Half Way There

Tadpui

Tadpui

Well-known member
This started as an experiment: what would happen if I sent everything through my new Behringer ADA8200 preamps? I've since retracked the drums, but mostly everything here is going through the cheapo Midas preamps on the ADA8200. This one is at that point for me where I've listened and mixed/remixed so many times that it's just a bunch of noises to me. So while I haven't been the most deserving Clinic denizen lately, I'm hoping that anybody with ears, a set of speakers/headphones, and a heart of gold might give a listen and let me know where I'm at.

Another couple of firsts here: first time playing, tracking and mixing real drums on a project, and first time singing through an MD-421 on the lead vocal. I'm not used to singing into dynamic mics.

I think that I pretty much ripped off everything that Bowie did from '75-'79 here...



2nd mix 9/17/2016
 
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Sounds great -- I have to listen low at this time of night. I guess maybe the snare could use a little more snap or air.

The vocals and the guitar sound great, peformance and recording. I gotta try out a 421 on some singers. Not to sound overly detail focused, but was that a newer one or an older one?

Did you record everyting through the ADA8200 or run each channel of the mix through it?
 
Hey thanks! I actually recorded everything through the ADA8200 during tracking. When I retracked the drums, I sent the snare through an outboard pre, and the overheads through my interface's preamps. But the kick and toms were still through the Behri.

Duly noted on the snare. I'm still really new at this drum thing.
 
Nice song. Got some nice harmonies going and they work well in the arrangement.

The bass is really boomy on my system. Or is it the kick? Relistening, it's the bass.

To me, the left hand rhythm guitar tone doesn't fit the song, I'd like to hear something less bright playing that part. But that's a personal taste thing.

Cool man
 
Snappier sanre please.
May be a little less mud from the bass.
I like the bright rhythm git.
You have snaffled riffs & motifs from all over the place.
Not bad - quite good actually.
 
+1 on the snare. vocals sounds great, nice and clear. i'd consider getting some more spread on that solo. it doesn't seem to command as much attention as it could/should. just my $0.02
 
Sounds pretty good, Tad, and certainly better than my early attempts at drum tracking. :D I think the toms might be a tiny bit loud - is that close miking or all in the overheads? The toms sound very, very good, actually. Excellent for somebody who's never tuned or mixed a real kit before.

The song has a Franz Ferdinand feel to it.

I thought the Midas preamps were meant to be really good - didn't Behringer buy the company out and rebrand their stuff?
 
Listening on HPs (Sen HD 560's for reference), the lead guitar could be reduced a smidge. It cuts through pretty good so you could pull it back even more than just a pinch (around 1:30-2:03 give that area a check).

When you sing "I need more time", that jumps up out of place, probably because you are hitting your high pretty clear.

On floor speakers w/sub- I have my sub turned back. It is very clear on my system, but you might be pushing it on systems. Lead at 1:30-2:03 still jumps out. I think it would sound better if it was closer to the mix. "Need more time" still jumps out, but doesn't sound as loud. Revisit around 3:13 on the vocals, could be you may want to pull that down a touch.

Over all, really good tune, catching chorus, great harmonies good performance. Now about your participation ... ;)
 
the bass drum could do with more presence, it's a stuggle to hear it, there's a bit of a clash there frequency wise with the bass guitar, otherwise I enjoyed the song and think it sounds good, the MD421 is clearly a great microphone, the mix just needs a little finessing and it'll be there.
 
Cool Tad! Good to hear your original stuff. This sounds pretty good. I'm hearing the Bowie influence, particularly in that second verse, but it's not so pervasive as to sound like a rip off. As others have said, the bass is boomy and probably too loud. I don't mind the bass tone at all. It's round and fat, but has adequate note definition and doesn't sound muddy to me. Turn it down a smidge and see where things stand then. Drums sound fine to me. I tend not to obsess over things like snare tone as do some. Taste and fashion vary when it comes to that sort of thing, but at the end of the day your drums are doing their job and supporting the song. The singing is good. I like the melody and composition. I really like your vocals, especially in that Bowie-esque verse after the guitar solo. No complaints about the guitars. Like drums, they are either doing their job or they aren't, and here I think they are.

I hope you'll post more songs. I don't recall offhand hearing any of your other tunes, although I may have.
 
rayc said:
Snappier sanre please.
May be a little less mud from the bass.
I like the bright rhythm git.
You have snaffled riffs & motifs from all over the place.
Not bad - quite good actually.
Click to expand...

Thanks Ray. The bass seems to be the main trouble here, so I'll get that fixed pronto.

Chili said:
Nice song. Got some nice harmonies going and they work well in the arrangement.

The bass is really boomy on my system. Or is it the kick? Relistening, it's the bass.

To me, the left hand rhythm guitar tone doesn't fit the song, I'd like to hear something less bright playing that part. But that's a personal taste thing.

Cool man
Click to expand...

Yeah, the bass gives me fits and it's at the top of my list of fixes. And it seems that every time I try to work a Fender guitar into a mix, it comes out as that same riff :) Thanks!

andrushkiwt said:
+1 on the snare. vocals sounds great, nice and clear. i'd consider getting some more spread on that solo. it doesn't seem to command as much attention as it could/should. just my $0.02
Click to expand...

I'll see what all I can do with the snare. Maybe a little ambience will help it stand out without becoming too dominant? I'll try a few things and see what I can come up with.

Bubba po said:
Sounds pretty good, Tad, and certainly better than my early attempts at drum tracking. :D I think the toms might be a tiny bit loud - is that close miking or all in the overheads? The toms sound very, very good, actually. Excellent for somebody who's never tuned or mixed a real kit before.

The song has a Franz Ferdinand feel to it.

I thought the Midas preamps were meant to be really good - didn't Behringer buy the company out and rebrand their stuff?
Click to expand...

Thanks Bubba! The fellows in the Drums & Percussion forum helped me a TON in getting my kit set up, tuned, and miked up. They gave me a great crash course in acoustic drums 101.

Those Midas preamps are surprisingly good. I call them cheapos because they're just that: cheap. But terrific for the money. Doing the math, a single channel on the ADA8200 cost 1/100th of what my best preamp channel cost.
Sheesh, that's almost depressing.

DM60 said:
Listening on HPs (Sen HD 560's for reference), the lead guitar could be reduced a smidge. It cuts through pretty good so you could pull it back even more than just a pinch (around 1:30-2:03 give that area a check).

When you sing "I need more time", that jumps up out of place, probably because you are hitting your high pretty clear.

On floor speakers w/sub- I have my sub turned back. It is very clear on my system, but you might be pushing it on systems. Lead at 1:30-2:03 still jumps out. I think it would sound better if it was closer to the mix. "Need more time" still jumps out, but doesn't sound as loud. Revisit around 3:13 on the vocals, could be you may want to pull that down a touch.

Over all, really good tune, catching chorus, great harmonies good performance. Now about your participation ... ;)
Click to expand...

Thanks for the listens and detailed suggestions! I think that the lead vocal is one of the few tracks with no automation on it here. I'll listen to those spots again and maybe pull down those phrases just a little bit.

And yeah, I was on an extended hiatus from the Clinic for a while. I've been trying to be more active in these last few weeks.
 
Btyre2013 said:
the bass drum could do with more presence, it's a stuggle to hear it, there's a bit of a clash there frequency wise with the bass guitar, otherwise I enjoyed the song and think it sounds good, the MD421 is clearly a great microphone, the mix just needs a little finessing and it'll be there.
Click to expand...

I totally agree. Hopefully pulling the bass boominess down will help the kick come through. Otherwise I'll need to get tough with an EQ and see what I can do. Thanks!

Robus said:
Cool Tad! Good to hear your original stuff. This sounds pretty good. I'm hearing the Bowie influence, particularly in that second verse, but it's not so pervasive as to sound like a rip off. As others have said, the bass is boomy and probably too loud. I don't mind the bass tone at all. It's round and fat, but has adequate note definition and doesn't sound muddy to me. Turn it down a smidge and see where things stand then. Drums sound fine to me. I tend not to obsess over things like snare tone as do some. Taste and fashion vary when it comes to that sort of thing, but at the end of the day your drums are doing their job and supporting the song. The singing is good. I like the melody and composition. I really like your vocals, especially in that Bowie-esque verse after the guitar solo. No complaints about the guitars. Like drums, they are either doing their job or they aren't, and here I think they are.

I hope you'll post more songs. I don't recall offhand hearing any of your other tunes, although I may have.
Click to expand...

Thanks Robus, pulling down the bass is top of the list. Hopefully that'll solve a couple of low end problems in one go.

Yeah, it's been a while since I've posted to the Clinic. It's also been a while since I've gotten a project far enough along to consider getting feedback. I'm great at starting projects, but terrible at finishing them. Just ask robgreen, whose collab tracks I've been holding hostage for well over a year now :)
 
Get busy, Tad! I want to hear more. I've listened to some of your clips on the tone thread, but all that amounts to packing your bags for a journey you never actually actually take. ;)
 
Tadpui said:
Yeah, it's been a while since I've posted to the Clinic. It's also been a while since I've gotten a project far enough along to consider getting feedback. I'm great at starting projects, but terrible at finishing them. Just ask robgreen, whose collab tracks I've been holding hostage for well over a year now :)
Click to expand...

Ha yeah, you're the great procrastinator on here Tad. We had a good tune done like a year ago and then you decided to rebuild it from scratch :D

Man, your voice sounds so different here. I've heard a load of your tunes over the years but I wouldn't have recognised it in a blind test. The tones all sound great though from the guitars to the vocals and harmonies. Drums are sounding cool - a step up again from the one you sent me recently I think.

Bass is the only thing that's less than done I think. I can hear all the notes, so it's not getting lost but it's lacking a little definition to me and a little boomy.

You've upped your game for definite though with the new gear and time out working on tones though. Really well done man :)
 
Ah, good to hear something from you Tad.

Stylistically and vocally, it sounds way different from what I remember of your other stuff. Nice job on the vocals btw...

So, yeah, I guess the bass is a little loud/rumbly, but I didn't mind it that way, except that it seems to be clashing with, or covering up the kick, which I couldn't hear too clearly.

I thought the snare was a little too far back and/or too dark. I'd like to hear it snap or crack a bit more. Toms seems unusually loud to me when they come in, especially relative to the snare. For a first effort at drum tracking though, it's really quite good. Much more together sounding than I got at frst (maybe even later on? lol).
 
Tad, cool style. The only issue I have with it is the bass. Very boomy in that 80-100hz range. Is it a P-bass? I have to notch as much as -9db sometimes in that range on a p-bass.
Unfortunately the bass is so boomy I can't even focus on the rest of the mix critically, but from what I can tell it sounds good underneath.
 
Yeah, the bass EQ or drop it down a litel in overall volume. The lead guitar part around 1:35 could come down a notch. Snare up a just a bit. Definite Bowie ripoff! ;)
 
Tad, this sounds cool as fuck - the snare is the only drawback to me - it doesn't really cut though.

I'm probably in the minority but I like the the bass sound - its right there really warm and drives the song. Can really hear the Bowie influence with this - and I love Bowie - seems like there's a little China Girl run on the bassline. I think the lead guitar at the 3 minute mark could come up slightly, you appear to slightly fumble a drum fill at 3:10 too. Doesn't really matter though.

This one is gonna end up on my "Best of Mixing Clinic" mix-tape with Bubba's Game Over and Armistice's Stalking Horse.
 
The bass reminds me of the Stay riff. I didn't find it too boomy but I agree with other comments on the snare. Goof vocals. On headphones they sitting nicely in the mix
 
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