Best Vocal Mixing Formula

As a music producer or beatmaker, being skilled at mixing vocals is a way to extend your brand. If you’re working directly with artists, it is another service you can provide to bring more value. I’ve put together my best vocal mixing formula that you can find below.

Of course, it is always best to find your own way, but this is my guide to mixing vocals that I hope many of you will find helpful. Also, every vocal is different and should be treated as such. However, this vocal mixing formula can work on nearly all vocals crossing all genres of music.

The order in which these plugins go on your vocal chain is also important. I tend to do my vocal cleaning first, then tuning, automation, and then some surgical EQ, de-essing, compression, and lastly a final tonal EQ. Add that all together and you got the best vocal mixing formula.

These are the 7 steps and plugins in my vocal chain.

Vocal cleaning

Remove pops, clicks, and hissing. My recommended plugin is iZotope RX 9.

Vocal tuning

Fine-tune any vocal melody with a subtle effect. My recommended plugin is Melodyne or Auto-tune.

Volume automation

Use this tool to level out the vocal levels. This can be done directly in the DAW of your choice.

Surgical EQ

A clean EQ to address and frequency issues. My recommended plugin is FabFilter Pro Q3.

De-essing

Remove any harsh sibilance. My recommended plugin is FabFilter Pro DS.

Compression

Smooth out the vocal dynamics of your track. My recommended plugin is Tube Tech CL-1B.

Tonal EQ

Address any compression side effects with some tonal EQ. My recommended plugin is Pultec EQP-1A.

Perfecting your vocal mix

Now that you have my best vocal mixing formula, you can play with it and tweak it to your liking. Remember to follow the order of the formula listed, but feel free to substitute the plugins you like to use for each step.

What plugins do you use for your vocal chain? What is your process?