Vocals effect processing best practices

It's best to record dry vocals without any effects. You can always add in and swap out effects later. If you need to hear how an effect will sound for reference while recording (such as when using Autotune or Vocoder), record the dry vocals at the same time as the effected vocals on two separate channels so you end up with access to the dry vocals in addition to any effected vocals.

When applying effects on vocals, there's an order that's usually followed. The following order is a suggestion, not a mandatory rule. If you find any of the following terminologies confusing regarding compressing or EQ, revisit Chapter 6, Compression, Sidechaining, Limiting, and Equalization.

Here's a suggested order for applying effects to vocals:

1. Pitch correction corrects pitch and adjusts mistimings.
2. Gate or expander effects remove background and unwanted noises. For example, Fruity Limiter can be used as a gate.
3. A compressor...