Rob Williams - The 10 Fatal Vocal Production Mistakes PDF

The 10 Fatal Vocal Production Mistakes
! ©2014 Rob Williams - ProSoundFormula.com, All Rights Reserved

The 10 Fatal Vocal Production

Mistakes
“The 10 common mistakes you MUST avoid in order to get GREAT
sounding vocal tracks in your productions”
By Rob Williams
©2014 Rob Williams

ProSoundFormula.com
UltimateVocalFormula.com
All Rights Reser ved
! ©2014 Rob Williams - ProSoundFormula.com, All Rights Reserved

Why this is so
important:
The shor t answer : Vocals matter.
For any kind of music that features vocals, ALL the listener’s attention is on
the vocals.
The average listener may not even be able to distinguish the various
instruments that make up a track, but they can tell you immediately whether they
like or dislike the vocals.
Sure, the singer plays a BIG role in that. But even the BEST singer’s in the
world rely on ‘production magic’ to make them shine.
What you’re about to read is not a collection of random / made up / cute

tips, it’s the distilled knowledge and wisdom from almost a decade of producing
music professionally.
This repor t is NOT meant to be seen as ‘negative’. I’m NOT tr ying to make
you feel bad about the things you may be doing wrong.
Let me put it this way… Imagine you were going on hike, a tough hike, up a
mountain you had never been up before. How valuable would it be for you to
know the places where there’s danger? – The places where many people fall and
hur t themselves and don’t end up making it to the top.
If you knew where these dangerous places were, you would be aware of
them and you could avoid them.
That’s my intention and reason for writing this shor t book – to show you
the ways that most people ruin their vocal tracks, without even being aware of
where they’re going wrong.
! ©2014 Rob Williams - ProSoundFormula.com, All Rights Reserved 3

Obviously, there’s no ways I can teach you EVERYTHING there is to know

about producing vocals in such a shor t book, but I CAN teach you the common,
often easily avoidable, mistakes that destine most vocal productions to fail.
I’ve found that when learning something new, you’re often so overwhelmed
by ALL the different things you need to know, that it’s difficult to remember
everything.
It’s impossible to get EVERYTHING in your head right away.
So what I’ve found to be more useful, par ticularly when you’re star ting out,
is a list of things NOT to do.
This gives you room to play and experiment with the confidence that you’re
not committing any serious mistakes that could undermine all the things you’re
doing right.
(…And it’s much easier to remember the 10 things to avoid, than the 150
things that you need to do!)
Producing GREAT sounding vocals is about ‘getting it right’ THROUGHOUT

the production process – From recording to mixing – Each step builds on the
next. Without a great vocal recording, you can not have a great vocal mix.
So I’ve divided this book into two sections, highlighting the TOP 5 mistakes
made in each:
Section 1: Vocal Recording Mistakes

Section 2: Vocal Mixing Mistakes
Just by avoiding these 10 common mistakes, you’ll be ahead of 99% of

people – I can’t tell you how many “PROFESSIONALS” I still come across that
break these rules.
Enough waffle, let’s get star ted.
I hope you’ll take the wisdom found in this shor t book and put it to good
use to make your vocals, and your songs, sound GREAT.
– Rob Williams

“The most impor tant thing about recording, no matter where you are, is
that music comes first. Everything else is secondary”

– Patrick Leonard

Contents
8
Part 1: Vocal Recording Mistakes

8
Vocal Recording Mistake #1
“Lack of preparation”
9
“Bad room acoustics”

11
“Bad mic positioning”

14
“Not using a pop filter”

19
“Bad headphone mix”

20


22
Part 2: Vocal Mixing Mistakes

22
Vocal Mixing Mistake #1
“Not fixing problems”

23
“Processing vocals in solo”

25
“Vocals not sitting in the mix”

27
“Using compression to balance vocals”

29
“Over processing vocals”

30
Summary checklist
32
Closing
37

Part 1: Vocal
Recording Mistakes

“Lack of preparation”
This may sound trivial, but good preparation is ESSENTIAL to getting a great
recording.
How many times have you gotten into studio, excited to record some
tracks, only to spend the next couple of HOURS just trying to get everything
working?
Some cable doesn’t work, the headphone mix isn’t right, there’s a problem
with the session file – or any number of other things that seem to go wrong in
studio.
Well, by the time you EVENTUALLY get star ted, you’re so exhausted /
frustrated / annoyed, that it’s difficult to really give your BEST performance –
whether that’s the vocals or any other instrument.
Without proper preparation, the technical frustrations that come along with
vir tually every recording can kill off passion, creativity, and enjoyment, before
you’ve even hit the record button.
Lack of preparation is one of the surest ways to ruin a recording before its
even begun.
It’s just the nature of recording – there’s a LOT of stuff to prepare, and
there’s a LOT of things that can, and often do, go wrong.
Obviously, we can’t predict or prevent ever ything, but we can at least

prepare everything that can be prepared.
When it comes to music, it's all about capturing ENERGY and EMOTION –
and waiting around for ages while someone tries to find a mic cable or figure out
how to record on the right track, is NOT ver y inspiring.
Too many recordings are doomed to fail before they've even begun, just
because there hasn't been the proper preparation.

And when it comes to vocals, it's even MORE impor tant, because you can't
hide anything – If a vocalist is tired, frustrated, or simply not in the mood, that
WILL come through in the song.
Ok, I think you get the message here – it’s simple:
Make sure that everything that can be prepared IS prepared BEFORE

star ting a recording.
So what SHOULD we prepare when it comes to a vocal recording?
I like to get EVERYTHING set up, tested, and ready to record BEFORE the
singer even steps foot in the room.
So that means, getting ever ything plugged in, testing the mic, finding the best
place in the room to put the singer, setting up the recording session, getting the
headphone mix working, and doing a rough balance to make sure the singer can
hear themselves and all the impor tant elements in the mix.
One final tip – If you ARE the singer, then I suggest separating the setup
from the actual recording session – even if you just take a few minutes break. This
just helps you to step out of the ‘technical’ mindset and into the musical
performing role.
Remember, recording may involve a lot of technical stuff, but at the end of
the day it’s all about CAPTURING EMOTION.
By preparing all the technical stuff in advance, you give yourself the BEST
chance possible of capturing a really GREAT, emotional performance.
“By preparing all the technical stuff in advance, you

give yourself the BEST chance possible of capturing a
really GREAT, emotional performance.”


“Bad room acoustics”

You can’t separate the sound of someone’s voice, from the sound of the
room they’re in – they become ONE sound.
Unless you’re recording in an anechoic chamber (dead booth), it’s critical

that we sor t out the acoustics BEFORE recording, because EVERYTHING is going
to build on top this.
To use an extreme example; If you record yourself singing in the bathroom,

what’s it going to sound like?
A BATHROOM.
The bathroom is the perfect example of what we DON’T want.
Bathrooms are generally pretty small, have a lot of reflective surfaces, and
vir tually nothing to absorb the sound. Not a good combination.
So what is the ideal recording space for vocals?
It depends on what you’re going for.
Classical styles tend to benefit from bigger rooms with longer, natural reverb
– such as an old church.
More modern styles, such as rap, tend to work best recorded in a space with
very little reverb – such as a vocal dead booth.
I tend to go for somewhere inbetween, not too dead, and not too
reverberant.
Remember, if it’s too dr y, you can always ADD reverb afterwards.

But if there’s too much reverb on the recording, there’s NOTHING you can
do to get rid of that, and in fact, processing such as compression will make the
reverb MORE prominent.
In general, I find it’s best to record a little dr yer as it gives you more options.
Ok, so I’m sure you’re aware of the fact that acoustics matter, but what if
you’re stuck with a room that doesn’t sound great and there’s nothing you can
do about it?
Well, there’s almost always SOMETHING you can do about it… let’s look at
the options.
1. Acoustic treatment
There are of course many professional options when it comes to acoustic

treatment, and you may want to do some research on this if you’re serious about
getting the best sound possible.
If you’re in quite a small room, there are acoustic treatment kits available
which are pretty affordable and will solve your acoustic problems for good.
The general rule is: “The smaller, the deader”
That is, the smaller the room, the more you want to deaden the
reverberation to avoid it sounding boxy.
Because the walls are so close together, small rooms have a lot of early
refections which bounce back into the mic.
Larger spaces don’t have as much of a problem with early reflections, but
they do often have a problem with long reverb times.
If you don’t have the budget for professional acoustic treatment, then
mattresses and duvets can definitely help.
Don’t overdo it though – the problem with putting up lots of blankets is that
it dampens the HIGH FREQUENCIES but does nothing for the lower frequencies.
This can lead to dull / muffled sounding vocal recordings which lack
presence.

2. Mic positioning
I cover this in the next section; Vocal Recording Mistake #3, “Bad mic
positioning”
3. Find a better room
The most obvious solution is to simply FIND a room that sounds good.
It’s not that hard, most living rooms make great recording spaces because
they’re generally a medium to large sized room, and they usually have furniture in
which dampens and diffuses the sound.
In most cases, the ideal space is a "neutral" sounding room – like the average
living room I just described above.
With recording setups being very mobile these days, it's wor th the effor t of
moving your rig out of your little bedroom into a more open space like your
living room, just to capture the vocals – or, simply get a long mic cable and
headphone cable and run it through to a better sounding room, if you’ve got one
in your house.
The fact is, a bad recording will NEVER sound great, no matter what you do.
The best you can possibly do is fix some of the problems, but it'll never be
GREAT.
So basically, you're just making MORE work for yourself if you don't get it
right up front.
Bottom line: It's wor th the extra time and effor t to find a good sounding
space to record your vocal tracks in.
“Bottom line: It's worth the extra time and effort to

find a good sounding space to record your vocal tracks
in.”

“Bad mic positioning”

Most people set up the mic, aim it at the singer, and press record – they
NEVER even consider that mic positioning could make a difference.
The interesting thing is that if you see a “pro” setting up for a vocal
recording session, it seems like they’re doing exactly the same thing – but there’s
actually MANY factors that they’re taking into consideration, they’ve just done it
for so long that it’s second nature to them.
So let me give you a quick crash course in what’s actually going on in their
head, and the main factors to consider when you’re setting up your mic…
Believe it or not, just where and how you position the mic can affect:
• Whether the recording has a clear low end or a boomy low end
• How dr y or reverberant the voice sounds
• Phasing issues
• The way the singer’s voice sounds – present, nasal, bassy, etc.
The fact is, WHERE you position the mic in the room, and HOW you
position it with relation to the singer, can both make a significant difference to
the sound of a vocal recording.
Let’s have a quick look at the two factors to consider :
1.The room
As we discussed in the previous section, acoustics play a big role in the

sound you capture, but even a great room can lead to a not so great recording
with poor mic positioning.
Firstly, we want to stay away from the corners of the room, as this will
accentuate the bass and can lead to a boomy sounding vocal recording.

We also want to stay away from the edges of the room, as this can cause
early reflections into the mic which can lead to all kinds of phasing issues. I tr y to
stay at LEAST 3 feet from any wall, and preferably no less than 5 feet.
Basically, I try and position the mic toward the middle of the room, but off-
center.
You’ll often find standing waves in the middle of two parallel walls, so just
move a couple of feet off from the center.
2.The singer
Where you aim the mic at the singer DOES make a difference to the sound.
If you’ve spent any time miking up various instruments, you would have
noticed that where you aim the mic, and how close or far you place it, can both
make quite a difference to how that instrument sounds on the recording.
The same is true for vocals.
If you aim the mic as someone’s head, you’re going to capture a thinner,
more present sound.
If you aim the mic down towards the vocalist’s chest, you’re going to capture
a warmer, fuller sound.
So, which is the BEST way?
That depends on the singer, and what you’re going for in the par ticular song,
but let me tell you what I tend to find works best…
9 times out of 10 I’ll place the mic just a little higher than the singer’s mouth
– to get them to lift their head, open their vocal chords, and sing up and out.
I’ll then aim the mic slightly downward toward their chest so that I’m
capturing both the fuller chest sound, as well as the more present head sound.
I find this gives the best, most balanced results most of the time.

Let me take two diagrams straight out of my Ultimate Vocal Formula

program to illustrate to you how mic positioning affects the sound…
This first illustration shows how the angle of the mic can make a difference:

This diagram illustrates how mic distance plays a role in the sound of the
vocal recording, and differs depending on the application:

It’s beyond the scope of this book to go into detail about all the various
positions, but I wanted to at least give you a good illustration of how the sound
changes based on where you place the mic in relation to the singer.
Of course, the best way to learn and experience this for yourself is to TRY it
yourself.
Set up a mic, put on a set of headphones so that you can hear your voice,
and move around while noticing the subtle differences.
…If you just want the simple tried and tested method, MOST of the time I
set up the mic EXACTLY as I show in the first diagram, “Standard Lead / Backing
Vocal Miking” .
– Just thought I’d save you all the effor t of having to figure it out yourself :)
“The fact is, WHERE you position the mic in the

room, and HOW you position it with relation to the
singer, can both make a significant difference to the
sound of a vocal recording.”

“Not using a pop

filter”
As obvious as this may seem to many people, I HAD to include this one
because I STILL hear recordings where someone hasn’t used a pop filter.
(If you already use a pop filter, you can go ahead and skip this one :)
Not using a pop filter is vir tually GUARANTEED to ruin a vocal recording.
If you’re not familiar with what a pop filter is, it’s that little round screen you
see in front of studio mics.
Its job is to stop wind from the singer’s mouth distor ting the capsule, which
is only really a problem with plosives such as “p” and “b”.
If you put your hand in front of your mouth and say the word “POP!”, you’ll
feel air hitting your hand. It’s this wind that can cause horrible distor tion in a
vocal recording – and once it’s recorded, it CAN’T be removed.
It’s quite simple really, if you don’t have one, go out and buy yourself a pop
filter IMMEDIATELY. It’s not even optional, if you want professional sounding
vocals, you MUST use a pop filter. (Unless you’re recording classical vocals)
How do you position it? Simple. Just place it about 2 inches in front of the
mic and you’re good to go.
“It’s not even optional, if you want professional

sounding vocals, you MUST use a pop filter.”

“Bad headphone mix”

If you’re the engineer and you’re recording a singer, you often just want to
star t recording, so as long as the singer can hear themselves that should be fine,
right?
NO!!
The headphone mix is possibly the most over-looked, and underestimated

element of getting a great vocal recording.
The headphone mix that the singer listens to could be THE MOST
impor tant aspect of recording vocals. It can affect whether they sing sharp or
flat, and whether they'll give their best performance.
An inspired singer will do more for getting a great recording than any fancy
mic or piece of gear, and the headphone mix plays a CRITICAL role in making
them feel par t of the song.
Here are a couple of things to keep an eye out for when setting up a
headphone mix:
1. Too much low end can throw off the vocalist’s pitching, I generally drop
the level of the bass.
2. Boost the MAIN instrument to make it easy for them to follow the song –
this could be a guitar or some keys.
3. If the overall volume is too soft, they’ll probably hold back. So if you’re not
getting enough energy out of the singer, try boosting the overall level.
4. If their voice is too soft, and the track too loud, they’ll tend to push their
voice which can make them sing sharp.

5. If their voice is too loud, and the track too soft, they may sing slightly flat.
– Keep this in mind when adjusting the levels, and if you find they’re singing
CONSISTENTLY sharp or flat, try turning their voice up or down in relation to
the mix.
Also, bare in mind that this isn’t an exact science, and ever y singer is
different, so you need to find what works best for the individual.
Bottom line: TAKE TIME to make the singer feel comfor table and inspired by
the mix, this will have a bigger impact on the recording than any piece of gear.
“An inspired singer will do more for getting a great

recording than any fancy mic or piece of gear, and the
headphone mix plays a CRITICAL role in making them
feel part of the song.”

Part 2: Vocal Mixing

Mistakes

“Not fixing problems”

I've said this many times before, and I'm going to say it again:
A professional production is defined not so much by any specific attribute or

characteristic, but rather by the LACK of anything that sounds bad / cheap /
unprofessional.
This is good news, because it means that it's actually more impor tant to get
rid of anything that sounds 'wrong' than it is to get everything ‘perfect’.
It can take just ONE thing to give away an amateur production.
Most people do the recording, and then dive straight into the mixing,
skipping over a critical phase of the production: Editing.
The fixing is mostly done in the EDIT phase, which happens BEFORE the
mix even begins.
There are 4 components to the Edit phase, one of which is to correct any
problems. The main things we need to check for are:
Glitches – Generally best to just replace the section with a piece from
another take.
Timing issues – Cut the section that’s out of time, and shift it into place.
Background noise – Check whether it’s audible in the context of the

mix, if it is, replace that section with a piece from an alternative take.
Notes that are off key – See if there’s a better take, if not, you’ll need
to either re-record that section, or experiment with an autotune plugin.
If you’ve made sure to get at least one good take of each section during the
recording, and you’ve comped the best vocal tracks together, you shouldn’t really
have anything major to fix.

If there are major problems, it’s often best to simply go back to the
recording phase and redo the take, rather than tr ying to salvage a bad recording.
The bottom line is, before you star t to mix, fix ever ything that needs to be
fixed.
“A professional production is defined not so much by

any specific attribute or characteristic, but rather by
the LACK of anything that sounds bad / cheap /
unprofessional.”

“Processing vocals in
solo”
The great mix engineer Chris Lord-Alge said it best:
"No listener ever hears anything in solo. Period. So the only way to get a
great vocal sound is when it’s competing with ever ything else in the mix.”
I did this for YEARS – I would solo each instrument and work on it for
HOURS, tr ying to get the perfect sound… but when I eventually put it all
together I couldn't understand why it didn't work.
The ver y word "mixing" implies that we need to MIX multiple elements
together, and so it only makes common sense that we need to listen to things in
CONTEXT.
It's fine to listen in solo some of the time – and in fact, you need to listen to
each instrument in solo to fine tune it and to hear whether there's anything
wrong that needs fixing.
But when it comes to the overall track, you MUST listen and make the final
adjustments in CONTEXT of the entire mix, because this is the way it's going to
be heard by your fans.
Now you may be wondering – "How do I process ALL the different

instruments in context, when each element relies on EVERY other element – I
mean, you've got to star t with SOMETHING don't you??".
This is why mixing is an ITERATIVE process.
For example, you don’t work on the drums, and then say “Ok, that’s the
drums finished”.

You work on one element, get it in the ballpark of what you want it to
sound like, then move on to the next thing. You may come back to adjust the
same instrument MANY times before it sounds right in context of the mix.
If you'd like to learn more about this, read my 5 Drivers of Mixing eBook,
and go and watch these two videos I've put together on iterative mixing:
http://prosoundformula.com/how-to-mix
So just to be clear : It’s totally fine to initially process your vocals in solo, but
you MUST make your final judgements in context of all the other instruments, as
this is how the LISTENER is going to hear it.
“No listener ever hears anything in solo. Period. So the

only way to get a great vocal sound is when it’s
competing with ever ything else in the mix.”

– Chris Lord-Alge

“Vocals not sitting in

the mix”
If the vocals are too loud, it makes the track sound weak and small in
comparison.
If the vocals are too soft, it can be straining to listen to as the lyrics aren’t
clearly audible.
A good vocal balance is KEY to a great sounding song – In many ways, it’s
almost as if the ENTIRE track pivots around the vocal.
The level of the vocals change constantly, and so it’s generally not enough to
just ‘set and forget’ them.
Vocals are tough to balance, for MANY reasons;
1. The vocalist’s volume changes depending on the key and how high or low
a section of the song is.
2. The song’s composition changes with different instruments coming in and

out, all competing for ‘space’ in the track
3. Because vocals are the main focal point, even the slightest variation is very
noticeable
The biggest level variation is usually found between the verse and chorus.
This is often because the verse of a song is much lower than the chorus, so the
vocalist will sing a lot softer in the verse, and then belt out the chorus.
So what’s the solution?

Well, it doesn’t come down to just one or two things, there’s many aspects
that play a role here.
But probably the most overlooked solution is AUTOMATION.
Automation is a very powerful tool, and often a key par t of balancing a vocal
throughout a track.
Rather than tr ying to explain this in a book, I’ve shot a video where I show
you this in a practical sense.
If you haven't watched my video on this yet, I suggest you check that out. I
show you the 3 main reasons vocals won't sit in a mix, and how you can fix that.
Here's the link: http://ultimatevocalformula.com/getting-vocals-to-sit/
In summary, getting the vocals to balance THROUGHOUT a song is a key

par t of making your track sound professional, and bringing the most out of a
song.
“A good vocal balance is KEY to a great sounding

song – In many ways, it’s almost as if the ENTIRE
track pivots around the vocal.”

“Using compression
to balance vocals”
Nothing screams “AMATEUR!” louder than a vocal that’s been crushed to
death by compression.
Don’t get me wrong, I LIKE compressing my vocals – a LOT. But there is a

limit, and most beginners often cross that line.
One of the most common reasons for this, is that many people tr y to
BALANCE vocals throughout the track by compressing them.
This is NOT the role of a compressor!! – At least, not the primar y role, I
believe.
Yes, compressors are used to control dynamic range, but trying to squash
the life out of a vocal so that it stays loud enough through the song is NOT the
goal.
We have AUTOMATION for that.
Compressors should be used to give character, and bring out the energy and
nuances in a vocal, NOT to try and balance them.
Using excess compression as a means to tr y and keep a vocal heard

throughout a track is simply being lazy – Don’t do it! Use automation instead.
“Compressors should be used to give character, and

bring out the energy and nuances in a vocal, NOT to
tr y and balance them throughout a track.”

“Over processing
vocals”
This is the BIG one.
Over processing vocals does so many bad things, but just to name a few:
• Makes vocals sound ‘fake’ and ‘plastic’

• Instantly gives away an amateur production
• Ruins EVERYTHING that has come before – It doesn’t matter how
great the performance, the room, the recording, the mix, the gear, etc. It
destroys everything.
This is the BIGGEST mistake most people make when it comes to mixing,
and specifically, processing vocals.
The worst par t about this one is that it's totally unnecessar y, and it would've
been better to leave it UNPROCESSED than to over-process it.
Think about it, when you listen to a commercial record, unless you’re really
trying to listen for it, you typically don’t NOTICE the processing.
Processing should NEVER distract from the vocal performance, it should

ENHANCE it.
The three main ways I hear vocals in amateur productions over processed
are:
1. Too much EQ
2. Too much compression
3. Too much reverb

Now I'm not saying it's easy, it's not.

In fact, in many ways mixing is more about knowing when to STOP
processing, than which specific plugins or gear to use.
So how do you learn where to stop processing? How do you know where
the boundaries and limits are?
Do you know how I learnt how much was too much?
– By using TOO MUCH... and then cringing when I compared my mix to

other commercial tracks.
What I encourage you to do is to PURPOSELY over compress and over EQ

your vocals to the point that it’s REALLY obvious to you.
Bounce down your track just like this, and go and listen to it in a couple of
places – your car, HiFi, iPod, etc.
LISTEN to what over compression and too much EQ sounds like, notice
how unnatural it sounds, notice how distracting it is to listen to.
This is the BEST way to learn what you want to AVOID, and how much is
too much.
Once you do this, you’ll be more sensitive to what that sounds like and you’ll
try and avoid it.
Now go back to your mix, and switch off the compressors, EQ’s, and effects
completely, and just notice what that sounds like.
As you now begin to add in various processors, you’ll be more sensitive to

what it’s doing, and you should be able to find the balance a lot easier.
“Processing should NEVER distract from the vocal

performance, it should ENHANCE it.”

Summary checklist
Recording mistake #1 – “Lack of preparation”
✓ Good preparation is ESSENTIAL to getting a great recording.
✓ Without proper preparation, the technical frustrations that come along

with vir tually every recording can kill off passion, creativity, and
enjoyment, before you’ve even hit the record button.
✓ Make sure that everything that can be prepared IS prepared BEFORE

star ting a recording.
✓ Recording may involve a lot of technical stuff, but at the end of the day
it’s all about CAPTURING EMOTION.
✓ By preparing all the technical stuff in advance, you give yourself the
BEST chance possible of capturing a really GREAT, emotional
performance.
Recording mistake #2 – “Bad room acoustics”
✓ You can’t separate the sound of someone’s voice, from the sound of
the room they’re in – they become ONE sound.
✓ If there’s too much reverb on the recording, there’s NOTHING you can
do to get rid of that, and in fact, processing such as compression will
make the reverb MORE prominent.
✓ The general rule is: “The smaller, the deader”
✓ In most cases, the ideal space is a "neutral" sounding room – like an

average living room

Recording mistake #3 – “Bad mic positioning”
✓ The fact is, WHERE you position the mic in the room, and HOW you
position it with relation to the singer, can both make a significant
difference to the sound of a vocal recording.
✓ 9 times out of 10 I’ll place the mic just a little higher than the singer’s
mouth – to get them to lift their head, open their vocal chords, and sing
up and out. I’ll then aim the mic slightly downward toward their chest
so that I’m capturing both the fuller chest sound, as well as the more
present head sound.
✓ If you just want the simple tried and tested method, MOST of the time
I set up the mic EXACTLY as I show in the diagram, “Standard Lead /
Backing Vocal Miking” .
Recording mistake #4 – “Not using a pop filter”
✓ Not using a pop filter is vir tually GUARANTEED to ruin a vocal

recording.
✓ It’s quite simple really, if you don’t have one, go out and buy yourself a
pop filter IMMEDIATELY. It’s not even optional, if you want professional
sounding vocals, you MUST use a pop filter. (Unless you’re recording
classical vocals)
✓ Just place it about 2 inches in front of the mic and you’re good to go.
Recording mistake #5 – “Bad headphone mix”
✓ The headphone mix is possibly the most over-looked, and

underestimated element of getting a great vocal recording.
✓ Too much low end can throw off the vocalist’s pitching, so I generally
drop the level of the bass.

✓ Boost the MAIN instrument to make it easy for them to follow the
song – this could be a guitar or some keys.
✓ If the overall volume is too soft, they’ll probably hold back. So if you’re
not getting enough energy out of the singer, tr y boosting the overall
volume.
✓ If their voice is too soft, and the track too loud, they’ll tend to push
their voice which can make them sing sharp.
✓ If their voice is too loud, and the track too soft, they may sing slightly
flat.
✓ An inspired singer will do more for getting a great recording than any
fancy mic or piece of gear, and the headphone mix plays a CRITICAL
role in making them feel par t of the song.
✓ TAKE TIME to make the singer feel comfor table and inspired by the mix

Mixing mistake #1 – “Not fixing mistakes / problems”
✓ A professional production is defined not so much by any specific

attribute or characteristic, but rather the LACK of anything that sounds
bad / cheap / unprofessional.
✓ There are 4 components to the Edit phase, one of which is to correct

any problems. The main things we need to check for are:
✓ Glitches
✓ Timing issues
✓ Background noise
✓ Notes that are off key
Mixing mistake #2 – “Processing vocals in solo”
✓ The ver y word "mixing" implies that we need to MIX multiple elements
together, and so it only makes common sense that we need to listen to
things in CONTEXT.
✓ It’s totally fine to initially process your vocals in solo, but you MUST
make your final judgements in context of all the other instruments, as
this is how the LISTENER is going to hear it.
✓ “No listener ever hears anything in solo. Period. So the only way to get
a great vocal sound is when it’s competing with everything else in the
mix.” – Chris Lord-Alge

Mixing mistake #3 – “Vocals not sitting in the mix”
✓ A good vocal balance is KEY to a great sounding song – In many ways,

it’s almost as if the ENTIRE track pivots around the vocal.
✓ Automation is a very powerful tool, and often a key par t of balancing a

vocal throughout a track.
Mixing mistake #4 – “Using compression to balance vocals”
✓ Nothing screams “AMATEUR!” louder than a vocal that’s been crushed

to death by compression.
✓ Compressors should be used to give character, and bring out the

energy and nuances in a vocal, NOT to tr y and balance them.
Mixing mistake #5 – “Over processing vocals”
✓ The three main ways I hear vocals in amateur productions over

processed are:
✓ Too much EQ
✓ Too much compression
✓ Too much reverb
✓ In many ways mixing is more about knowing when to STOP processing,

than which specific plugins or gear to use.
✓ Processing should NEVER distract from the vocal performance, it

should ENHANCE it.

Closing
I’m impressed.
Do you know that most people who buy books NEVER read them?
The fact that you have taken the time to go through this book tells me
something about you:
You’re NOT willing to accept mediocre sounding music like most people,
and you’re serious about learning to produce GREAT sounding tracks.
Even though I may not know you personally yet, I feel like we connect
because we share that in common. I’m just a little fur ther down the road than
you, and I want to help you get the BEST sound for your songs without having to
go through the MANY years of trial and error that I did.
I hope this has been insightful to you, and that it contributes in some small
way to your music improving and sounding great – and ultimately, more people
getting to experience and enjoy it.
Because that’s the whole point, that’s why we do this.
I wish you all the best, and I’ll talk to you soon,
– Rob Williams

This Special Report is part of:
The Ultimate Vocal

formula
To find out more, visit:
http://ultimatevocalformula.com/the-ultimate-vocal-formula/
©2014 Rob Williams

ProSoundFormula.com
UltimateVocalFormula.com
All Rights Reser ved

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The 10 Fatal Vocal Production Mistakes

! ©2014 Rob Williams - ProSoundFormula.com, All Rights Reserved

The 10 Fatal Vocal Production

©2014 Rob Williams

! ©2014 Rob Williams - ProSoundFormula.com, All Rights Reserved

What you’re about to read is not a collection of random / made up / cute

! ©2014 Rob Williams - ProSoundFormula.com, All Rights Reserved 3

Obviously, there’s no ways I can teach you EVERYTHING there is to know

It’s impossible to get EVERYTHING in your head right away.

Producing GREAT sounding vocals is about ‘getting it right’ THROUGHOUT

Section 1: Vocal Recording Mistakes

Just by avoiding these 10 common mistakes, you’ll be ahead of 99% of

Enough waffle, let’s get star ted.

! ©2014 Rob Williams - ProSoundFormula.com, All Rights Reserved 4

! ©2014 Rob Williams - ProSoundFormula.com, All Rights Reserved 5

Part 1: Vocal Recording Mistakes

Vocal Recording Mistake #1

Vocal Recording Mistake #2

“Bad room acoustics”

Vocal Recording Mistake #3

“Bad mic positioning”

Vocal Recording Mistake #4

“Not using a pop filter”

Vocal Recording Mistake #5

“Bad headphone mix”

! ©2014 Rob Williams - ProSoundFormula.com, All Rights Reserved 6

The 10 Fatal Vocal Production Mistakes

Part 2: Vocal Mixing Mistakes

Vocal Mixing Mistake #1

“Not fixing problems”

Vocal Mixing Mistake #2

“Processing vocals in solo”

Vocal Mixing Mistake #3

“Vocals not sitting in the mix”

Vocal Mixing Mistake #4

“Using compression to balance vocals”

Vocal Mixing Mistake #5

“Over processing vocals”

! ©2014 Rob Williams - ProSoundFormula.com, All Rights Reserved 7

The 10 Fatal Vocal Production Mistakes

! ©2014 Rob Williams - ProSoundFormula.com, All Rights Reserved 8

Vocal Recording Mistake #1

Obviously, we can’t predict or prevent ever ything, but we can at least

! ©2014 Rob Williams - ProSoundFormula.com, All Rights Reserved 9

Ok, I think you get the message here – it’s simple:

Make sure that everything that can be prepared IS prepared BEFORE

So what SHOULD we prepare when it comes to a vocal recording?

“By preparing all the technical stuff in advance, you

! ©2014 Rob Williams - ProSoundFormula.com, All Rights Reserved 10

Vocal Recording Mistake #2

“Bad room acoustics”

Unless you’re recording in an anechoic chamber (dead booth), it’s critical

To use an extreme example; If you record yourself singing in the bathroom,

The bathroom is the perfect example of what we DON’T want.

So what is the ideal recording space for vocals?

It depends on what you’re going for.

Remember, if it’s too dr y, you can always ADD reverb afterwards.

! ©2014 Rob Williams - ProSoundFormula.com, All Rights Reserved 11

There are of course many professional options when it comes to acoustic

The general rule is: “The smaller, the deader”

! ©2014 Rob Williams - ProSoundFormula.com, All Rights Reserved 12

3. Find a better room

“Bottom line: It's worth the extra time and effort to