My General Formula To Mixing Verses And Hooks, Any Advice?

[ClarkeKent414]

Before I got into engineering was strictly a recording artist and I liked it that way. My boy beeks ended up getting locked up and he was our producer and engineer, so for the past 3 years I've been doin engineering. Im posting to see if anyone has any advice for how I generally tend to do things. For verses I usually record 4 tracks, A main, a double, and then an set of overdubs and double them. The main I set at 0 and have the pan center. The double I usually pan about 16 right, then turn it down between -6 to -7. The overdubs I turn down to about -6 to -9 depending on how they blend, and pan the one right about 70 and the left to about -86 to compensate for how I have the double at 16 to the right. I run all the tracks through 1 bus and apply the following plugins. I start with an Ultramaximizer, and adjust it to brighten up the sound. Then i use a compresser, at a rate of 3 to 4, with threshhold adjusted so that the compresser only hits at the peaks, and I keep the attack, and release on the auto mode as dictated by the compressors preset. From there I use a REQ EQ 6 band, always killing everything from about 85 down, usually notcking out a few decibals around 500, usually raisin it a lil bit around 2000 about .5-.1 and then bringin it up around 6000to6500 about 2 deciabals. After that Ill use a either a mild delay, a mild chours, or a mild reverb to add some ambience. From there I export it and bring it back in. After I bring it back depending on the sound i have I might ultramaximize it a lil more, or just make sure its hittin at around the same as the beat.

Now that my boy beeks is back out, we've been having an issue with mixing hooks. For hooks Ill record 6 tracks, 2 as the main, 2 in a different tone, and then 2 overdubs. Each of which I pan 100 right and 100 left, or ill pan em 100 mains, 80 on the back ups, and then 70 to 100 for the overdubs, obviously adjusting the gain on the back ups and overdubs to make em blend. He on the other hand will barely pan em maybe in the 30s, then go into each individual track and EQ most of the tracks out, and it never sounds good to me. I figured since i was on here looking for advice id like to know what you guys think about that as far as hooks are concerned. He read something in an EQ magizine where he refuses to pan anything over like 60, I on the other hand dont really care where its panned as long as it sounds good, and Id like to know what you guys generally do when mixxing hooks your hooks, to see if i can get him to refocus on the sound instead of the absolutes hes got for mixxing.

[J CraQ]

Originally Posted by ClarkeKent414

I on the other hand dont really care where its panned as long as it sounds good

You said it yourself!

[sevendaysoff]

Originally Posted by J CraQ

You said it yourself!

co-sign. if i need a thick hook i'll do 1 lead and 4 full over dubs. "pyramid" strategy.. roll off the low end at 100hz for the lead and 250 for the overdubs, compress to taste, then pan everything out lead in center, somewhere between 30 and 60 on each side for the first set of overdubs then hard pan L & R (100) the other set of overdubs. i usually send the lead to a short stereo delay as a widening effect.

[ryst]

I usually do L/C/R panning for my hip hop and rock mixes (instruments and vox). So if there are multiple tracks the mains are usually up the middle and the OD's and harmonies are hard left and hard right.

For "processing", it's usually a hi-pass filter, then comp (fast attack, fast-medium release), de-esser (if needed), and then EQ. I usually send the hooks to a bus but not always. It depends on what each track is doing.

If their are ad libs involved they usually get some eq (filtered) and limiting. The main tracks are usually send to a short Stereo Delay (L&R channels have slightly different delay times), Short Echo, 1/4 and/or 8th note delay. Sometimes also to a ping pong delay. Sometimes a flange on the delay. Automating the sends on the longer delays. Again, it all depends on the song because everything requires a different approach. Sometimes i will add verb, sometimes I won't.

It all depends.

[chris carter]

For panning I tend to follow the LCR method which is hard left, center or hard right, and only going ibetween when really necessary.

As for the EQ and bussing thing, it depends. I generally EQ and compress individual tracks. But I will very often buss groups of similar tracks, like all backup vocals, and then EQ and compress that buss (maybe some of those idividual tracks have EQ and compression, maybe not). It just depends on the sound I'm going for.

Main thing in the end is does it sound good? If it sounds good, it IS good.

[ncoak]

my only thought is that i'd advise against compressing the backups and leads together - i usually use a separate bus for both, in addition to compressing each track individually when doubling. helps clarity.

[phillysoulman]

Originally Posted by ClarkeKent414

Before I got into engineering was strictly a recording artist and I liked it that way. My boy beeks ended up getting locked up and he was our producer and engineer, so for the past 3 years I've been doin engineering. Im posting to see if anyone has any advice for how I generally tend to do things. For verses I usually record 4 tracks, A main, a double, and then an set of overdubs and double them. The main I set at 0 and have the pan center. The double I usually pan about 16 right, then turn it down between -6 to -7. The overdubs I turn down to about -6 to -9 depending on how they blend, and pan the one right about 70 and the left to about -86 to compensate for how I have the double at 16 to the right. I run all the tracks through 1 bus and apply the following plugins. I start with an Ultramaximizer, and adjust it to brighten up the sound. Then i use a compresser, at a rate of 3 to 4, with threshhold adjusted so that the compresser only hits at the peaks, and I keep the attack, and release on the auto mode as dictated by the compressors preset. From there I use a REQ EQ 6 band, always killing everything from about 85 down, usually notcking out a few decibals around 500, usually raisin it a lil bit around 2000 about .5-.1 and then bringin it up around 6000to6500 about 2 deciabals. After that Ill use a either a mild delay, a mild chours, or a mild reverb to add some ambience. From there I export it and bring it back in. After I bring it back depending on the sound i have I might ultramaximize it a lil more, or just make sure its hittin at around the same as the beat.

Now that my boy beeks is back out, we've been having an issue with mixing hooks. For hooks Ill record 6 tracks, 2 as the main, 2 in a different tone, and then 2 overdubs. Each of which I pan 100 right and 100 left, or ill pan em 100 mains, 80 on the back ups, and then 70 to 100 for the overdubs, obviously adjusting the gain on the back ups and overdubs to make em blend. He on the other hand will barely pan em maybe in the 30s, then go into each individual track and EQ most of the tracks out, and it never sounds good to me. I figured since i was on here looking for advice id like to know what you guys think about that as far as hooks are concerned. He read something in an EQ magizine where he refuses to pan anything over like 60, I on the other hand dont really care where its panned as long as it sounds good, and Id like to know what you guys generally do when mixxing hooks your hooks, to see if i can get him to refocus on the sound instead of the absolutes hes got for mixxing.

LMAO

[ether88]

dont trip on panning... if the lyrics, delivery and mix good....

[phillysoulman]

Originally Posted by ClarkeKent414

Before I got into engineering was strictly a recording artist and I liked it that way. My boy beeks ended up getting locked up and he was our producer and engineer, so for the past 3 years I've been doin engineering. Im posting to see if anyone has any advice for how I generally tend to do things. For verses I usually record 4 tracks, A main, a double, and then an set of overdubs and double them. The main I set at 0 and have the pan center. The double I usually pan about 16 right, then turn it down between -6 to -7. The overdubs I turn down to about -6 to -9 depending on how they blend, and pan the one right about 70 and the left to about -86 to compensate for how I have the double at 16 to the right. I run all the tracks through 1 bus and apply the following plugins. I start with an Ultramaximizer, and adjust it to brighten up the sound. Then i use a compresser, at a rate of 3 to 4, with threshhold adjusted so that the compresser only hits at the peaks, and I keep the attack, and release on the auto mode as dictated by the compressors preset. From there I use a REQ EQ 6 band, always killing everything from about 85 down, usually notcking out a few decibals around 500, usually raisin it a lil bit around 2000 about .5-.1 and then bringin it up around 6000to6500 about 2 deciabals. After that Ill use a either a mild delay, a mild chours, or a mild reverb to add some ambience. From there I export it and bring it back in. After I bring it back depending on the sound i have I might ultramaximize it a lil more, or just make sure its hittin at around the same as the beat.

Now that my boy beeks is back out, we've been having an issue with mixing hooks. For hooks Ill record 6 tracks, 2 as the main, 2 in a different tone, and then 2 overdubs. Each of which I pan 100 right and 100 left, or ill pan em 100 mains, 80 on the back ups, and then 70 to 100 for the overdubs, obviously adjusting the gain on the back ups and overdubs to make em blend. He on the other hand will barely pan em maybe in the 30s, then go into each individual track and EQ most of the tracks out, and it never sounds good to me. I figured since i was on here looking for advice id like to know what you guys think about that as far as hooks are concerned. He read something in an EQ magizine where he refuses to pan anything over like 60, I on the other hand dont really care where its panned as long as it sounds good, and Id like to know what you guys generally do when mixxing hooks your hooks, to see if i can get him to refocus on the sound instead of the absolutes hes got for mixxing.

Maybe your boy beeks needs to read up a little more,ya think??
Maybe they didnt have engineering courses in the joint..
If they do,maybe he needs to go back in and read up some more,ya heard??

[ether88]

phillysoulman your killing boys tonight

thought you would have just told him to use the search

[Storyville]

Honestly, I've recorded and mixed so many rap verses at this point I don't think about numbers at all. I just listen and know. Couple things that I do: I remember that every mic and every voice is different. The right voice in the right mic needs barely any eq. I hi pass last. I use as little compression as possible setting the attack as short as it can go and the release as short as it can go before the sound starts getting dull/ jumpy respectively. I work very hard to work very little.