I played with those two files (just in my phones for the moment). Great fun!
"Well I'm not a novice..." and after that a big breath followed by a smooth atack of vague narration. Hard fixing (if you use just the gate). The whole story is very funny, no doubt. Reaper vs Waves, to match two different things. What about free plugins? Why not some spice from these gifts? This is just for the part with plot holes in SOS scenario...
Of course in Reaper some really magic can be done, that's for sure...
In this case, it's not that hard to make the voice sound good but there are also some facts at the starting point:
- the short file, has a more intimate vocal timbre, but also a much worse recording (the room reverberation is more obvious in this one). But the vocal has some cool vibe to my ears. This can be done only by mother nature, and this little thing is very important! This isn't from Waves.
- the second file, is better as a starting sample point, nice vocal too, but it's so different than the first one. The overall fell is different. A more relaxed story, not the some needs, different sound.
So, I skip the "matching part", with something like: make this file sound good and you're done."The strategy" in my opinion:
- The file has some level out (so turn down a little the sample volume)
- Gate unwanted breath (manual if there is high expectation)
- Put some body with ReaEQ in low frequency, find where the sweet caracteristic of the rest of the spectrum is and tune for your liking (and for sculpting the personality of that particular timbre). See the volume level (always!) and make it right.
- Tight the vocal but don't use the compression (carefully, the xpander is what makes wonder here!)
- Eq again! Some nice presence but don't boost the hi shelf! This time, subtract the low frequency, and compensate the volume.
- Time for some sweet magic, so put the xciter with harmonics by the personal taste
- The compressor! It's like glue all the above steps. Very gentle, you don't want to kill the vocal dynamic which I always prefer for a natural feel. Two bad the music these days kill this aspect with regularity.
- Here is where you choose how to give some imperfection to the digital medium as we use these days. Some trick to put a 3D feel to the sterile sound of digital. I always do this step with vocals, it's like grain magic in photography. Here is where the secrets are IMO. But a more simple way is to use a free plugin called Ferric. Not best, but much better than finding some tricks in Reaper warehouse. Why a massive chain of suffer when there is a much simple way to do the job? Remember also the plugin delay compensation for some live situation...
Return to Ferric, this simulate some tape dynamics and has a limiter for final stage, but also broke the law Called Waves vs Reaper...
Why this law? Don't ask me, it's top secret.
I have secrets too...
Tomorow I'll put the test on my monitors and if I like the sound, I will join the "matching sound" traping game.
It's fun!