Double tracking is a very simple technique of recording a part, then recording the exact same thing again, and playing them both at the same time. Everything I’m talking about here can be done in all the major commercial DAWs, including Pro Tools, Logic (Pro and Express), Cubase, Garageband and many more.
I like to do this with electric guitars mainly, with one track panned completely left and the other completely right. It’s also a great way to get your vocals sounding a bit tidier. For vocals I keep both tracks panned to the centre, with one slightly quieter. Double tracking vocals throughout your entire song can get a bit boring, but it’s a great way of emphasising your choruses.
Here is a guitar part before double tracking:
And after:
The key thing is to get your first part sounding great – if you recording at home and not constrained by studio time, do as many takes as it needs. Then use this first take as a reference for your second. You want to get the double track sounding as close to the first as possible, really, otherwise it can all get a bit messy.
I wouldn’t recommend doing this for complicated parts like guitar solos or drums. It works best with simple rhythmic lines or with vocals, just to beef them out and give them a bit more stereo interest.
Can’t I just duplicate what I’ve already recorded?
Sadly, no. If you have the exact same audio playing in both speakers at the same time, it’ll just sound like it’s coming from the centre. It’s the subtle differences between each track that make them unique, thus creating an effective double track.
One little trick you could use is simply to duplicate your track then move it a tiny bit. As it won’t be playing at exactly the same time as the original, it won’t just sound like it’s coming from the centre (the parts will be ‘out of phase’, for all you physics enthusiasts). The method is…
1. Record your track
2. Duplicate it, so you have two tracks with the same material
3. Move one of the recordings a tiny bit, so it’s not in the exact same position as the original, time-wise
4. Pan the first completely left and the second completely right
Here’s what it sounds like. Before:
And after:
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