6 Steps To Stellar Vocal Tracks

Roy Thompson Audio Page 1 of 4
6 Steps to Stellar Vocal Tracks
#1. Have a Vision

Great vocals don’t appear out of thin air!
They’re designed and executed with intention — with vision.
Ask yourself (or your client):
What are we striving for, creatively and technically? This could include lyrics,
melody, range, tone, emotion…all the way to effects and mixing.
Be specific and commit to it. Write it down!
Base everything else off of that vision.
#2. Record Multiple Takes

Get the vocalist in the zone — focused on the vision and warmed up.
Every singer works differently, but I find recording at least one take from top to
bottom is the best starting point:
• You’ll get a better feel for the song overall.

• You’ll find out where all the trouble areas are.
• You’ll give the singer a chance to warm up (and remember the lyrics)
You can record line by line, section by section, or continue with full takes.
Whatever you decide, record at least 3 solid takes for each vocal.
The key is to SAVE EVERY TAKE — don’t delete anything!
There will certainly be some bum takes…but having a few alternates to choose
from will help with step #3.
#3. Comp the Perfect Track

Listen back to EVERY take. I mean it! You’re panning for gold here.
Pick and choose the best parts of each take to copy/paste on one master take.
Comp large sections if possible, but don’t be afraid to comp minute details as
well — a word, a syllable, a breath, a sibilant or constant sound (S, SH, F, T, TH
CH, etc..)
Attention to detail is crucial. Listen for the right:
• Emotion
• Tone
• Pronunciation
• Pitch
• Timing
Lots of factors to consider — use your judgement and refer to the overall vision!
Bonus Tip: keep the unused/alternate takes in case you need to revert or swap
a line later on (…or use them for doubles!)
#4. Cleaning & Editing

Listen for distracting elements in the recording. Take the time to:
• Trim dead air and noise

• Reduce deep breaths or sibilant sounds (or comp more appealing ones)
• Add fade ins — to breaths, harsh “S” sounds, etc…
• Add fade outs — to decaying notes, exhales, etc…
• Add crossfades — to comps and punches
• At the very least batch fade EVERYTHING — to avoid clicks and pops
Having comped the vocal, it’s inevitable that some of the timing will be rough.
Nudge the comps around until they feel good — with each comp landing where
they naturally should. No flams or stuttered entrances.
Of course, time quantizing may be needed aside from just adjusting the comps.
Again, use your judgment and consider the vision.
Bonus Tip: back up the final comp & edited vocal on a new playlist or track…
then consolidate the vocal into one clip. Looking good!
#5. Pitch Correcting

You can either touch up just a few spots or perform open heart surgery!
Approach tuning vocals like comping. Be critical and detailed. How can you
better serve the final production with tuning?
Apply it as needed, but consider the genre’s expectations.
Anything Top 40 — the listener is going to expect pitch perfect vocals. Indie or
folk, less so…
I prefer to use Melodyne to fix any obvious pitch errors…then spell check with
Auto-Tune EFX. This method also makes it easy to switch between light and
heavy tuning with smooth results. It’s a 1-2 punch of efficiency!
#6. Mixing & Effects

Say it with me now…what was the vision!?! The sky is the limit here.
…and to be fair, I can’t tell you what to specifically to do, other than:
Shoot for a vocal that fits well within the rest of the mix — clear and present…
then add effects to design your signature vocal “sound.”
Make it special. Make it memorable.
Mixing:
• Volume & Panning — can you HEAR the vocals?

• EQ — not muffled, not boxy, not honky, not harsh, not shrill
• Compression — is the vocal level consistent?
• De-essing — not overly sibilant or piercing
Effects:
• Chorusing / Pitch shifting — for density and vibe

• Distortion — for character or effect
• Reverb / Delay — give the vocal dimension and space
There you have it! Thanks for downloading the guide.

Now, it’s time to put these tricks to use!
Go record some vocals and start editing!! Let me know how it goes!
Roy Thompson
[email protected]

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Roy Thompson Audio Page 1 of 4

#1. Have a Vision

They’re designed and executed with intention — with vision.

Ask yourself (or your client):

Be specific and commit to it. Write it down!

Base everything else off of that vision.

#2. Record Multiple Takes

• You’ll get a better feel for the song overall.

The key is to SAVE EVERY TAKE — don’t delete anything!

#3. Comp the Perfect Track

Attention to detail is crucial. Listen for the right:

#4. Cleaning & Editing

• Trim dead air and noise

#5. Pitch Correcting

Apply it as needed, but consider the genre’s expectations.

#6. Mixing & Effects

Make it special. Make it memorable.

• Volume & Panning — can you HEAR the vocals?

• Chorusing / Pitch shifting — for density and vibe

There you have it! Thanks for downloading the guide.

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