I'm at the final stage of mixing and...

  • Thread starter Thread starter Armistice
  • Start date Start date
Armistice

Armistice

Son of Yoda
... I find I'm going back and majorly rethinking reverb decisions... type and amount - usually in the "smaller room / less" direction...:D

Somehow hearing things on the stereo, car stereo and iPod to check mixes, instead of the studio monitors, reminds me that reverb can be evil.. :laughings:
 
Reverb is my best friend, for all of its satanic majesty.

But . . . I dislike small room reverbs unless I specifically want to convey a real sense of proximity.

I have a big preference for very large room reverbs, but using not so much of it
 
I sometimes perceive big differences in the amount of reverb in my own mixes between phones and speakers, but not so much between different speakers...not sure why.

I've been hearing a lot of newer, indie-ish bands on xm radio lately that have tracks just drenched in verb, and it can sound pretty awesome. I know there's a real bias on this site towards drier mixes, but on my next production, I'm just going to arbitrarily drown everything and see what happens!

I personally don't remember thinking your tracks weren't dry enough Armi?
 
It's mainly an accumulation thing... I tend to put a little on lots of stuff and it ends up a bit echoey, so I have to go back and pare it back from stuff that doesn't really need it... like the 6 acoustic guitar tracks don't ALL need reverb... etc. :D
 
I had to learn the hard way to turn reverb DOWN a lot in mixes, these-days I have it barely audible in the mix, it usually sounds better, unless you are of course mr vangelis and have a very high end lexicon, which seems to always sound good no matter how high it is set in the mix...listen to rachel's song from blade runner, now THAT is some sexy reverb
 
I only use one reverb, and that's plate (specifically the UAD EMT 140), and that's it. I love it, but only use it on specific things.
 
I'm the same as Seafroggy, one plate verb and the same one he uses. I was such a reverb junkie before and I'm really trying to turn myself around. I think you need to keep looking for the right reverb to use, it can really make a big difference. Instead of trying to cram your music into the wrong reverb, you need to audition some to find your golden verb. And gawd knows there's a ton of different verbs out there.
 
Chili said:
I'm the same as Seafroggy, one plate verb and the same one he uses. I was such a reverb junkie before and I'm really trying to turn myself around. I think you need to keep looking for the right reverb to use, it can really make a big difference. Instead of trying to cram your music into the wrong reverb, you need to audition some to find your golden verb. And gawd knows there's a ton of different verbs out there.
Click to expand...

I'm so far away from the level, recording wise, where I can recognise the "right" or "golden" reverb, compared to some of you guys. And that's just one area, don't start me on compressors, EQs etc....I'm sure it matters but don't know if I have the ears or the set up to tell the differences in some of the stuff you guys seem to.

In terms of reverbs I know I don't like plates, and do tend to like larger rooms in small amounts but that's about it. I tend to use Reaper's convolution reverb and like it OK in the amounts I use.. or Glaceverb... but I also know that the vast majority of people who'll ever listen to the CD will not know the difference.

There are so many little things that separate my "decent" home recording from a professional recording in my particular case, and getting that last 10% or whatever it is is most likely beyond both my capability and interest... it's always been the songs, not the recording for me... so I'll just bumble on doing the best I can, learning as I go! As we all do in our own way... :)

The next CD will be much better... :D
 
I only have the stock Pro Tools plug-in for reverb, so most of them sound like garbage to me.

I typically use a small room reverb on vocals exclusively for things like metal/rock to push the vocals back a tiny bit to sit in the mix a bit better, but that's about it. If it's something acoustic or something like that, I might use a hall effect or something, but with the bands I have coming through, I usually just use a room reverb.
 
In fact, I hated most reverb I ever tried until I got the emt 140 plug. Everything else sounded so fake or so thin. The UAD was the first one where I went "wow" but I was always careful never to overdo it. I pretty much only use it on vsti's and vocals, I don't even use it on drums.
 
I use different reverbs for different things. I like having a good, bright reverb for drums. I usually use the Bricasti M7 Studio A impulse for that application. I like blending a short ambiance reverb with a longer one for vocals. There I'll use Bricasti ambiance impulse or a small wood room impulse combined with a more algorithmic verb. The stock Roomworks plugin in Cubase usually works for that. I also use Bootsy's Epicverb for certain things. It's a fantastic free plugin that sounds great on drums or vocals. I like that you can remove the reverb tail and just use the early reflections. Great on vocals.

Other than that, I'll just use impulses with SIR or Reverence.

I don't like a mix washed in reverb but I don't skimp on it. I like to use them to compliment each other and to create a sense of an actual space and to create depth. Fun fun fun.

Cheers :)
 
I've got a bunch of reverb VSTs but most often use ReaVerb with either the St Nichlaes Church or La Scala Opera impulse files - I've been using separate buses for instruments and vocals and keeping the levels really low except for the rare exception of a lead guitar or keyboard line that's supposed to be 'spacey'.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top