if you’ve ever thought:
- “My vocal sounds good in solo but disappears in the mix.”
- “The vocal gets harsh when I try to make it brighter.”
- “The guitars sound great until the singer comes in.”
- “The chorus gets bigger, but the vocal gets smaller.”
- “My reverb makes the vocal sound cool, but also pushes it too far back.”
- “I keep adding plugins, but the vocal still doesn’t sit.”
If that sounds familiar, you don’t need more random tips.
You need a simple troubleshooting system for clearer vocals.
Backed by the Iron-clad Audio Issues 365-day Guarantee
If the Vocal Clarity Playbook does not give you the tools and confidence to drastically improve your vocal mixes - just email us at support@audio-issues.com and we'll give you a refund. No questions asked.
Before the Vocal Clarity Playbook
Before going through the playbook, you might be:
- Wondering why your vocals doesn't sit in the mix.
- Trying to fix harsh vocals by cutting so much top end that they become dull.
- Turning buried vocals up until they feel too loud, but still not clear.
- Fighting to make guitars sound big without swallowing the vocal.
- Adding reverb and delay for space, only to push the vocal too far back.
- Guessing your way through the mix and hoping the next plugin finally fixes it.
After the Vocal Clarity Playbook
After going through the playbook, you’ll be able to:
- Tell whether your vocal problem is level, EQ, masking, reverb, or automation.
- Fix harsh vocals without making them dull.
- Bring buried vocals forward without making them too loud.
- Create space between guitars and vocals.
- Use reverb and delay without pushing the vocal too far back.
- Use automation to make the vocal feel more professional.
- Stop guessing and start making better vocal mixing decisions.
Your Vocal Should Lead the Song
But right now, it might be fighting for its life.
Maybe it sounds harsh when you try to make it cut through the mix.
Maybe it disappears as soon as the chorus kicks in.
Maybe the guitars sound huge in solo, but the second the vocal enters, everything turns into a midrange wrestling match.
Or maybe you keep doing the most obvious thing:
You turn the vocal up.
And yes, it gets louder.
But it still doesn’t get clearer.
That’s when you know volume isn’t the real problem.
Something else is getting in the way.
That’s exactly what The Vocal Clarity Playbook helps you fix.
If Turning the Vocal Up Doesn’t Make It Clearer, Stop Turning It Up
A buried vocal isn’t always a volume problem.
- Sometimes the vocal is being masked by guitars.
- Sometimes the upper mids are fighting with cymbals.
- Sometimes the reverb is pushing the vocal behind the band.
- Sometimes compression is making the harsh parts jump forward.
- Sometimes the vocal doesn’t need another plugin. It needs automation.
And sometimes the best “vocal” move isn’t on the vocal track at all.
It’s on the guitars, keys, cymbals, background vocals, reverb return, or arrangement.
That’s why randomly boosting presence, adding compression, or throwing another vocal chain preset on the track doesn’t always work.
You need to diagnose the actual problem first.
Introducing: The Vocal Clarity Playbook
The Vocal Clarity Playbook is a practical mix toolkit that helps you troubleshoot the most common reasons vocals don’t sit in a mix.
This is not a giant vocal mixing course.
It’s not a 200-page textbook.
It’s a focused playbook for one very specific problem:
How do you get the vocal to sit clearly in the mix?
It shows you how to fix vocals that sound:
- Harsh
- Buried
- Masked by guitars
- Pushed too far back by reverb or delay
- Inconsistent from phrase to phrase
- Clear in solo but unclear in the full mix
- Loud enough, but still not easy to understand
Here's What You Get:
- The Vocal Clarity Playbook: A practical guide to fixing harsh, buried, and masked vocals without guesswork.
- The Vocal Clarity Diagnostic: A visual decision tree that helps you figure out what’s actually wrong before you start adding plugins.
- The Vocal Clarity Problem Map: A quick-reference map of the five most common reasons vocals don’t sit well in the mix.
- Vocal Frequency-Zone Cheat Sheet: A practical EQ reference for understanding where rumble, boom, mud, nasal tone, presence, sibilance, and air show up in a vocal.
- Harsh Vocal Fix Checklist: A step-by-step checklist for controlling sharp, painful, brittle, or tiring vocals.
- Buried Vocal Fix Checklist: A practical checklist for vocals that are loud enough but still don’t feel clear.
- Guitar/Vocal Conflict Checklist: A guide to making guitars support the vocal instead of fighting it.
- Reverb and Delay Clarity Checklist: A checklist for effects that make the vocal sound distant, cloudy, washy, or disconnected.
- Vocal Automation Checklist: A guide to using clip gain, fader rides, section automation, and effects automation to make the vocal feel finished.
Get the Vocal Clarity Playbook + Checklists and Worksheets for Just $29!
100% Satisfaction Guaranteed or Your Money Back
Create Clean and Clear Vocals that Cut Through the Mix NowHere's What You'll Find Out
Inside The Vocal Clarity Playbook, you’ll learn how to:
Diagnose Why the Vocal Doesn’t Sit
Before you grab another EQ or compressor, you’ll learn how to identify whether the real problem is level, masking, harshness, reverb, dynamics, or arrangement.
Fix Harsh Vocals Without Making Them Dull
Learn how to control painful upper mids, sibilance, compression bite, and bright EQ decisions without removing all the energy from the vocal.
Fix Buried Vocals Without Just Turning Them Up
Find out why a vocal can be loud enough but still unclear, and how to use level, compression, automation, EQ, and mix balance to bring it forward naturally.
Stop Guitars From Fighting the Vocal
Learn how to keep guitars big and exciting without letting them swallow the vocal in the midrange.
Use Reverb and Delay Without Pushing the Vocal Back
Shape vocal effects so they add space and emotion without washing out the lead vocal.
Use Automation Instead of Overloading the Vocal Chain
Learn why compression gets you close, but automation finishes the job.
Who This Is For
This playbook is for:
- Home studio musicians
- Self-recording artists
- Beginner and intermediate mixers
- Guitar-based producers
- Rock, pop, indie, punk, metal, worship, singer-songwriter, and acoustic producers
- Anyone who wants the vocal to lead the song without destroying the balance of the mix
Who This Is Not For
This is not for you if:
- You want a full vocal production course.
- You want preset chains without understanding why they work.
- You want mastering advice.
- You want advanced technical theory more than practical fixes.
- You are looking for a magic plugin instead of a better mixing process.
No judgment.
But this playbook is built for practical mixing decisions, not endless theory.
Remove Vocal Mixing Headaches for Only $29Frequently Asked Questions
Is this only for professional mixers?
No.
It’s created for home studio musicians, self-taught producers, and beginner-to-intermediate mixers who want clearer vocals without getting buried in technical complexity.
Is this only for rock music?
No, but it is especially useful for guitar-heavy music.
If you mix rock, indie, punk, metal, singer-songwriter, worship, acoustic, or pop productions where guitars, keys, or dense arrangements fight the vocal, this will help.
Do I need special plugins?
No.
You can use the concepts with the EQ, compression, reverb, delay, and automation tools you already have.
Is this about recording vocals or mixing vocals?
This playbook focuses on mixing vocals that already exist in your session.
If the recording is terrible, mixing can only do so much. But if the vocal is usable and you’re struggling to make it sit, this playbook will help you troubleshoot the mix.
Is this a full course?
No.
It’s a focused playbook and checklist system.
That’s the point.
It’s designed to help you solve one specific problem quickly: getting the vocal clearer and better placed in the mix.
The Iron-Clad Audio Issues Guarantee
If you don't instantly improve your vocals after going through this training, simply email support@audio-issues.com for a full refund, no questions asked nor strings attached!
I take my guarantee very seriously. I am not interested in keeping your money if you don’t learn anything from what I’m creating for you.
So if you’re not happy, I’m not happy. Simple as that.
Here's to improving your mixes!
Hi there 🤘,
I’m Björgvin Benediktsson.
I’m the author of the #1 Amazon best-seller, Step By Step Mixing: How to Create Great Mixes Using Only 5 Plug-ins, the creator of the Audio Issues EQ plug-in, and the founder of Audio Issues.
I’m on a mission to help musicians overcome their imposter syndrome, create great-sounding music, and release their work. Since 2009, I’ve been helping people like you turn your rough recordings into finished records you can be proud to release.
I’ve worked as a live sound engineer, a broadcast recording engineer, a professional touring musician, a freelance mixing and mastering engineer, and an audio educator in both Iceland and the United States.
Thousands of home studio musicians and producers like yourself have learned from my practical, no-fluff teaching style, and my work has been featured in publications such as MusicTech magazine, Audiotuts+, The Pro Audio Files, and Recording Revolution, to name a few.
Your vocal should lead the song.
It should not fight the guitars.
It should not disappear in the chorus.
It should not get painfully bright just because you’re trying to make it cut.
It should not sound like it was pasted on top of the track.
And you should not have to keep guessing which plugin to add next.
If the vocal gets louder but not clearer, something else is in the way.
The Vocal Clarity Playbook helps you find it and fix it.
I’m excited you’re here and can’t wait to help you make a bigger impact with your music.
