Mix issues

[RawknRoll]

Okay I need some help here.....

Even when i add no reverb... my mixes seem further away then 90% of all mixes... I believe this has something to do with compression... but not sure any tips...advice...settings...your moms thoughts... w/e would be appreciated.

[Smithcok]

It can be a number of things. We all search for that "perfect mix"

It could be in tracking, depending on how much ambient noise/"the sound of the room" is on the tracks. Also could be not enough, or too much compression. Also could be phasing problems between tracks, or oddities/boringness in the stereo image.

There's really no right answer. It would help if people could hear a mix from you.

[RawknRoll]

I did a while ago and it was definetly rushed and it is definetly harsh and definetly poorly edited.... but if you listen to this everything seems further back then in most mixes.

this is old though... but i guess it's start

www.myspace.com/fearoffallingmusic

ever been

[cmchamp]

I couldn't listen with much volume as I presently have a sleeping 3 month old in my arms, but.
Panning - seems most warmth and power is on the right channel
Don't know what DAW you used, but were you using delay compensation for your plug-ins?
Dynamic range - again - with lowered volume listening - everything seemed to be 'crunched' and 'smashed' to where there wasn't much - if any dynamic range in the 1.5 - 2 min I listened.
C.

[Audioholic]

Its really hard to judge a mix too well on myspace, since they are lower quality. I think the guitars sound good, the vocal, drums and lead guitar sound a bit thin. Could be the equipment used to record them, or possibly some mix issues that could help fill it out, this file seems more of a lower quality mp3 then most myspace playback, really can hear the digital crud on the left, which if this is all your listening too, you are missing alot of fidelity

can you post this file to somewhere else, non lossy compressed?

I wouldn't call it a distance thing, but just a tad thin maybe, and not as full or wide as it could be perhaps. Its certainly loud in volume and I would say squashed in dynamics, which can help make any track seem less vibrant, but hey, its the loudness wars right. nice track though!!!!

do you remember what equipment was used to record this??

[RawknRoll]

This is what I used.... I'll be sure to get a copy of it and throw it up.. where should I put it?

PT. LE 7.3
I manually replaced all Hits on the drums cept for cymbals... Which the drums are pretty fat but during snair rolls you can tell pretty easy all though the average listenering would not know.

I used AMPEG Plug In/Mic'd The Bass and literally built the bass part... had him play to a click track and then moved it to the right spot.. tuned every note.

I used Amplitube for the guitars and built the same way I built the bass.

I used a ****** mxl v67 on the vocals, I now have a AKG4040 so i'm hoping for some improvement.

I recorded it all in an untreated basement.

All compression for everything was T-Racks which i think contributes the digitalness.

I used CSR Reverb plug in with Aux outs but I really didn't add much to be honest.

I just wish everything sounded more up front and less digital... thanks for giving it a listen.

Where would you like me to post it, so you can help me.

Thanks

[RawknRoll]

How do I do delay compensation ON pt. LE i know they don't have one so how do i manually do it ... also is there a program I can purchase to do it for me??? How much does this help btw>?

[cmchamp]

The more plug-ins you place on a channel strip, the more processing takes place. The more processing taking place, the more latency (delay) on that track. I don't know too much yet about PT yet, on the shopping list for next year.

[tech1]

This might help:
http://akmedia.digidesign.com/support/docs/Delay_Comp_PT_Host_Systems_33000.pdf

[Audioholic]

ADC really comes in handy when doing stuff like parrellel compression of tracks, or sending the same signal to a differnt aux or tracks and processeing one differently, causing a delay and introducing phasing issues. ADC is on HD, but with LE , if you are processing your tracks like this and introducing time delayed phasing issues, then you can use the time adjuster plug to get all things alligned time wise, really wish they would just include it with le. I don't think you needed to worry about that unless you are sending the same track. Perhaps you used too much compression. the t-tracks stuff I like, just overall some of the life got sucked out of your mix, the depth and width.

Also, keep in mind that if you are comparing your mixes done to full on pro released cd's, there will be an equipment factor difference. I mean getting to track on a nice analog board with high end outboard gear and such will probally help their final product be richer and deeper. Plus however their cd, and your cd was mastered may influence it. once again, its not a reverb distance thing, its a fullness, richness and depth thing to me.

[RawknRoll]

Where should i put this song online or maybe can I email it to you so you can hear it in a non mp3 version.

Also... what would be the single best investment to make it fuller deeper richer.

Cheaper is better at this point unfortunetly. Or I can always rent when I need to for now.

Thanks.

[Audioholic]

if you have a site or ftp , you can post there, or you can email it to me, check my profile, or PM me to get my email address, would love to hear the file not on myspace and get a better picture. Its a nice tune.

[cmchamp]

Not knowing fully your setup - you may be overcompensating for warmth and 'tubbyness' from your monitoring method.
If you're using studio monitors, are they as flat (response) as possible?
To get warmth on the vocals, add back in some 175 - 250Hz.
If you had recorded all of this at one shot in the garage, the drastic EQ you're hearing may be in part to the EQ settings required to get a decent sound in the garage.
Again, my 2 cents.
C.

[RawknRoll]

I'm using ADAM A7's and they are as flat as possible.

[Dave Burris]

Sounds pretty good overall actually.

Things are sound pretty compressed, quite common for this style of music actually. It also sound like you have a phase issue between channels. Particularly the guitar parts sound like the two channels are out of phase, presenting an unnaturally wide soundstage.

The harmony vocals definately sound a bit distant. How far are the vocalists from the mics? Sounds like they're actually standing back a bit from the mics.

I actually kind of like the overall effect, but it could certainly be annoying if that's not what you're shooting for.

I think between phase relationships and overall EQ, these are combining to create that "far back" sound.

Can you talk a little about your micing techniques? Maybe that would offer a better clue about the sound.

[RawknRoll]

Hey,

Thanks for the thoughts....

It really can't be a phase issue with the guitars considering they are from amplitube and i built them pretty much chord by chord to make sure the tuning was excellent.

I believe now the master track was overcompressed... which explains for the loudness...

I'm just not sure what it is with my mixes though the punch is there but i agree where is the thickness/deepness/and naturalness ......

I believe that naturalness has a lot to do with how i recorded it...

Everything on the drums minus cymbals is built i took hits and placed them and edited it and automated it to make it more natural...

The guitars and bass are completely built minus lead parts....

Any more thoughts I would greatly appreciate them.