Most producers will eventually get to the point where they begin working with vocals in addition to other sounds (regardless of the genre).

The human voice is, in essence, an instrument itself. But it can take a lot of work to get the level of quality you desire.

If you mix too loud, you run the risk of the vocal being abrasive to the listener. If you mix too quietly, the vocals could get lost in the rest of the song and not have enough presence.

And the volume of the vocals is only one of the many factors you need to worry about. But it doesn’t have to be as intimidating as it seems.

Not sure how to make vocals sound professional? We’ve got you covered. Let’s check out how to mix vocals like a pro.

A Quality Microphone Makes a Huge Difference

This cannot be stressed enough.

A general rule of thumb to keep in mind is that you can make a good vocal sample great, but you can rarely make a bad vocal sample good. Vocals recorded on a low-quality mic will sound fuzzy, weak, and even a bit distorted.

Many producers think that they can take vocal samples that were recorded on an iPhone or cheap mic and process them until the sound professional. But it won’t work as intended and it will only waste time.

Similarly, artists often have the notion they can buy pop instrumentals, record on an old microphone in their room, and somehow end up with an international hit.

If you’re in charge of providing the audio recording equipment for vocals mixing, you need to bite the bullet and invest in a quality microphone. This isn’t to say that you need to spend $1000 on a microphone, however. There are plenty of microphones available at reasonable prices for almost every budget.

Pitch Correction

There are artists out there who have a purist ideology when it comes to vocal processing. They believe that the effects should be kept to a minimum in order to illustrate the singer’s raw talent.

But the truth is that even the most talented singers cannot stay on key 100% of the time. Nearly every hit that makes it to the radio has had the vocals pitch corrected in the studio.

As always, you should only use a percentage of the effect rather than all of it. By adjusting the mix level of the pitch correction software (such as Melodyne or the infamous AutoTune), you’ll be able to clean up the vocals while still keeping a natural sound.

A strategy that will help you take this a step further is to apply pitch correction to the vocals of the track without soloing the vocals themselves.

For example, the song may be in A minor, but if the instruments are slightly detuned, a vocal locked to the A minor scale will sound dissonant and harsh when accompanied by the rest of the song.

As long as you have an ear for what sounds right and what doesn’t, you’ll be able to subtly adjust the vocals until they sit perfectly within the mix.

Compression

Compression is especially useful if the singer tends to have high peaks during part of their vocal track. This will help you limit the max volume of the vocal so that the overall volume remains more consistent.

But, many producers don’t know where to start when it comes to compression due to all of the variables at play.

Luckily, there is a good starting point that can be fine-tuned to taste.

On the compressor plugin, the threshold decibel value should be set just below where the vocals tend to peak. A relatively high ratio, such as 4:1, will have an impact while still allowing room for adjustment.

The attack value should be kept under 10 ms.

With these settings in place, the vocal will sound fuller overall and the peaks will be much less harsh. But, as previously mentioned, don’t be afraid to tweak the values until they fit just right.

Volume Automation

Although simple in practice, only advanced producers tend to use this technique because of how labor-intensive it is.

For those unfamiliar with the term, volume automation is the process of setting predetermined values for the volume level of the vocal so that the volume will automatically adjust as the song plays.

This is the exact reason that pop vocals always sound so strong and clear when you hear the studio version of the song. No matter how talented a singer is, it’s impossible to say each word of the song at the same volume and still have it sound natural.

Therefore, an experienced producer knows they have to go through the whole song and lower the volume for parts that are too loud and raise the volume for parts that are too quiet.

Once again, this is a lot of work. Even if a track is under 4 minutes long, it can take hours to automate the vocals in just the right way so that you can’t tell the volume is being adjusted post-recording.

But, the end result is always worth it, as you’ll be left with warm, crisp, vocals that are ready for further processing.

Learning How to Mix Vocals Doesn’t Stop Here

There are other tools you can use to improve vocal tracks, such as corrective EQing, reverb, delay, etc. But, the previously listed techniques on how to mix vocals will get you where you need to go in most instances.

Need a new microphone but aren’t sure which one to look into? Check out our microphone review section for all the info you need.