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Post subject: Vocals through a MF?
Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2014 4:33 pm
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Hi guys

I was just wondering if anyone has every recorded/sang live vocals through a MF?

Not sure if it's my office environment (sux for recording, surely), trying to get a good vocal processed through my digital mixer, or even the Fostex - all seem.... to fail.

Just a thought so I'd see if anyone ever done it.

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Post subject: Re: Vocals through a MF?
Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2014 5:04 pm
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Quote:
all seem.... to fail

Define "fail" ? Do you mean you get no sound, unintelligible sound, distorted but intelligible sound, etc?

What settings are you using on the Mustang Floor?

What are you trying to achieve by sending the vocal audio through the Mustang Floor (rather than eg connecting the microphone direct to your mixer, recording device, etc)?


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Post subject: Re: Vocals through a MF?
Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2014 5:48 pm
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I don't like what I hear.

It sounds like meat tastes with no spice lol

I'm thinking I might not have a good EQ on it.

I guess what I was thinking about the MF was to use it as sort of a "pre-amp" type thing.

In the Fostex manual it advises to use a mic pre-amp even though the Fostex has some sort of digital pre-amp.

I tried it, still sounds bad.
I dunno. Maybe it's the mic. Maybe I shoulda went with the SM58 tried & true.
Thought I'd like the one I bought because it wasn't so picky with proximity like the SM58 is.

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Post subject: Re: Vocals through a MF?
Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2014 7:44 pm
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Quote:
I don't like what I hear

Well that's obvious, but unless you describe more objectively exactly what you're hearing, it's very hard to offer help.

Quote:
I might not have a good EQ on it

So adjust the EQ on the Mustang Floor? Although starting with everything at "12 o'clock" ought to be reasonable.

Repeating my earlier question: what settings are you using on the Mustang Floor?

Quote:
it advises to use a mic pre-amp

The Mustang Floor is not a mic pre-amp. It is designed for processing a guitar signal. A vocal mic signal will have a different amplitude and frequency characteristic. You will never get a perfectly clean mic signal through this unit. However (from my own experience having tried a microphone with a Mustang), you should be able to easily get a reasonable sound without really having to try too hard with any settings.

Quote:
Maybe it's the mic

What mic do you have? Does the mic have its own battery, and if so have you tried replacing it? Does your mic require phantom power?

I think you need to check your mic's details more and determine what it needs to be plugged into, and then see if your Fostex has a suitable input. However the fact that your Fostex says you should use a separate mic pre-amp suggests your Fostex doesn't have a proper mic input. In which case I think you should go and buy a proper mic pre-amp of whatever type your specific mic requires. If you want it to sound completely right, you'll have to use the right equipment. If you want to use the Mustang Floor, you'll have to accept this isn't meant to be a mic pre-amp and whereas (as I assert above) you should get a reasonable sound, it won't be 100% perfect.


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Post subject: Re: Vocals through a MF?
Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2014 6:09 am
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The mic is a AKG D5

It is XLR and no phantom power to my knowledge.

The Fostex has XLR inputs on 2 channels.
It even has a 3 position switch to offer a "classic, warm" and some other sound I cannot recall atm as a sort of "pre-amp". Though, again, I did not hear much of a pre-amp. It seemed more to just effect the tone/eq of what I was hearing.

Just to clarify, I have NOT attempted to use the mic with the MF.
It would need an XLR to 1/4" input adaptor to even attempt.

Before I went out to buy one I thought I'd ask to see if anyone has successfully done such a thing.
I am aware of what you are saying, SCOTT UK, regarding the signal type associated with a guitar/mic and aware that the MF is set up around an electric guitar signal not even an acoustic type guitar signal.
But I have the MF so I thought, eh, why not try :D

But, I believe it's probably not going to work out.
So I'm going to look into finding a forum that caters to home recording/vocalist type threads and see what I can dig up.

I put up a song on my soundcloud page the other day with some recent vocals on it.
If you wanted to give it a listen you may be able to identify the problems I'm having.
Other than a couple of times I clipped on a high note, which I'm already aware of :D

Other than that, if there is nobody that has attempted the MF vocal processing idea I guess I'll have to digress as this is a Fender Equipment forum and not a vocal forum.

Thank you guys though.

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Post subject: Re: Vocals through a MF?
Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2014 8:06 am
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SKcoppertele wrote:
Sound like you need some compression and reverb. they are the spices. Of course, season to flavor. But that would be my starting point. Then you can mess with EQ.


Just checked out your soundcloud.

15???

Kid, haha :D, you got some good stuff on there!

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Post subject: Re: Vocals through a MF?
Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2014 8:22 am
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I just got a TC Helicon Mic Mechanic and think its great. It does reverb, echo, auto-eq, compression and even a bit of pitch correction. All in a pedal that I park on my pedal board alongside my guitar pedals. I am running a very old Shure Prologue 10L-LC Low-Impedance Dynamic microphone through the Mic Mechanic and into a basic Alto 6-channel mixer. Works great for a hobbyist like me.

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Post subject: Re: Vocals through a MF?
Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2014 11:21 am
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I think whoever it was who suggested compression was right on.
Compress and raise the level overall.
The lowest parts (which you stayed at most) were not loud enough to cut through clearly...
The loudest parts were too loud!
Granted you need some variation to give it some depth and feeling.
The vocal EQ, to my amateur ears, wasn't too bad... possibly punch up the mids. But I was listening on my work PC which don't have an ideal sound system.

I liked the one song I listened to though. Good job!

Anywho, take this with a grain of salt. I suck at recording. Just my humble opinion! :mrgreen:


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Post subject: Re: Vocals through a MF?
Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2014 4:41 pm
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Quote:
I did not hear much of a pre-amp

Often a pre-amp doesn't actually amplify anything - it is "unity gain." So do not be surprised by this. The purpose of such a pre-amp is to provide impedance matching, electrical isolation/buffering, frequency-response correction (cf record player pre-amps), conversion between balanced and unbalanced signals, phantom power, etc.

As for XLR: note there are multiple different ways of wiring-up XLR plugs. Check what connections your mic has (as in, what electrical signal should be on each pin), and whether these match the connections on the Fostex's XLR plugs. Then make sure your XLR cable connects the right pins at each end - there might be a crossover, there might not, and so on. If any part of this is wrong, you might still get sound but it won't be the right sound.

Quote:
It would need an XLR to 1/4" input adaptor

You can do this with just a cable that any audio shop should have. Or you can make one. Connect the XLR 'hot' (usually pin 2 but check what your mic has) to the jack plug tip; connect the XLR 'cold' (usually pin 3 etc) to the jack plug sleeve; connect the XLR 'ground' (pin 1) to the jack plug chassis (which will probably also be the sleeve).


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Post subject: Re: Vocals through a MF?
Posted: Thu Dec 04, 2014 11:00 am
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I'm going to look into a vocal effects processor doo dad for better reverb and some compression.

My mixer has a "gain" knob on it. I'm gonna fool around with it and make myself a little DIY sound shield thing I saw on Youtube to maybe help also.

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