Advice for using Reverb on vocals?

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KennyTheInsane

New member
I guess this is kind of a broad question, but does anyone here have advice on adding reverb to vocals? I have a lot trouble finding a good balance with my reverb settings. Instead of improving and filling out the voice, it usually ends up sounding like I recorded in a large bathroom or a cave or something. Any tips?

Thanks in advance, guys.
 
Sometimes... not always.. I've used slight reverb and a very, very slight delay/echo. I find it helps define the reverb to the tempo. Sorry I don't have any exact settings for you, but I got the idea after noticing it on other "pro" records. It's sometimes audible if the vocals run right up to a sting ending, or if it hits an acapella part. But with music backing it up, the vox sink right in.
 
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Reverb is very broad. If it sounds like a cave/hall, then maybe that is the setting you have it on. Try starting with a plate and adjust the decay time. EQ the verb as well so it doesn't sound bright if you want it to sound dark. Pre-delay and diffussion are also useful as well as dry/wet adjustments.
 
In my studio, with newly upgraded acoustics, I have a vocal area specially tailored to give me a
sort of tunable room sound. Then I follow that up with my favorite vocal verb, Lexicon PCM Vintage Plate,
with an eq for further shaping on the send.
Most of the time, you can get away with using very short delays instead of reverb, so research using delay
instead of reverb.
To give you an idea, just one of the many considerations when choosing reverb,,,,
Regarding reverb, though all parameters are important, your predelay can have a great impact on the sound.
For sounds I want farther away, I use little to no predelay, for upfront sounds, I use longer predelays timed
to the tempo of the song.
Ahh, hell, the other parameters are just as important.
Then you have reverb damping time of frequencies, ect..ect..
Some reverbs have a type of Through mode that requires you to engage the direct sound
if using directly on the track(Waves Trueverb)
There is no rule, unfortunately.

Read books like "Mixing Audio: Concepts, Practices and Tools", and others like it.
 
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simply put, use a send effect for reverb, that way you can dial in as much or as little as you need and have total control of the vocal being up front with a reverb tail controlled by the return from the reverb unit, this approach means that you can use 100% wet signal returned from the reverb.

from there it is a matter of selecting the type of reverb (spring, plate, early reflections, room, cave, canyon), the levels that get sent to it and how it is eq'd either in the unit or on the return channel strip
 
Sometimes, if I just can't find the right reverb, it's because it just doesn't suit reverb. Then I'll usually try a treatment such a tight slapback delay just to add some dimension on the vocal
 
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IPM Music said:
Sometimes... not always.. I've used slight reverb and a very, very slight delay/echo. I find it helps define the reverb to the tempo. Sorry I don't have any exact settings for you, but I got the idea after noticing it on other "pro" records. It's sometimes audible if the vocals run right up to a sting ending, or if it hits an acapella part. But with music backing it up, the vox sink right in.
Click to expand...

^ This. Too large a reverb will make you lose the 'punchiness' and clarity of the vocal. Keep the reverb slightly smaller and shorter, add a short delay lower in the mix and you should get a better result. Save the larger reverbs for backing vocals. Use sparingly. :)
 
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