Karaoke Forums

Ok, the (supposedly) 'better' mix is now uploaded. I still can't delete the other one.... it won't let me yet.

Thanks everyone!

ok syber ive listened to your sub in some ways i am glad you have opened a thread so people can add more information...you want honest critique and i was as honest as i would allow myself to be, i think you did a decent job of the sub, but to me the whole performance lacked emotion, it was sang but not felt if you get my meaning...the mix most people noticed.

with what you replied to mezza's comment ... most of us are karaoke singers ...yes you sing in a band, and your husband as you have told us is professional musician or something to that nature...i truly believe if your husband is a musician, then he will genuinely know whats good and bad about your work/singing and he is the one to offer the best help and critiscm.

I honestly think you did a good job of an amazingly hard song, as i said i thought another sub of yours was far superior however, i think this song just wasn't for you...heart are a pretty tough act to follow or be able to interpret in your own way

i hope i havent offended you in any way, i did not just want to listen and not comment, and yet i know you would not want what you describe as fluff either...welll anyways there ya go...ive said what i needed to...keep singing and subbing!

have a good xmas!

syber ive just read your reply to my comments in the showcase...the answer i think is both...my favourite game just suited you more vocally, it was a really enjoyable listen...at the time i didn't comment things were a little heated in the forum....you were just in my opinion more suited to that style...heart are really tough tough songs...and in all my time on SS and another site there has only ever been 1 person sub heart songs who i felt carried them.

you have a decent voice syber there is no denying that...i just dunno couldnt gel your vocals to heart

On the microphone distance. Do you have your mic on a stand? Whenever I record, I check the level meter and make sure I have a reasonable distance to the mic. Then when I sing I back a little of the mic for the loud part so that the they do not clip.

Then after I am done recording, I play through the track with no backing and check whether I clipped or not. If I clip anywhere in the song I turn the level down a little and re-record.

Clipping should be avoided. It really ruins any enjoyment of the songs, especially if you listen on headphones, almost makes your ears hurt.

Morten

Yes, thank you. I've been hearing that a lot, and since this is one of my ALL TIME FAVORITE Heart songs, it's not that I don't care about it. !! I've mentioned this before, but I'm thinking I was just concentrating too hard on the vocals to really get enough emotion through. Also, from what I'm reading, I need to really get more power going on.. more diaphragm push probably.



Yes, he is very good and does offer helpful criticism, but sometimes I hear the same things from him over and over and it helps to hear things said in a different way, or perhaps someone else's ear will catch some little thing his didn't (or that he didn't bother to point out). I can often hear things in other people's submissions that I can't hear in my own.



Thanks and yeah... Ann Wilson is a tough act for ANYone to follow. I appreciate that you liked the other sub better. Probably because at this point, my voice is more suited to a 'mellow' song. I'm trying to push myself by going for more 'powerful' songs. Sometimes they come out well, sometimes not. The best I have done on them, is when I'm using our whole PA setup and I feel confident enough to really 'scream' them out there. I just don't feel that confident (yet!) trying to do the same at my computer - especially since other people can only hear ME, and not my music backing (ugh!!) since I only have headphones right now. I get embarrassed!! However, I'm going to work on this and try to do better.



I'm GLAD you commented. You are welcome to comment more! I'm not offended (see? My world doesn't come crumbling down when I'm critiqued!) I have no illusions of being a 'Fabulous' singer, I'm just trying to improve. I would settle for 'good', but I'm not going to get there without outside feedback, now am I? THANKS for your comments and you have a good xmas too!

No... it's a 'headset mic'. I may have to bend the mic away from my face. I'll try doing that and check the levels. I just have to remember that I'm singing LOUDER now than I was before!



Ok, I'm not sure what you mean here by 'clipping'. Are you talking about the popping and clicking in the song? Because that wasn't there in the original track, it got added during conversion to mp3 (unfortunately) and I wasn't able to take it out with the noise reduction in Cool Edit. Or were you talking about the spots where I overpowered the mic and my sound went way off the red side of the meter (causing an ugly crackly noise)? Thanks

Thank you again on 'favorite game' and for your comments. I agree... they (the Wilson sisters) are hard to do justice. Like I said, it's an 'outside the box' kind of thing for me, but if I don't try I'll never learn to do it. Either I can learn to do the songs well, or I can't. I'm going to work on it and find out which one it is. Now wouldn't it just ROCK if I came back and did a really good job on a resub of this? (gosh, do I like challenges or what?? hahah)



Thanks.. I have really NEVER liked the sound of my own voice AT ALL, and it has taken me a year to get to the point where I don't break down in tear at hearing myself on a recording. BUT!!! Don't feel sorry for me, it's a learning process. If I don't listen to myself (and let others listen) I'll never improve. Take care.

Oh...you have done it twice?.....ill have to go find it now i got mi left speaker working

I haven't listened to your track yet - although I do intend to - but as I was reading through these forum comments, I noticed people commenting a lot about the "lack of emotion" in your voice.....

Then I saw this....



Syber, I think you may have hit the nail on the head with that statement. If you're not having fun singing, how can you make the audience enjoy your performance? I know what you mean about singing being work, I'm a professional singer too, and I can empathise completely with what you're saying, but I've always said "the day I stop having fun is the day I quit"...

My advice (and as I said, I haven't listened to the sub yet, I'm just going on the comments) is to find a song you REALLY can have fun with... something lighthearted that you can really just let go and get your teeth into. Don't worry about whether you're hitting the mark, just sing for the fun of it

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!! No.. I posted the same recording twice. The first time the mix was REALLY bad, the second time we tried to fix it up some. *shrug*

Don't seem to be having much luck though

!! You have a point there. I think the real issue is, if I'm not really comfortable with the song, I haven't done it lots of times and I have to really concentrate to get the timing, lyrics (I made a lyric booboo in that sub too), pitch etc... I can't really relax and 'enjoy' it. heheh



Ack!!! Although again, you probably have a point. I've often heard my husband tell me that I sound better when I'm just 'goofing around' than when I really sit down and try to sing (although, I HAVE gotten a lot better on the songs we perform).

Thanks so much for the advice, I'm sure you're right!

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Aww thanks Melly !!



True enough... I'll have to try standing up. :p



Ok, I lowered my Wave down some.. mic was already on 50% and hey whadda ya know... there was that 'boost' right under 'advanced' just like you said.. and it WAS checked!! That might at least fix that problem for me. Thank ya!

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OK, that's exactly what my hubby tells me! When I sit down (yes, I sit too - I told you I was lazy! ) in front of a microphone, my throat just seems to close up and I can never fully let loose. It's just a mental block I guess I'll have to get over. Plus, I record without reverb and I don't like to hear myself "nekkid". Ah, excuses, excuses - I think I'll move my set up to the powder room where the acoustics are great and sit on the throne whilst recording!

Clipping means that the input signal to the computer is too high and thus you get heavy distortion. At least in my opinion the way to avoid that is to back off the mic. People who sing with headset have the option of moving the mic a little away for the loud passages, or use a hardware compressor.

If you are part of a band why don't you use your regular vocal mike on a stand with a pop filter. In this way you can also stand up etc.??

Morten

Ok cool Well, I know one would expect more from someone so critical, but as we all know... it's easier to give advice than to put it into practice! heh



Lol... yeah I should. But, don't let my 'serious' attitude toward my singing make you think I HATE doing it or something. It's just that I have to really work on something until I'm comfortable enough with it to start 'having fun'. Maybe I'll post something I do 'all the time' if I can find a backing for one of my better songs. You should see an improvement there. (I Hope!!!)



eh, no problem... If you meant it in that context I'm not going to stress about it.



*sheepishly puts away cat-o'-nine-tails* Well... hubby would laugh at me. He gives me a pretty hard time. But, he's also supportive of my trying to improve.



aww thanks you too!!! **insert xmas flashy thing here**
Hope your holiday is safe, warm and plentiful!

I've been trying to listen to myself *without* so much reverb & such, just so I can work more on the 'nekkid' voice.

But hey, if yer gonna be nekkid, may as WELL be in the 'powder room' !!

Ok, thanks



I wish!!! I don't because a) our setup is currently in the garage, b) my computer doesn't have the correct input for the plugs on the end of the mic (unless I use a big clunky adapter.. which I might try). But, even if I can bring a mic up, I can't bring up a mic-stand.... although that would be cool