Subject:Even voice

Posted by: mvejvan

Date:1/29/2004 5:32:50 AM

Working with voices I often need to remove unintentional vibrato (irregular volume intensity variation). The SF Wave Hammer, Volume Maximizers and other compressor plugs would not produce a wave form of the absolutely same amplitude and then my samples 1-6 sec long soud unpleasant. What is the right tool or technique? Thanks.

Subject:RE: Even voice

Reply by: Rednroll

Date:1/29/2004 5:51:21 AM

Rerecord until the singer gets it right, or find a new singer that can sing. Other than that, Antares Autotune might be able to help.

Subject:RE: Even voice

Reply by: vanblah

Date:1/29/2004 8:39:14 AM

If you mean you are trying to remove VIBRATO from a singers voice (rapid rise and file of PITCH) then Antares AutoTune *might* work for you ... although it sounds very unatural (to me at least).

If you mean you are trying to remove TREMELO (rapid rise and fall of VOLUME) you'll have to experiment with various volume controls.

Red's right though, get them to resing it until it's correct. It'll be easier in the long run.

<SOAPBOX>Vibrato is one of the most overused and abused vocal "techniques." It can be very effective when used right. As for volume control, make sure the singer isn't bobbing their head around the microphone.</SOAPBOX>

Subject:RE: Even voice

Reply by: mvejvan

Date:1/29/2004 6:59:56 PM

Thanks for yor responses. I should have mentioned though, that I am dealing with some old voice recordings I still keep for the color and charm of the period. In any case there is some disturbing VOLUNE variation at places where the singer holds a note over a couple bars or so and are most certainly caused by a poor recording technik. A more detailed analysis shows that warbling sound is not a misplaced vibrato but a minute volume changes. This is why I am looking for a plug that would perfectly equalize the amplitude of a voice sample.

Subject:RE: Even voice

Reply by: Big_Faced_Boy

Date:1/31/2004 6:03:11 AM

There are no set rules to it, you gotta go with what sounds good (loud normally doesn't, so BE GENTLE! - which means using volume maximizers (aka limiters) is not always a good idea. You want your vox rounded, not squared.) It all depends on the material you're working with and the sound you want.

You could try some eq to reduce offensive frequencies, check your mic's frequency response and see where it adds colour and account for these. A multi-band dynamic processor such as Waves C4 may flatten these out nicely without affecting the overall sound like eq does, but a combination is probably best

Top end frequencies usually require some de-essing, you can do this with one of many de-esser plugins (Waves Renaissance DeEsser is very good, but costly, DigitalFishPhones SpitFish (vst plugin) is free and very nice. Try Spin Audio's free vst-dx wrapper in order to use vstfx in SF/ACID).

Once offensive frequencies have been dealt with (you don't want them saturating under compression and ruining the sound), try a compressor to level the sounds out. I can't really give too much advice here and now, just get your vox to a reasonable volume before doing this. Most compressor plugins will have a vocal preset. Try playing with the threshold to achieve some gain reduction and hit ok.

An example: Use a vox preset in a compressor plugin as this should set good attack/release times. If your peaks stand at, say -2dB and the bulk of the sound at -6dB (ie 4dB difference), you might set the threshold to about -5 to -7dB and tweak your ratio to get -4dB reduction. This should remove or level the peaks without affecting the body of the sound too much. Try it and see. This is only an example... don't take it as absolute gospel... trust your ears and BE GENTLE!

Subject:RE: Even voice

Reply by: Rednroll

Date:1/31/2004 11:06:37 AM

"This is why I am looking for a plug that would perfectly equalize the amplitude of a voice sample."

LOL!!!! These kind of posts kill me. It's another one of those, I want a 1 button push program that will perfectly master my music, and make it sound as good as something Bob Ludwig did. Pssssstt....There's a reason, audio engineers have a job. It's called EXPERIENCE, and knowing how to deal with problem scenarios. There is NO plugins for experience. My analogy for this always is, you can give someone a terrific paint set and canvas (ie Sound Forge) to be unlimited to create the greatest painting in the world, but that don't make you no Michael Angelo. There is no plugin that will make you a Picaso.

Subject:Even voice

Reply by: mvejvan

Date:2/1/2004 11:34:05 AM

Surely I wish I had you experience Mr.Rednroll. I also know that having five sound fingers will not make me a violine virtuoso. However, you might agree that one first needs an instrument or tool and only then he can start the learning process.
The Waves C4 plug suggested by Big Faced Boy does a nice job and I certainly will explore all possibilities suggested by him. Thanks to you all.