My mixing sucks and it's killing my vibe as an artist.

[JoRillo]

You gotta quit trippin Jay.

I think the song in your sig sounds awesome - didn't listen to the one you did on your birthday (I'm mixing right now), but your still young man, this shit takes time. The more you tell yourself you can't do it the less likely you will be able to do it. I'm 19, but all I tell myself is that I can do it - and I'm getting pretty damn good.

Even if you can't mix and sound like a new radio single - you can record and get it at least kinda close - so just keep making music and eventually you'll figure it out. The more material you make - the more mixing you can do - the better you get at it. I have three mixtapes I made when I couldn't mix for shit - I havn't even released um and its been 5-6 months lol - but now I know what I am doing - so everything I mix now I like enough to publish.

Seriously though - I don't wana see you make another one of these threads I feel like your drive is at least close to mine to do this shit - I got faith in you my man - Time to have faith in yourself.

[morejaylesswar]

I went and found an old CD full of my old music.... Man, I need that mic again. It sounds so much stronger than what I'm working with now.

Even the song in my sig is on an old mic! If I could have that one again, I would. I need a 990. If I come across it, I'm buying it. It makes way more sense to go back to what worked. I was stressed about sound, but not as much as I am right now.

I need a "woe is me my music spuds like shit" blog. Then I can just vent, lol.

Music was never this frustrating. It's not even fun anymore. :/

[jeremy.c.]

Yeah you definitely need to know when to walk away from the "studio" thing. It's very rare you'll ever find anyone who is good at the mix gig and as an artist. They're both 10,000 hour skills to master and who has that kind of time? My last "album" as an artist was turned over to a mix engineer because to me the music was the most important part and I didn't want to let the frustration of perfecting the technical details take that away from me.
Best decision ever.

[kafka]

Originally Posted by morejaylesswar

I can't ever record it... Because my MIXING SUCKS.

You're high. Both of your songs sound awesome. Honestly, the vibe is all there. Release it as-is.

[Uncle Bob]

You keep saying that the old stuff with the $50 mic sounds better to you. Well, it's easy to say "it sucks" and then dismiss it (your own work or that of anybody else). Instead, you should sit down with pencil and paper, and write down in specific detail why you don't like it.

It took a while for me to make the adjustment from analog reel-to-reel to digital. No more natural tape compression, nothing can go into the red. All of a sudden all those nice prosumer effects and dynamics processors were so damned NOISY!

When I made the transition from music to sound-for-picture it was another major adjustment; the sound is integral but secondary. I finally caught on to "the mix is good if no one notices it."

You are probably going through a similar adjustment. When you go from toys to nice gear you have to make the adjustment from "the toys cover up a multitude of faults" to "nice gear lets you start hearing things as they really are."

Give it time, you'll adjust.

[drcaron]

Sounds decent man... a few suggestions...

1. I would suggest you take a look at Presonus Studio One. I was a heavy Pro Tools user, but since I tried out Studio One, I haven't looked back. I think it's much more artist friendly, and the workflow is amazing. There is a free trial on their site. You'll be shocked at how fast you can put a song together. It's a lot more fun writing and arranging in SO than PT.

2. I would also suggest adding some more melodic instrumental hooks. Your vocals and lyrics are awesome, but I'm not hearing any melodic hooks that really pop (early enough in the song anyway).

3. Don't be so hard on yourself. You're stuff sounds good!

[morejaylesswar]

Originally Posted by jeremy.c.

Yeah you definitely need to know when to walk away from the "studio" thing. It's very rare you'll ever find anyone who is good at the mix gig and as an artist. They're both 10,000 hour skills to master and who has that kind of time? My last "album" as an artist was turned over to a mix engineer because to me the music was the most important part and I didn't want to let the frustration of perfecting the technical details take that away from me.
Best decision ever.

You know, I got into recording and mixing because I didn't have anyone else to do it for me. Now, I'm so in love with the idea of transforming sound into a song. However, I am a musician first. The only technical stuff that I enjoy worrying about is arrangements and notes. The other stuff is stressful for right now, at least. I think I want someone else to mix this project I'm working on... But I want to sit down with them to learn. I know that engineers aren't meant to be teachers. They have a job to do. So I have to work with someone who is open enough to let me into their workflow as they mix my project.

[morejaylesswar]

Originally Posted by kafka

You're high. Both of your songs sound awesome. Honestly, the vibe is all there. Release it as-is.

The song in my sig is going to be rereleased as is. The one I posted? Never! Lol! I like it, but I'll save that for when I'm uber successful and I don't have anything else to drop for my cult fans. "UNRELEASED JAY ADAMS!" They're going to eat it up.

[morejaylesswar]

Originally Posted by Uncle Bob

You keep saying that the old stuff with the $50 mic sounds better to you. Well, it's easy to say "it sucks" and then dismiss it (your own work or that of anybody else). Instead, you should sit down with pencil and paper, and write down in specific detail why you don't like it.

It took a while for me to make the adjustment from analog reel-to-reel to digital. No more natural tape compression, nothing can go into the red. All of a sudden all those nice prosumer effects and dynamics processors were so damned NOISY!

When I made the transition from music to sound-for-picture it was another major adjustment; the sound is integral but secondary. I finally caught on to "the mix is good if no one notices it."

You are probably going through a similar adjustment. When you go from toys to nice gear you have to make the adjustment from "the toys cover up a multitude of faults" to "nice gear lets you start hearing things as they really are."

Give it time, you'll adjust.

The last line is absolutely right. Thanks for the advice. I'm going to definitely sit down later today and figure out what I don't like and then research on how to improve on that.

[morejaylesswar]

Originally Posted by drcaron

Sounds decent man... a few suggestions...

1. I would suggest you take a look at Presonus Studio One. I was a heavy Pro Tools user, but since I tried out Studio One, I haven't looked back. I think it's much more artist friendly, and the workflow is amazing. There is a free trial on their site. You'll be shocked at how fast you can put a song together. It's a lot more fun writing and arranging in SO than PT.

2. I would also suggest adding some more melodic instrumental hooks. Your vocals and lyrics are awesome, but I'm not hearing any melodic hooks that really pop (early enough in the song anyway).

3. Don't be so hard on yourself. You're stuff sounds good!

I had actually been looking into learning a different DAW. I think it would force me to make creative decisions and not something systematic that I've been using since I first got into working in PT.

As far as melodic hooks, it's funny you said that. That has been in my list of improvements. I actually have been getting so much better with my hooks. I never used to do them. I'd write 64 bars and call it a wrap. Lol.

Here's a song that I arranged and put together the chorus for... I reached out to the background vocalists, wrote the chorus, sang it, and arranged the music behind it. I'm also on the very last verse. I did not compose the beat, though.



(If anyone is wondering... This was done on my $50 mic, but with an Mbox 2 mini and Pro Tools stock plug ins. I knew a little bit about mixing when I did this one)

[AngeFragile]

Just my 2c. Being an artist and a mix engineer in one is difficult to master. I don't quite see how learning a new DAW will give you immediate satisfaction. Maybe it's wiser to go with a mix engineer to discuss and fix the specific things you don't like about your mix. In the end I believe this will save you a lot of time, frustration and endless investment in gear you probably won't know inside out. Be an artist and do what you're good at without having to worry about the technical part.

Sent from my HTC Desire HD A9191 using Gearslutz.com

[morejaylesswar]

Originally Posted by AngeFragile

Just my 2c. Being an artist and a mix engineer in one is difficult to master. I don't quite see how learning a new DAW will give you immediate satisfaction. Maybe it's wiser to go with a mix engineer to discuss and fix the specific things you don't like about your mix. In the end I believe this will save you a lot of time, frustration and endless investment in gear you probably won't know inside out. Be an artist and do what you're good at without having to worry about the technical part.

Sent from my HTC Desire HD A9191 using Gearslutz.com

I understood all of that when I started taking this seriously, you know? I figured crossing over to the other side of music production is going to be hell. It sure has been. I at least want to give it a fair shot and see how far I can go with this.

My logic behind learning a new DAW is that it would force me to trust myself and what I'm hearing, as opposed to what I've read in book and learning through the tutorials for Pro Tools. I recently realized that I'm doing everything the same. It's a systematic approach. I don't veer too far off of that. Besides, it'll give me something new to look at and probably bring some kind of fun back to it. I had so much fun messing around with every DAW I've worked in.

[dxavier]

Originally Posted by morejaylesswar

I understood all of that when I started taking this seriously, you know? I figured crossing over to the other side of music production is going to be hell. It sure has been. I at least want to give it a fair shot and see how far I can go with this.

My logic behind learning a new DAW is that it would force me to trust myself and what I'm hearing, as opposed to what I've read in book and learning through the tutorials for Pro Tools. I recently realized that I'm doing everything the same. It's a systematic approach. I don't veer too far off of that. Besides, it'll give me something new to look at and probably bring some kind of fun back to it. I had so much fun messing around with every DAW I've worked in.

Originally Posted by morejaylesswar

I understood all of that when I started taking this seriously, you know? I figured crossing over to the other side of music production is going to be hell. It sure has been. I at least want to give it a fair shot and see how far I can go with this.

My logic behind learning a new DAW is that it would force me to trust myself and what I'm hearing, as opposed to what I've read in book and learning through the tutorials for Pro Tools. I recently realized that I'm doing everything the same. It's a systematic approach. I don't veer too far off of that. Besides, it'll give me something new to look at and probably bring some kind of fun back to it. I had so much fun messing around with every DAW I've worked in.

Getting a new DAW is absolutely not the answer. You HAVE to trust what you are hearing whatever DAW you are using and using another DAW won't teach you that. Once you learn the new DAW, you will take a systematic approach to that too, which tells me, the DAW does not need to change, YOU have to change. You HAVE to trust your ears. I have worked with several DAW's and some people are so loyal to their DAW's, they look down on others, but you can make music in all of them, so the DAW doesn't matter. It might bring fun back in terms of learning a new DAW, but what you will be doing is learning a new DAW instead of making music. You are frustrated so you are looking for something else to do, but ripping the heart out of your studio and replacing it isn't the answer. Yes, I do prefer the vocal recordings on your older record, but I wouldn't attribute that to the DAW. More likely, what mic you used, the pre amp, the room you recorded it in, what was in the room at the time that could affect the reflections etc etc.

One thing I will say, is that the lyrics and rapping are much tighter and gritter and smoother style wise in the "Remixed-Precious-Jay Adams" and that is not down to engineering. That is just down to the style of the track. I think it is a better flowing track than "Cold Feet" which sounds more commercial and less flowing.

If I find some time and you are willing to send me other stuff, I might be up for giving you some pointers or even knocking out a one off free mix if I like one of your tracks.

[dxavier]

One other thing I want to say is, I am constantly surprised at how much pressure artists these days, put on themselves, expecting to be great at everything. If you think about what you are doing here, you are writing, performing, recording, mixing and mastering.

Whenever you listen to a Jay-Z record, he has had so many people involved, to the point that it is arrogant for us to assume we can match what he does all by ourselves. Now, yes, SOME people can pull it off, but IMHO, not many. You may have bought it $4,000 of equipment, but you might have to face that you yourself cannot be an expert of everything and if that is a case, it is something you need to accept so that you can get on with making music and not waste time being a master of arena's that are just not you. If you can get others to be involved in your project, others who are better at certain things than you and they want to be involved with you because they think you are a good artist, then do it.

Not everyone, if any, can be amazing writers, performers, producers and engineers!!!

[monsieur x]

Hire a mix engineer. . . seriously.

[Uncle Bob]

Originally Posted by monsieur x

Hire a mix engineer. . . seriously.

Absolutely. Sitting alongside an experienced professional teaches you a lot. And there is nothing wrong with accepting that you can't do it all; no one can do it all. There are hundreds of recording engineers out there who can't play a note or write a song - but they can sure make the artist and the song sound great!!!

[morejaylesswar]

I just moved into my new place and this is my first time recording here. I haven't had a chance to test all of the mics and stuff to see how they sound in this new area. This is all I had the opportunity to test.

I added a quick mix to it to see how I could get it to sound verses trying to add a mix on this same verse at my other place. I am pleased with what I was able to do in 5 minutes on this in my new space. Rooms mean a lot, I tell you. This same mic and pre combo (Blue Bluebird > ISA One) sounded so horrible in my other spot.

I'll try to record a full song tomorrow.

My phone rang as I was rapping the last bar, so that's why it end abruptly. LOL. I forgot to put the thing on silent. (Yes, I use a regular ring! I hate songs for ringtones!)

[steadyreverb]

Yo, your stuff sounds pretty good as far as mixing. A engineer can make your material sound like the stuff you heard during the 60-late 90's or like the stuff you hear today. You just need to increase your knowledge which usually takes a lot of time. Here are some quick tips.

Hints:
Recording with the $50 dollar mic might have been better for your voice because it naturally semi-equalize a dip in the 320-500Hz range & low cut 20-100hz before compression. Your preamp probably kept a good line level gain while recording.

Since you are going digital, when recording audio you have to emulate hardware devices or record using the actual hardware, because that's what people are accustomed to hearing.

DIGITAL DOMAIN TIPS/KNOWLEDGE BEGIN HERE (you may know this stuff already):
Hardware devices tend to do many things that software plugins usually don't do on their own. Expensive hardware devices do a lot of processing which can be categorize within Two Categories: Equalization and Dynamic(s) processing. Software try to emulate these components (capacitors, transformers, magnets, copper, gold). Some developers succeed while others make bad code & algorithms.

CAT 1 - Equalization:
This is a brush over. Equalization is a control over the frequency domain. Some frequencies for vocals are 100Hz, 320Hz, 400Hz, 500hz, 630Hz, 1300Hz, 3000Hz, 5000Hz, 12000Hz, & 16000Hz. An engineer has to get good enough at hearing this like a vocal singer has to know pitch response. Using consumer level condenser mics record a flat response going directly into your sound card. Pro Audio for voices do not do this. They do alot of high pass filtering which allows frequencies below 200 to roll-off or have a lower gain/decibel level. This allows the important vocal frequencies to flourish. Your eqs in your mixes sound pretty good, so you don't have to worry about that.

CAT 2 - Dynamic Processing:
This is where Pro Devices do their magic. This is the secretive ingredient or what makes different devices unique. Capacitors and all types of components cause additional pre- emphasized eq, pre- de emphasized eq, upward expansion, downward expansion, automatic gain compensation, automatic gain reduction, phase enhancement/rotation, harmonic enhancement, in-harmonic enhancement, dithering, etc (the list goes on and on and on). All of these techniques are an attempt to make the audio material sound symmetrical, harmonically focused, hover the gain (line level) at a specific dynamic range response around ~ -20db RMS, ~ -12 Peak, or -18AVG (average peak- this is not use that much anymore). These effects are applied at different frequency ranges; Hence some people may call this multi-band. Buy plugins that do these things or learn from another pro mixer.

SEARCHING FOR WISDOM:
Most software developers break these up in parts. So you have to know 1000's of plugins and who coded it. Or you can ask people who know. Some people who are not really detailed or know what is going on under the hood call this Compression(this is a superficial term). Don't get advice from them. Go to a Pro. That is not the term you want to hear when getting down and dirty on your digital computer. A seasoned pro could re-mix your tracks to sound like the stuff on your favorite album. Again your stuff sound good.

[Thomas W. Bethe]

Find someone to collaborate with. Someone who likes your music but can bring other skills, like mixing, to the collaborative partnership.

Most really great music IMHO is done in a collaborative way.

FWIW