50 Cent - Vocal Chain

[grantlandau]

he did. those pics are from Feb. 2006

[PettyCash]

Originally Posted by phillysoulman

Imo..I think that te main reason that some rappers use Sony 8oo gs is because they cost $5000.
If a Marshall MXlL cost 5 gs, they'd use that one.
Just my take on it.

I doubt it... It doesnt matter how much a mic cost... if it doesnt get the job done, it wont get any love. Those who have use for it, will use it despite how much it might cost.

There is a reason the Sony 800 gets a lot of use, and thats because its actually good. I have worked with a lot of different vocalist, and overall it has been one of the most useful mics on more vocalists than any other mic I have used.

I dont know anyone doing music who would just go out and buy a product over another one based on price, professionals are more critical of their choices than wanna-bees or hobbyists. I still think sometimes that urban music makers get more looked down upon and stereo-typed more than others working on any other genre of music. If its not BS about beatmakers needing to stop sampling, its something else.

[aeroc]

Originally Posted by Neruk

I heard he doesnt sleep for 72 hours before recording, and then just kinda mumbles into the mic.

yes!!

don't forget upside-down situps. that's a crucial element for making those millions.

[lpuma]

Originally Posted by PettyCash

I dont know anyone doing music who would just go out and buy a product over another one based on price, professionals are more critical of their choices than wanna-bees or hobbyists. I still think sometimes that urban music makers get more looked down upon and stereo-typed more than others working on any other genre of music. If its not BS about beatmakers needing to stop sampling, its something else.

right

[mraaronrash]

Originally Posted by Ntchi

Listen to the track "Fallow My Lead" In the last album "Curtis". Geez, did you see this level of presence and clarity in the voice, for an hip hop song its ridiculously high!

I tried this last nigh:

Neumann TLM49 > Germanium > 1073 hipass@160hz > LA-3A shaving 6db

Sounded close, but there is something missing still!

There is something in the low mids and highs that is magic in his chain...or mixing.

yep, analog tape simulation

[Ntchi]

Which mic around 1000$ sounds the closest to the c800?

[TonyBelmont]

Peluso VTB.

[the Set Surgeon]

Originally Posted by TonyBelmont

I just wanted to point out that while he may or may not use the TLA-100.... this is by far one of my favorite compressors for vocals and bass... It doesn't get anywhere near the credit it deserves on the forum.

One of the most slept on pieces as far as compressors go in all of audio. I'm buying another one after I'm done mixing this project.

...another most slept on peices is it's little brother the TLA-50. For vocals, it's a monster. I have it rackmounted with the 2BA-221 pre and it's the channelstrip that I wind up using the most. (Not that I have enough gear or experience with gear to make this a scientific conclusion.) Peace

[rhodesp04]

seen this thread for a while and just wanted to clear it all up:

sony c800g -> neve 1073 (no eq used) -> line input of avalon 737sp (compressor only)

source:

How They Got That Sound

[TonyBelmont]

Originally Posted by rhodesp04

seen this thread for a while and just wanted to clear it all up:

sony c800g -> neve 1073 (no eq used) -> line input of avalon 737sp (compressor only)

source:

How They Got That Sound

That's pretty much common knowledge... that was what the claimed vocal chain was for "In the Club"..

[SoundProofStudio]

Originally Posted by aeroc

yes!!

don't forget upside-down situps. that's a crucial element for making those millions.

I heard he shoots himself at least 9 times to get that really raw in ur face gangsta sound....

[Svens]

Some tracks on the previous 50ct Album were recorded with a C800, through an SSL 9000 into a Manley Elop into Protools.

[infopimpster]

We'll prob never know, but I wonder how many "first takes" 50 keeps.

[djryno713]

Originally Posted by Ntchi

Which mic around 1000$ sounds the closest to the c800?

Have you tried the Studio Projects T3 ...check it out...

[justin bendo]

I did some tracking for 50 back in the day.

I recorded the track for "P.I.M.P." (with Denaun Porter-- "Kon Artis" of D12). It was cut to 2". Mauricio "Veto" Iragorri tracked the vocals. Dre did the mix.

Dre doesn't use EQ when mixing-- he has his own mix style. He uses a bit of the SSL mix bus compressor, and a bit of compression (if needed) on vocals.

I don't know what 50 is using now for vocals, but I am 99% sure it was the c800 and 1073 for "P.I.M.P.", and I would bet $1000 that there was no compression on the vocals to tape.

[filterayok]

Originally Posted by justin bendo

Dre doesn't use EQ when mixing-- he has his own mix style. He uses a bit of the SSL mix bus compressor, and a bit of compression (if needed) on vocals.

u sure? is that humanly possible?

[justin bendo]

Originally Posted by filterayok

u sure? is that humanly possible?

absolutely.
many excellent-sounding albums were made with EQ used for mastering only, if at all.

some engineers EQ with their mic choices, such as Bruce Swedien. some only use EQ only on the 2-bus, such as Shawn Murphy (soundtrack engineer). also, Steve Albini has alot to say about 'abuses' of EQ and compression.


EQ is not a requirement.

[Heezzi]

Originally Posted by justin bendo

absolutely.
many excellent-sounding albums were made with EQ used for mastering only, if at all.

some engineers EQ with their mic choices, such as Bruce Swedien. some only use EQ only on the 2-bus, such as Shawn Murphy (soundtrack engineer). also, Steve Albini has alot to say about 'abuses' of EQ and compression.


EQ is not a requirement.

Thanks for stopping by and sharing your knowledge.

[TonyBelmont]

Originally Posted by justin bendo

EQ is not a requirement.

I disagree.

[St. Kelly]

Eq is not a requirement.. ? sounds like crack smoke.. especially in a thread about commercial rap music

and Dre mixed a 50 record?? you mean the pre-mix that the mix engineer uses for reference?
I can't imagine someone as smart as Dre would think he should spend his time mixing 50's song when he could pay someone with way more skill and experience to mix it.
I'm gonna look in the credits of GRODT tomorrow..

[justin bendo]

Originally Posted by St. Kelly

he could pay someone with way more skill and experience to mix it.

Dre is a very competant mixer. He also mixed a track I recorded for Xzibit called "Multiply".

Dre also mixed "My Name Is" for Em, and many other songs you've probably heard.

[filterayok]

Originally Posted by justin bendo

EQ is not a requirement.

I gotta say this statement is REALLY suspect, can i ask who told you this?

[St. Kelly]

Originally Posted by justin bendo

Dre is a very competant mixer. He also mixed a track I recorded for Xzibit called "Multiply".

Dre also mixed "My Name Is" for Em, and many other songs you've probably heard.

I believe Dre is good, and certainly has enough studio experience!!

It just seems odd to me that a busy guy like Dre would opt to mix the records (a mix on Aftermath level has to be at least a solid 5 hours work by a pro)

Dre is the master orchestrator/producer -- getting the right people to play the right roles -- so it just seemed odd to be that he wouldn't have someone who eats/sleeps/breathes audio mixing do the job... someone who dedicates their whole life to one area is usually stronger than someone with a powerful overview like Dre (who probably has helped guide a lot of mixes, but it's another genius knowing how to 'take it there')

admittedly, this is all speculation.. but I just didn't imagine Dre mixing the recent hit records.. seems odd

(btw, I am NOT from the homo-school that bread people who think "Dre isn't a real producer, he's not hands on, lalalal" -- that is straight BS) ..can't count how many times i've read that dumb shit on these forums, so I don't want to come off sounding like that :/

[justin bendo]

Originally Posted by filterayok

I gotta say this statement is REALLY suspect, can i ask who told you this?

Experience.

You don't NEED to EQ anything. EQ is optional.

Here is an example; I had two clients in Detroit (who I will not name-- you've ALL heard many songs from CLIENT A, and possibly some tracks from CLIENT B). CLIENT A wrote/produced alot of stuff for Motown, and CLIENT B is a hiphop producer.

Anyways, I tracked several songs for CLIENT A into ProTools. At the end of tracking CLIENT A wanted a mix printed of the song, and said "something was missing". At that time, I had not EQ'd anything in the ProTools session. So, I got out some plugins and mixed the track with some EQ, and added some compression on the drums, etc.. They were excited, and I believe they kept my 1/2 hr. rough ProTools mix as the final.


CLIENT B, on the other hand, came in and I tracked 4-5 songs for him in a period of 3-4 days. I then mixed his ProTools sessions for him. He seemed to like the mixes and took them home. Then, he came back to the same studio, and asked for a different engineer (who does not use EQ), and the engineer simply removed my eqs and compressors from the ProTools sessions and exported the mixes without EQ/compression. This seemed to satisfy the client, as I was never asked to do another session with him.

So there are two of my experiences with EQ, for whatever it's worth.


Also, as mentioned earlier, Bruce Swedien, Shawn Murphy, Steve Albini, Dr. Dre, etc.., use as little EQ as possible. This doesn't mean they've NEVER EQ'd anything-- just means that, from what I've gathered, they generally prefer as little EQ as possible, and believe that EQ is optional for their projects.

Shawn Murphy mixed the Soundtrack for Star Wars Episode I with only an Avalon EQ (with only a few db's of boost on highs and lows) on the 2-bus,, no other EQ (paraphased from Mix Magazine).

Dre talked about EQ in a Mix Magazine article 8+ years ago. Info about the others can be found online.

[TonyBelmont]

Originally Posted by justin bendo

Experience.

You don't NEED to EQ anything. EQ is optional.

I disagree... in the real world EQ and compression are about as optional as an engine in a car being optional. They are necessary tools to fix problems and enhance the sound. In this day and age, you simply can't mix without EQ and compression.

Proper use of it is the key.. but, EQ is not optional in 99.9% of the typical scenarios an engineer will face at the mixing stage.

[justin bendo]

Originally Posted by TonyBelmont

EQ is not optional in 99.9% of the typical scenarios an engineer will face at the mixing stage.

EQ is one type of tool for 'fixing' or changing the harmonic content of a track or stem. There are other ways to do this without EQ; exciters, multiband compressors (sortof like EQs), distortions (sans amps, etc), or changing the mic/mic pre or convertors/tape you use. Any of these methods can work better than any EQ in the world, for certain effects/sounds.

Alot of material is EQ'd these days, no question about that. But some engineers EQ first and listen second, and think they can fix everything with EQ... I think that can lead to problems down the road.

It all depends on the tracks you record/receive, and the intended sound/vibe of the finished song.

[computa]

it all depends.

Some cats that i work with and know their voices well I eq on the way in thru hardware and in the mix just use comps & filters/subtractive eq.

same for records that were all hardware synths like motif or fantom- just use comps & filters/subtractive eq

[St. Kelly]

Originally Posted by computa

it all depends.

Some cats that i work with and know their voices well I eq on the way in thru hardware and in the mix just use comps & filters/subtractive eq.

same for records that were all hardware synths like motif or fantom- just use comps & filters/subtractive eq

Hey, don't think you can get away that just because it's SUBTRACTIVE!!

Btw, any song could be made without EQ.

The real argument is that there are song released on Aftermath that where no EQ was used in the Mix.. LOL, still think that is a ridiculous statement

C'mon people, please don't compare your own mix standards to those of a mix coming off Aftermath ;)

[filterayok]

Originally Posted by justin bendo

Experience.

You don't NEED to EQ anything. EQ is optional.

Here is an example; I had two clients in Detroit (who I will not name-- you've ALL heard many songs from CLIENT A, and possibly some tracks from CLIENT B). CLIENT A wrote/produced alot of stuff for Motown, and CLIENT B is a hiphop producer.

Anyways, I tracked several songs for CLIENT A into ProTools. At the end of tracking CLIENT A wanted a mix printed of the song, and said "something was missing". At that time, I had not EQ'd anything in the ProTools session. So, I got out some plugins and mixed the track with some EQ, and added some compression on the drums, etc.. They were excited, and I believe they kept my 1/2 hr. rough ProTools mix as the final.


CLIENT B, on the other hand, came in and I tracked 4-5 songs for him in a period of 3-4 days. I then mixed his ProTools sessions for him. He seemed to like the mixes and took them home. Then, he came back to the same studio, and asked for a different engineer (who does not use EQ), and the engineer simply removed my eqs and compressors from the ProTools sessions and exported the mixes without EQ/compression. This seemed to satisfy the client, as I was never asked to do another session with him.

So there are two of my experiences with EQ, for whatever it's worth.


Also, as mentioned earlier, Bruce Swedien, Shawn Murphy, Steve Albini, Dr. Dre, etc.., use as little EQ as possible. This doesn't mean they've NEVER EQ'd anything-- just means that, from what I've gathered, they generally prefer as little EQ as possible, and believe that EQ is optional for their projects.

Shawn Murphy mixed the Soundtrack for Star Wars Episode I with only an Avalon EQ (with only a few db's of boost on highs and lows) on the 2-bus,, no other EQ (paraphased from Mix Magazine).

Dre talked about EQ in a Mix Magazine article 8+ years ago. Info about the others can be found online.

I think if your arugument is 'dont start eq'ing things that already sound perfect' then yes in that respect i think no one would disagree. But the chances of an entire session of drums, synths, bass, vocals, samples etc. would blend together perfectly as is, is like a million to one. Its like an ice sculpter finding a block of ice that already looks like a dove, and not needing a chisel.

the term 'as little eq as possible' doesnt really make sense, cus there's no such thing as 'more' or 'less' eq... there is only more or less of a given frequency, so bottom line is, you sculpt the sound to what you want, no more no less... Swedien mixed JLos record with a good buddy of mine right across the hall from me, so i'll ask him the deal on that. i know he said Swedien doesnt like compression, which at least makes sense to me from a certain angle, but avoiding eq seems to be pointless and counter productive IMHO.