How to make vocals sit in a mix

1. Clean Muddiness from Vocals Using EQ
2. Smooth Out Vocals with De-Essing
3. Create Space for Vocals with Frequency Slotting
4. Control Dynamics of Vocals with Serial Compression
5. Enhance Vocal Presence with Parallel Compression
6. Add Excitement with Parallel Distortion and Saturation
7. Thicken Vocals with Pitch Effects
8. Ensure Vocals Cut Through with Volume Automation
9. Adjust Monitoring Levels for Accurate Mixing
10. Balance Vocals Pre and Post-Processing with Gain Adjustments
11. Optimize Vocal Levels by Splitting into Sections
12. Make Vocals Stand Out with Sidechain Compression
13. Fine-tune Backing Vocals for Harmony and Clarity
14. Polish Vocals with Soothe for a Final Touch

To bring the vocals up front, try cleaning up muddiness with an EQ. Reduce the low-end and lower midrange frequencies where the vocal is boomy and dark. This will make the vocals sound clearer and more defined. Be careful not to remove too much, as this can result in thin and harsh vocals. The body of the vocal, usually around 200-400 Hz, affects how big and close the vocal feels. This area is often exaggerated when recording an artist close to the microphone (proximity effect).

One effective method is to use a dynamic EQ or a multi-band compressor, or a combination. This stabilizes and controls the muddy part.

When dealing with harsh vocals, look for unpleasant sounding areas around 2-6 kHz and treat them similar to muddy areas. Narrower bands (higher Q-values) are generally better for cleaning up, but be careful not to go too narrow, as this might lead to an unnatural sound.

Sibilant sounds (S-sounds) can sometimes stand out and cause vocals to sound harsh and unpleasant in a mix. To address this issue, you can use a De-Esser or a multi-band compressor with an automatic release time or one that matches the BPM of the song.

For a smoother sound, try using two De-Essers in a row, each targeting a different range of frequencies (like 3-6 kHz and 8-16 kHz). To keep the sound natural, narrow down the frequency range as much as possible while still removing harsh sounds. This maintains the clarity and brightness of the vocal.

Setting up a De-Esser is like setting up a compressor, but simpler. Find the threshold where the harsh sounds occur and adjust the reduction (or "range" in tools like Fabfilter Pro-DS) until you find the right balance.

To create space for the vocals in the mix you can use a technique called frequency slotting. If you find that the vocals are not sitting well, try cutting some instruments around 300  Hz and/or somewhere between 1-5 kHz. Mixing in mono can make this process easier, as masking frequencies are easier to hear. To make even more space for the vocal, try panning the instruments away from the center, where the vocal is sitting.

After cleaning up the vocal with EQ and a De-Esser, it's time for compression to control the vocal and make it sit in place. One of the best ways to do this is by applying serial compression. Serial compression is a technique that involves using multiple compressors in a row to create a punchy and upfront sound without over-compressing.

• First, use one compressor to apply some mild compression to tame the initial transients and loudest peaks of a sound. For this step, use a fast attack and fast release.
• Then, use a second compressor to smooth out the sound further. To achieve this, start with a 2:1 ratio and 2–5 dB of gain reduction with each compressor.
• Adjust the makeup gain to match the same peak level as the signal has without compression, so you can hear if you’re getting the right sound out of the compressor.

One of the biggest benefits of serial compression is the ability to blend different tones of different compressors together.

When mixing vocals, parallel compression (also known as New York compression) can be an effective way to bring the vocal to the front and center of the mix. To do this, create either a duplicate of your vocal track or create an aux track and send your vocal to it. On this track, heavily compress the vocal with a gain reduction of around 10 to 20 dB and blend it to taste with the main vocal sound. 

Any compressor will work, but I prefer either the UAD 1176 (or Waves CLA-76) or the Puigchild for most of my parallel compression. I usually set a relatively fast attack and slow release time on the compressor. To further enhance the vocals, you can apply saturation or distortion after the compressor to emphasize certain frequencies even more or to achieve a more extreme effect.

Another technique that can help to give vocals more presence and bite in a mix is to layer the main vocal with a saturated or distorted version of it. To do this, you can create either a duplicate of the vocal track or an aux track where you insert a distortion or saturation plugin and turn up the drive. Pull down the level of this duplicate/aux track completely and start blending it in slowly.

This distorted layer can add some extra edge and presence to the vocal, helping it to stand out in the mix. When using this technique, it's important to be careful not to overdo it, as too much distortion can quickly become unpleasant to listen to. If necessary, pull back some over-enhanced frequencies with an equalizer on the duplicate/aux track. By finding the right balance and using this technique sparingly, you can add some extra punch and excitement to your vocals.

A subtle chorus effect on an aux channel can help to widen the vocal and give it a bigger sound. The approach here is similar to the previous one - pull down the level of the channel and slowly blend it in with the original vocal. 

My favorite setting for this is Jaycen Joshua’s “Air France” aux preset, which consists of a chorus, a compressor, and an EQ (low shelf, 300 Hz dip, 6.5 kHz boost). My version of this preset is the SoundToys Microshift, Waves H-Comp, and FabFilter Pro-Q 3. If you have these plugins and use ProTools, download this preset for free here.

Another trick for adding fullness to vocals is to layer them with a duplicate of the vocal that has been pitched down an octave (-12 semitones). You can also experiment with different pitches to create harmonies and add even more thickness to the vocal. Some good settings to try include -3, -5, -7, and -9 semitones. By using this technique, you can give the vocals a more powerful, full-bodied sound. Great tools for this are the Soundtoys Little Alter Boy and the Waves Vocal Bender (save an extra 10% at Waves with this link). 

The best way to get vocals to sit in the mix is through volume automation. Identify where the vocals are out of place (too loud or too low) and automate these parts instead of making changes to the overall vocal chain, which can change the vocal sound as a whole.

The way we hear sound changes depending on how loudly we are listening. When the volume is high, our ears are more sensitive to high and low frequencies. But when we listen at lower volumes, these frequencies become harder to hear and we instead focus more on midrange frequencies.

The midrange is an important range of frequencies to pay attention to when mixing vocals, as this is where the vocals tend to be. To get a better sense of the vocals in your mix, try turning down the volume and listening at lower levels. This can help you to make more precise volume and automation adjustments and can give you a clearer sense of how the vocals are sitting in the mix.

One way to automate the vocals is to use clip gain. It's important to know the difference between clip gain and channel volume automation.

Clip gain changes the level of the vocals before they go through the inserts of the channel, while channel volume automation changes the level after the inserts.

So, you can adjust your vocal parts using clip gain before processing the vocal. Then, use volume automation as one of the final stages to make the vocals sit correctly in the mix, considering all sections and elements that push them back or pull them to the front.

An efficient way to adjust vocals is to split them into separate audio tracks for each section of the song (such as the verse, bridge, and hook). By using separate tracks, you can quickly and easily adjust the levels of each section to get the right balance and make the vocals sit smoothly in the mix, and ensure that they are audible and well-defined throughout the song. This can be particularly useful when working with complex arrangements or songs that have multiple vocal parts that need to be balanced carefully.

In addition to frequency slotting, you can use sidechain compression to create space for the vocals in the mix. This technique involves using a multi-band compressor to automatically reduce the volume of certain instruments or groups whenever the vocals are present. This can help make the vocals more prominent and intelligible. I usually compress the instrument bus only, so as not to lose the energy and drive of the track, which is often found in the drums.

A useful tool for implementing sidechain compression is a plugin called Trackspacer. This plugin allows you to easily sidechain instruments or groups/busses by feeding the vocals into the sidechain input. Instead of turning down the entire instrument, Trackspacer will only reduce the important frequencies of the vocals on the instrument or bus/group track, resulting in a more transparent sound.

You can also use these techniques with your backing vocals to create space for the lead vocal. If you're introducing new backing vocals or harmonies in the chorus, you can start them a bit louder to make their entrance noticeable, and then bring them down a bit to free up the mix. Another option is to pull back 1-3 kHz on the backing vocals to make the lead vocal more present.

To polish your vocals and clear out any leftover resonances, soothe2 is one of the best tools out there. Mixing engineer Jaycen Joshua has made a great preset for it, which he calls the “Voice of God”. You can download Jaycen Joshua's “Voice of God” preset here. If you've recently updated soothe2, you’ll find this preset among the factory presets, thanks to Jaycen’s collaboration with oeksound on this preset.

Here's a screenshot of it: