last minute mix help needed!!

[photoresistor]

sooooo im supposed to turn in the mixes i have for my band's album tomorrow (i know not much time left) but the more i seem to work on them now i kind of start to second guess the changes i make and at the moment i could really use some outside advice on how to make the mixes better (balance among instruments/tonal balance/etc) and also how to better prepare them for mastering... ive never had any of my projects really mastered before so im not exactly sure what to expect.

if you wanna give me some specific tips (besides observations) i would love to try some new things too.

things im especially concerned about: loudness of bass guitar (hard for me to judge in my room right now), subhit volume (or perhaps where to find better samples or work with these?).....

at this mixdown im kinda tweaking with the toms too..

http://photoresistor.home.comcast.net/audio/new160.mp3

anyone game to have a listen (probably not for the faint of heart?)? would reaallyy appreciate some feedback from this community!

thanks!!

-dan

[JustinW]

Originally Posted by photoresistor

sooooo im supposed to turn in the mixes i have for my band's album tomorrow (i know not much time left) but the more i seem to work on them now i kind of start to second guess the changes i make and at the moment i could really use some outside advice on how to make the mixes better (balance among instruments/tonal balance/etc) and also how to better prepare them for mastering... ive never had any of my projects really mastered before so im not exactly sure what to expect.

if you wanna give me some specific tips (besides observations) i would love to try some new things too.

things im especially concerned about: loudness of bass guitar (hard for me to judge in my room right now), subhit volume (or perhaps where to find better samples or work with these?).....

at this mixdown im kinda tweaking with the toms too..

http://photoresistor.home.comcast.net/audio/new160.mp3

anyone game to have a listen (probably not for the faint of heart?)? would reaallyy appreciate some feedback from this community!

thanks!!

-dan

Hey Dan,

I gave the song a listen, unfortunately on shit headphones cause I am not at home at the moment.

Firstly (even though you did not ask for this), I REALLY enjoyed the music. What is your band's website? Where are you guys from? What label are you on?

I think the mix is coming out nicely. At around 1:27, I am not liking the sound of that floor tom (or whatever that is) that comes in about four times every second measure on beat 1 (?). Maybe dip some of the low mids outta it.

@ 4:07 it starts sounding really busy for that whole section, just something else to note.

Maybe also bring the kick up a tad, or add a bit of presence. I am not very fond of the way it is sounding right now...

Like I said earlier I am on some pretty shit headphones, so take the critique knowing that, but I thought you had a nice balance between the instruments.

But man, I want to hear more. I really enjoyed it.

Cheers.

[photoresistor]

Originally Posted by JustinW

Hey Dan,

I gave the song a listen, unfortunately on shit headphones cause I am not at home at the moment.

Firstly (even though you did not ask for this), I REALLY enjoyed the music. What is your band's website? Where are you guys from? What label are you on?

I think the mix is coming out nicely. At around 1:27, I am not liking the sound of that floor tom (or whatever that is) that comes in about four times every second measure on beat 1 (?). Maybe dip some of the low mids outta it.

@ 4:07 it starts sounding really busy for that whole section, just something else to note.

Maybe also bring the kick up a tad, or add a bit of presence. I am not very fond of the way it is sounding right now...

Like I said earlier I am on some pretty shit headphones, so take the critique knowing that, but I thought you had a nice balance between the instruments.

But man, I want to hear more. I really enjoyed it.

Cheers.

thankyou very much! i assumed there would be people on here thatd be willing to give a song a listen but i wasnt sure if anyone would actually enjoy it haha. anyways, we're from the portland, or area. no label for now, we're plugging away at things all DIY (save mastering), trying to book our own tours as much as possible (not easy, at least starting out) and hopefully somebody with connections will notice us sooner or later. MySpace.com - a hope for home - Portland, Oregon - Hardcore / Progressive / Experimental - www.myspace.com/ahopeforhome (the songs on the player are older demos and also songs from our first EP... which i CANT WAIT to take down)

oh man.. those things you're hearing at 1:27ish are suppooosed to "subhits"... obviously my implementation of them is a little lacking if you didnt recognize them (ive always been dissatisfied with the samples i have as well. if anyone knows where i could find some good ones i would LOVE to know!!). anyone have any tips for using/mixing them?

hmm i'll look at that section, there are a lot of things going on for sure..

i took a fresh look at the kick and did end up adding a touch more presence to it, thanks. i dont want it to turn into a total 'metal kick' because thats not quite what we're going for.. but i dont want it to be flabby or indistinguishable at the same time.

thanks for the input! i really appreciate it. if i can get a little more feedback on this one maybe i'll have time to throw up a different song (which unfortunately might sound a lot different because we recorded these at different times... very frustrating!).

any more takers?

[musicman4life68]

Hey man, great stuff. I'd love to get a little info on your recording setup/process. Gear used?

Where did you record? home? Drums sound great, got drumagog going at all?

Very good stuff man, you should be proud!

[Wo0d643]

im on an Imac so....
but im missing the bass here. i think i might like to hear some bite some raunch from the bass(im a bassist). That way i can hear it on small speakers. kick attack is little wierd to me maybe automate the kick eq in the slow section or pull it back a bit. it sounds a little boxy? sorta.

on the sub hits try an 808 and sample his kick or tom to make it fit in space.
ive never done this before but ive read about it and youll have to exaggerate the 808 eq to what you want. it works in reason very well.

Also i really dig teh song man. good stuff.

Wo0d

[scram_chops]

I like how you went for a more natural approach on the drum sound compared most artist's recording in this genre (everything fake and clicky sounding).

sounds good dude.