Deep House Mixing Critiquing

[Blackout1107]

Hey Guys,

I've just started a new deep house track and really want some advice on the mixing. I think it can always be mixed better so I wanted to leave it here for your opinions. Specifically, I'd like your opinions on the mixing in the bass and kick end. I mastered the track out with the Wave's L2 Limiter. By the way, take no mind to that random vocal glitched trill sounding thing haha. It can be fixed.

Thanks,
Dan

View attachment deephousemixcritic.mp3

 

[TripleM]

I thought the mix was a bit too bright. A bit too much high end. I also thought the kick did not have a strong enough low end. I'm not an avid listener of this genre. But what I've heard has a bigger thumping low end than this mix.

Don't know how much you care about ear bud listeners. But the synths play back and forth against each other quickly across the stereo spread throughout the whole thing. So the midrange energy of the mix is constantly fluctuating right to left. That got a little distracting.

 

[Blackout1107]

I thought the mix was a bit too bright. A bit too much high end. I also thought the kick did not have a strong enough low end. I'm not an avid listener of this genre. But what I've heard has a bigger thumping low end than this mix.

Don't know how much you care about ear bud listeners. But the synths play back and forth against each other quickly across the stereo spread throughout the whole thing. So the midrange energy of the mix is constantly fluctuating right to left. That got a little distracting.

Thanks TripleM. Do you have any advice on how maybe to make the low end heavier but not distorted? It's really my biggest issue in the music production process. And I appreciate the opinion on how the middle chords are constantly panning left and right. It will be something to consider working.

 

[Atkron205]

what tripleM said, a little too bright. on the kick try adding EQ around 80 to 100 htz, squeeze down the "Q" setting for a narrower boost.

 

[TripleM]

To me, the biggest low end problem is a somewhat weak sounding kick. Are you using samples? I'm guessing so. You just need a sample that has a stronger low end.

The other thing that occurred to me is what your listening chain is. If you're listening on something like earbuds or computer speakers, that could be an issue. You need a monitoring system that produces some low end. It doesn't necessarily need to be a super high end/expensive system. But you need something that produces a little low end. Then find some pro mixes that you like, and compare their low end with the low end of your mix.

 

[Blackout1107]

To me, the biggest low end problem is a somewhat weak sounding kick. Are you using samples? I'm guessing so. You just need a sample that has a stronger low end.

The other thing that occurred to me is what your listening chain is. If you're listening on something like earbuds or computer speakers, that could be an issue. You need a monitoring system that produces some low end. It doesn't necessarily need to be a super high end/expensive system. But you need something that produces a little low end. Then find some pro mixes that you like, and compare their low end with the low end of your mix.

Yeah. So I use Skull Candy Crusher Headphones without the bass boost function enabled. I also have 2 KRK G3 Rokit 8's connected with the KRK 12sHO subwoofer for off-ear monitoring. And yes, I'm using sample oneshots for all my percussion. My issue is I find myself constantly cutting back on the bass (which it sounds like you both hear ) when I get to the mastering stage. My master's signal chain is Ableton's stock compressor with a ratio around 3 that makes an extremely subtle volume boost followed by Wave's L2 Limiter. For that, I have a ceiling of -0.5 dB and the threshold is pulled down just so it catches the minor peaks every once in awhile. I don't allow the gain reduction to compress down on the master signal more than 3 dB. But even these subtle changes can begin to make the song distort in my headphones when I put the headphone volume knob at max volume.

Now, if I use a professional reference track to compare mine to, I always realize on a spectral analyzer that the low end of kicks reach -6 dB and the sub frequencies of the bass from 30 to 50 Hz generally sticks around -20 dB. With these attributes, I'm always so surprised that the audio doesnt distort at all at max headphone volume. Reason being because, if I take my song after the mastering chain and analyze it, I end up with sub frequency material sitting around -40 dB to -30 dB. The only thing I actually do that looks anatomically similar is after mastering, my kick creates 50 or so Hz peaks at -6 dB. So I'm similar to the reference in that sense. But when I listen at max headphone volume, my song will distort where the professional track doesn't distort, has even a slightly louder sounding volume, and has much more extreme amplitude values in the spectrograph. How does that happen? My only way to counter the distortion is cut out all the good stuff with sub bass and then it doesn't distort anymore. And I hate that. This is an issue I've been plagued with for years and I hope I make a little bit of sense so that I can get your advice or anyone else's who has an idea of what I'm doing wrong.