First Mixing job as a "professional"

  • Thread starter Thread starter FadeToMuffins
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By adding clipping I mean using a clipper, which gently "clips" or limits the transient peaks of your source audio. Google "gclip" to see the actual plug I'm using. I use said clipper which just barely tames the peaks, followed by some light compression, rinse, repeat. Most of what you guys are telling me is not news to me. On the "mastered" version that I posted I HAD done gentle clipping/compression in stages. It may have sounded harsh to you guys, but it actually was very close to what both I and the client wanted. Believe it or not there is a positive aesthetic to be achieved from a harsh/loudened sounding mix in certain circumstances, and this was one of those cases. IMO, there is a positive vibe that comes from the way that that style of mastering can push elements that are positioned to the back of the mix more towards the front, yet still communicate said elements in a "backgroundy" way. A lot of that has to do with how a loud mix and harsh master forces the mix to compress around the tracks that are deliberately positioned at the front (vocals, snare, kick). Obviously, I'm not talking about harsh digital clipping, but a loud, compressed mix sometimes glues together in a cool way. Check out any song off of "animosity" by Sevendust for a good example of what I'm trying to say. It's a fairly dark and dense mix, and the way it glues together behind the brighter lead vocals is very cool and vibey IMO.

What I had not done before was corrective EQing after each compression step/when necessary. I thin definitely opened up the mix IMO.

As for for clipping/compressing the drum bus, well I basically clipping/compression to the drum bus in steps, much like the master bus. Much of my drum sound comes from the drum bus, so it's not necessary that the only thing my drum bus contributes to my mix is massive untamed peaks. Rather, what im looking for is that pleasing "smac" that comes from a well-mixed snare drum. So I apply my electro style compressor to the bus to get the transient emphasis, and then I used gentle clipping/compression/saturation in stages to shape it into that warm smack, which was a transformation that was previously occuring due to the steps I was taking during my mastering process.

Also, I get that "loud" isn't popular here, and that everyone's favorite answer when someone asks how to master something is "OMG DOENT EVEN TRY LIEK SENd TO A PRUFESHANUL ONLY" - Fuck that. I started recording/mixing when I was 16, and at 22 I've come further than I ever thought I would so I won't let anyone tell me what I am or am not capable of. Not to sound defensive, I just mean to say that yes, I totally understand that quality mastering is a hard skill to learn and requires a lot of high quality equipment and a nice treated room, but until I have that I'm dedicated to learning how to use the tools that I have to do the best job that I can.
 
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No need to get defensive. It was a bad mix and a bad master. Just fix it. No one jumped up your butt or anything. I think most people were trying to be helpful .You're wrong about one thing though - harsh is bad. There's no "positive vibe" that comes from people having to turn the track down because it's painful to listen to. Here's what happens with today's listener when something bad pops up on the ipod or CD player - skip. They skip immediately. You're trying to rationalize a really hard-to-listen-to mix, and there's no reason for that. It has nothing to do with loudness snobs or audophilia. It has everything to do with just sounding good, loud or not. I know that me personally, I listen to some really rough recordings all the time. Most punk stuff isn't done in billion dollar studios. So for me, my comments aren't about any shiny commercial standard besides that it simply has to sound good. Put your pride away and use your ears objectively. I understand that it can be frustrating to have a piece shot down when you work really hard at it. But if several people are telling you something is wrong, it probably is. If you and the band are happy with this mess, then why even ask for comments?
 
No need to be huffy :) I hear ya, cant say I understand it all but if your happy thats cool.

Most of the guys here are not at all anti-loud, lots of stuff here is loud.

You have to admit the master you posted was outright distorting.

You posted your mix, and this is how people help, they say what they think, its not always easy to take, but I've found the suggestions more helpful than not.
 
Its not the feedback - I appreciate it. This may just be due to the wonders of communication by text, but it felt like the way in which some of it was said was insulting. That's all. Call me oversensitive. That's fine. But I did than everyone for their feedback and even applied it, so I'm not sure how I'm coming accross as confrontational to EVERYone.

And Greg *sigh*I maybe I didn't communicate my point well - harsh is the wrong word to use, because I'm not trying to justify digital distortion. If you listen to the example I suggested, you'll hear what I mean.
 
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