Hey Fresh Mix. So there are a few schools of thought about mixing. Myself. I don do a mono mix than pan as I already have mapped out in my head the placement of where i want the instruments to go. For example, bass and vocals should usually be in the middle. Using effects on sounds as you said should be heard and then a little less, unless you are trying to achieve a unique sound (you will experiment with that as time goes on. A good mix has a balance of frequencies. So I try not to have all my instruments be in the same frequency range. (this will add space to the mix as people can hear the instruments.) Not all instruments need to be in your face as well. some rhythm sounds should be reduced. I do use 40 recorded track of sound often, but many of those tracks are percussion instruments that are panned. Sometimes the subtle sound of an instrument can mix with the more prominent sound in a mix and create harmonics that make the sound fuller and fresher. Also having a perfectly clean sound mixed with a dirty lo-fi sound that's lower in the mix can Excite the sound. This was the basis of an audio exciter unit that was before PCs. I highly suggest investing $50us in the VST Vallhalla Shimmer, or Uber Mod. They are both amazing tools for reverb effects that are really clean. Also Be careful of falling into the loudness trap of over compressing stuff as it can make the ears go tired quickly, there is still alot to be said about Dynamics. Keep learning my friend. I still learn new stuff every day. Any time you have a question you can ask. Cheers Cru
I just listened as I was reading the advice from Joe on the forum question you posted. I completely agree with Joe that the fixes start with the mix first. You need to think Spatially when you are recording. Panning, Slight reverbs, and shimmers and ping pong echoes can make a world of difference in opening up the sounds. Also, think about reducing EQ not adding EQ to boost sounds. In this one, all the sounds are in the middle are competing to be heard with the exception of the vox like thing which has some space. The bass is good, the flute needs some verb and to be lowered in the mix. The percussion is kind of static and could use some panned high hats and other percussive ideas. How many tracks did you use? A typical song for me is between 30-40 tracks. Anyhow, great to see you want to learn. The song idea is pretty good and is worth pursuing. Remember this if you want to use this site take the advice to heart and never personally. You will get a lot of nice song bro, or good jobs, but to really Improve, people like Joe will steer you in the right path with honest words. Keep at it and you will get better every day! . Good Luck Crucethus
Thanks to you as well for the honest critique! I will do as you said and take the advice to my heart. As I mentioned in my reply to Joe, I have come to realise just how complex the whole art of mxing and mastering is for itself, independent of sounddesign and songwriting etc.
I think I used about 15 tracks (that is to say mixer channels). However I don't really understand how you would fill out 40 with this song only. Maybe I misunderstood what you wrote. Do you mean doing something like sending wet reverb/delay to a different channel then the dry signal of some instrument? Maybe you also just mean, that I should layer more sounds. I am not sure.
Actually I took away a lot of reverb from the flute because I heard someone saying, that when mixing you should always just throw effects on something to the point of "being able to hear it" and then a tiny bit less. Maybe i just took away just a little too much then.
I'll also look into the panning of the percussion as you suggested! However I often hear, that you should mix in mono until the very end (which I didn't do for this song). Should I first fix some stuff in mono and only then come back to the panning of the hihats?
Thank you again for the critique, it really means a lot to me!
Hi This is very good. It sounds good to publish, I can tell you your track is a lot better than some people I've heard in here my friend. Well done and good luck.
Hi! Thank you very much! I am as of now experimenting a bit with compression and I think I can definitely push it to sound a lot cleaner and moree professional than this version! Turns out uploading tracks to streaming services is a whole science for itself though haha
Commented on Cherry Garden by FrashMex
Hey Fresh Mix. So there are a few schools of thought about mixing. Myself. I don do a mono mix than pan as I already have mapped out in my head the placement of where i want the instruments to go. For example, bass and vocals should usually be in the middle. Using effects on sounds as you said should be heard and then a little less, unless you are trying to achieve a unique sound (you will experiment with that as time goes on. A good mix has a balance of frequencies. So I try not to have all my instruments be in the same frequency range. (this will add space to the mix as people can hear the instruments.) Not all instruments need to be in your face as well. some rhythm sounds should be reduced. I do use 40 recorded track of sound often, but many of those tracks are percussion instruments that are panned. Sometimes the subtle sound of an instrument can mix with the more prominent sound in a mix and create harmonics that make the sound fuller and fresher. Also having a perfectly clean sound mixed with a dirty lo-fi sound that's lower in the mix can Excite the sound. This was the basis of an audio exciter unit that was before PCs. I highly suggest investing $50us in the VST Vallhalla Shimmer, or Uber Mod. They are both amazing tools for reverb effects that are really clean. Also Be careful of falling into the loudness trap of over compressing stuff as it can make the ears go tired quickly, there is still alot to be said about Dynamics. Keep learning my friend. I still learn new stuff every day. Any time you have a question you can ask.
Cheers
Cru
Commented on Cherry Garden by FrashMex
Hey there.
I just listened as I was reading the advice from Joe on the forum question you posted. I completely agree with Joe that the fixes start with the mix first. You need to think Spatially when you are recording. Panning, Slight reverbs, and shimmers and ping pong echoes can make a world of difference in opening up the sounds. Also, think about reducing EQ not adding EQ to boost sounds. In this one, all the sounds are in the middle are competing to be heard with the exception of the vox like thing which has some space. The bass is good, the flute needs some verb and to be lowered in the mix. The percussion is kind of static and could use some panned high hats and other percussive ideas. How many tracks did you use? A typical song for me is between 30-40 tracks. Anyhow, great to see you want to learn. The song idea is pretty good and is worth pursuing. Remember this if you want to use this site take the advice to heart and never personally. You will get a lot of nice song bro, or good jobs, but to really Improve, people like Joe will steer you in the right path with honest words. Keep at it and you will get better every day! .
Good Luck
Crucethus
Commented on Cherry Garden by FrashMex
Hi
This is very good.
It sounds good to publish, I can tell you your track is a lot better than some people I've heard in here my friend.
Well done and good luck.