[MEDIA=soundcloud]kerfoot32/the-alaskan-bull-worm[/media]
This band is decent. And the song will amuse you. Haven't really put much effort past 2:40. No idea how to mix a sax.
Comments
Sax is one of those instruments in which it is crucial to have a
Sax is one of those instruments in which it is crucial to have a great instrument and a great player to get a great tone - although this is true for most any instrument - the sax is one of those that will absolutely stand out as bad if the horn itself is cheap and the player weak... similar to a cat in a blender.
Student model horns, which are made of cheap materials, are notorious for sounding brittle and "honky". Pro horns, made of the finest alloys available, have a beautiful warmth and very nice overtones, as long as the player is good as well.
Mixing is going to be determined by how it was tracked... there are engineers who will shove a mic into the bell of a horn, although I never did... my thought was that we don't listen to a sax with our ears inside the horn so why mic it that way? A good condenser or dynamic backed off 6"-12" always did the trick for me. I've used everything from RE20's to U87's, all with success.
EQ ranges will depend on what type of sax it is... Tenor, Alto, Soprano, etc. The active EQ ranges for these horns differ greatly so your best bet is to research the primary bandwidths of these various models.
In short, there's no point in adding 80hz to a soprano sax, because with that instrument, nothing "lives" down there, anyway. I'll let you research the rest on your own.
As always, listen to music where the instrument you want to record or mix is prevalent. Tune your ears to "good". Listen to tracks like Baker Street by Gerry Rafferty, Glad by Traffic, or Can't Ya Hear Me Knockin' by the Stones, or Pink Floyd's Us And Them... to listen for the various mixing styles and sonics of "good" sax in Rock. But ...also know that these cats who played these tracks were also bad asses with great gear, recorded in world class rooms as well.
You're not going to get the same results with a hack player on a cheap horn. ;)
This is sounding better than the others. Use a HPF on the chunk
This is sounding better than the others. Use a HPF on the chunk guitar and it will help the punch even more. I'd be rolling it off to around 200. The vocalist are singing too close to the mics. Better mix though. Keep it up,