How are they getting this subtle high end roll off on their vocal?

[PhilipMarlowe]

There's no reason to get all in your feelings. All I'm saying is 99% of billboard hip hop and rnb (yes, Drake too) is made on a 20 thousand dollar Sony tube mic, that is a fact. Only online do you read about people who most likely don't do this for a living saying the recording chain has no real effect on the end product and you should instead focus on fixing it in the mix.
I personally tend to watch what people do more than what they say, but if you're happy with your sound you're getting that's cool, man. I'm not trying to shit on anyone's parade. Don't you think it's ironic that you're on a diy gear forum though? If gear doesn't matter: why do you build your own?

 

[kags]

I work on some of the biggest names in pop and urban music. We work at studios with great gear and good acoustics, but many artists and producers these days bring in their own interfaces (usually Apollo Twins fwiw). I’ve recorded hit vocals on C800s, 251s, U47, U67 of course, but I’ve recorded just as many hit songs on SM7s, 57, 58, and beta 57s. Occasionally an AudioTechnica 4033 is the final vocal. The singers voice is way more important than the mic.

I also think the pre is more important than the mic. Neve, API, Chandler are go-tos because they help most mics sound their best. Clones are hit and miss- the expensive parts of mic pres (transformers) matter A LOT.

In the case of Drake, Wayne, Billie Eilish, and even the Wknd and George Michael, the effects matter a whole lot. In the case of Beyoncé, Rihanna, John Legend, etc the voice has all the charisma and character you can hope for. If you ever get to sit in a room while Kesha or GaGa sing, you’ll be amazed how powerful and controlled their voices are in person. Same for so many singer, guitarists, drummers and even best-makers.

in general- if you mic sounds bright and sizzly on a singer, it will probably be difficult to work with in a mix. If the mic sounds lush and natural you will be able to do a lot of processing without adding more distortion and edge.

in short - a singer with a great character and delivery AND with hundreds of hours of studio experience will sound great almost all the time. No gear will fix a mediocre singer without a vibe.

Don’t spend 10k on a vocal chain unless you have the money to spare. Get a top shelf (name brand) preamp, a good compressor and a few good mics. If you live in a big city, you can rent whatever you need for very little money compared to buying something that won’t be right on every singer.

Dont over-EQ vocals and if you do pop styles, master a few parallel vocal processing techniques and build a vocabulary of go-to methods. Btw, parallel vocal processing has been around since Motown days and multiband compression was even used on The Beach Boys, so the info is out there!

 

[PhilipMarlowe]

Yep, a 57 and api work well together. Not a 10k dollar chain but if it works it works. The c800g just happens to be that bright pop sound alot of rappers are going for these days, and probably what Op meant.
i mean Tpain‘s „I‘m sprung“ was made on an mbox. Only the hit you hear on spotify isnt the one he originally recorded…