Denver Recording Studio

Vocal tracking in stereo may seem a bit unnecessary, but the results may surprise you.Although I prefer to thicken up vocals through repeated takes, their are some tracks that sound better with a lone vocal while still needing that thick, roundness. One technique I have used to get a thicker lead vocal is an adapted A-B stereo miking, adding a center cardiod mic. Trying to keep the 3:1 foot distance rule in mind, this setup is sort of a smaller-scale Decca tree with cardiods, along with the center mic pushed higher in volume than the sides. I can then narrow the left and right mics to taste and mix them under the center mic.

However, even after aligning the mic signals, be careful of phase issues when adding the side mics to the mix. Instead of fussing with the phase issues too much, I sometimes just use the third mic as a room-mic to set the vocal in the track with a little natural-room reverb.

Another couple options in creating bigger sounding lead vocals are a Mid-Side mic setup or a DIN mic setup. Although these mic techniques are generally used for group recordings, drum overheads, or acoustic instruments, they may be a bit more successful in limiting phase issues while still getting a thicker lead vocal with a shapeable stereo spread. Two great websites for various mic configurations can be found in the “microphone university” section here and the article here.

With any of these techniques, however, I generally maintain a center mic to make sure there is no hole, or lack of mono in my vox, especially in the lead. I modify these miking techniques to fit the needs of the vocals in the track and generally try to limit phase issues as much as possible. However, sometimes funky phase issues are my friend… the only way to find out is to experiment and to hear for yourself.

— Mike with the Mic

CCM Studios

Broken Tongues Music