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Is this mix MUDDY? Just heard it over a cafe sound-system and I was like YUCK!!
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Old 22nd July 2012   #1
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Is this mix MUDDY? Just heard it over a cafe sound-system and I was like YUCK!!

Does this sound MUDDY to anyone? I got a good feeling about it in my studio, my car, and ipod, but listened to it just now on my folks' sound system at the cafe they own and it sounded pretty muddy to me.

I kinda freaked out and shut it off (there were customers there lol).

http://soundcloud.com/jasonlees/when-u-call-062312

Thanks!!
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http://soundcloud.com/jasonlees/sets/reggae-works/
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Old 23rd July 2012   #2
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Not really a songwriting issue, I should think. You'd probably get more on-point feedback in the check-my-mix forum (that said I never seem to be able to find it when I'm looking for it).

Anyhow, no, doesn't sound muddy on my rig.

Sound systems in clubs, restaurants, and coffee houses are typically all over the map and often really messed up. If your confidence in your own rig (and your car 'reference' ) is low, you may need to work with that. One thing that often happens with untreated or poorly treated rooms is that the wide variations if 'room response' from point to point (even a few inches apart) in such a room means you hear your mix one way from point X but may hear it substantially different, as much as 30 or 40 dB of difference at different room resonances, only a half foot or so away. (This is because of comb filtering produced by 'overlapping' standing waves in the room.) And that can certainly cut down on your confidence in your mix.


But, speaking of songwriting/arranging, it does seem to cry out for some foreground elements... like a vocal or lead instruments singing/playing a melody. Call me old-fashioned...

Or, if you want to go the 'opposite' direction and take it into dub land, then I'd say it needs some shape cut into the arrangement (actually, I think I'd say it anyway -- I think I'd knock out some of those elements in different sections to differentiate them a little and hopefully build some tension and release). Pull things out as the spirit moves, pop them back for a moment with some echo, perhaps drop in some other fx or sounds. But, even so, if you listen to most dub, it still has foreground, even though both it and the background are often radically minimalized.

Of course, maybe this is a work in progress. (If so, well, there are some points to think about above moving forward. )
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The chorus is a little weak... I think it needs more lasers.
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Old 23rd July 2012   #3
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Totally...and thx.

Where is this durn 'check ur mix' room lol??! Ive posted in it b4...i WAS lookn for it but decided on here when i couldnt find it.

It is supposed to just be instrumental so wanted to keep the foreground sparse, though the drop-outs/ins need to occur...just havent gotten around to em yet...for a few tracks actually.

Also, gonna grab about 120sq ft of 705 to make into more bass traps over the next few days.

Thanks for the help!!
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Old 23rd July 2012   #4
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Yeah, I just looked for it, I can't find it. I had it bookmarked -- because of the difficulties I'd had tracking it down in the past -- it doesn't seem to be listed on the main forum listing page at all -- but I ended up doing a clean install of FF and left behind my old bookmarks.
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Old 23rd July 2012   #5
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Maybe it's a sub-forum then?? Swear I clicked around at all the seemingly obvious places.

I'm also an ex-FF user, hated Chrome at first. I didnt know it took up so much RAM, I'll have to look into that.

THANKS!
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