i sound weird when i record myself?

xmarkcayabyab

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so i sound like a lil kid when i TRY to sing when i record myself. Idk if it's either my voice still being developed BTW im only 15 1/2 x]. or if it's just my voice. I mean like have you guys ever had this problem where you guys know you can sing but you don't have the right voice for singing? please any tips? Ive been wondering about this for a while now and i asked my friends that can sing and they say i sound fine when i think i sound like crap.
 
ask anyone, when you hear your own voice on a record, it always sounds weird. the voice you hear from yourself sounds different from what others hear because of the fact that you hear it mostly inside of your skull (what noone else does). so you hear your own voice with the full resonance of your head/skull. without that and from "outside" it mostly sounds ok, but you're not used to that. you know, naturally people wouldn't hear their own voices, that's just by technology... but well, believe your friends when they say it sounds fine, they are the ones who hear your voice as it is...;)
 
you never sound the same on the recorder, but if your friends say you sound ok then you probly do, you also might just be like me a little they say your good but you still dont like your own voice. the way i figure it some people will like your voice and then some might not you simply cant please every one. If that still dosent work for you there are two other ways you can test to see for your self. one make a youtube vid of you playin with face coverd if your shy. Then read the coments, people tend to be very honest be prepared to hear the good and bad. The second way i suggest is to get a jam session together or you can go solo and play in or around a crowd and watch the peoples faces again prepar for the good and bad comments or looks.

Hopes this helps and dont be afraid to just get out there.

this is also a good way to meet new people
 
Like the others have said, it's perfectly normal to be uncomfortable with your own voice because you're not accustomed to actually "hearing" it. Great suggestion of putting something up on youtube. People can (and will) be brutally honest!
 
I mean like have you guys ever had this problem where you guys know you can sing but you don't have the right voice for singing?
This is precisely what makes the American Idol auditions so entertaining!

Craig
 
its easy to be weary of your own voice cause ur harsh on you...you know?
when u hear someone else, youre not nearly as critical...even though u can recognize mistakes...

with that in mind, though, you realize thats how other people hear you too...

so its a matter of getting used to hearing yourself...

lol...like when u hear yourself on a voice mail...its kinda funny
 
Assuming you are not tone deaf, and that you are singing accurately, and can keep the basic timing of the piece, then don't worry about it. Maybe your voice has a bit of developing still to come.

Try filling your lungs more, and singing with conviction, but don't push it. That might help.

Ukantor.
 
I have the same problem. My singing voice in person isn't terrible and I can hit the notes okay, but when I heard what I sounded like recorded, I freaked. It was really, really bad! So bad that it pretty much crushed my hopes of making some non-instrumental videos. I don't know if it was the mic, the Garageband settings, or a complete lack of singing talent that becomes more evident in recordings.

Either way, I'm going to look for lessons. I don't want to be Josh Groban or anything; just being able to sing with a pleasant tone and breathe properly would be satisfying enough.
 
To give yourself an idea of what isn't captured when you record, stick your fingers in your ears and sing. What you hear are the bass tones of bone conductivity that the mic can't pick up.

Kevin
 
hey guys

thought some of you might be interested in the science behind sounding different to yourself to others.

in your middle ear (where the 3 bones that amplify sound are) you have a reflex called the attenuation reflex. this is basically where a muscle stops the bones amplifying the sound too much and damaging your inner ear.

this reflex is activated by loud noises, but also your own voice. so this muting effect makes you sound different in your head, compared to what others hear.
 
When I first started recording myself, I hated my voice. Airy, no lower range to speak of and it just sounded wierd to me. After having recorded myself a lot, I have made peace with my pipes and now days I am pretty happy. Plus now I have a lot better idea of what things my voice will do well and what things I will struggle with.

The first step was just getting used to hearing it like other people do. Record yourself a lot, and listen to it. Not only will you grow accustom to it, but you will start to hear things that you like and want to develop, as well as things you don't like and can work on minimizing.
 
I have a deep voice, it sounds less deep in my head still though, and when i listen to myself recorded it always sounds even deeper/weirder!
Sometimes i wish i sounded like sorpano, but i've long since accepted im more of a Macy Grey or something. Heck i cant even sing some guy songs because they go too high :D

But yes, as above, these things are what make the Idol programs so brilliant and amusing :D
 
in my mind... it's like looking in a mirror or seeing yourself in a unposed photograph, it just doesn't look/feel right. don't sweat it, there are various tricks you can do to get a better idea of how you sound when you sing. :2cents:
 
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I can relate, xmark. I know what you're saying...it's not just that you--and me, too--sound "different" when recorded. We sound like crap. Out of tune, like a bird with a broken wing trying to call for a mate. It's ridiculous.

In my head, when I sing, I sound okay. Not great, mind you, but passable. When I listen to a recording of myself, I'm so out of pitch that I cringe and slam my laptop shut and climb under the bedsheets and never want to come out. Honestly!

But, I have found a solution. I now sing only in the shower, when I'm completely alone, usually after checking the house to make sure no one else is home. Sometimes I wish I could rinse my tonsils with Drano and grow a new set and start again. But, I'm fairly sure the body doesn't work that way.
 
same here, in fact I'm starting voice lessons today! no kidding. I'm leaving in about 30 min for it.

Hopefully some solid technique and I may start to learn how to sing properly.. like any other instrument, our body\voice needs training...
 
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