I'm working on a piece that uses a lot of vocalizations, but the are back of the throat and tongue stuff that just isn't very loud, even backing off on the harp volume a bit. Has anyone messed around with trying to mic them separately (maybe a mic under the chin?), or pull them out electronically? In a recorded track I can amplify them as long as they are in a quiet part of the music, but without loop pedals I can't figure out how to do it live. Here is a snippet of what I'm recording, and then what I want it to sound like (which I got by selectively amplifying in Audacity.)
Short of a spy microphone in my mouth, how do I mic that? (This is just a rough adjustment... I didn't try getting all the levels right, but it gives you an idea of the problem.)
edit- Lol. Is it possible to use a Talk Box and a harmonica at the same time?
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Last Edited by on Jun 17, 2012 12:34 PM
I can't see your snippet, but figured out that YOUR voice had to be heard? If not, there are vst effects for voicing, but maybe none close to what you want...
What browser are you using? Yeah, my voice and tongue clucks and whatever. I might be able to do something with eq since they are in a different range. I could do something with compression I guess.
Sounds like you are sub-vocalizing "koh-kee koh-kee" with the back of the tongue. That's going to be hard to hear unless you *actually* vocalize it. Vocalized, it will basically be a variant of the basic "K-Snare", which is an important beatbox sound. If you were making the sounds further down your throat (for example, what beatboxers call "throat bass"), you could capture them very well by placing a second mic to right or left side of your voice box. I don't think that's going to work in this case, however. My advice is to check out this video on Snare sounds, paying attention to the part on the "K-snare", and see if you can use the instruction it gives to make your sounds louder, and thus to be picked up by your harp mic better...
EDITED TO ADD THE CORRECT VIDEO... ---------- == I S A A C ==
This is an easy fix. Use some compression and/or two mics. If you are using a more traditional close-grip mic and have another dynamic nearby, that will help pick things up too.
You can experiment with eq as well. For example, adding some oomph around 60hz. You might be able to add some presence boosting closer to 5khz...but see how that sounds with harp.
Like most mixes, you lose all the balls on computer speakers.
Thanks guys! Isaac, it's 3 am, but I watched the videos anyway. :) It's funny, I hadn't really put it together that I was making a K sound, just that I was making a click in the back of my throat. Once I knew what I was doing back there I was able to get more volume. It's tough to balance the harp and the vocalizations on the fly. I can't really tell how loud either one is leaving my mouth. I'll have to do some recordings and try to get a sense of the volume. I seem to want to play the harp louder once I start beat boxing, just because it seems like louder music. :) I'll have to listen to myself a bit.
Mike, thanks. I'll mess around with the mic some in tomorrow. The neighbors wouldn't like it if I did too much at 3 am. I'm using my Yeti. I'll mess around with the settings and my other mic a bit.
Hmm, I don't know if Audacity supports more than one mic at a time. I'll mess around with it.
On a slightly side note, I saw a great DIY Talk Box on YouTube. It's under $10 in parts if you have some old computer speakers. I'm thinking if I can bend the tube so it's hooked, like those little spit catchers at the dentist's office, maybe I can use it and the harp at the same time. I have no idea if it will work or sound cool, but for $10, I may give it a shot.
Nate, sorry for this late response, I can now understand the scale of the task, especially since you want to perform on the fly both harp and "clucks" from throat. My browser is an Internet 7 version and reads "properly" the YT videos...but not yours. Who is this guy who modified his guitar's sound with a device in his mouth? If that device is very little, could it be a hurdle to play harp at the same time? And how was that thing attached?
Laurent, I'll try to trouble shoot the audio later. Has anyone else had a problem listening? It's just some audio files stored on my Dropbox page, pasted in with the normal forum code. If the normal forum code isn't working I'll have to put on my admin hat and trouble shoot it. Oh well, it wouldn't be the first time. Here is the direct links:
Here is a video of the home made talk box. Like I said, I think I'd have to crimp the hose somehow so it doubled back. I've got a shape in my mind that would have the tube come out of the mouth, double back along my cheek, then hook down towards the floor to the Talk Box. I don't know if it will pick up the clucks, but it would give me some other tools to shape my sound on the fly. :)
