How do I get the best sound on my vocal

Cubase
1

I am struggling with my reverb etc. Is there anybody here to guide me to the best vocal sound? I have Cubase Artist 11. Do I need to buy extra in order to achieve the best vocal sound? I would like my recordings to be as professional as if I did it in an professional recording studio. Please help.
Regards
Pia

2

The version of Cubase will not affect the vocal sound quality.
What will is the microphone, the microphone technique, the recording levels, the room (and any treatment of it) and possibly the interface/mic pre-amp.

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3

Thank you for your reply. Maybe I should buy a new microphone. I have Rode podcast microphone and guess it is not the best mice for singing. Could you recommend me a good mice?

4

I’d watch some youtube videos on vocal production. While the podcast mic certainly isn’t ideal it’ll get you most of the way there.

If you’re looking for a good cheap budget mic you could look at an NT1A.

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5

Lots of info on YouTube for free, also lots of courses online for various amounts of money, good books etc.
You can start here: Learn Cubase – Video tutorials for all levels | Steinberg , scroll down to “Vocal production for beginners”.

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6

Here is a microphone buying guide you might find useful (or scary just starting out)
https://www.sweetwater.com/insync/studio-microphone-buying-guide/

Keep in mind that every mic will behave differently depending on where it is in relation to the singer. So there is a lot to be gained by getting a feel for how things vary. This will even be beneficial with your current mic. First come up with a line you can sing pretty much the same everytime and use this to test different positions. Start recording and before singing the line state whatever it is you are testing, like “2 inches from the mic, direct on” , then repeat at 4, 6 & 8 inches, 3 feet, slightly off axis, etc. Go wild, use metric… No need to pause recording just move quick from one to the next.

Now when you listen back you can hear how these various changes effect the recorded sound. The best way to listen back is on flat headphones (i.e. no bass boost or similar cr@%) so you don’t hear the room in the playback.

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7

Thanks Raino!

8

Welcome to the home studio money pit. Great vocals begin with a good microphone, good microphone cable, good mic pre, good audio interface and like listed above the room you record in. That might be the most important. Now what “good” is, is very subjective. Really, everything matters. Get your demos together and buy some studio time at a local recording studio. You will learn a lot.