High Frequency "sparkle"?

strmkr

strmkr

New member
Ok, so I've been at this recording thing for quite a while now and have started to get relatively good at it. (well, I think so anyway)

I have been comparing my work to various "big time" stuff lately and have been pretty pleased overall at my progress except for one area. On the "major" stuff, there is a "presence", for lack of a better term in the upper frequency bands that I am missing. My stuff certainly seems to have plenty of hf content, it just isn't "alive and vibrant" like the stuff I hear on the bigs.

So what I'm wondering is this something accomplished at the mastering stage? If it is I'll gladly let the ME take it from where I leave off,because I am certainly happy with everything else I'm doing considering the setup I have been able to put together.

Thx.
 
Thanks, you guys are making me feel better. :p

How the hell do you do it? It doesn't seem to be eq, well, at least not any eq I own anyway :eek: Is it black magic? :D
 
I could tell you, but then I'd have to kill you...

No, really all there is to it is to [CENSORED BY THE MASTERING INDUSTRY] and it just sort of "works" that way.



Okay, okay... It's years of practical experience and specialized gear. Don't feel bad - After 15 years or so at this in one capacity or another, I'm still refining my skills and technique all the time.
 
Massive Master said:
I could tell you, but then I'd have to kill you...

No, really all there is to it is to [CENSORED BY THE MASTERING INDUSTRY] and it just sort of "works" that way.
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hahahaha...that has to be one of the funniest responses i've heard in a long time :)
 
Massive Master said:
I could tell you, but then I'd have to kill you...

No, really all there is to it is to [CENSORED BY THE MASTERING INDUSTRY] and it just sort of "works" that way.



Okay, okay... It's years of practical experience and specialized gear. Don't feel bad - After 15 years or so at this in one capacity or another, I'm still refining my skills and technique all the time.
Click to expand...

LOL, I thought so. Actually, I'm glad you guys are there to take it a step further. I'm about to start a project in October and am actually considering farming out the mix too. I have a feeling that by the time I get finished tracking this one I'm going to be worn out and ready to hand it over. I guess the budget, which is still undetermined, will dictate how much we get to send out and how much we do ourselves.
 
Cloneboy Studio said:
So what you are saying is you need to up the SOAR in your mixes. Easy, just turn the dial labeled "SOAR".
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I fucked up last time I tried that. Turns out it's right next to the "suck" knob and I grabbed the wrong one by mistake :D
 
strmkr said:
I'm about to start a project in October and am actually considering farming out the mix too. I have a feeling that by the time I get finished tracking this one I'm going to be worn out and ready to hand it over...
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When you get a good mix why don't you post it so some of us might want to tweak it and 'master' it - we could tell you what we did - you could tell us if you call that sparkle.
 
kylen said:
When you get a good mix why don't you post it so some of us might want to tweak it and 'master' it - we could tell you what we did - you could tell us if you call that sparkle.
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Well, that would depend on what the copyright holder allows, but it isn't a bad idea. Future ME's need to start practicing and learning somewhere, so making material available for them to experiment and learn with is probably a good thing.
 
strmkr said:
Ok, so I've been at this recording thing for quite a while now and have started to get relatively good at it. (well, I think so anyway)

I have been comparing my work to various "big time" stuff lately and have been pretty pleased overall at my progress except for one area. On the "major" stuff, there is a "presence", for lack of a better term in the upper frequency bands that I am missing. My stuff certainly seems to have plenty of hf content, it just isn't "alive and vibrant" like the stuff I hear on the bigs.

So what I'm wondering is this something accomplished at the mastering stage? If it is I'll gladly let the ME take it from where I leave off,because I am certainly happy with everything else I'm doing considering the setup I have been able to put together.

Thx.
Click to expand...

Yes and no. Good Mixers usually have the final product already there and the ME just puts all of them in record format... levels things out and polishes it a tad.

Not So good mixers mastering can help tremendously

SO personally i'd worry more about my skills then mastering at the moment IMHO
 
Teacher said:
Yes and no. Good Mixers usually have the final product already there and the ME just puts all of them in record format... levels things out and polishes it a tad.

Not So good mixers mastering can help tremendously

SO personally i'd worry more about my skills then mastering at the moment IMHO
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Good point. I'm always striving to improve on my skills. What I fear is that I may have hit the limits of what my gear will produce. The preamps in my Yamaha board are actually pretty good, but they are certainly not Neve's by any stretch of the imagination. Same goes for my mics. The GT's , Shures and Sennheisers I have aren't scrap, but they aren't U87's or U47"s either. I guess I'll find out as time rolls on and I keep working at it.
 
Cloneboy - That's hillarious - AND timely... Just last week, I thought of adding something with a little "flair" to my EQ selection and almost purchased an Amek (Neve) Medici. It doesn't have the "Soar" knob, but I think it has "Soul" and "Sheen" knobs. That crazy Rupert... :D

And yes, Teacher has THE point - On much of the "home & project" mixes I get in here, I'll probably spend around a half hour or so tweaking the EQ, compression and what not in a very broad "general shape" approach. On the really "stellar" sounding mixes that come in, I'll spend a half hour making 1/2dB adjustments in the EQ's and limiters.

It's the difference between "detailing" and "body work."

Not that I don't enjoy working on the home & project stuff - That's probably 2/3 of my business over the last several years. And I've said it before - It's a lot more (interesting and) challenging turning a "6.5" into an "8" than it is to take a "9.5" and pretty much just keep it there.
 
Massive Master said:
It's the difference between "detailing" and "body work."
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LOL, I've never hear it put that way, but it's pretty apt. As long as you don't have to weld any new metal in, I'll be happy :D

Actually, I think I'm going to concentrate on tracking this thing to the best of my ability and hand off the mix to some fresh ears. That is if we don't throw it in the trash before we're finished. :eek:
 
strmkr said:
I'm about to start a project in October and am actually considering farming out the mix too. I have a feeling that by the time I get finished tracking this one I'm going to be worn out and ready to hand it over. .
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Well depending on your level of experience, this can be a good idea. If you are doing a serious release, getting a more experienced mixer in to help on your project can be a world of difference. A good mix can often help transform a home budget recording into a serious commercial release.
 
Yep, the more I think about it the more I know it's the right thing to do sending it out to mix. My mixing skills aren't bad, but tracking is where I'm really starting to find my niche. Besides, I had to sell off some of my rack stuff when my finances started sucking ass last year, so I'd have to scrounge up some good compressors etc. unless I wanted to use digital compression in the DAW (yuk). Thanks everybody for all the help and advice :)
 
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