Please comment first rock mix

[AudioA]

Hi Slutz,

Just did my firs rock mix... had fun, not totally finished now :

kill me but please comment ! here's the link :

Kick u out

Turn the volume up, nothing added on the master buss.

Edit : link was missing
Edit2 : found another way to post sound, hope i'm not breaking any rules

[usamike]

Sounds good except the kick drum seems too overpowering to me. It's really loud with (I think) too much low end and seems to be dominating the whole stereo field. Try hi-passing it at 30 Hz or so and turn it down a little. Check to make sure you're not over-boosting in the low end. The male talking vocals are a bit tough to understand but I think that's the arrangement more than the mix, maybe bump him up a dB? Other than that, it all sounds good- nice job.

[AudioA]

Originally Posted by usamike

Sounds good except the kick drum seems too overpowering to me. It's really loud with (I think) too much low end and seems to be dominating the whole stereo field. Try hi-passing it at 30 Hz or so and turn it down a little. Check to make sure you're not over-boosting in the low end. The male talking vocals are a bit tough to understand but I think that's the arrangement more than the mix, maybe bump him up a dB? Other than that, it all sounds good- nice job.

Thanks usamike ! I'll definitely work on that kick , i listened the track again and i agree with you. Maybe the male vocal will get better same time i adjust the kick..

Any other input ?

Cheers,

[AudioA]

Ok did another version :

http://www.sendspace.com/file/r4jlnl

Worked on kick,
+1 db on male vocal
SSL XLogic Gseries across 2 buss
Hit pretty hard, Ratio 4, th -3, Attak 30

Tell me how do you like it.

Thanx

[Sonic Julez]

It's much better, actually. Good job!

I've got some gripes with the snare drum though. It sounds as if the drummer isn't hitting it consistently (but that's what this song is asking for when I listen to it). Plainly put: Zappa always had great drummers who weren't afraid to beat the hell out of a kit, and I think that's what people expect from a song which so clearly refers to his work imho.

I don't believe this is fixable in the mix without re-recording the part or replacing the snare with a sample (of which the former has my personal preference).

[soundsundergroun]

that guitar right at the beginning is massively out of phase.

[sjwlee]

Are you using any Parallel Compression on the Kick and Snare?

It would be cool if the snare had a little more crunch/crack.

[AudioA]

Originally Posted by Sonic Julez

It's much better, actually. Good job!

I've got some gripes with the snare drum though. It sounds as if the drummer isn't hitting it consistently (but that's what this song is asking for when I listen to it). Plainly put: Zappa always had great drummers who weren't afraid to beat the hell out of a kit, and I think that's what people expect from a song which so clearly refers to his work imho.

I don't believe this is fixable in the mix without re-recording the part or replacing the snare with a sample (of which the former has my personal preference).

Thanks ! I'll check what i can do about the snare, thanks again for feedback.

Originally Posted by soundsundergroun

that guitar right at the beginning is massively out of phase.

Yes totally ! , sits better in the mix like this, but i can do something for the begining of the song so it's not disturbing.

Originally Posted by sjwlee

Are you using any Parallel Compression on the Kick and Snare?

It would be cool if the snare had a little more crunch/crack.

Yes, in fact i'm using parallel compression on all close mics except overheads. Maybe i can add more of the compressed buss ? or more snare bottom ? i'll try to go for more crunch/crack, but i'll probably try to replace it with a sample so... i definitely need to try some different things with the snare.


thanks for the advices , i'll post a new mix asap.

[T Bone Deluxe]

hello ,

I think you are headed in the right direction with the advice that has been given. Mix is much better on the latest try.

Maybe a snare on its own buss for parallel compression might help? just a thought to try before replacement. I'm no pro engineer myself but I dig the tune. It got 4 plays threw before I commented so maybe that speaks some to the writing and that its a fun ,cleverly done tune to my ears.

Very entertaining ,

T Bone

[AudioA]

Originally Posted by T Bone Deluxe

hello ,

I think you are headed in the right direction with the advice that has been given. Mix is much better on the latest try.

Maybe a snare on its own buss for parallel compression might help? just a thought to try before replacement. I'm no pro engineer myself but I dig the tune. It got 4 plays threw before I commented so maybe that speaks some to the writing and that its a fun ,cleverly done tune to my ears.

Very entertaining ,

T Bone

Thanks T Bone, always nice to hear that !

I tried to work a bit on that snare hope you'll find it better, i wasn't very sure what "crunch/crack" meant so... please be kind...

worked a bit on the overall sound.

anyway, thanks for all your feedbacks, here's the latest version :

Send big files the easy way. Files too large for email attachments? No problem!

[john caldwell]

Decent, on the whole. Like your improvements in the kit, kick, snare and so on. I'd work on the male narrative, as it's a key portion in delivering the message of the tune. At the minimum, the narrator needs more low mid energy, almost more mega-phone range, to make him cut better. In honesty though, I approach the narrative differently all together. What about putting him in a telephone voice? Point is that all you other sounds are hi-fi, including the female counterpoint vocal, so putting him in a telephone (or some other novelty voice), might work with the theme you're going after, as well as draw the listener into the story line.

Nice job,

John-

[AudioA]

Originally Posted by john caldwell

Decent, on the whole. Like your improvements in the kit, kick, snare and so on. I'd work on the male narrative, as it's a key portion in delivering the message of the tune. At the minimum, the narrator needs more low mid energy, almost more mega-phone range, to make him cut better. In honesty though, I approach the narrative differently all together. What about putting him in a telephone voice? Point is that all you other sounds are hi-fi, including the female counterpoint vocal, so putting him in a telephone (or some other novelty voice), might work with the theme you're going after, as well as draw the listener into the story line.

Nice job,

John-

Hi John, thanks for feedback, i'll work on that voice and see what i can do about it. I like your way of contrasting with a lo-fi voice. To be honest i have think about doing the telephone voice from begining, but , as it is very often used i was kind of hesitant to go that way, that's why i kept it very simple, but i'll try to find something that can work with the theme.

Thanks for your time.

[AudioA]

Allright, got some tweekings on that male voice and some automation as well.

What do you think ?

http://www.sendspace.com/file/94rii9

Thx !