How is this ever going to help?

  • Thread starter Thread starter chessrock
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chessrock

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Alright, so I've been pondering the "big dive" in to the world of real monitors.

Soon computer speakers, home stereo, headphones, and the like will be given a whole new place in the studio.

So I take a trip out to the burbs of Chicago to a well-known retailer of hi-end studio gear. I bring some of my mixes with me, a copy of Yes "Fragile," the new Chili Peppers CD (pretty cool, by the way), and Radio Head (OK computer).

Alright, so the guys had a rough time peeling me away after putting on "homesick alien." But eventually I came to and was able to audition some nice stuff.

So I stick the CD in that includes my mixes. Wow. I mean wow. I always thought I was okay at mixing, but man. They just take on a whole new life on real monitors.

So my question is: How the hell am I ever going to improve my mixing skills if every set of monitors I'm auditioning flatters the crap out of them . . . making them sound bigger, fuller, louder, and livelier than they ever sounded on the crap I'm used to mixing on. Hell, I can imagine myself pulling up the basic, untouched tracks, having a listen, gushing and thinking: "I'm done. Sounds great."

I guess I was hoping to put my CD in and all of a sudden hear all these faults in them that originally escaped my ears. Bad dithering . . . compression artifacts . . . cheap reverb trails . . . poor eq . . . etc. etc. etc. I expected to hear what was bad with them. Not what was good. And I can always hear what's bad through headphones or on my home stereo. And there is plenty not to like as some (okay, alot) of you I'm sure will agree. :D

Anyway, babbling aside, here's my question: Is it one of those things where I have to get used to using them and eventually I will get to where they don't sound as beautiful on everything and I'll be able to hear the flaws of my tracking/mixing in time?
 
I guess I was hoping to put my CD in and all of a sudden hear all these faults in them that originally escaped my ears. Bad dithering . . . compression artifacts . . . cheap reverb trails . . . poor eq . . . etc. etc. etc. I expected to hear what was bad with them.

This is exactly what happened when I bought monitors. It was like putting on glasses.

Your experience can be explained with one or several of the following reasons:

1. You experience has made you a recording genious.
2. Your current monitoring is already very accurate.
3. The monitors you tested at the shop were very flattering.
4. You have no self-critique. (is that the word?)
And maybe
5. Your inexperience means you don't know what to listen for,

Now which one it is I don't know. I guess you need to put your mixed onto the mp3 forum here so other can see if they think they sound as good as you think they do. :-)
 
Well... when I put mixes I'd done on Event PS-6s thru my V8s, I heard a few things that I'd change......... it wasn't that the PS-6 sounded bad, just that the better monitor was more revealing, allowing me to tweak things at a deeper level....

The difference can be illustrated here, once again using the MixFest mix I did way back............

Here Again - PS6 mix

Here Again - V8 mix
 
Chess:

I can't tell if you are bragging or complaining! ;)

But seriously, the solution is to keep your old monitors if you are doing such a good job on them - especially since you've gotten to the point where you obviously know how to mix on them.

If you want to get a second set of "flattering" monitors, go ahead, but keep the old ones too. And your headphones. Then use them all!

The reality, though, is the new monitors won't make everything sound "perfect' once your ears adjust to the novelty of their sound. There will be a breaking in period while you learn to mix on them, but there's no reason why your ears won't quickly adjust.

I went through the exact same process when I added a set of Genelec 1031a's to my NS-10m's. But I kept the NS10m's to A-B mixes.
 
I'm going to second littledog on this one: there is definately a breaking in period for new (perhaps especially first) monitors.

When I got my ps-6's I was stunned at all the detail I could hear in my mixs. It sounded awesome! As I learned to listen, though, my ears settled in to analyzing that detail and my mixs got better FAST.

It sounds big and articulate at first, then it's down to business.

Have fun!
Chris
 
Well I have to say Chess having heard your mixes through my own modest monitoring system I was always very impressed with the quality of the recording and mixing. I especially liked the shimmering cymbals on Blue Baby Gone. It could well be that you either

a) work with music which is easy to mix
or
b) maybe you are just a natural with good ears fort what sounds right?
 
Thanks alot, Alchemist. I'm getting a lump in my throat (gulp!).

LOL.

I was afraid of people thinking I was braggin.' I guess my problem is that I'm NOT used to hearing them on real nice monitors, so naturally it's going to be cool and flattering to hear them really loud and clear and everything, considering what my usual frame of reference is.

After a visit to another store, I am happy to report that I had much more luck this time around. A lot of the monitors were EXACTLY THE SAME, so I am guessing it has a lot more to do with the accoustics and the listening environment. Funny.

I even heard a pair that made me shreik over how loud the cymbals were on a few of the tunes I've engineered. Yes! That's what I'm looking for. Pure suckiness in all it's unbridalled glory. Man, my ears are still hurting over one of those errant crashes. Ouch! And I need a better match for my sm7 in the preamp department. I don't think it's getting the proper load. The sm7 is not cheap or siblant mic - why does it sound that way sometimes? (Little Dog?)

These are the kinds of things I need monitors to point out to me.

My favorites:

* The Yorkie's rock

* So do the Events

* On the extremo-cheapo-budget end, I like the Haflers.

Thanks all, for listening to me rant!
 
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