Recording vocals can be an incredibly fun and rewarding experience. However, in order to get the best possible vocal recordings at home, there are a few factors you need to consider.
Let’s take a look at the most essential things you need to look at when recording your vocals at home.
1. What Type of Microphone Are You Using?
Microphone choice is going to be very important when recording your vocals. There are a wide variety of microphones around, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. It’s worth covering the basic points when looking for your ideal vocal mic.
If you’re completely new to recording vocals and just want a quick and easy experience, you’re best suited to using a USB microphone, such as the Blue Yeti. USB mics offer a great mix of recording quality and convenience. They are incredibly easy to set up and require minimal technical ability to use—you simply plug the mic straight into your computer’s USB port and start recording.
A downside to using USB mics, however, is that you’d be sacrificing sound quality when compared to XLR microphones. If you’re looking for excellent vocal quality, then you should be choosing from the latter.
XLR microphones, on average, cost more than USB mics and will require an audio interface—for example, Focusrite’s Scarlett 2i2—to connect to your computer. But, the end result is vastly superior.
There are two main types of XLR microphones you’ll need to consider for recording different kinds of vocals: condenser and dynamic microphones. For musical performances, large-diaphragm condenser mics, such as the Aston Origin or the RØDE NT1-A, are the standard for recording studio vocals and can also lend themselves to recording instruments such as acoustic guitar.
The examples mentioned above are of cardioid condenser microphones, which pick up sounds in front of them and slightly to the sides, whilst rejecting noises coming from behind them—perfect for picking up clear vocals.
On the other hand, if you’re looking to record more aggressive vocals or vocals for a spoken setting, such as for a podcast or broadcast, you might be suited to a dynamic microphone such as the Shure SM7B.
There isn’t one perfect microphone for everyone, which is why it’s well worth your time to research what kind of microphone you’ll need for your vocals, factoring in your purpose, budget, and technical ability.
2. Consider Microphone Position
Alongside getting your microphone, where you place it is instrumental in recording your ideal vocals.
As with what kind of mic to get, there isn’t a “one position fits all” when it comes to where to put your mic. You should experiment with different distances until you find the sweet spot for recording your vocals; monitoring your vocals as you find the right position is a great way to aid this.
Looking at the two types of microphones mentioned in the previous point (condenser and dynamic), here are some general pointers. As a note, the majority of USB microphones are condenser mics, though a few can be dynamic mics, such as the Audio-Technica AT2005USB.
Condenser microphones are a lot more sensitive than their dynamic counterparts, meaning it’ll be easier for you to pick up more detail and nuance in your performance. Because of this, your distance from the microphone is going to affect the tone and character of your vocal.
Generally speaking, you should keep somewhere between six to 12 inches away from your condenser mic. Singing closer to condenser mic is going to create an intimate and warm-sounding vocal, whereas singing further back is going to pick up the character of the room, as well as increase things like natural reverb.
To keep a consistent sound in your recording, you shouldn’t try to vary your distance while singing, especially if your starting position is close to your mic. On the other hand, dynamic microphones are much less sensitive. You should be aiming to be a lot closer to your dynamic microphone than you would a condenser microphone.
Experimenting with microphone placement is key—everyone has different preferences when recording, and it’s best to find the distance that works for you.
3. Invest in a Pop Shield
It can be heartbreaking to record a perfect performance, only to listen back to it and hear a “popping” noise at various points, often when you’re singing or speaking a plosive (namely anything starting with a “p” or “b”), or breathing out sharply (such as when singing falsetto).
That’s why you should always record your vocals with a pop shield (pictured above) between your mouth and your microphone. These circular frames fitted with layers of stretchy fabric vastly reduce or even eliminate these “popping” sounds.
Even if your mic comes with a built-in pop filter, you should always have a pop shield as part of your vocal recording setup. If you don’t have one, try the Aokeo Professional Pop Filter.
4. Isolate Your Vocals
In order to get the friendliest vocal recording to mix, you’re going to have to make sure your vocals are well isolated. You’re essentially trying to create an environment that drowns out any excess noise from other rooms, as well as making sure that the room you’re recording in removes any acoustic artifacts.
When recording at home, a good step you can take to acoustically treat your room would be to invest in acoustic foam panels to fit on the walls. You can also try covering up your windows with sound absorbers, such as curtains or blankets/duvets.
In addition to treating your room, you can focus on isolating your vocals using a reflection filter. Though not a substitute for acoustically-treating your room, reflection filters can help isolate your vocals, especially if you’re using an omnidirectional microphone (i.e., a mic that picks up noise from all directions).
Effectively isolating your vocals is going to be key in producing a clean, focused, and mix-friendly vocal recording.
5. Make Sure You’re Feeling Comfortable
One of the most important factors to recording effectively at home is making sure that you’re comfortable, warmed up, and ready to record. It can be easy to overlook when you just want to start recording, but checking that you’ve got the right mic, setting it up in the right position, and then performing a sound check can help you have a successful session.
Sometimes, setting everything up by yourself, especially if you’re new to all this, can feel like you’ve set up a house of cards that, at any point, could fall down—perhaps even mid-recording.
Trust yourself; you’ve taken the time and effort to make things right. The last, most important step is to make sure that you’re mentally and physically ready to deliver an outstanding vocal performance.
Make Your Vocals Part of a Bigger Project
Now that you know how to get high-quality, clean-sounding vocal tracks, it’s worth diving right in and getting as much experience as you can. The more you focus on each of these points, the better a vocal track you’ll produce.
As you start to feel comfortable recording your vocals at home, why not incorporate them into a larger project, either solo or as a collaboration?