Hey there! So you're recording vocals huh? There you go:
http://www.tweakheadz.com/how_to_record_vocals.htm
You should find every bit of information you need in that site.
As to your questions:
What kind of mic? Recommend me some but remember that I'm a college student lol.
Sure SM-58: Professional and affordable. More info
here.
How far/close do you stand to the mic? How much gain should the mic have?
I reckon not so far that you start loosing some of the voice's main frequencies, or start sounding in a room (which is something you'd like to avoid as much as you can), neither so close that you start "eating the mic".
How much gain should the mic have?
As loud as possible WITHOUT exceeding the peak limit (the zero db)
Is a pop filter really needed?
In a professional studio, it is. But for a small home studio, I'd say it would be a nice bonus.
What kind of effects should I use? From what I've been playing around with my voice looks like it has lots of mid-bassy kinda qualities. Does that mean I jack up the treble and lower the bass? How much compression and what type? How much reverb? And in what order?
Ok, here is a golden advice: Always try to use as LESS effects as possible. Do all you can to get the best raw sound out of just your Mic (positioning, room, etc) Mixer (Gain levels, etc), Soundcard (type of the soundcard, sound quality, recording, bit rate, etc). Just get the best out of these, THEN you can complete anything that might seem missing (or take out something) using as few effects as possible. I know how exciting it can be to play with these, but trust me, you really have to control the urge of using them all the time, especially EQs.
With that said, the effects chain usually goes like this: Compressor > EQ > some Reverb
-Compressor: Most used effect when it comes to vocals. (Check this one out, I found it to be really useful:
http://www.voxengo.com/voxformer/)
-EQ: Can be very tricky to deal with professionally, just do some research and you'll see. My advice to you is: 1) Use your ears 2) Use a pair of studio monitors 3) Don't exagerate with EQ's, and don't view the EQ as the shaper of your vocal sound, your mouth/mic/mixer/soundcard are what shape your sound. 4) Another good advice is to EQ your vocals tracks as part of the mix. So when EQ'ing, listen to the vocals tracks WITH the rest of the tracks. What might sound good individually does not necessarily sound good in the mix, and vice versa (this also applies to everything you record).
-Reverb: This is to add a slight amount of ambience to the sound so that it doesn't sound too dry / too "in your face" / too "at the surface of the mix". Again, use it with moderation and while listening to the whole mix. Try to use it as a way to sort of blend the vocals with the rest of the mix.
Best thing you can probably use is something that involves the use of 'Impulse Responses' such as
AltiVerb or
SIR Reverb. Pretty decent, natural, and professional stuff, indeed. Best I could find.
Hope that helps for the moment. Read as much as you can from that site I gave. Its author is quite good and pretty much knows what he's talking about.
Have fun
