Vocal sounds thin? Add 2 dB at 150 to 250 Hz

A thin vocal is missing its body: the warm, full part of a voice that sits around 150 to 250 Hz. It often goes missing when the singer was far from the mic, or when a high-pass filter was set too high. Boost about 2 dB in that range with a wide, gentle band and the vocal sounds warm and full again. Don't overdo it: too much turns muddy.

How to do it

1. Check your high-pass filter on the vocal first: if it's above about 120 Hz, lower it.
2. Put an EQ on the vocal and add a wide boost of about 2 dB between 150 and 250 Hz.
3. Sweep it slowly and stop where the voice sounds fullest, not boomiest.
4. Lower voices usually want it nearer 150 Hz, higher voices nearer 250 Hz.
5. Listen in the full mix. If the vocal starts to sound muddy or blurs with the bass, back it off.

Why it works

Each voice has a fundamental (its lowest note) in the low hundreds of hertz, and that's where it gets its weight. A small, wide boost there brings the weight back without adding the boxy sound that lives higher up, at 400 to 800 Hz.