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Vocal Take (What Am I Doing Wrong)


Johnbee58

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Thanks for the tips, Tezza.  I know what you're saying about the quality of my voice.  I'm in my 60s now but I took vocal lessons in 20s.  My voice was much better even 10 years ago.  In the passing years I've developed asthma and have lost control of being able to hold pitches.  I'm not serious anymore with this and it's just a hobby.  I would like to try what you said about singing UP to the mic.  I will have to buy a new mic stand for that because the current one I have does not have a counter weight (and I don't know if it would accept one) and placing the mic above me would result in the whole thing being front heavy.  So maybe I'll look into a new stand with a new boom and counter weight.  They're not that expensive.  I was also considering vocal lessons, but I don't want to make it a major investment.  You say a few will improve things.

😀JB

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12 hours ago, Optimus said:

I think perhaps you may need to come to terms with the reality of that is how your voice sounds. I have yet to meet anyone who is entirely happy with how their voice sounds, even good singers. As someone said in an earlier post, it's about context. It's amazing how perceptions change when you hear a voice as part of an ensemble.

Don't sweat it too much.

+1

 

I think I read recently where no less than Rob Halford said that Judas Priest's latest album was the first time he could stand the sound of his own voice.

 

ROB f-ing HALFORD!

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Where is the mic when you are recording? If it is real close, try moving it back. Some of the sound you don't like may be from close miking. If that doesn't help, try other mic positions, like Tezza suggests, but also try singing without focusing on the mic itself.

Dan

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On the technical side -if you have any chance- try experimenting with outboard preamps instead of the stock in your audio interface. It's amazing on how the sound change when you pair certain mic with different mic preamp. Take it for good and bad. In my case, I have many ordinary -under $500- mics (either condenser, dynamic or ribbon) that sound great when I pair them with different preamps. Usually, if I think I have the right mic on the right position and the room is ok, but I didn't quite satisfy with the result, the first thing I would do is to change the preamp and see if that helps.

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I was at a Taxi Road Rally where the guest speaker was the famous Beatles engineer, Geoff Emerick. He said John Lennon couldn't stand the sound of his own voice.

I can definitely say, I don't like my voice nearly as much as when I was in my 20s. I try to bring back that sound, but then I date my music! Gotta love what you do musically and just roll with it.

Edited by razor7music
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1 hour ago, razor7music said:

I was at a Taxi Road Rally where the guest speaker was the famous Beatles engineer, Geoff Emerick. He said John Lennon couldn't stand the sound of his own voice.

I can definitely say, I don't like my voice nearly as much as when I was in my 20s. I try to bring back that sound, but then I date my music! Gotta love what you do musically and just roll with it.

This is how my voice sounded back in 2006.  Those were the days

https://www.soundclick.com/html5/v4/player.cfm?songID=12733242

I was collaborating with an excellent french guitarist/composer.  He would send me a guitar part he came up with and I would finish it with lyrics and melody.  This is probably the best my voice ever sounded.

🙂JB

Edited by Johnbee58
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To me, it sounds like it is your technique. I am no pro singer but I am close to what you sound. Face it. We don't have that good a voice. Even when you (and I) are on key, it doesn't sound that good.  You sound like you are not singing correctly regarding the breathing and that kind of thing. You also sound like you are slightly straining to hit the notes. But you are on key. However, as I have found out, being on key doesn.t make a singing voice a good one.  It is very difficult to listen objectively without the music. Good luck.

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2 hours ago, TVR PRODUCTIONS said:

To me, it sounds like it is your technique. I am no pro singer but I am close to what you sound. Face it. We don't have that good a voice. Even when you (and I) are on key, it doesn't sound that good.  You sound like you are not singing correctly regarding the breathing and that kind of thing. You also sound like you are slightly straining to hit the notes. But you are on key. However, as I have found out, being on key doesn.t make a singing voice a good one.  It is very difficult to listen objectively without the music. Good luck.

Why don't YOU face it and speak for yourself!  Some encouragement I get from this forum.  I ask for advise on recording and I get "Your voice is no good.  That's telling me that I might as well give up.  I don't do this for money.  I write for fun and put my music up for free.  You're saying I might as well give up even doing that.   Do you say this just to be a trouble making troll?

🤬

Edited by Johnbee58
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I was looking around my area for a vocal coach today as per Tezza's fine advise.  I was looking into buying a new mic stand to allow for me to sing UP to the mic, but now I think I'll take a sledge hammer to all my gear because this troll come on and tells me not to bother.  I don't have that good of a voice.  Guess it would be futile to even TRY.  Well, TVR, you made my decision for me.  I'm DONE with music.  I don't do this for money.  I put my tunes up on the net for free.  I know I  don't have what it takes to make it pro, but I just want to have fun and do the best I can with it.  You have destroyed in one post all of what I've been working for the past 4 years on.  Thank you very much!

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5 minutes ago, Johnbee58 said:

I was looking around my area for a vocal coach today as per Tezza's fine advise.  I was looking into buying a new mic stand to allow for me to sing UP to the mic, but now I think I'll take a sledge hammer to all my gear because this troll come on and tells me not to bother.  I don't have that good of a voice.  Guess it would be futile to even TRY.  Well, TVR, you made my decision for me.  I'm DONE with music.  I don't do this for money.  I put my tunes up on the net for free.  I know I  don't have what it takes to make it pro, but I just want to have fun and do the best I can with it.  You have destroyed in one post all of what I've been working for the past 4 years on.  Thank you very much!

Yes, consider going to a vocal coach.  All the bands I was in used to hire one. Everyone including the sound man would go & participate.

I'd also learn how to handle critiques a bit better.

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6 minutes ago, Johnbee58 said:

I was looking around my area for a vocal coach today as per Tezza's fine advise.  I was looking into buying a new mic stand to allow for me to sing UP to the mic, but now I think I'll take a sledge hammer to all my gear because this troll come on and tells me not to bother.  I don't have that good of a voice.  Guess it would be futile to even TRY.  Well, TVR, you made my decision for me.  I'm DONE with music.  I don't do this for money.  I put my tunes up on the net for free.  I know I  don't have what it takes to make it pro, but I just want to have fun and do the best I can with it.  You have destroyed in one post all of what I've been working for the past 4 years on.  Thank you very much!

@TVR PRODUCTIONSNo.  I take this all back.  For once I'm going to stand up to trolls like you and tell you to shove it where the sun don't shine!  There have been people on this thread who have been very encouraging and gave me the best advise they could.  None of them put it so bluntly as you did and I believe you're just a troublemaker and I refuse to let you get me down!  I'm just doing this for fun.   You didn't have to put this the ignorant way you did.  As musicians and artists we should all encourage each other as best we can, whether we are pros or just amateurs.   I don't know what YOUR problem is regarding YOUR voice.  Maybe YOU should give up.  You should definitely give up giving people advise

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8 minutes ago, Hidden Symmetry said:

Yes, consider going to a vocal coach.  All the bands I was in used to hire one. Everyone including the sound man would go & participate.

I'd also learn how to handle critiques a bit better.

TVR wasn't a critique.  That was a PUT DOWN!  This is saying "You have no talent!  Just give up!"  But I'm not letting this idiot get to me.  He could've put it better, like Tezza.  That was a critique.  To say  "Face it.  You don't have a good voice"  is just an ignorant put down by someone who likes to troll and make trouble!

Edited by Johnbee58
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11 minutes ago, Johnbee58 said:

TVR wasn't a critique.  That was a PUT DOWN!  This is saying "You have no talent!  Just give up!"  But I'm not letting this idiot get to me.  He could've put it better, like Tezza.  That was a critique.  To say  "Face it.  You don't have a good voice"  is just an ignorant put down by someone who likes to troll and make trouble!

That was my point, he already got to you. That's his critique, good or bad. I'd just accept it & let it go.

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8 minutes ago, Hidden Symmetry said:

That was my point, he already got to you. That's his critique, good or bad. I'd just accept it & let it go.

Well, I admit, he did for a little while.  But I'm not going to except his viewpoint that I should just give up.   I've let people like him get to me before but not this time.  I'll take Tezza's fine advise and I'll, as you say, move on. Tezza is spot on.  In my 20s I had a good voice.  In college, I was encouraged by one of the choir coaches to join because he heard me sing in my overall audition to get into the school and he told me that the choir could use a tenor like mine.  That was 45 years ago and I never made it my profession.  I went a different way.  Now I'm almost 64 and have asthma, and I can hear all that Tezza is saying.  I have no pitch control anymore (it was better even 10 years ago) and I've forgotten how to sing from my diaphragm, like I was taught.  Maybe a coach can help me with these.  I'm not expecting to make it to "America's Got talent".  I know I'll NEVER be of that caliber anymore.  I just want to improve the best I can.  I'll never be perfect.  I just want to be better, and I think I can improve.  Encouragement is nice.  So is CONSTRUCTIVE criticism.  But to just be told more or less, "Give up.  Your voice is no good"!  I don't accept that.  It can get better.  Not perfect, but better.  My skin is getting thicker.  Thanks, HS

🙂JB

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3 minutes ago, Hidden Symmetry said:

Sure, now funnel that frustration & energy. Let it inspire a new idea, track or song.

HS.  You and I are overlapping.  I was just finishing my last post as your new one came up.

😁JB

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4 minutes ago, Hidden Symmetry said:

Sure, now funnel that frustration & energy. Let it inspire a new idea, track or song.

Great idea.  I think my next opus will be about being a struggling amateur singer/songwriter who gets no respect (ala Rodney Dangerfield)😉😁

JB

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