The vocalist needs to feel comfortable and without psychological strain. A pleasant room temperature helps the vocalist's comfort level and a minimal number of people in the room reduces distractions. Proper rehearsal leads to a more confident singer and a better recording session. Even with extensive rehearsal, though, singers sometimes forget lyrics. Provide a copy of the lyrics in case of such a memory lapse.
The headphone monitor system lets singers hear themselves and the instrumentation. A good headphone mix helps keep the singer on pitch, while a poor mix can ruin a recording session. Many singers prefer the addition of slight reverb to the vocal foldback of their headphone mix, especially in a dry acoustic environment. Some singers also prefer to adjust headphone volume themselves and such a system adds to the comfort level of the singer.
Condenser microphones detect a greater range of frequencies than other microphones. As such, many recording engineers consider them the default microphone for vocals. Place the microphone between 6 inches to 9 inches from the vocalist to maintain a steady vocal volume. Two accessories can also help track a good vocal. The first, a shock mount, minimizes unwanted microphone vibrations. The second, a pop filter, reduces plosives, the hard rush of air that occurs when singing certain words.
During recording, the use of minimal compression evens out the peaks of a vocal performance. A gain reduction between 5 decibels to 8 decibels works well. After recording, engineers commonly use several effects. Noise gates cut out unwanted low-volume sounds, such as clicks or breaths between words, but they can make vocals seem unnatural if misused. De-essers remove sibilance, the hissing sound that occurs when pronouncing words containing the letter "s." Engineers apply extra compression at this stage as well.