Ah, A Lovely Little Nixer

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GazEcc

GazEcc

mBallstát atá tiomanta
Hey guys,

I got a great little nixer for myself (for those of you who don't know, a Nixer is a job that you do cash in hand not a formal job) and its recording a metal band. Now, metal is not my genre so mixing will be a fun little challenge, Here's the plan of action, any input would be appreciated.

First the setup,
Mics:
2x Røde M3's,
2x SM57,
1x SM58,
1x AKG D11

Desk etc.
16 Track Live Desk,
(1 Track XLR In Dead)
Lexicon Omega I/F
Macbook,
Cubase 4.5 AI

Outboard,
1x DBX 266XL

Headphones for monitoring,

The Battle Plan,
  1. Lay down a Scratch Rhythm and Vocal Track, to Click
  2. Record the Drums, 2 M3's as Overheads, 57 on Snare and D11 on Kick
  3. Lay down the Bass Track, Mic'd Cab with D11 run into the compressor, lightly
  4. Follow up with Guitars, SM 57 for first 2 / 4 Tracks, then maybe the M3 for the next 2 tracks to get a more airy sound
  5. Follow up with Lead Guitar Same Idea
  6. Lay down the Vocal tracks with the SM58 through the compressor, lightly, and then leave it at that to mix,

Is there anything I else I should do? This is my first big band Nixer, its not like doing a one man band sorta deal, Is there anything else I should be fighting to go for?

Any tips or tricks for getting tighter tracks would be appreciated, I was also thinking about doing some tracks direct clean, so I can re-amp them, Thoughts?
 
Yeah, go for it. Sounds pretty good to me. The number of mics seem to be limiting you a bit. If you could get ahold of a couple more 57's, and isolate the amps, you might be able to record the whole band at once, and then punch in for mistakes and overdub whatever else needs to be done. That's the first approach I'd take if it were me.
 
Instead of doing four guitar tracks maybe try two double-miced tracks. Put the 57 in the usual position and the M3 out in the room for each take. On mixdown pan the 57s across from each other and the M3s across from each other: Gtr 1 = 57 - left, M3 - right; Gtr 2 = 57 - right, M3 - left.

For the lead try the above method but use both M3s spaced apart in the room. Pan the 57 center and the M3s wide.

Miced bass sounds a bit indistinct. I would record the bass direct, but a good DI is essential.
 
the omega limits me to 4 tracks :\

thats the killer :\
 
the omega limits me to 4 tracks :\

thats the killer :\

Then you almost certainly can't get that modern processed metal drum sound as it requires a full drum mic setup. I guess you're back to your plan with the click and reference tracks.
 
Then you almost certainly can't get that modern processed metal drum sound as it requires a full drum mic setup. I guess you're back to your plan with the click and reference tracks.
After a bit more of a chat with the members of the band who know the difference between a mic and a speaker i found that they're not actually metal... damn bassists lol they're more blues rock (think G 'n' R) which makes the whole thing easier as I've done some blues before :)
 
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