Plugin to make flute less fuzzy?

[daveyboy]

I'm mixing my 9th CD with my native american flutist. I have become the "flute" expert along the way but am always trying to improve my workflow. One of the challenges is the fact that each note is a different volume level. I'm now using melodyne to not only improve intonation but to mix the flute. Normally it's an insane amount of automation along with compression. This is working nicely. In terms of recording I've experimented a lot with mics and placement and am getting the best sound (yet). But, there's still the fuzzy high end that is next to impossible to get rid of. To me it's fine and is a part of the sound, but, the clilent in part does not like the sound (don't ask). So, I was just curious if there's anything out there, verses what I'm already using (eq, multiband comression, etc), that makes it easier to pin point this sound and back it down a tad. Just curiuos.

 

[Markdvc]

I find that you need to be very careful with higher frequencies recording flute. Depending on what sound you are going for, you may want to try to move the microphone to a position where those hissy, spitting sounds are not going to cause problems. When mixing, a rolling off some higher frequencies may also help. Concerning leveling out volume differences between notes, if you aren't familiar with it, have a look at Waves' vocal rider.

kind regards

Mark

 

[daveyboy]

I find that you need to be very careful with higher frequencies recording flute. Depending on what sound you are going for, you may want to try to move the microphone to a position where those hissy, spitting sounds are not going to cause problems. When mixing, a rolling off some higher frequencies may also help. Concerning leveling out volume differences between notes, if you aren't familiar with it, have a look at Waves' vocal rider.

kind regards

Mark

Done, done and Done! Mucho time with mics and placement. Recording is done and I'm mixing now. Am pretty much done and found Melodyne nice as I can easily select one note across the whole song and raise or lower it at once like midi. The thing with the native flute is each note volume is a different level, at least with this particular player. I've tried Vocal Rider on a few songs as well but his vibrato is so strong that sometimes it pumps so I'm still experimenting with that. The biggest challenge though is just the tone as if you start to roll off the high end then the flute is too dull. I'm using the uad studer plug in and am trying that to help soften the high end without making it dull. It's fun trying different things out.

 

[Eli]

Hate to mention the obvious but: I have found, with the few flute recordings I have done, that there can be a problem with actual saliva. You can hear when there is saliva happening between the lips and the mouth piece. It can sound like distortion. It seems to happen more at moments of intensity. Maybe in phrases that climax in high notes? Could that be the source of the problem?

 

[daveyboy]

Thx Eli. It's actually not bad at all. I'm just being über picky! If anything it probably average to good. I'm just seeing if there is some plugin I din know about that can work some magic

 

[Peter Ostry]

I'm just seeing if there is some plugin I din know about that can work some magic

One plugin: EQ, preferably a soft one, probably automated.
One method: A second mic and mix (automate) the sound of both.

 

[daveyboy]

OK, well I've answered some of my own questions and thought I'd share with the group ;-)

Minus working with an expert flutist who gets a great tone and has a lower fizz to tone ratio I found a few things that are helping with the mixes. One is my UAD Studer800 plugin. By lowering the tape speed it makes the flute duller but duller in a good way, which plain eq doesn't seem to be able to do (for me). Also, I had to go in and fix some clicks where he's playing a bass flute (not native but orchestral). I opened up the file in Soundtrack Pro and went into spectral mode. It was easy to see the clicks and marque around them and delete. Worked great. I could also see the fizz frequency and tried deleting that for fun. It actually worked but sounded too drastic. It made me wonder how well the izotope rx might work. I also seem to remember a cheap au plugin someone makes that allows you to do something like this. I'll have to check into that.