Nola
Well-known member
Edit: Final mix is the last one in the youtube video and the post before that on page 2. Thanks!
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spantini
COO of me, inc.
Doesn't sound muddy to me (Sennheiser HD 280 Pro phones). I think the ride cymbal is too deep and not steady volume-wise. When it gets loud it sounds like a mistake. IMO, the organ should come up an octave in the chorus - just my first impression. Might not work.
Nola
Well-known member
Okay redid some stuff. Any opinions on this mix, song, etc? I'm thinking of calling this final unless anyone hears something weird (I know my vocals are pitchy but I'll never be able to correct that without autotune, which I hate). I still feel like I'm hearing more mud compared to my reference tracks, but I can't figure out where it's coming from. The organ is super cut in the lows...acoustic guitar, too.
B
Bulls Hit
Well-known member
I wouldn't call the mix muddy, it's just more prominent in the lower register.
I like the vocals. Overall balance is good too. Nice job
I like the vocals. Overall balance is good too. Nice job
spantini
COO of me, inc.
I loaded both versions into Reaper and configured them for quick, single keystroke A/B-ing. They sound virtually identical to me. Flipping back and forth revealed no obvious differences. I'm in agreement with @Bulls Hit.
I tweaked it some - here's a remix.
I tweaked it some - here's a remix.
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R
R D Smith
It's as good as it is, for as long as it lasts.
Listening on earbuds, it sounds good to me.
R
R D Smith
It's as good as it is, for as long as it lasts.
The vocal sounds muffled or messed up somehow spantini. Maybe distorted? The version in post #3 was very good imo.
Nola
Well-known member
Yeah it sounds like Spantini added some distortion to them. The version in the original post and post 3 are both the same. I wasn't sure where to post an updated mix. And thanks a ton for the feedback, RD.
Nola
Well-known member
What did you guys think of the balance between organ in the right ear and acoustic guitar in the left? What is weird is I had to have the organ down much lower on the fader, and it even shows an imbalance on the meters, but I think maybe the organ just has more pretense or something and can be lower yet give the illusion of being even? That's how I heard it, but I'm curious if anyone hears the organ as too low. Thanks!
BTStudio
Well-known member
Yah I agree too post 3 seems the best. I like the level of the music is just a little higher in that version. Balance sounds good on quad core ear buds.
spantini
COO of me, inc.
I wasn't attempting to make any great improvement, only lighten it a bit. Somehow, the lead vocals got mangled some - mostly the beginning transients of most words, as if the gain had been increased too much - it hadn't. The waveform indicated zero clipping. Not sure where the crackling is coming from. Might be in the original track, just too low to be noticed, and my tweaking may have greatly exaggerated this. I didn't mess with the EQ or compression in any way. Hmmm . . .
I thought the organ's volume was all over the place, especially at the end.
I thought the organ's volume was all over the place, especially at the end.
Nola
Well-known member
It's like a hammond type organ with a Leslie on it, so it's kinda oscillating volume. Does that change anything? I'm more interested in the base volume of the organ than the swells. I put that type of organ on the song b/c the chord changes are simple, and I thought the oscillating organ it gave it some movement.
HumanPlanet
Active member
I think you're approaching this wrong. The problem isn't so much mud in the lows (which is there but not as much as you think), it's a lack of high mids and high end.
E
Eric Malone
Active member
I really like this song, great writing!
You asked "What did you guys think of the balance between organ in the right ear and acoustic guitar in the left?"
That's the main thing I've been focusing on while listening to this. The mix feels lopsided to me, lopsided towards the acoustic guitar.
Perhaps you'd consider moving some of the background vocals a bit further right? Not a lot, just a a bit.
The right channel just needs a bit of fill to me. Even if you had a reverb panned a bit further right on the backup vocals.. something to support the organ.
I notice the snare drum is panned left in the mix rather then the usual dead center. This is also contributing to the lopsidedness. Can it be panned a bit more center? Might help out the guitar part.
The whirly / leslie sounding keyboard, that could easily be a bit further right, you have a lot of real estate left in that channel.
Anyway, mixing and mixes are very subjective, sometimes you're after a certain 'sound', and sometimes what isn't 'correct' is 'correct' at the end of the day. Just my observations.
EL
You asked "What did you guys think of the balance between organ in the right ear and acoustic guitar in the left?"
That's the main thing I've been focusing on while listening to this. The mix feels lopsided to me, lopsided towards the acoustic guitar.
Perhaps you'd consider moving some of the background vocals a bit further right? Not a lot, just a a bit.
The right channel just needs a bit of fill to me. Even if you had a reverb panned a bit further right on the backup vocals.. something to support the organ.
I notice the snare drum is panned left in the mix rather then the usual dead center. This is also contributing to the lopsidedness. Can it be panned a bit more center? Might help out the guitar part.
The whirly / leslie sounding keyboard, that could easily be a bit further right, you have a lot of real estate left in that channel.
Anyway, mixing and mixes are very subjective, sometimes you're after a certain 'sound', and sometimes what isn't 'correct' is 'correct' at the end of the day. Just my observations.
EL
Nola
Well-known member
awesome thanks I’ll check this on headphones in the morning. I forgot to do that.
Nola
Well-known member
Hey Eric, does the snare sound better/centered now and is the overall L/R balance better?
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Eric Malone
Active member
It's kind of weird actually. I can hear the snare, left / right and little bit of level centered. It helps a little, but I'm preferring your mix with the snare off to the left over this version.
Do you have a stereo widener / enhancer or something on it? It almost sounds like the snare is double tracked, in this mix, even though I'm pretty sure it is not.
To describe a bit better what I'm hearing;
I can hear the snare as a detailed 'hit' in the far right channel, and far left channel - this is not the way a snare should sound typically in a rock mix. It doesn't sound like overhead bleed either. It sounds like a duplicated snare, panned hard right / left, with no center information.
What are the drums and what control do you have over them?
EL
Do you have a stereo widener / enhancer or something on it? It almost sounds like the snare is double tracked, in this mix, even though I'm pretty sure it is not.
To describe a bit better what I'm hearing;
I can hear the snare as a detailed 'hit' in the far right channel, and far left channel - this is not the way a snare should sound typically in a rock mix. It doesn't sound like overhead bleed either. It sounds like a duplicated snare, panned hard right / left, with no center information.
What are the drums and what control do you have over them?
EL
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Nola
Well-known member
Thanks. I think I found the problem and will fix it today. Also, do you guys use a stereo or mono compressor on drums? I attached the new mix. Does the snare sound better now? I think I may have cleaned up a bit of mud in tweaking the drums, too?
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Eric Malone
Active member
That is better, although it seems a little left of center still. Seems to have more compression going on to it, as the 'snare' sound of the drum is not as present as in your previous mixes.
I use mono compressors on the individual drums if required, and stereo if I'm compressing a stereo subgroup of the kit, or parts of the kit.
EL
I use mono compressors on the individual drums if required, and stereo if I'm compressing a stereo subgroup of the kit, or parts of the kit.
EL
Nola
Well-known member
You have a really good ear. I did add a bit more compression and turned it down a few DB. I can just reverse that if this is worse, but the balance seemed better? I'm not sure why it's slightly left or if I can do much better. This is with it pushed a little more right and a few DB higher. I think the "mud" was something in the overheads. This seems less muddy to my ear as I turned down one of the overheads.
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