Silly Question: Why does my playback not sound as "nice" as when I recorded it?

[deuce42]

Hi Folks

I apologise if this is dumb question but I am becoming frustrated that I have a nice tone/level going into the DAW and when I playback the track it sounds a little thin and as if it has lost some of its mojo.

Is this normal/ My understanding of digital was that whatever went in should come out the same way.

I think I have a good signal chain going in (AT4050 - Neve 1272 - RNC-Black Lion Modded Delta 1010.) and am happy with the monitored sounds as I playing or singing but the playback just isn't as "alive".

I have tried monitoring directly from an output of the delta 1010 as I am playing. This sounds good but the playback in cubase doesn't nearly as good. I have also found that monitoring from within Cubase sounds more like what the finished product will playback like, but i am still noticing a difference.

Can anyone put me out of my disappointment?

[ARIEL]

what version of cubase ? and when you play it back is it the sme volume as you moniter ? if not then that could be your prob then - the audio illusion -

[Blast9]

Even though you've modded the Delta - it could still be the DA

OR it could be that the amp for teh monitor section/headphones is adding harmonic distortion if you're listening to the input signal (does the Delta allow you to monitor the input "pre DAW"?

I found this was my problem with my Motu 828 - the added distortion was making stuff sound more exciting, so elec gtrs were pushed too far back in the mix and, playing back on a different system = dull scooped tracks.

[Nordkrog]

If I read your post right, it seems that your "monitor-while-recording" chain and the playback chain are the same, right? I mean, you're are listening through the same D/A's, right?
I also read it as if you're the artist yourself. Recording your own singing and guitar playing. If so, no wonder it feels different. You will not only hear your voice in the earphones but also the resonance off your head/in your head (know what I mean?).
Guitar, same thing, even when monitoring loud in headphones, you will "feel" the sound on your body as well.

If you can record some one else playing in a good isolated booth and you still think some mojo is missing, sure, something must be wrong...
Make sure the record monitor and playback levels are identical, it could be that the playback is a bit lower.

Flemming

[Ladia - Audeum]

Hi Deuce42

Also make sure that everything is zeroed and that there is no funky EQ applied / defaulted on your monitor outs. Check the volume levels and the strength of your signals coming in. Also when you are performing you are using headphones and when you playback for mixing you are using monitors right ?
It is true what Nordkrog says about real time monitoring while performing.

How noticeable is the difference ? Is there some DB reduction ( difference in signal ) ?

[Kyle S]

i guess your monitoring yourself in headphones. if your listening back on speakers make sure your impedance levels are matched.

when i record myself i do a heavy dose of recording/stopping/listening/tweaking -repeat- until im happy with the recorded sound. frustrating and draining but oh well. once i get the sound its generally easy to find it again on a new recording though.

[midy]

Hi deuce42
i am very happy to read your thread because i have the same probleme as you. i have worked with cubase and now with protool hd and like you the monitoring is ok but when i read the track the sound is not as good .
i have post a thread fiew month ago about that and the answer was : it has to sound the same way and a great french enginer
tell me that on hd he hasn't any diference between the monitoring and the playback so???????
i wonder me where is the bug ???
like you i have good pré and converters ( millénnia , neve ,lavry ) and like you i am frustrated !
i have notice too that the more tracks you have more the sound go away .
do you work on pc or mac ?
i can''t realy help you but it make me feel good to know i am not alone , because i begin to think that saying that recording on draws is not as good as it has to be is a taboo !
excuse me for my very bad english
thierry

[Flying_Dutchman]

Interesting question...

Maybe this helps / What i did:

I reorded a clean guitar (file 1) + I recorded one of the the studio main speakers with my talkback mic / sm57. (file 2)

This file is the direct file. (file2)

Than i played back file 1 by cubase an recorded again the same studio speaker.

This is the cubase file.

All levels are the same.

Does it sound different?

[deuce42]

Ok - thanks guys for all your advice.

It sounds from the samples Flying Dutchman that there is little differrnce between your direct and cubase files. Perhaps the perception with difference is with me rather than any real difference. For what its worth I am using an older version of cubase SL2.2. Perhaps newer versions are more accurate......or maybe I am only finding excuses to keep feeding my own paranoia with this when the samples demonstrated that there isn't really much difference

This brings me to Nordkings comment about the artist hearing music differently when playing. I hadn't considered this but this is very relevant as I now realise. Its a great point. Its true that as I play I am probably experiencing a lot of sounds and feelings that interfere with me hearing the actual music as it is heard to an outsider. Vibrations in my head or fingers etc probably create a lot of mojo that an artist feels whilst the audience (or daw in this case!) dont necessarily experience at all.

I guess the only real solution is as Kyle raises - just keep recording and playing back till there is a nice compromise.

Mille - do you feel the sound gets worse for you when recording multiple tracks??

[paraudio]

I had the same problem when I was using the echo layla system. Was always unhappy with the playback after recording. Once I got an Apogee rosetta 800 and added it in place of the echo system all those problems went away. Better converters fixed the problem for me and now everything sounds the same on playback as it did during recording

[midy]

hi
no paranoia any way ! deuce42 if you are hearing something you must have confidence in your ears.
i have made some more tests and yes i have noticed that if you record a track alone ( only one track in the session ) the sound is better than if you have some tracks which is playing while recording so now when i record a track in a session i first bounce all
the tracks in one make all the tracks inactive and only play this track for monitoring while recording ( i will made all the tracks after again for mixing .
something intresting : try to listen with wavelab a track you are used to listen with cubase ( i think than wavelab is far more accurate ) and if you bypass the master section ( option /use the master section ) it is a bite more accurate .
i have made the test of recording on a second pc with wavelab the output of protool ( the monitoring and the playback ) the source is a drum machine
you can hear that the sound is not the same and if you zoom on the waves they are not realy the same too and with the analysis
tool of wavelab you can find that the pitch is not the same.
thierry

[cooker]

older vers.s of cubase (including 3) sounds bad when playing back, probably to reduce the cpu (though this doesn't happen with vsti-at least with 3). But after mixdown the quality comes back (hated cubase because of this-mixes never sound the same). As far as I know this doesn't happen with the new vers.