making vocals sound a little more exciting

[clare_bear]

Any tips on making vocals sound just a little more exciting and dynamic? Is an Exciter/Enhancer suitable for this sort of thing?

I don't want a massive change to the vocals, they just need a little something.

Cheers

[Fwonk]

I presume you're doing this on a PC?

An Exciter would do the trick quite simply. But it's also a difficult combination of EQ, reverb and compression that do it.

And I'm far from being an expert in this field! If JOBU is still around, he's the go-to man.

[clare_bear]

Thanks, Fwonk. Yeah, sorry on PC.

Tracktion 2's 'Final Mix' mastering effect, seems to have helped a bit. I'll mess with the EQ, reverb etc a bit more.

Cheers

[Fwonk]

Try the following (free) VST plugins alongside the reverb, eq and compression...

Dominion
X-Cita
Stardust - I've not tried this one, but it seems to do everything you're asking for.

[clare_bear]

Originally Posted by Fwonk

Try the following (free) VST plugins alongside the reverb, eq and compression...

Dominion
X-Cita
Stardust - I've not tried this one, but it seems to do everything you're asking for.

I'll give them a go, thanks very much.

[Gojirosan]

Originally Posted by Fwonk

X-Cita

Yeah, that's great! I think I actually used that plug-in on that track of yours I remixed Clare!

[clare_bear]

Originally Posted by Gojirosan

Yeah, that's great! I think I actually used that plug-in on that track of yours I remixed Clare!

I'll try that one first then! I'll give it a go a bit later, hopefully. Cheers

[funkfizz]

Have you tried double tracking your vocals?

Double tracking involves recording the vocal twice. It's crucial that each take is tight as a ducks arse, & as close as is possible to the other take.

Then have each panned on opposite sides of the stereo spectrum. I usually go for 9 o' clock, & 3 o' clock.


Works for some types of stuff. doesn't for others.

[clare_bear]

Originally Posted by funkfizz

Have you tried double tracking your vocals?

Double tracking involves recording the vocal twice. It's crucial that each take is tight as a ducks arse, & as close as is possible to the other take.

Then have each panned on opposite sides of the stereo spectrum. I usually go for 9 o' clock, & 3 o' clock.


Works for some types of stuff. doesn't for others.

Cheers.

I have double tracked the vocals and also have some panned slightly left and right (and slightly off key) to make it all sound a bit bigger. But there just seems to be something a little lacking. I'll keep at it!

Any suggestions, anyone, where I should try the exciter in the effects - I've got EQ ->compression ->reverb -> delay at the moment. Any suggestions?

Cheers

[de la Mancha]

It's not free, but at $60 it's not expensive either and it's got a whole range of nice presets to try out if you're not a tweaker. It has even rescused my crummy vocals free demo version too

http://www.voxengo.com/product/voxformer/

If you're looking for free, as well as the X-cita, you might also want to try a little camelcrusher

http://www.camelaudio.com/camelcrusher.php

British Clean preset is a nice place to start to give an edge on vocals