Mixing bass with headphones

[maturanesa]

Hi!

Im recording some tracks in my PC with Nuendo. I dont have pro equipment, so im using headphones to mix.

The difference in bass fequencies is huge when using different headphones, so i never know what is really sounding.
Sometimes the bass (instrument) feels like to loud and boomy, and sometimes its fine, dependind on what headphone im using.

So, i want some advices or some formulas to get a balanced mix, especially the bass (im a bass player).

You can check my actual mix in myspace.com/mclavell
the track is: Funk - demo

thanx!

 

[mighty thor]

Don't use headphones to mix, they are only good for detailed work and tracking. You need to use monitors to mix bass properly, and some room treatment.

 

[RAMI]

Don't use headphones to mix, they are only good for detailed work and tracking. You need to use monitors to mix bass properly, and some room treatment.

The difference in bass fequencies is huge when using different headphones, so i never know what is really sounding.

What you're experiencing confirms exactly what Thor is saying. If you can't afford monitors right now, your best bet, for now, is to get to know ONE set of headphones and how they translate on other systems.

 

[phriq]

I would not use headphones if possible. But since you don't have monitors, I am guessing you really don't have any other options...

First of all, what kind of headphones are you using? Knowing your headphones and the specs on them can help. *DON'T USE EARBUDS!!* ( just had to through that in for good measure ) But knowing how your headphones sound and what frequencies they boost/cut is huge if you are going to use them. If your headphones are week in the low-end frequencies (like lots of lower-end headphones are) then be very careful when boosting your bass, you may get it to sound what you think is *good*, but then may get blasted by the bass when listening to your mix in the car.

Listen to lots of music styles similar to yours through your headphones so that you can hear how they sound through those headphones. If the bass is weak, mix your to mimic it, chances are, the engineer who recorded those bands knew what he was doing....

But regardless, if you can get monitors, it will greatly aid in the mix, but also having a good sound treated listening room does too... But since you have to use headphones based on your budget, equipment, etc, then follow some of those basic guidelines.....

 

[guitaristic]

Hi!

Im recording some tracks in my PC with Nuendo.

Haha I thought Nuendo was "Nintendo" the first time I read that...I was like dang!

Yeah, it's pretty tricky to get a good mix balance with only headphones due to the exaggerated (or wimpy) bass frequencies. There's no easy solution to it. If I only had headphones to mix with, I guess I would just listen to a bunch of tunes that I'm very familiar (and also resemble my musical style) with and then try to align my mixes up (more or less) with the balance of the other songs. The best thing you could do is simply save up for some monitors!

 

[phriq]

Haha I thought Nuendo was "Nintendo" the first time I read that...I was like dang!

guitaristic, didn't you hear? Nintendo has developed a new DAW called Nuendo that uses a modified NES as the interface! I hear you can even use the controllers directional pad to set track levels and pans, lol

 

[mighty thor]

What you're experiencing confirms exactly what Thor is saying. If you can't afford monitors right now, your best bet, for now, is to get to know ONE set of headphones and how they translate on other systems.

Exactly, though headphones will all have inherent problems getting to know how music in your genre sounds on one set will get you a lot closer to getting a decent mix. I'd have, at the very least, some hi fi speakers just to hear how FX like delay and reverb are sounding out in the open. This is very hard to judge in the confines of headphones.

With a lot of A & B'ing you can mix with just about anything, it's just not ideal.

 

[skuthepoo]

yeah im feeling that. its urgent