Clean Vocal Chain

[@beneditchukwuowne1825]

Sage is a legend

[@user-op2ik9dh3j]

I noticed a large number of technically illiterate tips in the videos on equalization. Literally everyone has nuances that can be avoided by selecting a microphone, recording technique or installing a microphone without resorting to an endless chain of plug-ins that form a dubious result. Often the sources sound more logical for the mix than the result of processing.

[@hatago]

Truuuuu

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching! I appreciate it! SageAudio.com

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching and sharing your thoughts! I agree, the best option is to pick a microphone that has an EQ which shapes the vocal or signal in the best possible way. But for people working with 1 microphone that isn't always an option. Thanks again! SageAudio.com

[@beneditchukwuowne1825]

@@user-op2ik9dh3j Ur a half empty guy

[@joeypreston5851]

30 year engineer here...excellent Sage, just excellent...

[@adelsweezy]

sage audio been here sharing a lot of gems god bless u thanks

[@sageaudio]

Thanks Adel! I appreciate you sharing our videos!

[@joeypreston5851]

no, you can tell on the multiband step ..and although most people would say the vocal is starting to sound too mid rangey, if youve mixed 1000 records, you know that in solo is not in the mix, and your vocal is EXACTLY where it should be. Sounds like the old telefunkin Elam man...everytime i used it the vocal was right where it needed to be, but on solo, most singers would scream ï sound horrible". lol. your method is fantastic

[@pudzianek51]

You are indeed a blessing, Sage!

[@Kabir001]

SAGE IS A LEGEND, new album otw w sage guides

[@sageaudio]

Awesome! Great to hear you're using some of our tips for your new album!

[@bwwolf]

never saw a more tricky vocal chain like this one.

[@ahmedyadam7240]

Since almost 3 years, I never missed a video So, 1- how to achieve the Masculine bassy voice of a normal male voice I TRIED :- Parallel compression Tube saturation to certain frequencies Distortion Exciter Clippers Still not that bassy sound Plus those introduced frequencies, whisles need to be removed 2- How to turn a male singing into a whispery dreamy voice

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching! Although I'm not sure I can make a full video on this topic, here are some things I would try: Try a microphone with an accentuated low-end and a strong proximity effect - Blue Microphones Mouse is a good option. Use a pultec emulation and boost the lows around 100Hz - it's a shelf that should amplify the fundamental as well, resulting in bassy sound. Lastly, try Tube Saturation on the low frequencies, up to the fundamental. A strong 2nd order harmonic should help. For the whispery dreamy voice, I'm not entirely sure - I think I'd need to hear an example of what you mean. SageAudio.com

[@ahmedyadam7240]

@@sageaudio songs like:- Better by Sonny fodera & Insatiable by Darren Hayes I remember years ago I watched a video in which a normal male voice was converted to a dreamy voice like Darren Hayes There's an effect slider like this one inside vocaloid called (Air) that turns the words to thighs, airy whispers I saw a video in which he took the normal voice and made a whispery voice of it in vocaloid then remixed it as chorus in the Daw again but it was in Japanese as I recall & Thanks a lot for your quick reply sp. For the bassy sound

[@LBJedi]

A lot of this was REALLY helpful for my voiceover work too; thank you!

[@sageaudio]

That's awesome! Thanks for watching Blake! SageAudio.com

[@emsti518]

Yes. The same. Will be great if you create a video of voiceover mixing@@sageaudio

[@rekayrovera]

Yeah this is madness😵

[@sageaudio]

Haha thanks for watching! SageAudio.com

[@Tom-tv4ok]

Woah these tips are next level. Thank you

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching Tom! Glad you enjoyed the video! SageAudio.com

[@Lilslugx]

Damn! Best video ever

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching! Great to hear you enjoyed it!

[@AlternativeKava]

This is too good

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching Lucas! SageAudio.com

[@reakapho]

Thank you!

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching!

[@juan.rodz713]

As an Audio Engineer I’ve learned a lot

[@sageaudio]

That's awesome! Thanks for watching!

[@juan.rodz713]

@@sageaudio I really mean it! Could you perhaps make a video about mastering Regional Mexican Music, or Corridos. It’s a super big genre, but I’ve never seen any audio engineer cover it.

[@MajorqeyBeatz]

God bless you @sageaudio 👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching Major Qey! Also that's a clever name!

[@MajorqeyBeatz]

@@sageaudio Thanks Sage Audio I really appreciate

[@lifegemslostknowledge6230]

this is really helpful woe.. when I make it, I got you!! thank you frfr

[@sageaudio]

Awesome! Thank you for watching - happy to hear it was helpful

[@AuteriaWWinzerJr]

An alternative to Newfangled Audio Punctuate is Oeksound SPIFF.

[@sageaudio]

Cool I'll check it out

[@AuteriaWWinzerJr]

@@sageaudio 👍🏿👍🏾👍🏽👍🏼👍🏻👍✅️💯

[@joelarmendariz8876]

Great video, I will definitely try this out. Appreciate the insight, looking forward to the having clean vocals...

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching and I hope it works well for you!

[@PharaohLawLess1]

Great tips

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching!

[@wojtekkrol544]

Fantastic Like always :) Regards from Poland

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching!

[@juanmedina3867]

So freaking awesome! Thank you so much! Subscribed and liked! You are the best! 😊

[@sageaudio]

Awesome! Thank you for watching and subscribing

[@roquepinilla3389]

fantastic video!

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching! Glad you enjoyed it

[@thamilanban]

Thank you

[@sageaudio]

Thanks Thamil! SageAudio.com

[@djsyntrix]

They shld have a Key option in Punctuate that you can select that automatically selects areas outside the key. You cld do the same thing is Pro-MB I would assume?

[@sageaudio]

That would make a cool preset! Thanks for watching! SageAudio.com

[@KanhaPratimaFilms9414258577]

very helpful thanks bro

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching, glad it was helpful!

[@rene_deutschmann]

Thanks for teaching me about Transient Expanders! That really helped me with a lot of Problems I had. Somebody interested here in Sage's Opinion on AI Audio Tools like the Adobe Audio Enhancer? I tried it a few times and the results were not very satisfying - though I have to say for people with zero knowledge it can really improve their (vocal-)recordings.

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching and sharing some thoughts! I think AI definitely has a place in audio/audio production. It's just a matter of getting it up to speed and fine-tuning some of the issues. There will always be artists and engineers that want a person to do the work, but I think AI will play a more prominent role in the near future.

[@devidsalasughi9440]

crazyyyyyy

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching!

[@1017-ONIXXA]

could you make this a preset for download? would love to buy it or mess with it

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching and leaving a comment! Maybe in the future! We're working on a way to quick provide free presets and similar perks. SageAudio.com

[@VSARecordsDelhi]

extra ordinary.

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching! SageAudio.com

[@soundcore183]

I asked chatgpt surprisingly the alternative for DC offset alignment was the voxengo elephant might be wrong. Don't know if DC filter works technically the same way as it's just a high-pass filter below 35Hz with phase shifts. I guess the solution would be to tune it manually and check for gain improvement. A dynamic alignment solution would be pi by sound radix. Have seen also doing the opposite effect in some demos using aux effect introducing asymmetrical waveforms with a waveshaper just before the reverb. Distortion is usually not desired but it can give that 'natural' vibe.

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching! A DC Offset filter works a little different than Izotope's RX plugin - RX uses phase rotation whereas a DC Offset filter will use a high-pass up to 10Hz to remove the issue. Also, I agree! The offset may not sound bad, so it's up to the engineer to decide if doing this phase rotation benefits the sound. SageAudio.com

[@russenduf]

Assymetrical waveforms do not occur because of DC offset. This asymmetry is due mainly to two things, the first being the relative phase relationships between the fundamental and different harmonics in a harmonically complex signal. The combination of different frequency signals with different phase relationships, results often in a asymmetrical waveform, and that waveform asymmetry often changes and evolves over time. The other element is that many acoustic sources inherently have a 'positive air pressure bias' because of the way the sound is generated. To talk or sing, we have to breathe out, and to play a trumpet, we have to blow air through the tubing. So, in these examples, there is inherently more energy available for the compression side of the sound wave than there is for the rarefaction side, and that can also contribute to an asymmetrical waveform.

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching and sharing your thoughts! All of what you said is very helpful and insightful! From my understanding, a DC offset can still cause this shifting, but you're definitely right - the more likely cause is the nature of the instrument. SageAudio.com

[@russenduf]

@@sageaudio you are great man, keep going. What I like in you is that you accept been corrected and that you never feel insulted like another smartass mixer on the net.... my nick name says it all...

[@jrhager84]

@@russenduf You must be a *riot* at parties...

[@russenduf]

@@jrhager84 only if Ι ve been challenged by a smartass....

[@davidasher22]

That first sentence of your comment is incorrect. DC offset can indeed cause asymmetrical waveforms. DC offset occurs when a waveform has a non-zero average voltage or current, which can result in an asymmetrical waveform. So, the presence of DC offset is one of the possible causes of waveform asymmetry. Everything else you said sound correct though.

[@echosynthe5i5]

In the Logic Pro Audio File Editor, select the audio file, then choose Functions > Remove DC Offset. Isn't it the same as Rx phase rotation? A quick test gives me different values.

[@elcantantejr1]

In Cubase, there is an option Remove DC offset. I think that is the same that Izotope. Don't?

[@sageaudio]

Slightly different! RX uses phase rotation, while a DC offset filter is a high-pass that attenuates up to 10Hz. SageAudio.com

[@elcantantejr1]

@@sageaudio Thank you!!

[@therealonetherealone]

hey I got a question do you phase alignment all your Vocal Tracks ? And what about Instruments and Drums make it sense on this 2 ?

[@sageaudio]

If I notice that an instrument has had its phase oriented to one side I will, but I don't feel the need to do it for everything.

[@therealonetherealone]

@@sageaudio ty

[@MisuAlexandru1]

at 6:15 do you guys really hear a difference? I've never heard of something like this. It seems to me like it's something to reduce harmonics/distorsion which i think is very hard to do (I mean, they're harmonics, they're a lot, they stack up). I don't know, I can't hear it, and it seems weird to me

[@roxasblues8225]

Holy

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching!

[@ServingMyJesus]

With all these plugins would one need a very good processor as this many would demand a lot on any processor?

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching! It can be taxing on the cpu, but if you working in 44.1kHz, or want to export some of the processing, then continue on the exported track, that would be a good option.

[@PetarMakesNoise]

Great stuff, I only have one remark which can bite a lot of people in the ass, and that's the Subtractive EQ based on the Key of the song, specifically cutting out frequencies that don't fit in a key. While this may maybe work for very simple arrangements and songs that are in one key and scale from start to finish, in my songs where I have multiple key changes, scales, modulations etc, vocal is singing in different registers etc, it would be insanity to do this based on one key. So I'd just skip it all together, and just apply dynamic eq on regions where I feel vocal is jumping out too much or making problems. Other than that, great chain, maybe an overkill for most of the recordings, but it's a great showcase on what can be done, and learning never stops :)

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching Petar and for sharing you're thoughts! I definitely agree - it wouldn't work well if you're changing keys often. It would take a lot of automation and at that point it probably isn't worth it haha. Thanks again!

[@noistv7865]

Fl got a sampler setting called “DC Offset”, does it have the same effect as the first step ?

[@sageaudio]

That'll create a high-pass filter up to about 10Hz, but the plugin I'm showing uses phase rotation to adjust the phase.

[@noistv7865]

@@sageaudio Good to know. Thank u 🤘🏿

[@wojtek987]

What RX is doing is probably applying an all-pass filter to shift the phase. The best way to eliminate it is to switch on adaptive mode. The same effect will occur if you use a phaser, but then you're stuck with the phaser sound on your vocal. And what he's removing is not DC offset btw

[@TopiHamalainen]

Dat anatomical multiband compression

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching! SageAudio.com

[@luisbarrera5740]

Can you do a rock or heavy metal vocal chain for the next one?

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching! Maybe in the future! SageAudio.com

[@forevercoold]

OTT had an update sage, you seem to be using older version 😊

[@sageaudio]

Thanks! I'll check that out!

[@Dbwj-so6mu]

The phase section at the start confused me, of all the master classes of mixing I’ve seen I’ve never seen any on the Engineers do that

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching! It's not a super vital step, but it can help reduce distortion later on. SageAudio.com

[@Verbose_5]

Would you be able to do a hip hop/rap vocal chain tutorial with UA plugins?

[@sageaudio]

Maybe not with just UAD plugins, but I could see doing a video on that would be cool!

[@Verbose_5]

@@sageaudio yeah maybe a mix! I am interested to see what compressor combo or strategies you would use mostly. I have the LA2A and 1176 but sometimes struggle to get a consistent sound i make hip hop/rap music so thats the sound i cater towards i also have a pultec eq i use a lot but shaping the sound is something i need more work on

[@a-ki-mm]

Sage is a Owl

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching!

[@rigel4211]

If u put that much auxilary tracks the sound will get doubled nd if 4 then it will get more louder " I didn't understand nd should we have to route all the auxilary channels nd main channel too' to the one bus that's what u mean buddy"

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching Rigel! Sorry, I don't understand what you mean

[@rigel4211]

@@sageaudio I'm a fl studio user so it would bit confusing' what do u mean by auxilary tracks by the way...

[@BeattunersTV]

Nice tricks but mixing vocal in solo or without music doesnt make sense…if the vocal can fit in the music or music can mask some freq of vocal..

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching and sharing your thoughts! I'll try to find some better examples for future videos. SageAudio.com

[@Verbose_5]

Have u mixed any major artist?

[@sageaudio]

I have not - mastered yes, but not mixed.

[@youtune_records_official]

what's the name of free plugin for phase

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching! Unfortunately I don't know of a free option - the image shown in the video is just a placeholder image I made. SageAudio.com

[@youtune_records_official]

@@sageaudio oh no problem. Your channel Is amazing ❤️

[@notezmusik]

How do your raw vocals have no harshness

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching! I thought they did, but maybe that's just to my ears.

[@notezmusik]

@@sageaudio i meannn it sounds cleann .. these are not your recordings correct ?

[@lassorb4752]

Cool edit pro can phase correcct

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching and sharing that!

[@fealow4983]

Some of your suggestions and methods seem a bit... Unnecessary? The point of doing any digital processing on a track is to help it sit in the mix and generally speaking we achieve that by listening for things that are causing the opposite of helping it to sit in the mix and reducing/taming them. Call me sceptical but, I highly doubt that you've ever sat their while listening to a rough mix and thought to yourself (without looking at a graphic eq)"Yes the disharmonious transient frequencies are causing this vocal to not sit in the mix I need to tame them". I don't think any one who does this for a living sits there on a daily basis with vocals and does this unless there was a huge issue during recording that caused these frequencies to be so overly present they have to be dealt with. If they're not an audible issue then I think it's more likely that you're taking away the natural character of a vocal, the mic and the room. The only real difference I heard after your processing of these disharmonious frequencies was that it sounded like a slight pitch correction had been added due to the in key frequencies being more present, so why not just use pitch correction to shift the frequencies anyway? It's also worth noting that we can't physically recognise transients as pitches due to how quickly they come into and out of existence, they do not interfere harmonically in any perceivable way. This is how things like kick and snare drums work, for certain genres and styles it can help to have a kick or snare "In tune" but ultimately unless the fundamental is purposefully sustained we're not going to perceive it as a pitch, much like how we're not going to perceive these disharmonious frequencies in vocals as dissonant. Also as someone else pointed out, this is all fairly pointless in solo, the vocal has to fit into an instrumental not an empty void.

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for watching and sharing your thoughts Fea Low! Although I appreciate everything you've detailed here, my opinions differ a bit. You're definitely right, I don't think many engineers use this method but that's part of what I enjoy about it - it creates a more balanced, in tune sounding vocal, that at least to me sounds more musical and fitting, and in a way that avoids the artifacts that come with tuning. But, I also tune all of my drums to be in the key of the song so maybe I'm just prone to overthinking it haha. For me I can usually tell when a drum isn't in the right key, and I always wish it had been tuned beforehand. In my opinion, small things like this that may seem unimportant add up in the long run. Again, I appreciate your thoughts - also for your last point, you're totally right, I need to show these steps in the context of a mix - getting copyright free material that isn't already processed is a challenge, but it would definitely make the videos more useful. SageAudio.com

[@bhaskararun1233]

13:57

[@joshuaschofield9599]

when will sage use source audio that isnt perfect? seems like all their tutorials have some of the best vocal recordings to work with.

[@sageaudio]

Sorry about that! I have to use what is available and won't trigger some type of copyright issue. Hopefully in the future we can build a library of more poorly recorded vocals. SageAudio.com

[@OGM_OriginalGameMusic]

They do say start at the source to be fair. The performance has to be good to begin with

[@goamusiclab]

Disappointing that after years of following this channel, we proceed to order mastering services, and our enquiries were ignored - form and email. Went to a more communicative competitor

[@sageaudio]

Thanks for reaching out! I'm very sorry to hear this - did you reach out to [e-mail] ?

[@hleet]

isn't it easier to drop AI on it ? neutron/nectar + soothe2 + gulfoss + lx480 for reverb ... Okay too expensive ...

[@sageaudio]

I haven't tried that plugin yet! I'll take a look

[@wuby3202]

Why would you do so much of the "harmonics" stuff when more than half the population wouldn't even notice it. Great video, but I think that half of the stuff there like some of those buses are completely useless.