Mix Distorts on Small speakers

B

brigo

User
Hello all.
I would assume that getting your mix to sound good on different systems is a problem that we all struggle. That being said, forgive me if this is a very basic question, as I am a hoobiest/amatuer.
I have a mix I am working on, using Sonor 3. It is 5 vocal tracks, and some light instrumentation. I have some reverb and some compression on the vocal tracks.
There is no clipping in the final mix - the meter in Sonor almost never goes into the red, and it hovers just below 0 db.

When I listen through my warfdale 8.2A speakers, or through decent headphones there is no distortion at all.

When I export to a WAV and then convert to mp3, and listen through small computer speakers or small tiny headphones, there is noticable distortion.

I haven't yet put the mix on CD.

Is more compression on the mix the answer?
Any general suggestions?

You can hear the mp3:

Thank you for any advice/comments!
 
You may have some serious frequency spikes. Especially in the lows. Careful EQ'ing should help a lot. Compression is not the answer. Not only that, it may make the problem worse.
 
chadsxe said:
I bet when your exporting you master fader is clipping.
Click to expand...


That could be true, but it dosn't always apply.


Brigo,


One of two things comes to mind:

a) The SPL (Sound Pressure Level) handling of those speakers may be crap and you've tried to push the limit.

or I think it may just be

b) Smaller (tweeter style) speakers usually tend to pick up high end detail somewhat better than nearfields and mains, so what you didn't hear on your mains, you're hearing through those little speakers.

Or it could be all of the above


You may have to work on bringing down some high end if thats the case.

Lee
 
Vocals and light instrumentation 'hovering just below 0db'? how loud is this mix?
Throw it on CD and play it on a stereo and see what is going on. Making decisions based on what an mp3 sounds like is a waste of time.
 
As a rule If I Cut/Rolloff around the 40/Hz mark.If you don't you can bet almost every car speaker or lil computer speaker won't be able to handle it.
 
Thanks to all.
EQing has helped a bit.
Although listenting to the mix on CD on a stereo is a good idea, these days many people (and the people I know who will listen to my cd) will listen through their computer speakers and their car speakers.
(the cd is instructional, not really "entertainment", and my students will listen on their laptops, desktops, etc)

I have played around with some of the eq, and it is now better, but the vocals are still a bit too loud.
The new mix replaces the one I posted:


More comments are of course welcome.
Thank you all for your helpful suggestions!
 
I listened to it, but my computer speakers didn't clip. I'm not sure how crappy your computer speakers are. However, you may still want to bring the 2k-3k range down a bit (if you have a parametric eq). All your problem is in the high end not in the 40Hz.
 
Thanks Dracon! I have been playing with the parametric EQ in SONAR3 and noticing the difference.
But I have, again, another basic question - How can you see in Sonar3 the frequency spectrum of an audio track? (I don't think you can). For example, you point out the problems in the 2K-3K range - how would I see that?
I think there are some PC programs that do spectral analysis, but what do you do to see frequency spikes?
Or is it a matter of playing with the EQ and listening?
THANKS!
 
I use Wavelab's Spectrum Analyzer. It plots Frequency Range, Frequency Amplitude, and Time 3 dimensionally, so you can visually see your whole mix. More often though I'll just use Wavelab's realtime Spectrum Meter to monitor the mix in realtime (Easier on my eyes).

Get the excellent free VST plugin Elemental Audio Systems Inspector (Just what you need): http://www.elementalaudio.com/products/inspector/download/index.html

Also check out Voxengo SPAN (Also Free):
http://www.kvraudio.com/get/1023.html
 
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