Chain Of Fools
You’re going to have a hard time judging signal chain if they’re not singing with a proper performance. Which you’re not going to get in the desert. The headphones need to be more like an oasis. Without the rambling arguments from Noel and Liam.
Priority 1 is getting them set up. Then tweak or swap. You can change mics and do the things you normally do, but try to be discrete here, people. Vocalists tend to want monogamous relationships with mics.
Don’t rush through the process! Time is best spent upfront of the tracking. Everyone will be happier and the performance will be more loose. Also, check in from time to time to see what they’re hearing.
The Setup
Here’s a setup I use in Logic:
1) Create a track and set the input for the vocal mic
2) Create two mono Aux Channel Strips
3) Set the output of the vocal track to a bus you’re not using (for me right now it’s Bus 2)
4) Set the input for the Aux Channels to Bus 2
5) Set the Output of each channel to different outputs. One output goes to your studio monitors. The other output goes to your monitor sub-mix station
6) Label Aux Channel 1 Vox Cntl (for control room)
7) Label Aux Channel 2 Vocal Mix
Now you can adjust your own mix on each bus. They’re independent. Always make sure to leave the signal alone on the Vocal track itself. You don’t want to mess with signals downstream. Subtle changes in monitor mixes don’t inspire performers. It frustrates them.
Q+A
What if you don’t have a fancy headphone monitor box for a separate mix? Well, you’re screwed!! Ha-ha. Not really. It’s going to be a little more difficult. But, you can use a workaround.
Create two tracks. Set one up for recording (aka effects for the singer) and another for playback. You’ll have to drag the file back and forth which is kind of a pain, but worth it for the improved performance.
Why not use different plug-ins on same channel strip and mute? Well, because we all know you’re going to mess around with the level. As much as you say you won’t, you will.
All of these routing options exist in Pro Tools, as well. It’s not a complicated process. It’s simply something that a lot of engineers overlook. We often get caught in our heads about what mic to use and where to place it, etc… we’re so gear-centric that we forget about the humans we’re using the gear to capture.
A few extra steps can triple the quality of the performers takes. Give it a try and compare your own results. You may get a Valentine’s card from the vocalist next year. Will probably say “I Heart Reverb!!”
Mark Marshall is a producer, songwriter, session musician and instructor based in NYC.
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