New to home recording, can you give me some feedback on how to improve?

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mikesearle123

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Hey guys, I'm new here and recently recorded this song using a selection of 4 different mics (and all 4 on the drums). Take a listen and any feedback would be appreciated.
Cheers

soundcloud.com/septemberrainofficial/sights
 
Sounds like the music was recorded live...not bad...The vocal though....??????? I dont know????? It just doesent sit right in the mix. Like the music was recorded live in a bar and the vox in a spare bedroom studio...(like what I have ;) )
I m sure something could be done to improve the mix, just not sure how to tell you go about doing it. Sure someone here can though...pretty neat song
 
Yeah, I thought exactly the same. She's an outstanding singer and if you solo it, it is up to her standards, but I thought it didn't sound as good in the mix and sounded as if she was a worse singer than she was.
 
Dude... This isn't a bad song at all. It's just horribly recorded. Sounds like all the microphones were placed too far from their instruments. The drums sound like they're being played in the next room over, while the singer (*great* voice she has) is standing right in front of your face singing. The guitars sound incredibly messy, and the whole thing lacks a lot of definition. Are you using crappy mics? Are you placing them properly? (For drums, you can get a great sound with 4 mics with what is known as the "recorderman" technique. Google it, and use it). Sounds like the guitars are all mashed up in the middle of the stereo spectrum, and are playing in the same room as the drums. Bass is ..... almost non-existent. Give that poor bass some presence.

So yeah.. The problem with the placement of the vocals is - it sounds like she's not even in the same room as the rest of the band. So much wrong with this mix, I don't even know where to start, other than saying to re-record everything but the vocals, and see if you can get em' to sound like they're all in the same room, or possibly, to get rid of all the FX (if there's a lot) on all the instruments and start from there. Good luck.

That said, the song rocks, and you're incredibly lucky to be able to record such an awesome female vocalist. Now do her justice! :)
 
I agree on some of the points you brought up, but some I completly disagree with. The levels aren't great, and there needs to be a clean up between them. I used the Glyn Johns method, and the result certainly isnt "horrible". The two guitars are panned hard right and left. Yeah, its not the best quality recording, but I think it deserves more credit than you give it.

Cheers for saying the song rocks, but its the result of the band, not just the female singer. Don't follow what a lot of people say and channel the success of a song towards the lead vocalist rather than the band itself :)
 
mikesearle123 said:
I used the Glyn Johns method, and the result certainly isnt "horrible". The two guitars are panned hard right and left. Yeah, its not the best quality recording, but I think it deserves more credit than you give it.
Click to expand...

I think your post asked for any feedback, so don't go all defensive on us. Nobody said the band sucks dude. There is a distinct, noticable difference between the band's audio and the singer. The band sounds smushed together to the point that it is a bit difficult to distinguish the parts while the singer stands out like she is in a different universe. I would try playing with panning the different instruments in the band to see if you can create some distinction between the guitars and the bass/drums. Possibly a little less compression on the band?
 
Id have to agree with everything said here...its like the vocals and the track are two completely different animals..the bass is missing and the whole drum kit sounds like its in another room

Youve got to get the kick and bass working in the mix at the very beginning then build everything else around that relationship as they really should be driving this
 
Dude, not to be a dick, but that riff in the beginning and the verse sounds a LOT like Slither by Velvet Revolver. Great job on the female singer. The drums sound a little distant but not terrible. The problem here are the guitars. This song needs some nice layered rhythm guitars. It sounds like the amp was badly miced. Spend some time working on micing the amp and you will get some much better results. Also, I'm only hearing one rhythm guitar track, no overdubs. I would reccomend recording your rhythm tracks at least twice, and then panning one hard L and the other hard R.
 
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