Getting Mixes to JUMP out of the Speakers More.

[Mr.HOLMES]

Originally Posted by lerone

Slamming an L2 is really not the way to get a mix to jump out of the loudspeakers. Really it isn't.

Did he read my post about the customer who slammed away all the nice transients during tracking with a so called slamming compressor?

No transients left no JUMP!!!

Just for fun....try mixing one and the same song 2 times:

One with compression and one without any compressor?

At the end ask yourself which Version do you prefer.

[toppart]

Originally Posted by lerone

Slamming an L2 is really not the way to get a mix to jump out of the loudspeakers. Really it isn't.

Sure it does. It jumps once and it stays there until the song ends

[KyleDiSanto]

Originally Posted by chironomidae

The plethora of responses on this thread, each one different from the last, should indicate that there is no one solution to your problem. If mastering was as simple as "to achieve desired result x, dial in parameter y", then robots would have taken over the industry long ago.

If your music isn't doing what you want it to be doing, you need to be able to tell why. Without being able to identify the problem, how could anyone provide a solution?

Imagine that you are a doctor and your song is a sick patient. The symptom is lack of "jump" or "presence". The other ME's in this threads listed several possible cures, but until you can diagnose the underlying disease causing the lack of presence, how could you pick the correct cure? And if you do solve this problem, the next time you run into the same problem it might take a completely different solution - same symptom, different disease, different cure.

I feel a bit like a hypocrite posting this, because I really hate it when people post very vague responses to specific questions on this forum. But I do think this is a helpful way of thinking. Instead of thinking, "What can I do to add presence?" it is much more helpful to think, "what is obscuring the presence in this track, and what can I do about it?"

Great Response here!

[Mr.HOLMES]

Originally Posted by toppart

Sure it does. It jumps once and it stays there until the song ends

Did you really compared your compressed vs the uncompressed stuff at the same RMS level? When it just gets louder it does not mean it sounds better!!!!

I would be more careful with such a weapon.

[lerone]

Originally Posted by mixmixmix

Old trick for "jumping out" effect.

Take intro to the song which is mixed well already, then lower volume of this intro by few db's, ( you have to experiment here), so when following section comes in , there is sharp contrast( sudden change) in loudness beetween intro and following section. Now This following section will sound huge ("jump out")

Check out Daft Punk "Music sounds better with you","One More Time", the way they filter they intros / breakdown sections. Other dance outfits as well. It is used in all styles, rock as well.

Filter the whole sections and/or play with overall volume of the section, you can automate it as well.

Definitely a great technique, but it refers more to macrodynamics, not microdynamics. After your ears have adjusted to the loudness change, there won't be any more punch than in the unramped version.