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PostPosted: Wed Jan 09, 2013 2:42 am 
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Welcome to the Forum!

Joined: Wed Jan 09, 2013 2:10 am
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Hi! Can somebody shed some light on basic mixing techniques I could try to make all the tracks blend a bit nicer. Mostly just piano, acoustic guitar through a mic and vocals/backing vocals. Also when I have recorded the stereo track it sounds different on a cd than when I hear it in headphones in recording mode. It tends to be a bit too reverby even if there isn't that much on there.
Thanks!
Billy


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PostPosted: Wed Jan 09, 2013 2:45 am 
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The Reverend
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Welcome Bill... Someone smarter than I will be along soon to start you off in the right direction... 8)

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PostPosted: Wed Jan 09, 2013 4:07 am 
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Welcome. There is no short version of mixing. It is lifetime of experimentation, coupled with proper recording levels, panning and eq'ing the instruments effectively, and that's the tip of the iceberg.

With that said, to get started, record your instruments and vocals at around -6. I don't even like to hit 0 any more. The -6 gives you "headroom" and more space for other things. Guitars and vocals are usually one channel recordings. You may want to record keyboards in a stereo mix but then again depending on your goal, mono would work as well. Once your tracks are down, time to work on the mix. Take a look at the eq on each thing recorded. For simplicity, take the keyboard recording and press eq. Find the settings for keyboard and choose one. It's generic but will work. For each thing select the appropriate eq. That will help everything sit a little better in the mix. It's not perfect, but it's a very good start.

Time to pan. Panning helps give each instrument it's own place in the stereo spectrum. Picture a band on stage. The singer is generally in the center. Leave your vocal centered. The bass is usually on one side. I like to put my bass guitar just off center a bit to one side or another. Guitars get panned left and right. Keyboard gets it's own space as well. It's all subjective. Do what you want. Drums can be panned per tom. Bass can be centered, snare can be just left of center, cymbals are panned, etc.

Effects. That's your call. I like to choose something like room reverb and work with it to sound like my band is playing in a small venue. But you may want to sound like a hall. Your call. You don't have to hit it up with tons of verb, just enough to warm the sound.

Never try to mix right after recording the song. I like to give it a rest for a day. Then I can come back and listen again.

Word about headphones. They tend to tint the song with excessive highs. You're probably not hearing all the true bass that's slapping around until you put it in your car. Maybe look for some decent monitors that don't color the sound. Then it might be a closer sound to what you're looking for.

These are just some thoughts that ran through my head at the moment. Others will come by and discuss compression and all sorts of other cool words.

Just have fun and enjoy your music.

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PostPosted: Wed Jan 09, 2013 12:37 pm 
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Hi and welcome Billy.
Basically everything Ron has mentioned is a good start, especially the idea of picturing all you`ve recorded in it`s own stage space.
Once you`ve done your starting point eq`s as was mentioned above, you can also do the same with the Dynamics, choose the instrument of that track in the list, as ever it`s still only a starting point but for someone who has`nt had any experience they are crucial, even if only to give you an idea what it does to the sound, but they will tighten things up a bit by catching peaks here and there.
You will always get good friendly advise in this forum as we`ve all been there and struggled with the learning curve, just remember no questions are stupid, unless it`s "Which end of the guitar do I blow into" :wink:
Good luck Billy.

T.

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PostPosted: Thu Jan 10, 2013 12:05 am 
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Robbie The Botkiller
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Welcome Bill!

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PostPosted: Thu Jan 10, 2013 12:57 am 
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Marker Magician
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Welcome!

all the advise given is good stuff. comment about dynamics is right on. I assume mac was telling you to try the presets in the dynamics library. Be gentle in the final mix, but as you learn, don't be afraid to play ( radically)with each of the parameters on the Dyn edit page, just to see what they will do. Then recall the preset and dial back... dial back .... Train your ear to distinguish subtle changes ... use the bypass button ... listen .... read from the manual and from internet articles about compression ... take a rest ... try again. You will begin to appreciate the power of dynamics processing upon your mixes .... practice , practice, practice .... your family will get tired of hearing your looping of passages, but it is better to learn from your monitors than from your headphones. Don't forget to read the recent threads on volume levels, as long periods at high volume are not good for your ears, or your mixes for that matter.

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PostPosted: Thu Jan 10, 2013 10:16 am 
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Welcome to the Forum!

Joined: Wed Jan 09, 2013 2:10 am
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Thanks a lot for the advice guys I will give it a go and play around and I'm sure they'll be more questions to follow.
Bill


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PostPosted: Sun Jan 13, 2013 5:48 am 
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This is definitly an awesome place for great advice. I agree 100 % on everything said and would like to add that taking notes of the little changes you make is a great practice to get into. At least until everything becomes second nature to you :? I've had my 4416 for about three years and it's still training me.


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