A Syllabus to Learn How to Record Your Own Music

Recording Your Own Vocals: A Comprehensive Guide

I did a crazy thing. Last year I taught a course on everything I know about recording vocals in Pro Tools - it was expensive. The crazy part is that I've decided to now give it away for free. 

Vocal Recording Simplified is currently available on my YouTube channel. I don't know if I'll keep it free forever, so this is probably your sign that it's time to master this skill now! 

This course covers everything you'll need to learn about recording vocals in Pro Tools, and this article serves as a detailed guide to the topics we'll explore. You can find the link to the course at the bottom of this article.

[link to the course: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeoLC0UqQLXj08qLkJUwFsRig7gnWmgz4 ]

1. Getting Record Ready

• Recording Studio Ingredients: Learn what essential equipment and setup you'll need.
• Kimera’s Recording Studio Buying Guide: Tips on choosing the right gear.
• Microphone Etiquette: Best practices for using your microphone effectively.

2. Opening a Session

• How to Install Pro Tools: Step-by-step installation guide.
• Proper Settings for Launching a Session: Get your session set up correctly from the start.
• Setting Up Tracks: Learn how to create and manage tracks in your session.
• Skipping to the Fun Part: I’ll run you through a crash course in recording to get you laying down vocals right away!

3. Foundations in Pro Tools

• Quick Tour of Pro Tools: Familiarize yourself with the interface and essential tools.
• Track Types: Understanding the different track types and their uses.
• Nudging: Adjusting audio clips with precision.

4. Mix Window

• Signal Flow: The path where sound travels within the DAW. Understanding how to control this flow is crucial for effective recording and mixing.

5. Plugins

• Plugin Types: Explore EQ, Compression, Limiter, Gate, De-esser, Stereo Imager, Multi-band Compression, Tuning, Reverb, Delay, Chorus, Saturation, Pitch and Time Shift, and Reverse.
• Brand Recommendations: Insights on which brands to consider.

6. Templates

• Template Creation: How to create and save your own templates for efficient session management.
• Kimera’s Template: Tour of Kimera's personal template setup.

7. Record, Automate, Bounce!

• Automation: Learn how to use automation to enhance your mixes.
• Bouncing: Render your session into a single file for distribution. Get an understanding of sample and bit rate, and mono vs interleaved.
• Commit Function: Learn how to render tracks to free up processing power.
• CPU Optimization: Techniques to optimize your computer’s performance to handle heavy sessions.
• Quick Key Commands: Master essential shortcuts to speed up your workflow.

10. The Performance

• Warmups: Techniques to prepare your voice before recording.
• Approaching the Mic: Tips on mic technique to capture the best performance.
• Nailing the Performance: Strategies to achieve a compelling vocal performance.
• Styling Tips: How to add flair to your performance.
• Getting the Best Comp: Techniques for creating the best vocal comp.
• Arrangement: Arranging your tracks for a polished final product.

11. Comping and Editing

• Comping: Techniques for assembling the best takes.
• Editing: Including trimming, fades, crossfades, and fixing mouth clicks.

12. Time Aligning and Perfecting Pitch

• Waves Tune Live: Using this plugin for real-time pitch correction.
• Autotune: Implementing pitch correction for a polished sound.
• Melodyne: Advanced pitch correction and manipulation.

13. Mixing

• What is Mixing: An overview of the mixing process.
• Levels: Balancing the levels of different tracks.
• Panning: Placing sounds in the stereo field.
• Stereo Wideners: Techniques for creating a wider stereo image.
• Time-Based Effects: Utilizing effects like reverb and delay.
• Spatial Audio: Creating immersive audio experiences.
• The Vocal Chain: Understanding how to process vocals from start to finish.
• Mastering Chain: The final touches for a polished track.
• Deeper Dive on Compression: Advanced techniques for using compression effectively.

14. Special Effects

• Faking a Vocoder: Simulating vocoder effects without a vocoder.
• Soundtoys: Creative effects from the Soundtoys suite.
• Baby Audio: Unique effects from Baby Audio plugins.
• Output: Innovative effects from Output.
• Devious Machines: Infiltrator: Exploring the Devious Machines plugin for creative sound design.

Troubleshooting

Just have a humble affinity to accepting when things go wrong, and know that you have the power to figure things out and fix them. Trouble sniper you are! YouTube is our bestest friend, but sometimes she’s distracted and we just gotta try to rephrase things til she gives us the right result. Try typing things in search bars and rephrasing them in a way til you find results that might be what your problem is. Gearspace is a forum that people help each other solve problems on (and or just like to hear themselves talk, but eh, you can get answers there sometimes), as is Reddit.

I don’t have kids yet, but I can’t wait to teach them how to figure things out. Maybe I’m overly excited about this epiphany, but when I had the thought to figure out how to figure things out, new universes just opened up for me. If you have a question, tirelessly pursue its answer. Magic.

Conclusion

While you’re diving into these topics, you'll discover the endless possibilities that recording technology offers. You’ll learn effective rules and how to bend them creatively. Always remember to breathe and smile, and celebrate each understanding as a major victory. The ability to record yourself will open more doors than you can imagine.

If you feel ready (kinda) start with Lesson 1 of Vocal Recording Simplified  on YouTube here: