How To Record & Mix Vocals LIKE A PRO Start To Finish + Free UAD Vocal Chain plugin Preset

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How To Record & Mix Vocals LIKE A PRO Start To Finish + Free UAD Vocal Chain plugin Preset
🔈👇 FREE API VISION VOCAL PRESET 👇
thestevekinney.com/collection...
---- CHAPTERS ----
Chapters
0:00 Intro
1:34 What the pro's won't tell you
5:49 Hardware & Microphones
9:05 Recap of Hardware
9:31 Engineering Thought Process & Examples
20:12 Tracking Recap
21:39 Post Production
29:48 Final Thoughts
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----- ALSO WATCH -----
🔸 LUNA Basic Series- Part 1
• Universal Audio Luna B...
🔸 UAD Console deep dive | Apollo solo
• UAD Console deep dive ...
🔸 I Produce Songs With EZDrummer
• I Produce Songs With E...
🔸 Hybrid Mixing with Luna & Logic
• Hybrid Mixing with Lun... ​
🔸 UAD DSP LIMIT EXCEEDED
• UAD DSP LIMIT EXCEEDED...
🔸 Building a FULL SONG start to finish in UNIVERSAL AUDIO LUNA with the APOLLO SOLO pt 1
• Building a FULL SONG s... ​
🔸 DON'T BUY APOLLO SOLO USB
• Don't buy the Apollo S... ​
🔸 WATCH THIS BEFORE BUYING THE APOLLO SOLO: • Watch this before buyi...
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Sennheiser EW-500 G4-Neumann KK205 sweetwater.sjv.io/3edDgK
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Pearl Mimic Pro Drum Module sweetwater.sjv.io/m52WYe
Westone Audio Pro X20 Earphones sweetwater.sjv.io/LXZb7j
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[@TheSteveKinney]

GRAB YOUR FREE UAD VOCAL PLUGIN PRESETS HERE: thestevekinney.com/collections/frontpage

[@katrina_burgoyne]

Love this

[@timdaniel7745]

Hey brotha...finally the video is released I have been waiting for a while great video love it. I Am still watching the Luna recording basics really great content even though I Am not a Luna user lol... Cheers brotha....

[@TheSteveKinney]

@@timdaniel7745 Thanks Tim! A lot of thought went into making this video. I've got a follow up video in the works that covers how to take this approach and apply it to less than ideal environments. Thanks for watching and the support!

[@Sincity89103]

I just bought the sphere dlx and love it

[@pamelak.4794]

Love this video! Blackbird Studio looks amazing, and you look right at home there! The camera work , colors and lighting, all looked great. Such clarity. Great job there and at the home studio too!

[@LosFicosMusic]

MAN! you are the BEST! dont stop your videos. I see you hitting 100K in year

[@TheSteveKinney]

Ha thanks! That would be damn awesome!

[@stevieoconnor2674]

Great stuff Steve !

[@kfiralfiavideo]

Just what I needed Steve, as I was going to start tracking vocals for the first time this weekend.

[@TheSteveKinney]

Badass Kfir, glad to hear it! Put everything into this video as best I could. Listen with headphones on during the examples - verryyy subtle in some spots, but makes a big difference. Cheers mate!

[@alainberthe1329]

Very nice and precise over look on describing a protocol for producing the best vocal performance possible! You're a great teacher Steve! ;-)

[@TheSteveKinney]

Thanks mate!

[@kwakuasantefrimpong8784]

This is great! Thanks!

[@qstudiomusicandproductions2695]

Very nice! Great content!

[@timmyblack8588]

Good video! This video is so helpful to my learning. I learned a lot from this video. Thank you for taking the time to put this tutorial together.

[@TheSteveKinney]

Cheers Timmy!

[@kmjansen]

Thanks for the tips! Great vocalist by the way.

[@barnpostmedia]

You can't go wrong with Warm Audio or Blackbird. Two of my favorites in music. Your work with Kat is amazing. Much respect.

[@TheSteveKinney]

You seriously can’t! Lol Thanks so much for the kind words, Kat makes it easy, amazing talent, cheers mate!

[@morganthem]

Thanks for such a comprehensive video. Useful useful stuff here.

[@TheSteveKinney]

Dave! Thanks so much for watching and the kind words! Truly - it was my first experience at blackbird studio h & I have to say, I really never expected the room to make THAT much of a difference on the vocal sound. but it seriously did. If you ever get a chance to compare between a good room and a bad one. give it a go. Got a follow up video coming very soon on how to manage a vocal in a not so good room. Cheers!

[@jimc1499]

Great content and advice

[@benyibez6757]

Amazing video ❤❤❤

[@thecolb1398]

Awesome vid Steve!

[@TheSteveKinney]

Thanks Colby! 🙏🏻 cheers mate, hope it helps you in your endeavors in some way!

[@ogden4608]

Really enjoying your videos, making it easier to get good results thru Luna. Appreciate it!

[@TheSteveKinney]

Cheers!

[@justincashionmusic]

Hey Steve, I just invested into the Apallo Dua and UAD plugin to try and starting doing my own vocals at my house to cut down on recording cost for my second full length record and this preset will come in real handy! Thanks man!

[@TheSteveKinney]

So glad you dig the content mate, hope the album comes out great. Would love to check it out when it drops! If you dig the new preset, consider picking up the heritage bundle. Lots of cool stuff in that pack! Cheers bro!

[@bayisbenevolent4899]

Loved this !! you are the man Steve, its so beautiful to see how geeked you get about music and engineering, it truly shows your passion :) also - idk if you were this meta but how tf did you get your camera angle literally identical to when you're at your home spot? You sitting there w the frame like that is so iconic if your channel .. well done !

[@TheSteveKinney]

Thanks for the kind words there! I’m glad you enjoyed it! I actually had to go back and check the footage 😭 died when I scrubbed through and saw the framing. Lol Truthfully - I love cinema so it just happened to work out that way - the only nice frame that was a “set it and forget it” inside the studio at blackbird was that angle. That’s just how I like to frame my shots with respect to portraits and weighting within the frame. So I guess I just kind of accidentally did that. Additionally - I was using the same lens - which kind of has this sweet spot - get too close and it’s weird. Too far away and it’s not right. So kind of forces me to get a similar frame. Love it. Got a big kick outta that, cheers!!

[@noahelias-guy5321]

Great overview on the initial tracking & mixing process for vocals

[@TheSteveKinney]

Thanks mate! Cheers!

[@aleksamrkela831]

Very straight-to-the-point and pragmatic. :)

[@TheSteveKinney]

Thanks Aleksa!! Cheers!

[@MrTupeloFlash]

Good tips , thanks

[@chimapenticost8323]

This video is very helpful & opened my eyes to more that you can't just get it anywhere

[@TheSteveKinney]

Thanks for kind words mate! I hope it helps you in your journey! Cheers!

[@vincentw4881]

Nice work. It really helps me. Enjoyed the no gimics boiled down version for us aspiring audio philes.

[@TheSteveKinney]

Right on mate!! Glad to hear it! I really try hard to not be annoying with BS in any of my videos. Sometimes my intros are a bit long due to explaining how to best support the channel - but YT doesn’t pay 💩 So I kind of have to promote a way since videos like these take days to produce and I’m doing it for free 😅 Anyways - truly, thanks for watching mate! Cheers!

[@cebastianlayneOffical]

Hey great work thanks

[@TheSteveKinney]

Thanks so much!

[@yosoysoloyo4024]

Excellent video. I love the way you take us through the whole journey.

[@TheSteveKinney]

I’m thinking of making an even more in-depth tutorial and more up-to-date for my process since this video… Do you think that’s a good idea?

[@yosoysoloyo4024]

@@TheSteveKinney Absolutely, I would encourage you to do that. It is great that you include the human aspect of how you interact with the artists and how you have a "big picture" feel to the way you expound on the subject. I also like it when you make reference to other people's tracks as an example of what you mean (Like you did with Adele and the Tape Echo). Do suppress your room sound when you want us to focus on the sound you are treating. All in all, your videos are entertaining, useful and informative. Keep on keeping on my friend, you are doing awesome!

[@Beethovan]

Thanks for good video on recording & mixing vocals

[@TheSteveKinney]

Cheers!

[@PioPeterDsouza]

Brilliant! Thanks.

[@TheSteveKinney]

You bet! Thanks for watching mate!

[@katrina_burgoyne]

Great job Steve this is cool

[@TheSteveKinney]

Thanks baby! xxx

[@katrina_burgoyne]

@@TheSteveKinney Always..

[@franke.643]

thanks!!

[@ImanolDiaz]

LET"S GOOOOO Txxxx

[@miguelangelvelasquez2711]

Amazing tutorial 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

[@TheSteveKinney]

Thanks brotha!!

[@gregsteffey1266]

Really good stuff here and well put together! I made a couple of the mistakes you mentioned. I asked a vocalist in before the songs had the vibe I was looking for. I’m sure we have to redo the vocals now. Also good idea to just track in a nice studio, it stinks waiting for the neighbor to stop mowing their lawn when you’re trying to track vocals. 😂

[@TheSteveKinney]

Thanks Greg! I really tried to make it a solid video, packed with content in it. So many studios these days have gotten pretty competitive since everyone can do a lot of work at home in the box, so you can usually find a spot that is reasonable for a handful of hours. But I’ve been there! Haha still have to be there from time to time. There are things you can do. I’m likely gonna make a video on how to work around this at home. For sure. Cheers brotha!

[@gabrielisaacx.ramirez9330]

now it even sounds kind of funny

[@gabrielisaacx.ramirez9330]

I mean man I hear´ya been there dun that and it wasn´t funny then

[@RONNYMORRISMUSIC]

Amazing advice. I have to say though that I love to commit so find the sound from the beggining i am after. But as a vocalist I often record with comp on the monitor put not on print. But I do feel that signing with a vocal makes it eaiser for me to navigate.

[@TheSteveKinney]

Totally! And who’s to say you can’t route it so that you record with fx to commit and also the dry on a separate track for flexibility.

[@tluangzpum]

thank you for sharing this video! May God bless you Kinney.

[@TheSteveKinney]

Cheers! Likewise!

[@gillythekid]

Hey, I've tried using the presets but I'm a bit confused... When I try loading up the "legacy" preset, it loads up API vision and the LA-2A silver, not the legacy version, and when I load up the regular non-legacy preset, it just loads up the LA-2A silver with no preamp at all.

[@TheSteveKinney]

Ahhh, this certainly should be the way that it's reacting. Reach out to me at [e-mail] - we'll get it sorted. Best, Steve

[@gillythekid]

@@TheSteveKinney sent!

[@eeztulk]

good stuff, nice coffee mug! :)

[@TheSteveKinney]

Ahhh. Yes! My failed stuido merch. 😅 dig it.

[@HuttyTheKid]

This video was killer

[@TheSteveKinney]

Cheers mate!! Hopefully you found some good pointers through out.

[@saltybeatz1]

Steve. Thank you. You mentioned the api 1608 board sounded good. Did you track the her vocal through the board to the Apollo? Or ran vox strait into Apollo and just play back through board ? Thanks

[@TheSteveKinney]

Yeah, we were able to split the signal directly through the patch bay system at Blackbird - one way was the unison pre - the other pre was the 1608.. I have it all in the session.. I didn't do a comparison on it cause I just didn't think it made sense to do it in that video. I was thinking of making a comparison. It's mind bending how close it really is. in a mix - you wouldn't notice. at all. Solo'd up and cranked - there is a little bit of a difference in the treble range of like 9k up. the UAD one is cleaner and therefore brighter in that range, which in some cases you might actually prefer. everything else is totally spot on, and this is now the "legacy" plugin too! The newer updated one is probably even closer. Crazy.

[@danybbeatz]

Great job bro

[@TheSteveKinney]

Thanks Dany! Great to see ya in the livestream chat. Cheers mate!

[@Jessie88ITA]

We should pay to get this stuff!!! that was a really interesting video! Gonna set up my input level between -18 & -12, especially during harsh parts!! Thanks Steve for sharing your knowledge with us!

[@TheSteveKinney]

Right on Luca! Thanks for watching, cheers! And just remember - those momentary peaks - totally fine if it taps -9 or so. All just a ball park. Finally - if you’re on UA Apollo’s and you have nice Unison mic pre plugins like the API vision, ssl, Neve- if you drive them a little harder on the preamp side - and the turn down the plugins clean digital output - you can start to get the “color” or “saturation” characteristics of the hardware it models. So in that case - to set that - drive the input until the harsh parts are starting to actually clip. Then take that clean output down until the signal isn’t clipping anymore. And you have your signal back to that sweet spot. Hopefully that translated and made sense in a comment. Cheers!

[@KokoNova]

Very good video, Steve! Thank you! So clear and helpful. I’ll be referencing this one for my own vocal production (that I’m currently not very good at). 🦋🙏😊

[@TheSteveKinney]

Thanks Koko! Glad you found it helpful, let me know how you go once you put the tips to use.

[@A1.vegas702nt]

Great video your the man !!!! Keep up the good work.

[@A1.vegas702nt]

Quick question where would the la 2a come in on this vocal chain ?

[@TheSteveKinney]

Thanks mate!!

[@TheSteveKinney]

@@A1.vegas702nt it varies with the song, and performance. But typically, I place the la-2a after the 1176. And generally, with a vocal and processing it’s: 1. Pitch correct 2. Fix problems/eq 3. De-ess 4. Compress 5. Compensate 6. Review and adjust Cheers!

[@A1.vegas702nt]

@@TheSteveKinney thankyou brother god bless keep up the great work 💯

[@billesposito2112]

You convinced me to get a Mac . I watched some tutorials on LUNA . It looks like a killer DAW. I'm gonna get the M1 mini . Jesus that's a nice setup at Blackbird.

[@billesposito2112]

One more question I know the extensions cost money for Luna but after I buy the Apollo and the Mac will I be able to get started on Luna or do I need to buy an extension 1st because I'm gonna be tapped with cash for a little while

[@thomaspluta605]

Great video, Steve! Thanks!! Can you explain why you put the effect(s) in a send vs in the track as a last insert and using the mix on the effect? Also, how would I go about adding an effect (ex.. phase) to a section on a vocal but not the whole track? Is there a way to do that on a vocal track? Thanks in advance ..

[@TheSteveKinney]

Hey Mate! Thanks for the kind words. With respect to bussing your effects: Simply put - if you put a delay on your vocal track itself, and blend your wet/dry - you will have to compensate your fader as the blend knob literally acting as a volume you control for both the effect and the source material. This messes with the balance of your mix. It also really complicates things when you try to automate the send of the vocal into whatever effect you’re working with. Now for the second part - I don’t wanna assume, because I’m not sure I’m totally following what you’re asking - But it KINDA sounds like you want a particular effect on a phrase or word for emphasis of a hook or a line of song... hopefully I’m following. To accomplish this - there would be a lot of ways. 1. Copy and move the source audio to a totally new track. Mute the original part of the track on the initial first track. 2. Automate your sends and source faders. This one is a bit more complicated. But - kind of lore old school, console way of doing it. Your effect would be on a buss, in pre fader mode - you’d ride your send up to unity gain just before the phrase kicks in - while simultaneously - riding your source fader down to 0/-inf so that only the effect is heard. If you scrub through a number of videos on my channel - you’ll eventually see me do a lot of stuff like this. Especially in my “building a full song in Luna with nothing but an Apollo solo” - I literally have to do this a bunch of times because of limited DSP resources. Hope this helps! Cheers mate!

[@thomaspluta605]

@@TheSteveKinney exactly what I was looking for, I really appreciate you taking the time to get back to me, thank you. I’ll dig through your vids and learn tips and tricks.. Cheers!!

[@thomaspluta605]

@@TheSteveKinney Hi Steve, With your help I figured out how to do what I asked you in my last message.. So, here’s a new question. How do you, or is it possible to put a long fade-out on a mix? Or, how would you suggest to do this? Thanks in advance.

[@gabrielisaacx.ramirez9330]

A. A. A. 👌

[@TheSteveKinney]

Cheers mate!

[@billesposito2112]

Hey Steve , I just jumped on any video to let you know that Vintage Condenser Color in your presets is the SHIT!!!!!!!! My voice with and that preset were made for each other . Thanks brother . Would have taking me a while to tweak my sound like that with this new set up.

[@TheSteveKinney]

Hell yeah, love to hear this!!! Super cool dude. There's a few ones that are pretty cool in there for sure. I love some of the bass guitar presets too.

[@lmartincervantest2653]

Muy buen video.. saludos desde Perú

[@TheSteveKinney]

Cheers mate!

[@x3BobO]

this is so helpful thank you. When you mention the sound levels, is this in console or the daw you're using. I feel like Logic always makes everything louder

[@TheSteveKinney]

Hey there! Thanks for the question! It’s both really at the end of the day. Largely depends on your workflow, if you’re recording with your signal chain fully being recorded aka “UAD REC” mode - then you’re peaks should be the same in both console and logic. This shouldn’t change your sound at all. But if you’re tracking so that it’s intended to be processed in post - you kinda have to look in both places. First, you look in console to get your initial level from the pre-amp. Etc Second, confirm in logic that it’s getting the similar signal level. The meters themselves look different in general - so check the numbers to be specific. They should match. Then go back to console to add compression, sends to reverb for vibe etc. If the signal level changes in logic, then double check that you have UAD console set to “UAD MON” This will allow you to use console to process your signal but not commit to it. If it’s STILL not behaving the way you’d expect, it’s possible that you have some routing stuff off or processing in logic on /w logics input monitoring enabled. Once you get used to it, it will become second nature and you won’t have to always double check it, but it’s nice to do it on the front side. There is one extra tid bit that is important to keep in mind - monitoring your signal via console is OUTSIDE of the masterbus signal chain in logic, so if you have a whole master chain or processing on your master track, the signal in console isn’t running through that. So on playback, after recording, that could be causing the volume jump. If you still need help, I do online mentor sessions - happy to help. Just go to my website under mentor sessions and book directly via calendly. Either way, Hope this helped! cheers!

[@x3BobO]

@@TheSteveKinney wow thank you so much for this super detailed answer. You hit the nail on the head, I just checked everything and it't the same if I just monitor through console. I forgot that when I see the discrepancy, I'm actually monitoring through logic (I use it for streaming into OBS with a mac). Now that I have the Apollo, I should be able to omit logic. It'll be a journey and I'm all super new to it, but this was very helpful. Thank you so much. Will definitely reach out for a mentor session when I get stuck!

[@TheSteveKinney]

@@x3BobO yeah of course no problem. You had a legit question and I actually had a second to give a fair response. Just good timing really LOL You may wanna watch my video on streaming... that’s a whole other story .. although - if you’re already streaming - you may have it figured out the console I/O routing setup already. Keep on rocking mate! Cheers!

[@fifthavenueworld]

What formula do you like to use for nice tight backing vocals Steve? Great video by the way.

[@TheSteveKinney]

Hey there, thanks so much for watching, glad you’ve enjoyed it! It’s cool to use a different mic. Depends on the song though, obviously you can get away with using nice mics or even the same mic. I’ll usually EQ it differently, high passing and low passing some. I’m a huge fan of mutt Lange. So I love huge layers of them. Melodyne helps here. Tuning them and making sure they are super spot in with timing relative to the main vocal.

[@literaltrash2275]

Yes 🐐; do you mix songs sent to you by any chance?? The lexicon is my go to for reverb. Love it. Also, loving the CL1B compressor.

[@TheSteveKinney]

Yes, good sir. That’s what I do for my day job. 😎

[@TheSteveKinney]

I’ve used the real tube tech stuff before in studios and loved it. Haven’t tried the plugin yet. Have to do it!

[@maximboe]

@@TheSteveKinney I'd recommend demoing the Acustica Titanium Cl1B. The UAD/Softube MK2 (while it looks nice) doesn't sound/compress like a real one imo. The Acustica is very very close.

[@TheSteveKinney]

@@maximboe that’s badass! I’ll have to give it a try for sure. I’ve seen and heard great things with the acustica stuff.

[@rogerhughes2593]

Hi Steve, new Luna learner here. Decided to start learning to get into the recording side of things and build a studio after an injury that changed my lifestyle. I play guitar and piano so I thought I'd start to learn to record. I'm totally new to Luna and UA but invested in Apollo and other nice kit to record friends and have fun. I love your videos, they are my go-to for Luna. I'm slowly getting to the more specific videos but constantly re-watching the Luna Basics. Its a learning curve for me with all the terminology etc! Anyway, thanks so much for great tutorials! It's keeping me focused and giving me a lifeline! By the way, I can't seem to find the vocals presets mentioned in the video. Any pointers please bud? Thanks again! Rog.

[@TheSteveKinney]

Hey mate! Great to hear feedback like this. I never had anything like this when I was going through the early stages of my development and that's why I'm doing it. The vocal preset is here thestevekinney.com/collections/uad-2-presets/products/american-console-vocal-chain

[@ItsSyer]

So I have a question when using a pre amp plugin does my interface need to be a certain volume before turn up the gain on the pre amp plugin or or do I need to record at a lower volume and then raise the plugin preamp gain?

[@TheSteveKinney]

If it’s an Apollo, the preamp plugin should be loaded in the “unison” slot inside of the console plugin. Then the plugins model with be controlling the gain physically on your Apollo. Very cool and super realistic sounding. If it’s an interface like a focusrite, tascam etc.. then you would set your gain with the interfaces preamp - then add the plugin afterwards.. with respect to plugins gain, you would wanna make sure that if you’re trying to color the sound with the preamp section, that you compensate the output of the plugin. That is all. So if you gain up the the input on the plugin, you equally gain down the output of the plugin. If you use an interface like a focusrite and use the plugin to control gain, you’re then trying to gain up a quiete signal which would technically have less bits/data to work with .. and it would end up being noisier. Hope this all makes sense! Great question!

[@davidhenneberg4556]

Awesome video man - I'm a music production student and this is what I pay thousands of dollars to learn.

[@TheSteveKinney]

Wow, what a compliment David! Thanks for watching mate, keep it up and don't ever stop learning and being creative! cheers bro!

[@davidhenneberg4556]

@@TheSteveKinney thanks Steve! You too.

[@Beethovan]

Pls post a video on microphone comparison, which mic to buy say SM7B, AKG414 or Neumann TLM102.

[@TheSteveKinney]

I don’t have a 102 or 414. I’m familiar with them though. But they are all totally different tools really. It would be like comparing a pickup truck to a luxury sedan vs a sports car. They all have very specific uses and all have a strength and weakness. There isn’t a “right” one to buy. I can tell you that the sm7b is a workhorse. Great for a lot of stuff but doesn’t have the extra polish that something like the tlm would have. To throw a wrench into the mix, I’d look into the newer telefunken mics. The alchemy series.

[@Beethovan]

I saw your other video on recording in untreated room. Your suggestion to use dynamic mic in untreated room or use Ashton mike shield was good. I have an untreated room.

[@TheSteveKinney]

@@Beethovan yup! 100% And still fully support that idea. Both are great mics, especially the Aston spirit for the money. The sm7b is better than the Aston as side rejection. So it’s gonna be better in an untreated room, but the Aston is more versatile on other sources like acoustic instruments. Hope this helps mate!

[@RSMusic4L]

i stopped by AND IM GLAd i DID

[@TheSteveKinney]

😎👍🏻

[@derekbaker4522]

Hi Steve, thanks. What headphones are you using in your studio?

[@TheSteveKinney]

Just these old shitty ones that I was really used to. They were full range, terribly inaccurate. But great. But they broke. Now I use dt770 pro’s. 250ohm. Again, great range. Not very accurate. Combine with sonarworks, and it’s a crazy great combination.

[@SM57]

Great channel👍

[@TheSteveKinney]

Thanks mate! Working to try to make content that’s useful and insightful for sure. A lot of work! So I’m glad that people are finding it useful! Cheers.

[@SM57]

@@TheSteveKinney Great dude! Really appreciate your work👏👏👏

[@chimapenticost8323]

Please I need help sir how do I get my unison console working in my UAD interface I can't see it

[@TheSteveKinney]

In the UAD console app - the first plugin slot at the top is your unison preamp module. This is where unison plugins can be loaded. Cheers! -Steve

[@Heightsies]

Do you have a video on the focusrite Scarlett audio interface? I know it’s cheap, but I know a lot of people use it. I would just love to hear your opinion on it.

[@TheSteveKinney]

I think it’s literally everyone’s starter interface. I don’t have one anymore. I had one years and years ago. I mean - it’s just a great entry option for someone who might not have a lot of resources but really wants to capture their ideas down and build out their song writing. Understand the fundamentals of tracking and I/O. Etc At this point - I’d say the Volts would be the best option in the price range by far - the software it’s bundle with is worth more than the interface itself. It’s crazy. But again - not a bad interface, it’s cheap. Does what it says it does. - but ultimately, if you wanna make stuff to release on your own and do more than just songwrite, but engineer as well - without going to a studio etc - the quality of the pres make a big difference. In other words, you’ll eventually wanna upgrade. Can’t really say much else, i mean - it’s quality is still a million times better than what the Beatles had - so we all have no excuse. So again - full circle - it’s not the interface, it’s how you use it. Sure there are a lot of reasons to get a better interface with more features and better quality - but ultimately, the quality is so far ahead of everything. It now comes down to the skill of using it. 😎👍🏻 Michael Brauer with a Scarlett would be more dangerous than Joe Smoe with 10 blackbird studios.

[@Heightsies]

@@TheSteveKinney I appreciate the response! I’ve had one for a while now and I definitely want to take my production to the next level so I’ve been considering upgrading. Just a little lost on how big of a jump I need to make. Thank you again!

[@TheSteveKinney]

@@Heightsies no worries mate! I’d say it depends on your I/O needs. If you do drum tracking - that makes a big difference on what you go for. Or if you do a bit of multi tracking with a few musicians at a time ETC Or work with/plan to work with outboard gear.

[@hiroller808]

Mahalo 🌺

[@Beethovan]

Which mic did you use in this session?

[@TheSteveKinney]

Didn’t use the Aston. Used WA-47

[@nunu9849]

19:39 what pre amp did you use here? And was it in analor or plugin?

[@TheSteveKinney]

This would have been the UAD-2 API vision channel strip. This is the unison plugin, which is used through the Apollo twin x. Mic: WA-47 Interface: Apollo twin X dou preamp: UAD API VCS legacy in “unison” Compressors: UAD2 1176 rev e & UAD la2a grey All digital. 😎

[@nunu9849]

@@TheSteveKinney thank you very much ♥

[@sincerethegreat4704]

hey when I add a lot of Plugins to My tracks it has a latency

[@TheSteveKinney]

This would be normal for most interfaces to run into this kind of situation. Especially if you're track has a ton of virtual instruments and processing on the other tracks. This is why a lot of professionals & home enthusiasts love the UAD stuff. The way their interfaces work - bypasses the need to monitor through the daw software - Which will always have latency. I believe some of the new Avid interfaces like the Carbon interface has Direct monitoring capabilities. A number of other interfaces offer this as well to some degree. Some other people get around this by having a console that can send audio to and from the computer and route the signal to the computer for tracking and to headphones or outboard gear for processing in real time for monitoring. Hopefully that makes sense! Cheers!

[@soulinspiration1]

How do you create harmony from a single audio in LUNA?

[@ManaMonteo]

If it doesn’t have the plugin use a doubler and change the octaves or use a harmony engine plug in. I’d honestly just do multiple takes and change the octaves if you don’t want to do different pitches irl. There will probably be phase issues if you use the same take.

[@soulinspiration1]

@@ManaMonteo Ok it's been a year since I asked this question. However, it's still great to finally get a response.

[@TheSteveKinney]

Snap - I somehow missed responding to this originally. My apologies. I do my best to respond to everyone but sometimes they fall through the cracks. I fully agree with @manamonteo - you could certainly use warp function and mess with semitones - but your simplest best bet would be to use a doubler plugin / engine.

[@soulinspiration1]

@@TheSteveKinney thx for the response.

[@swagonmax]

10/10

[@TheSteveKinney]

On my channel all knobs go to 11.

[@swagonmax]

@@TheSteveKinney Got you sir👌

[@Cj2phy]

Who built your desk for your home studio?

[@TheSteveKinney]

Designed by pulling from a few key design points I liked from different desks. Manufactured and built by my pops. He did a killer job.

[@ajilful]

Stupid question: what is the general rule like in most occasions, bounce the instrumental tracks (as I see in this example ) and record the vocals or record the vocals along with other instruments for mixing ? Thanks

[@TheSteveKinney]

Great question - however I think there may be some more context that is needed. The only reason anything was bounced was because I was traveling to a different studio - and didn’t have my full UA rig. So it just made it simpler to run a bounced down mix just to track the vocals. Then when I’m back in my studio - I can unmute the actual session and mix the vocals with the rest of it. It was just a convenience thing. Generally - I don’t like mixing a vocal on top of a track - unless it’s a direct print from a group bus like my drum bus or instrument bus .. this would happen if I was running low on DSP or resources. Cheers mate!

[@ajilful]

​@@TheSteveKinney Thanks for the prompt reply Steve. Got it, makes sense and obviously as you said to reduce the workload on available resources (my gears are all on budget ) even individual tracks are recommended to be bounced for mixing after a good take (in my case all are vsts mostly). I am trying to properly setup/improve my home studio, just found your other video on that. Your Luna playlist is for the weekend. Trying to take recording engineering as a profession and I already realize that your videos are helping a lot getting into the right ecosystem. Gonna stick around in this space for a while and as a beginner I may ask some basic questions. Kindly bear, Thanks. BTW, your videos are very cinematic and great quality..!!

[@TheSteveKinney]

@@ajilful thanks mate! Ask away!... I do my best to get to all comments. Cheers brotha!

[@xaevyxae9624]

You dont adjust mic gain referencing peaks on a vu meter?

[@TheSteveKinney]

VU is average volume

[@xaevyxae9624]

Yeah, so if a track or clip peaks over 0 on Vu, I clip gain it down so it doesnt go over. Im asking you dont do that? And could you possibly do a Native Version or UAD Spark Version of your API and Neve Template. I dont have my apollo ne more so I can't see your settings.@@TheSteveKinney

[@TheSteveKinney]

@@xaevyxae9624 0vu isn’t clipping. 0dbFS is clipping. 0vu is usually about -18dbFS depending on the plugin manufacturer. The plugin will start to show some signs of color and distortion typically. And yeah, I’ll likely be redoing my presets and templates in the new year.

[@xaevyxae9624]

@@TheSteveKinney I know its not clipping.. I use it to help gain stage, and to help level things.

[@TheSteveKinney]

@@xaevyxae9624 ah! Yes, that’s a great tool for that. I usually use my ears. But that’s a super good idea.

[@wilkiebrown244]

Great job on this! I know this is done in Luna that is tightly integrated with UAD, a bit hard at times to determine where UAD Console ends and Luna starts. I have a Thunderbolt Twin and using Pro Tools. As far as recording (not monitoring), do you recommend putting the plugins in the UAD Console or in Pro Tools? Thanks again.

[@TheSteveKinney]

Sure! Great question. If you’re in PT - no matter what you’re gonna wanna use UAD console for monitoring and recording. Monitoring through PT will cause significant delay, eventually as the session builds. When using UAD always use the unison slot for your mic pres. The sound is awesome. For plugins and processing in your signal - that leaves the four slots below unison in console. If you load a compressor on there and wanna bake it into the recording - then turn on UAD Rec. if you wanna have the freedom of manipulating in PT - use UAD mon. Then you can reload that compressor in PT.

[@wilkiebrown244]

@@TheSteveKinney Thanks so much, will do! I’ll check out the Preset too!

[@shaunblack3142]

Helpful tips. It looks as if you do not use a VU meter to gain stage. Instead you use your DAWS meter to set your RMS level to -18 dBFS and -12 peak .. is this correct?

[@TheSteveKinney]

Yeah - but my peaks are much higher. I’m cool with my peaks at about -6, not gonna cry if it his -3 even. As long as my meat and potatoes are ball parking -15 give or take. That could mean that it floats at -18 while my singers soft .. and while the singers really loud it could average at -10. This isn’t at all a rule. It’s just kind of what happens. The thought process is that you want a healthy level without clipping. And the number itself is all ballpark average. You could use VU ... I just don’t cause it doesn’t bother me to go without it. Hopefully that all makes sense. And also - there is in fact a difference when your signal is really low. Less BIT resolution in your wav file. So while digital audio is so much more forgiving at lower levels, there’s literally zero reason that you couldn’t have your source pegged - so long as it’s not clipping. -Steve

[@shaunblack3142]

@@TheSteveKinney Thanks Steve! This is helpful to a beginner like me. I thought i would get a perfect sounding song by just buying an Apollo Twin desktop interface and a Neumann TLM 103 microphone using Pro Tools 12 but lots to learn here. Thanks again.

[@TheSteveKinney]

@@shaunblack3142 Right on mate! Well cheers to you for going out and actually getting legit gear in the first place.. that's half the battle... Hope you've found this stuff useful. cheers!

[@Abdigiejs]

I like your desk. Where can i get that ?

[@TheSteveKinney]

It’s a custom build. My father built it for me. Just a one off

[@damian8416]

Why can't I get a natural, beautiful, fleshy saturation on the vocals, an EQ presence between 4 -5 k and 10 k that would not rustle and be pleasant to the ear. I can't get what I hear on famous commercial records. Is it because I only use plugins? Does the vocal need to be recorded even cleaner than it already is? I do sturation trickss on buses, EQ on buses and still itdoesn't sounds as I can hear it on comercial recorrds?

[@TheSteveKinney]

I appreciate this question. Tell me more about your process. What mic do you use? What’s your signal chain? Are you in a treated room? How close or far away do you sing into the mic?

[@TheSteveKinney]

To answer your other questions, no. It’s not because you only use plugins. Plenty of hits were only through plugins. The cleaner question depends on HOW saturated or distorted it was.

[@BrockBarr]

Great overview of the whole process. Maybe I'm old bit the auto-tune killed the emotion for me. Maye Melodyne might have been better. Great work though. 👍

[@TheSteveKinney]

Yeah - I largely prefer melodyne but I use auto tune for the tone. It has a distinct sound tonally .. if the retune speed is low.

[@honkytonk2010]

Just was wondering can we still get you your free vocal chain having trouble trying to download it ..Thanks

[@TheSteveKinney]

Yeah shouldn’t be any issues.... sign up to my mailing list then Find my contact me email address.

[@honkytonk2010]

I’am new at this and I would love to and Thank you for the fast response

[@TheSteveKinney]

@@honkytonk2010 cheers man! Happy to help anytime.

[@itssPuffy]

Only one compressor with -10db reduction? Isn’t that like just using a limiter

[@TheSteveKinney]

Not necessarily.

[@itssPuffy]

@@TheSteveKinney I’ve seen plenty of well known mixers use multiple levels of compression along with parallel, do you find you often get nice controlled results out of only using one while taking out a decent amount of decibels? Or is it mainly because of the software you were showcasing in the video?

[@TheSteveKinney]

@@itssPuffy it was just the choice I took for the track. I use whatever trick works for the sound I’m going for. Sometimes I’ll use one compressor like this, all ins button mode 1176 aggression. Sometimes I’ll do the classic 1176 & la2a Sometimes I’ll do a 1176, and then parallel with a completely crushed distressor Sometimes, I’ll have to go out of the box. It’s 100% about manipulating to where I get it to sound like how I hear it in my head. Sometimes, I’ll even duplicate the track and manually multiband comp it with using fabfilter with hi & lo passing to create bands and then comp. Straight up. Do whatever it takes to make it sound how I want it to. Sometimes it’s easier and simpler. And other times it’s a massive pain in the ass LOL

[@VijverEendje]

Great example how to set mood and how to record a vocalist. That vocal booth sounds awfull btw! Maybe this mic wasn't the best choice for that room. (also a subject of discussion when recording someone) The room is so important when recording someone and the placement of the subject in the room as well. But anyway great video and very nice for people who are just learning. You describe the right way of learning!

[@TheSteveKinney]

Great point M.D. ! Thanks for watching and the great feedback, cheers!

[@FlightDeckStudios]

Sup man? where can I find this song, Its pretty catchy.

[@TheSteveKinney]

Spotify. Katrina Burgoyne - “Sirens”

[@FlightDeckStudios]

@@TheSteveKinney DO you offer private lessons? I too am in Nashville, I have a KZbin channel where I do cover songs, my production is terrible.

[@xaevyxae9624]

Did you take down the free vocal preset?

[@TheSteveKinney]

I didn’t, it’s now $2 I believe. But I don’t manage the website itself, so the link may be moved. 🤔 Here is the exact link. thestevekinney.com/collections/uad-2-presets/products/american-console-vocal-chain

[@Russplight]

You gotta love the same ole regertated information on KZbin. Everyone is a teacher these days.

[@TheSteveKinney]

Thanks for the feedback brotha! Just doing my best to be comprehensive.

[@martywhite2988]

The lack of creativity in the topics is indicative of the lack of creativity in the music these clowns produce. Gee I've never heard a pro talk about the room or mic choices. 🖕

[@TheSteveKinney]

@@martywhite2988 Ah! Sounds like you could really benefit from some one-on-one mentoring. DM me for more details! Cheers mate!

[@katrina_burgoyne]

@@martywhite2988 surely the unnecessary use of the middle finger which means “f you” didn’t make you feel as good as you thought it would? 🧐

[@katrina_burgoyne]

You must have been searching for it! 😉

[@RayoBeatz]

yeah let me just grab a 5k microphone i have plenty of them laying around my house.

[@Sincity89103]

Sphere dlx just bought and it’s awesome

[@TrailerHitchRVCenter]

The singer seems a little grumpy.

[@sanciopancioahoy]

Vocal sounds like telephone af

[@TheSteveKinney]

Probs the speaker.

[@sanciopancioahoy]

@@TheSteveKinney Probs the preamp and eq braw

[@TheSteveKinney]

@@sanciopancioahoy could be.