Lets talk about audio.Only nerds need apply. (2 Viewers)

[GO]

engineering question (not about mastering).

You have a singer with a deep baritone and low volume voice.

what are you going to use to record it?

You could go on thomann and try the lil mic widget they have..might give you some idea.

I spend too much time with that yoke..."In The morning when I risssseee!

 

[Unicron]

You could go on thomann and try the lil mic widget they have..might give you some idea.

???

 

[GO]

???

http://www.thomann.de/ie/the_tbone_sct700_roehrenmikrofon.htm

On each mic page theres an audio sample..some German lad singing in an American accent.What more could you ask for.

The samples are good quality though.They don't disguise the shitness of the mics.

 

[GO]

Get this into ya

http://www.digitalprosound.com/2001/02_feb/features/big_squeeze/big_squeeze.htm

 

[GO]

Got a berhinger minimon monitor controller.Its pretty sweet..now have monitors,2.1 pc speakers,domestic hi fi and headphones AND earbuds all hooked up and flickable with a switch..shit I even have it so I can listen to youtubes through any of same.Its great.

Did notice something though with all the comparing...I've been leaving way to much hi freq content in my mixes.And using too much compression at track level.

 

[ann post]

i nearly never compress at track level. i end up trading off a bit of volume for dynamics.

its grand though. the 30 people who listen to it dont seem to mind.

 

[GO]

I sussed out my problem...and theres a lesson here.

My mixes lately have been on the harsh side..over bright..crunchy..unpleasant.Which is not the type of adjective I like to associate with me tunes.

Anyway,the problem was simple...I had too much absorbtion..and it was mainly absorbing in or around 5k...give or take a 1000 khz..and its not that I was cranking that range to compensate..because I was'nt ..it was just that I did'nt notice the natural build up of upper mids ....because the room was absorbing them..before I heard them.

So I've removed that absorbtion..and indeed..my monitors are blasting out upper mids and I can hear them.

 

[Cormcolash]

engineering question (not about mastering).

You have a singer with a deep baritone and low volume voice.

what are you going to use to record it?

All yours for a mere €800-ish!!!

http://www.sennheiserusa.com/profes...one-studio-recording-mics_mkh-classics_002857

 

[peter]

Instead of trapping them freqs Gaz, you could try diffusing them if there is a null or peak still in that area after removing the trapping. I have some Hofa 2D diffusors, cheap as chips and work a treat. You could try a DIY job on them plenty of info out there.

 

[ann post]

was looking at audio on youtube today instead of doing real work.

conclusion: use spotify. even at lowest resolution, spotify kicks the shit out of 720p youtube.

 

[ann post]

I've just started the mixes for the dreams record, and have been doing some research on obsessively tracked music as there are 60+ tracks on each tune, and most of them are very much individual as opposed to duplicate layers. Found this breakdown of a song by 'pink' - who is awful, thought the tracking is interesting:

Artist: Pink
Title: Raise Your Glass
Songwriters: Max Martin/Shellback/Pink
Studio: Maratone
Production: Max Martin/Shellback
Recording: Martin/Shellback/Michael Ilbert(guitars)/Sal Ojeda(Vocals in LA)
Mix: Serban Ghenea
Mastering: Tom Coyne, Sterling Sound
Publisher: LaFace/Jive

Track 1 Side Chain-Kick
- Here lies a kick on fourths, just used for side chain.

Track 2-4 High Livekick
- Three livekicks from some sound library. Plenty of real room on. These are the most bass cut. They have the most room.

Track 5-8 Hip-Hop Kicks
- Four steady kicks with bottom and punch which stands for the body.

Track 9-10 Hip-Hop Kicks with room
- Two kicks with a little more length that are cut in the bass. All nine kicks lies through the record.

Track 11 Hard Hihat
- This comes in at the pre chorus. There’s no snare here but we have a hard closed hihat and the 2nd and 4th beat instead.

Track 12-15 Snare
- Sampled snare in the chorus.
Comes as all other sounds from our sound library. Four tracks that doubles the same thing.

Track 16-17 Clap
- One clap on 2 and 4. The other just on 4. Only in the chorus.

Track 18-19 Tambourines
- Comes in at the pre.

Track 20 Tambourine
- Clap tambourine on 2 and 4. In pre and chorus.

Track 21 Shaker
- Lies off beat. As some how like a house hihat,.

Track 22-25 Hihat
- Four channels open hihats on 4ths. 808 and cut live hihats to get a dirty sound. Just in the chorus.

Track 26-27 Tambourines
- 16ths tambourines that lies left-right. They are a bit side chained so they won’t feel so static.

Track 28 Cyms
- Cymbal panting. Comes from a live recording of a another song where we have borrowed it.
Sliced hard in the bottom. Only in the chorus.

Track 29-31 Lasers
- Three laser sounds on the first beat in the chorus. Like house laser. Quite low but never the less makes a great sublte sshhh that leads into the chorus. Three different sounds that plays on the same beat.

Track 32-33 Crash
- 909 - crash. Static. Sounds euro. Plays on 1st in every 4th bar.

Track 34 - Machine hihat
- Plays on 4ths in the break to get a modern twist against the acoustic guitars. Changes to 16ths in the end chorus.

Track 35 - Livedrums
- Sampled. Helps the snare in the last chorus. All bass has been turned down.

Track 36-38 Bass
- The first is a synth bass, Yamaha cs-01 which is turned all the down below 200 hertz to get that twisted sound. Then comes a Studio Electronics SE01. Ilbert usually complains about it: “Use a real Moog instead”. It has the right bass. As I understand it’s a heritage from Denniz Pop. He always used the SE01’en as bass. Then it’s a live bass, Rickenbacker 4001, played through AmpFarm. All bass tracks doubles each other.

Track 39-40 Guitar
- This is the riff you hear most clearly in the intro. A low octave and a high. The guitar is a Fender Jaguar through Waves GTR and it was the first time we tested any thing else than AmpFarm, but Martin fixed a nice sound while I played like crazy.

Track 41 Organ
- This organ is from a studio in Los Angeles. I think we have it in the plug. B3 it’s called. Lies only on one note in the chorus and a little later in the bridge.

Track 42-43 Guitar
- Two crunchy Telecasters who also just playing open chords in the chorus. AmpFarm. A Tele that was in the studio in Los Angeles and was really great.

Track 44-45 Guitar
- Gibson Les Paul that plays loops, sustained, in the chorus. Side chained in every other bar so the last note in loop hangs and pumps. Everything side chained is controlled by the kick. One low octave and one high. AmpFarm.

Track 46-47 Guitar
- Two rock guitars just playing fifths in the chorus. Les Paul/AmpFarm. Left-right.

Track 48-49 Acoustic Guitar
- Two lovely Michael Ilbert guitars, left-right, acoustic, that play open singer-songwriter chords in the chorus. Shit tight. Recorded with AKG 451EB.

Track 50-53 Acoustic Guitar
- Acoustic guitar, bridge, left-right. These were recorded in Los Angeles since we didn’t had the bridge in Stockholm. Plays on the lowest strings . When the drums come in two guitars come as well that doubles the first with full chords.

Track 54-55 Solina
- The string machine. Lies panned left-right in the chorus. Plays really straight. Gives a little atmosphere.

Track 56 Punk punches.
- These are sampled punches in the chorus: dooooonnggg, with cymbals and everything. And then we just pitched it so they match the chord. Also side chained with every second bar. Gives a nice rock band feeling.

Track 57 Guitar
- Fender Thinline that also plays the loop in the chorus. Also side chained in every second bar. Has an octave pitch upon it that gives a nasty frequency that blows your eardrum.

Track 58 Synth
- Yamaha CS01 again that makes a double in the loop in the chorus. Also side chained every second bar.

Track 59 Synth
- Side chained Roland Juno 106. Comes in at the B-hook in the chorus and sparkles. Really low in the mix.

Track 60-61 Guitar
-Is called “Crazy Guitar”. Simple principle where you play as fast as you can on one string and one note and then it’s pitched after the chord. Sound a bit like the guitar pick has been but on an air fan. Has delay and reverb and comes in in second pre and lies a little in the bridge and end chorus. On the next channel it’s the same guitar fixed pitched to another note. Comes in in the end chorus. Fender Jazzmaster. That’s how indie it can be.

Track 62 Solina
- Another solina. Doubles the melody in the B-hook and end chorus. Also side chained every second bar.

Track 63 Guitar
- Is called “Sad Guitar”. Also Libert that has recorded it. A Jazzmaster recorded with a real spring reverb in real amps and after that we have bit crushed it and side chained it every second bar. In the B-hook and end chorus.

Track 64-66 Piano
- Two sampled pianos and one Nord Piano. Puts a beat on the first beat in every 4th bar. Is heard really clear.

Track 67 Vocal
- Ad lib-channel. Pinks vocal ad libs. From second chorus. All vocals are recorded in Los Angeles and the vocal-chain is Telefunken ELA M 251 to a Nece 1073 DPA, Urei 1176 Black and Teletronix LA2A.

Track 68 Vocal
- Lead in verse and pre. A little distorded in EchoFarm to make it a little more vintage.

Track 69-70 Vocal
- Two channels that double the end word in every A-verse, “What’s the deli-o”, “Where’s the rock ‘n roll” and so on. Panned right-left.

Track 71 Vocal
- Doubles every other sentence in the pre.

Track 72 Vocal
-Lies the vocal in second pre.

Track 73-75 Vocal
-Lead in the chorus and doubles left-right.

Track 76-78 Vocal
-Three channels of a high harmony voice in chorus. Lies center, left and right.

Track 79 Vocal
- I, Martin, Pink and her boyfriend Carey Hart, who stand and sing “raise your glass”. “Hockey vocals”.

Track 80 Vocal
- This is named “talking shit” and is all the small comments in the song.

Track 81-83 Vocal
- Harmony in the chorus. Center, right, left.

Track 84-86 Vocal
- Three channels where she sings the backing vocals in the chorus. That’s the loop with text. Just the last chorus, last 16 bars.

Track 87 Vocal
- Top harmony in the bridge with flanging effect. Sounds like that Led Zeppelin song...

The aux are 4: Number 1 is with a quarter note delay, EchoFarm, number 2 is with another type of quarter note delay, number 3 has a half note delay, and the last is a reverb.

 

[GO]

Holy crap.

A lotta work goes into that pop shit.

I'm pissed off currently.I recorded a tune thats just outta my range vocally.
Tried pitch shifting it..no use.Tried recording it slowed down..sounds like a chipmunk sped up.

If I wait an hour between each line I can just about hit the notes I reckon.Gonna be a long night.Hmm..might just record a line a day.

It'll never be getting played live in this key

 

[ann post]

nearly psyched myself up to listen to that pink tune.

 

[GO]

Don't bother your bollix.

It has no relevence.

 

[ann post]

I'll probably hear it on the radio before the week is out. i'd love to see the track lay for britney spears toxic or ellie gouldings starry eyed, just to figure out a few of the things that happen.

 

[pete]

nearly psyched myself up to listen to that pink tune.

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[GO]

I found this interesting

The Mixing Learning Curve

There was a time I had no clue how to mix a record + thought I may never learn. I believed mixing was a singular skill. And one I didn't possess. But I discovered none of these things was true.

Mixing is instead a combination of a number of individual techniques that when combined create great sounding mixes. And I had always been learning to mix. I was slowly acquiring each technique, one by one over the years, as my mixes were getting better + better.

But the improvements were so subtle that at no time did it feel like I was getting any closer to actuallyknowing how to mix. So, if you are feeling frustrated with your mixes, keep working at it, they ARE getting better. When I was moving along the mixing learning curve I actually had no idea I was even on it. But there is a learning curve + you're on it. The fact that you're reading this tells me so.

But wouldn't it be better to know you're making progress? And more importantly...

WHERE Are You On the Curve?

After I've told you that you're actually learning how to mix, you always have been, and don't worry, it's okay if you can't tell... just trust me... you are. Well, that's a pretty unsatisfying answer to the question. So, if you're trying to gauge where you're at with learning to mix, let's take a look at a couple of ways you can tell.

First, every mix where you improve your ability to get a better sound on any element, you are improving your mixing techniques. Because mixing isn't a big skill, but many smaller skills. Like how to get a great sound on kick, snare, hat, toms, cymbals, bass, ac gtr, el gtr, piano, organ, pad, horns, strings, bg vox, harm vox, lead vox, automation, lead vox rides, etc. Each new technique you learn, perfect + improve upon, means you are getting closer to learning how to bring it all together + get that big sounding record quality mix.

So, create a checklist + start checking things off that you already know how to do. And start working on the stuff you don't. (Uh... duh, Charles.)

You're Getting Warmer

Second, there was a point in time when I knew I had passed an important mixing threshold. One that signified I was getting really close to knowing how to mix.

I'd been engineering for a number of years @ the time. The last 2 of which I had actually been mixing... but I was never satisfied with my mixes. My clients liked them well enuf, but they never really impressed me as being great. They were okay, just not really as good as mixes I heard by other mixers. They didn't really sound like a record to me.

But...

I knew I was getting close with my mixing skills when I started noticing that, as I listened to records by other mixers, I heard things in them that I knew I didn't like. If I was the mixer, I knew I would definitely do those things differently. IOW, I understood what they were doing; how they were doing it; I didn't like it; and I knew exactly what + how I would do instead. And these were really good mixes.

When Great Mixes Suck

This had never happened to me before. My normal reaction to a mix was simply awe, reverence + a "man, I wish I knew how to do that" reaction. So, the 1st few times that this thought occurred to me--that I would do that part of that mix differently--I didn't even understand what I was thinking. I couldn't relate to it. It didn't make sense.

But after it happened a few times I realized that this was a big deal. If I wasn't simply impressed with another mixer's mix, but in fact disagreed with some of the choices they were making, that told me that I must be coming into my own as a mixer.

And it was within 6 mos or so of having these reactions to other mixes that I finally had that experience of hearing my own mix playback + being impressed that it really sounded like a record. @ the time, I was really proud of that mix's sonics, but more importantly I felt it's musicality was the best of any mix I had ever done.

The mix was right for the song, artist + time. And the artist was blown away by it as well. Actually he was flipping out. He was a big artist who'd had a lot of hits who knew a good mix when he heard one. It was the strongest reaction I had ever gotten from an artist up until that time, which also let me know I had done something different + right with that mix.

Your First Great Mix

So, hopefully these suggestions + guideposts will help you judge where you are on the mixing learning curve. You are getting closer to knowing how to mix with each one. Just keep working on your mixing + listening to the mixes of other mixers.

One day you too will hear things in great mixes that you think suck + you would do better. And very soon after that you will hear a great mix coming from your very own faders.

 

[ann post]

It sorta reads like the back cover if one of those spiritual well being self help books

 

[Anthony]

God I fucking hate Pink.

 

[GO]

Gawd yeah.Pink is the fucking pits.

She's a dog too...not that theres anything wrong with that.Ugly birds can rock just as hard as ugly blokes,I'm sure