reverb on master

[digitalcut]

has anyone experience with reverb on final stereo master? or is it better to mix more reverb in the single tracks?

thanx for replay!!

[Track Rat]

Definatly single tracks. For one thing if you put reverb on an entire mix it can muddy it up.

[Ears]

It s common though to put the whole mic through a hall to kind of glue it together.
You want to do it form the sends though not the stereo mains. The bass and kick are not friendly and get muddy as Track Rat says.

[Brian Grey]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by digitalcut:
has anyone experience with reverb on final stereo master? or is it better to mix more reverb in the single tracks?

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
It depends on what you're recoding. If you have 3 guitar parts that you know you're going to use the same effect on, mix those parts down to two tracks and put that through the effect. Think of a multi delay, you wouldn't want to do each guitar individualy because all of the echoes may not be synchronized and THAT will muddy up the sound.
Even if you do want to put reverb on the master, you can just tell the reverb to ignore the bass frequencies, so it won't muddy your sound. But I would definately suggest putting reverv on single tracks. Also, that way you know what you have before you mixdown, because what you're listening to IS the mixdown... well, you know what I mean.
Are you doing computer recording? Just curious.

[LongWaveStudio]

Nah, it's a very bad idea doing that, keep it to the main tracks that need reverb. don't go putting reverb on every track either cus this will only make the mix sound really awful.
Try and keep the same reverb sounds consistent aswell, cus you don't want a guitar with a hall and a vocal with a room. it *can* work, but it's best to stick with the same reverbs.
If you can afford it, get some high end Lexicons, they're the best reverbs you'll ever hear!

[virtual.ray]

It depends on the situation.Architects and acousticians spend a lot of time and money designing new concert halls with specific characteristics of reverberation(or at least trying to),and there are halls around the planet that are either revered or shunned because of their reverb.When one goes to hear music in this type of venue,it seems to me that one is indeed getting reverb on the whole mix,n'est ce pas? Cheers!

[Brian Grey]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by virtual.ray:
It depends on the situation.Architects and acousticians spend a lot of time and money designing new concert halls with specific characteristics of reverberation(or at least trying to),and there are halls around the planet that are either revered or shunned because of their reverb.When one goes to hear music in this type of venue,it seems to me that one is indeed getting reverb on the whole mix,n'est ce pas? Cheers!<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Good answer. That's a VERY good way of looking at it. It can definately add a certain amount of ambience to the sound.

[Take5]

first off: there are no hard and fast rules. although I will tell you as a professional recording engineer I have NEVER put reverb on the stereo buss!! use your reverbs to paint a picture of an environment.
I would advise using as many DIFFERENT, yes DIFFERENT reverbs as possible. it all depends on the sound you're going for!maybe I want one snare hit in the entire song to dissapear into a HUGE snare plate and the rest of the song to be quiet and intimate!
try using different effects on different parts of the song....like chorusing or phasing the lead vocal on the bridge,whatever.
don't be afraid to try using a hall with a small room....if you don't experiment, you'll never learn. BUT
generally speaking, unless you have a VERY nice reverb unit ( i.e. Lexicon PCM series, 480L or the like ....or a good TC unit)
I wouldn't out the whole mix through one reverb unit. use the sends on each individual channel, that's what they're there for. I usually put all the drums through one unit except for maybe the snare....that'll go to a seperate plate or something.
try all sorts of stuff, maybe you'll stumble across something that will show us all up.


[This message has been edited by Take5 (edited 07-13-2000).]

[jjrockjaw]

also...dont think of reverbs as merely recreating a "hall" or "cathedral" sound...think of them as space creators. if u add a touch of reverb to a guitar, u've just pushed him back in the mix. if u add a touch of reverb to the stereo buss...u've just pushed the band back in the mix. if the whole band has reverb on it u can bring a track right in ur face by........killing its reverb. the best way to ruin a killer kick drum is to add reverb to the entire mix.

[Brian Grey]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by jjrockjaw:
also...dont think of reverbs as merely recreating a "hall" or "cathedral" sound...think of them as space creators. if u add a touch of reverb to a guitar, u've just pushed him back in the mix. if u add a touch of reverb to the stereo buss...u've just pushed the band back in the mix. if the whole band has reverb on it u can bring a track right in ur face by........killing its reverb. the best way to ruin a killer kick drum is to add reverb to the entire mix. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Excelent point! That's something no one has really touched.