What I Want

  • Thread starter Thread starter TripleM
  • Start date Start date
The dropbox mix is definitely better. I still think you can bring the overheads down more, but do what you want.

Another thing I just noticed is that you panned the toms backwards. Most people would probably never notice or care, but it freaks me out a bit. You have the overheads in "Drummer perspective" which is fine, but the toms are "audience perspective", which is fine too if the overheads are done that way. The way you have toms now sounds backwards in relation to the overheads. The floor tom should be where the ride cymbal is.
 
Shows you what I know about drum panning. :). I'll reverse the OHs and nudge down.

The guitar tone is pretty close to one of the last samples I posted in the Tone Thread. I gave it a little boost (maybe 2-3 dbs) at around 240hz. But nothing else. I left the upper midrange alone to see what you'd say about it.
 
Can't update the original post anymore, so mix #4 is here:



Several tweaks. I moved the OH's down still a little further. Flipped the OH panning. Some lead and harmony vocal tweaks. Some guitar tweaks.
 
Compared to the first mix this is quite different, much cleaner and bigger sounding. I can see why those overheads were a challenge, a lot of sizzle, but they sound good. The only thing I notice was an odd frequency on the lead vocal maybe around 2k but it seemed to go away. The harmonies sound much better in this mix. The guitars are lower, but the Marshall has no problem cutting through. Good job.
 
Now that things are sitting better, the only thing I notice is the vocals sounding a bit thin now on the verses. The backups on the chorus is fine, just the solo vocal seems a bit distant.

I have ideas to fix that, but then everyone would know the secret... lol!
 
jimmys69 said:
Now that things are sitting better, the only thing I notice is the vocals sounding a bit thin now on the verses. The backups on the chorus is fine, just the solo vocal seems a bit distant.

I have ideas to fix that, but then everyone would know the secret... lol!
Click to expand...

Let me see if I can reveal jimmys69's secret "ma ha ha" (evil laugh)
OK, so you stated your mix, and checked your two-buss levels from the busiest part of the song (the chorus) and the lead and harm vocals are big, but now you find the verses with the single vox wanting?
Two things. 1) If you've double the lead vox, make sure that the double volume is up in the lead vox group, and during the verses, especially. (Listen to early Beatles recordings re: doubles)
2) Automation can be used to make the verse sections come up, and can also be used to bring up certain phrases that are not being heard by the average listener.
If none of these two ring true, then Jimmy's secret is safe!
 
PDP - thanks for listening. See below for some details on the vocal.

jimmy - good to see it's about there. On the vocal, all the prior versions had a 3 db boost somewhere in the 250hz range. I took that out of this mix. The boost clouds the vocal a bit, so this version is a little clearer. But, as you said, it's also a little thinner. It's gonna be a trade off. But I'll probably put it back to the way it was.

Crazy - I think the "secret" is the little EQ boost mentioned above. Anyway, that's my secret. Whether or not it's Jimmy's, I don't know. :)
 
I want a drummer that plays like a metronome.

I'm noticing the vocals and bvs a lot more on the most recent one, which means the mix is working better. It means there are no distractions caused by mix issues. Nice.
 
dobro said:
I want a drummer that plays like a metronome.

I'm noticing the vocals and bvs a lot more on the most recent one, which means the mix is working better. It means there are no distractions caused by mix issues. Nice.
Click to expand...

Thanks dob. I love the way the collective ear of the people here can help out.

I don't know if anybody noticed... And it took me a long time to notice myself... But right before that metronome line... For a couple bars Greg hits the snare on all 4 beats - sounding like a "metronome." I haven't asked him yet, but I don't think it was a coincidence. I thought that was pretty funny.
 
TripleM said:
Thanks dob. I love the way the collective ear of the people here can help out.

I don't know if anybody noticed... And it took me a long time to notice myself... But right before that metronome line... For a couple bars Greg hits the snare on all 4 beats - sounding like a "metronome." I haven't asked him yet, but I don't think it was a coincidence. I thought that was pretty funny.
Click to expand...
That was intentional. I heard that line in the scratch tracks you sent me so I threw that in that part.

Mix keeps getting better. I STILL think the overheads can come down a little more. But now that they're settling in the vocals really stick out to me as a problem area. The problem, they're just too low middish. They're thick and a little mushy and totally indecipherable sometimes. I don't know what it is - layers, processing, reverb, whatever. Tidy that stuff up.
 
Excellent drumming Greg! You nailed the performance.

Songwriting is great, Trip! Loved the vocals. I listened to all four mixes, and you got it right by #4. No mix nits ...

Love the middle break ... and bringing it back for a short reprise. If it were me, I'd stick a fork in it and call it done.
 
TripleM said:
Rob - the vocals should be a little easier to hear. I always try to get the lead vocal just above the guitar, and no further. That's just where I like it.
Click to expand...

Yup, vocals coming through tons clearer now. I didn't really pick up the lyrics on the previous mix, but I did this time - and they're really good/funny lyrics - so well done there. Current mix sounds like good work to me :thumbs up:
 
Greg - I don't know if I can bring myself to lower the OH's any more. :) Some people like the vocal and some don't. I think I'll come back to it in a week or so and give it a listen and see what I think. Thanks for your help.

Dub - thanks for the listen. I'm going to relisten to the lead vocal after a few days, but yeah other than that I'm calling it done.

rob - thanks for the second listen. I appreciate it.
 
Hey Trip - I'm wicked late to this one. Sorry. I've listened many times to various versions, but never found time to comment. I really like the song and the performances. The lyrics are great. If you stopped here mix-wise, you could definitely be happy with it I think. The kick/bass really play nicely together here, giving this more of a driving feel than some of your prior tracks, which is great.

I didn't read all of the comments, but I could see the OHs were a recurring theme. Sorry if I'm beating a dead horse, but while I like the tone of the overheads (more splashy to my ear with sort of an unusually short decay), I think the cymbals are kind of dominant and a little too loud. Could you get away with keeping the sound of the OHs the same, but just turning them down a db or too? Also, I'd bring up your vocals just a tad myself. All else sounds awesome to me. Guitars, bass, etc...well done!
 
Actually, I think a slight eq cut around 7-8k might solve the overhead thing.
 
hellstens - thanks for the listen. too much compression? Is there a pop song around these days where you can't say that? :)

heatmiser - I'm wondering if I lower the OH's or EQ out some high end (like jimmy brought up), I might be able to leave the vocal where it is? anyway, I'll take a look at it. Thanks for your help.

jimmy - thanks for coming back again and again. I'll experiment with the 7-8K range. That's a good idea.
 
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