Your Fav Mix Trick on the second (doubled) vocal track

[Methlab]

So there are many schools of thought of course on this.

You have 2 vocal tracks. The main one usually sounds "sweet" about 6db louder then the double...but thats an ear thing when it comes down to the mix.

Now you can take those 2 and vocalign them and make that the main vocal.

You could apply the same vocal chain to each.

You could compress/distort the shit out of the double.

You could tune the main and keep the double untuned.

Maybe flange the double or chorus it.

Maybe pan the main vocal a hair left and the double a hair right.

Tons of options of course......that is my point. What do you like to do on that doubled vocal?

[NesNeedsGear]

i like to mute it and get the first vocal take as perfect as possible.

other than that, I use the second vocal track as the track i send to the reverb aux, and usually leave the main vocal track dry.

[anne_paranoid]

I hate to use double vocals, but i have to, i prefer to pitch down doubled one and pan extremely and much lower then the main voice. Sometimes even so lower that it dissapears from the mix, only " visible " on the screen to satisfy client demand.

[ToneRanger]

We double almost every vocal track. I only record and mix my own band, the lead singers voice gets doubled about maybe 3/4 of the tracks we do. I just make excact copies of the settings and all the levels, sends and pans are excactly the same. Maybe I could be a bit more creative with that.

With my voice, I almost always double it, sometimes when doing harmonies, I double it three times, every vocal getting the same treatment. Then on the next
harmony line and the same thing again..

Wonder how The Beatles did the doubling when they actually doubled and didn't use ADT? I love the vintage vocal sound and much of it has to do with doubling IMO... Ofcourse to get the Beatles sound you'd have to be Lennon or McCartney, ..

[jgrif08]

I like heavy compression on the doubled vocal. I've mest with some very sublte short delays on there too, sounds pretty cool sometimes.

[Chris Parsons]

I like to mute it

[DeeDrive]

99% of the time, doubled vocals sound terrible to my ears. This is strictly when the singer is singing the same note, not harmonizing or singing an octave above. Also assuming they're singing the same vocal line, not whispering one track and belting out the other, for example. Doubled vocals can be ok if the performance is much different each take, or a different mic/pre combo is used to get a different tone, but just doubling vocals, one take after another, usually sounds lame to me.

[vtone]

Originally Posted by Methlab

So there are many schools of thought of course on this.

You have 2 vocal tracks. The main one usually sounds "sweet" about 6db louder then the double...but thats an ear thing when it comes down to the mix.

Now you can take those 2 and vocalign them and make that the main vocal.

You could apply the same vocal chain to each.

You could compress/distort the shit out of the double.

You could tune the main and keep the double untuned.

Maybe flange the double or chorus it.

Maybe pan the main vocal a hair left and the double a hair right.

Tons of options of course......that is my point. What do you like to do on that doubled vocal?

it depends on the situation of course-- I've done all the above and you end up with whatever works on a particular song / section.

but I think this is a very interesting question because I always wonder how other people approach the doubled track. curious to hear some ideas that expand on this...

[macr0w]

Aren't "Doubling" and "Harmonizing" 2 different things?

[sleepwalker]

Slight delay, hi-pass around 400k, compress, possibly distort, bury in mix

[Fletcher]

I like to do what best serves the song without premeditation... as always, YMMV.

[Methlab]

yeah.. i usually do doubles for the sake of comping later on. Kind of like my safety valve. But then I have them, and sometimes I use them in the mix. I may compress the shit out one this time..I'm not even sure yet, I have to sit down and just do it.

But I figured this was a fairly slutty question, so i had to ask.

[gm5k]

Originally Posted by Fletcher

I like to do what best serves the song without premeditation... as always, YMMV.

maybe some examples of some things youve done to best serve certain songs?

[Magnus Lindberg]

IF there is a doubled vocal, I somtimes distort the shit out of it, cut all hi freq and either de-ess heavily or physically (or should I say digitally) remove all consonants. Just makes it fatter, no chorus feeling...

[six_wax]

I think what's he's asking for is a couple techniques to add to his repetoire, not a trick he should use on every track. tutt

I too would love to hear more about how people are using doubles in mixes.

I find that the hyper compressed or distorted double only really adds in thick arrangements.

One sound I like to hear is having a lead and a double panned wide, so the center is open. Hear it used in pop choruses with some frequency.

[contramark]

Originally Posted by sleepwalker

Slight delay, hi-pass around 400k, compress, possibly distort, bury in mix

i like to highpass around 600k. it keeps in all the ultrasonic frequencies and ether qualities while cutting all the sound.

[kingneeraj]

Originally Posted by contramark

i like to highpass around 600k. it keeps in all the ultrasonic frequencies and ether qualities while cutting all the sound.

hahaha!!! thumbsup

[chrisj]

I always figured it was 'exactly the same settings and 50/50 volumes, and perform it so tight it sounds like one track, or don't bother' :D

Sometimes I've pulled that off. Not on vocals, that's for sure