New metal mix up for feedback

Posted: Tue Feb 19, 2008 2:17 pm

Hello!

New beta mix for a local metal band.

Gear:
ESP LTD guitar through Randall RX75 amp, mic'ed with a SM57
Yamaha bass direct through a Matchless Vibrobox used just as a preamplifier
Vocals through a SM57 (sounded best out of my not-so-many mics, better than some condensers)

All went through the preamps of my Echo Audiofire 4.

http://www.soundclick.com/neosonixstudios

The song name is "Carne si Os". Stupid name for a "studio" on the Soundclick webpage, I know.

Some feedback on just the mix, please?

Mihai Toma

Posted: Wed Feb 20, 2008 6:05 am

Some more or less minor editing done, new version uploading on Soundclick as of now.

Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2008 12:10 am

First off, It took 1:12 to get to the vocals. Ever had a birthday present wrapped in 5 or 6 boxes before you could get the gift? This was kinda like that. Get to the song sooner.

Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2008 1:56 am

Thanks for the answer. But I was asking for mix critique, as this is not my song, neither as a "producer", nor as an artist.

Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2008 9:41 am

Oh I see, sorry. The mix is missing some sparkle and width. And I'm not just recommending to add highs, but something else. I compared it to a mix of "Tears Don't Fall" by Bullet for my Valentine, because I think this song is kinda in that genre and I find that your mix is pretty good. That's not the problem. I believe it's in mastering. When mastering yourself, it's always good to pull up a mix of something you totally admire, and use it for reference. Or like me, when budget allows, send it to a mastering pro. Find the right one and he's worth his weight in gold. Or unlike me, learn to master....

Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2008 11:18 am

Thanks for the heads-up, Phil. I had noticed that myself, but I'm baffled as to what to do to improve. Better gear, better room acoustics, Slipperman's way of recording distorted guitar (sick man, but good read), a better sound engineer (to replace me), WHAT? That elusive "something else". Smile

The "mix" actually was not much more than a limiter on the master bus (loudness war, anyone?), compression, mild EQ, and some reverb - some plate for depth on the guitars (was nice when I tried it, so I left that in), and a s**tload of some hall reverb on the vox so that they'll sit deeper in the mix. I used a reference, but not a very good one, at that - Creeping Death, Metallica, on the band members' suggestions.

Get a pro to do the mastering is out of the bands' financial reach (as with most young bands here in Romania). I guess I'll just have to do a better job next time. Smile

Warm regards,
Mihai Toma

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