!
I have been following your channel for some years and every time I see a new one I only can confirm what I wrot above. Thumbs up from Milan - Italy.
I second that. Love Warren's selflessness in these gold nuggets of advice, he could easily push whatever products or tell people to book time in a studio, instead his straightforward and considerate tips make one feel encouraged and inspired to get to work and make music, which is all that matters. Thank you, Warren!
Don't do shields they make horrible comb filtering
Wise man! I have been doing that since 1975!
Or purposefully make the room more echoey for that classic reverb 🤣
In a pinch you can just stand in your closet. The hanging clothes make it pretty dry.
Closet!!! with all or most of the clothes still in it! Super cheap and super easy solution. Very, very dead sounding.
A 57!
The 'surround blanket' trick is an oldie but a goldie. It works very, very well today. Costs nothing (appart from a few blankets/towels/duvets) and gives you a near pro-level result.
Would be good if Warren could maybe do a little piece on this technique in the future, and how to transform the vocal capture into a great end result (reverb etc).
I agree, except you left out the cost of 'hanging' blankets in a room. Most folks won't just nail the top edge to the wall or ceiling. A budget-friendly boom stand 'may' work, depending on blanket weight, but in my experience it doesn't.
Waves NS1 is perfect for an untreated room. It gates any un wanted noise, reflection, or room noise. You just have to find a balance and have a good pre amp/emulator to make up for gain. But my chain right now = Preamp>NS1
purely untreated (as in, zero hope of treating it and you need the product RIGHT NOW) > record in your closet, or put a thick blanket over your head. Don’t move and don’t fuss about the heat
Some effort > a carpet goes a long way, and hang up dense blankets in the room.
Use a closet with clothes. A walk in closet is better. Costs you nothing if you already have it.🤔
A good o pillow does the job for me in untreated rooms
My friend always uses a sm7b, works really well.
Get a massive lampshade and deck it out with pillow fluff
I’m doing the blanket thing. I have about two hanging up like curtains in my room.
Closet, 😊
Thanks ever so much for sharing
Brilliant Question.
Just what we all need as Home Producers.
Even doubts and concerns arise imagined or real
I has cross vertical ceiling beams.
I will work out a "Curtain System"
Whats your view on the opposite approach like Crowded House did an album in a Victorian House using Floor boards big ceilings and the Bathroom.
Tim Finn talked about it so..Im asking Insulate to Dead or use a Bathroom.
And dont be in the Middle.
And Nothing inbetween?
We did this very thing just two weeks ago. Mic boom stands and some packing blankets to make a make-shift vocal booth. We even hung some white Christmas lights in there for some ambience. It actually worked much better than I anticipated. I'm very pleased with how our first vocal session turned out.
Great, practical advice from Warren here. Do whatever works to control the echoes bouncing around. Also, you could try an isocube. Not used one in a completely untreated room, but it works great in mine. Also Sonible smart:EQ will help clean up a vocal recorded in a not ideal room.
Heavy blankets and bookcases for absorption and diffusion. Or, don't use a condenser mic at all, use a dynamic mic instead - sm7b
just sit in the middle of the room with a towel over your head , make sure to cut out the clipping before you start your recording don't bump the mic, but sometimes a little verb is good, you always fix an audio clip even if its reverby, bathroom is reverby if that's what you like, a good size living room or room with carpet should be fine
Don’t use the Kaotica eyeball at least for me and my room - it colored the sound wayyyy too much!
Or swt up your mic in your wardrobe;)
I honestly don’t get it. Jimmy Page wanted to capture “the air” between the mic and the instruments or Plant. Let’s have no room sound…. Then add a plugin later with a room sound. Then you add ten layered vocals, drench them all in effects and ketchup - I just don’t see how it matters. Am I nuts? 😅 👂 💩?! I’ve been recording for years and never treated anything. No one complained about the room. They just complained about my singing.
It’s not about zero ambience, it’s about not having too much so it’s not unusable
idk what the obsession is with having the driest vocal possible. i always put up room mics no natter what room it is and it sounds a lot more natural. you dont listen to someone speaking to you with your ear right up to their mouth. you hear their voice and you hear the sound of that voice in the room. so why would we record vocals in such an unnatural way
Certainly no obsession, just getting a decent balanced sound that you can control in the final mix.
It's funny people take out all the reverb with a soundproof booth only to add it back later with a plugin
Best to be able control the amount and the type of reverb delay etc in mixing
Of course live performances can benefit from bleed if appropriate
A small room that is acoustically treated is really the way to do it for vocals. Closets don't work, and big rooms will give you problems too.
Best advice I ever got on this topic is record in your closet. The clothes hanging up are an excellent sound absorbing barrier
Blankets, towels and carpets. The thicker the better. Just like as we were kids building pillow castles. 😂