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Music Production: Vocal Processing
Rating: 4.6 out of 5(6 ratings)
31 students

Music Production: Vocal Processing

A Step-by-Step Vocal Chain for Modern Music Production
Created byJosh Cook
Last updated 1/2026
English
English [Auto],

What you'll learn

  • Proper vocal recording setup and gain staging
  • Corrective EQ, dynamic EQ, and de-essing techniques
  • Multi-stage vocal compression workflows
  • Using saturation and color EQ intentionally
  • Placing vocals clearly within a full mix

Course content

2 sections • 15 lectures • 3h 27m total length

  • Recording Space and Setup8:49

    Let's get you all set up.

  • Tuning and Gating32:10

    Cleaning up the vocals is always step 1.

  • Cut Below the Fundamental6:14

    A simple but important next step.  Let's cut out some bass and sub garbage artifacts.

  • Corrective EQ6:49

    Let's get the eq curve for your vocals balanced.

  • Corrective Dynamic EQ6:15

    Same thing as the last class but more nuanced and detailed.

  • De-essers21:55

    De-essing your vocals properly is SSSSSuper important.
    Sometimes, it can be tough!  As you'll see in this course, Ss's were the BANE of my existence, but we dealt with them over a few instances of Ss correction.

  • Compression Stage 1 (Smoothing)9:52

    Let's smooth out the dynamics.

  • Compression Stage 2 (Shaping)8:45

    Now, let's shape the dynamics with punch and glue.

  • Saturation11:43

    Things are about to get a little fuzzy. 

  • Color EQ19:14

    NOW we can shape the color of the vocals with a color EQ. 
    At this stage, feel free to use a fancy EQ that you feel is transparent and musical (if that's what you're going for!)

  • Artistic FX17:05

    Personally, I use a ton of artistic FX on my vocals.  From vocoders, to Izotope's vocal synth, let's talk about some fun goodies you can add to your vocal effects.

  • Spatial FX25:15

    Now let's set things in the right space.

  • Creating Space15:41

    It's important that other instruments don't conflict with the range and intelligibility of the vocals, so let's push the out of the way with grace.

  • Final Notes14:42

    Let's go back to the original session file and see how it is similar, and how it differs, from everything we've covered so far.

Requirements

  • Basic knowledge of Ableton 10+. Some piano skills will also help.

Description

Great vocal production starts long before plugins — and ends with intentional creative choices.

Music Production: Vocal Processing walks you through a complete, practical vocal workflow used by modern producers and engineers. This course focuses on clarity, control, and musical decision-making, helping you turn raw vocal recordings into polished, mix-ready performances.

You’ll begin with recording fundamentals, including room treatment, microphone choices, and proper gain staging, so your vocals start clean and controlled. From there, you’ll learn why tuning and gating should come first, how to remove unnecessary low-frequency noise, and how to use corrective EQ and dynamic EQ to fix problems without damaging tone.

The course then moves into multi-stage compression, explaining how to smooth dynamics first and shape character second, using classic compressor styles as reference points. You’ll explore tasteful saturation, color EQ, and how to place vocals correctly within a full mix — not just in solo.

Finally, you’ll learn how to apply artistic and spatial effects, create space using sidechaining or intelligent tools, and avoid common widening and phase issues. Throughout the course, the emphasis is on intentional processing rather than over-processing.

By the end, you’ll understand not just what to use in a vocal chain, but why and when to use it — giving you consistent, professional vocal results across genres.

Who this course is for:

  • Music producers looking to improve vocal clarity and polish
  • Songwriters recording vocals at home
  • Beginner to intermediate mix engineers
  • Artists working across multiple genres
  • Producers who want a reliable, repeatable vocal chain

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