Hi all,
I was too late with my mix but I'll comment on the different versions in case anyone finds any of my comments usefull.
First up, some files don't have proper naming. I think that proper labeling is part of the job. As I downloaded everything in one go and saved to a folder, I can't tell who some of these mixes are from. To a lesser degree the same goes for ID3 tags. They should also be correctly filled in. I have all the tracks loaded in an MP3 player and can't always tell from the track name who's version it is.
If I don't comment on an aspect of a mix, it probably means that it is fine.
I think critical comments are more usefull for learning. All comments based on quick listening so I might miss a few things.
In the order they happen to be in my player:
dikledoux: Sounds good but I don't think the vocal echo really fits this style. (A taste thing of course). Maybe a touch muddy. Towards the end the vocal could be a bit more upfront.
Chris J: Sounds a bit boxy and harsh. The vocal is clear. I like that. The drums sound as though they have a bit too much room on them. I would like a bit more body.
M Fassett: Again I find the drums have a bit too much room on them. Especially the kick. It sounds boomy. The snare could be a bit brighter. You used all (or alot) of all those vocal tracks but you seem to have tightend things up. Great.
Overall the mix could be a bit brighter.
Blueboy: I quite like the overal balance. I would have made the kick a touch heavier. The central guitar comes in a bit loud at arround 1:40. Vocal clear. Accoustic guitars loud!
A bit too much of a good thing.
Definition on the Bass. It is audible through the mix.
Tom C: Guitars a bit dull. Vocal a touch upfront for my personal taste. Kick could have more body and gets caught by the compressor(?) the wrong way at times. Vocals could be a bit brighter/more defined. Again loud accoustic guitars.
Garrett: No first vocal.
Nice overall mix. Snare seems to be a bit in its own space seperated from the rest of the drum kit. You also seem to have used alot of those vocal tracks. I think you tightend them if my memory of the timing is correct. Good.
I like the idea of what you do with the drums after 3:40 or so but the sound of the effect could be fine tuned a bit I think.
max: Something went wrong here. The levels are all over the place but not in a good way. At times it sounds like parts of the mix are being partially gated (chattering). There is way too much reverb on the vocals. And some cheeky person keeps rolling the drum riser/drummer off stage. He keeps disapearing and the guitarists keep running away to look for him!
Calvin: Nice overal mix. Nice spacey vibe in the part before the chorus. I think the other parts could be a touch dryer and more in your face. Clear vocal. Kick a bit floppy. In that last bit with all the vocals, the leading one could be brought forward a bit.
ATOR: A bit sharp but nice full spectrum mix. (I like that). Did you replace the kick? It is a bit prominant. You made the mix quite loud (like me). I'm not sure this was the intention.
Vocal nice and clear. Nice width. I like it.
Cerberus: I like the drums but some of the snare hits (the rolls) seem to have disapeard or gotten much softer compared to the other hits. I don't really like what you did with the center guitar. Mainly because it lacks a bit too much low-end. Again loud accoustic guitars and the bit that comes after that lacks low end so there is not enough impact when that section comes in. Basicly all the sections except the one with the accoustic guitars are lacking low-end IMO. Vocals could be a bit brighter.
Shakes the Clown: Nice mix. Vocals maybe a bit loud for my taste. Snare does get a bit burried at times and could be louder to add more impact. Bass could be slightly tamed in low-mid/upper bass region.
J.Hall: Another big mix but the compressor is chewing up the kick drum making it sound floppy. Vocal could use less verb for my taste. The mix would probably sound great without so much compression.
mix: Ah someone added stuff! Thumbs up! I think the padish sounds work well the way you used them and contribute to the track. Weird (bassy) artefact at 1:44. A bit too much low-end. It gets a bit muddy in spots. Nice vocal when clean but they loose a bit too much high-end/definition in the distorted parts. The guitars are a bit midish and don't sound totaly balanced sonicly to me. The bass has alot of bass but could use more resolution. (Lowering the level but adding a bit of mid-range maybe).
Patrick T : (Comes up in the player as yes girl - yes girl) I think the mix would sound much nicer with much less reverb. The vocals are way too distant alot of the time but even when they are not, they are not in the same space as the guitars. Thats is my main complaint. Bass a bit floppy at times.
Rankus: Wide drums. Again accoustic guitars are a bit louder than the electric ones. The panned vocals lack a center focus. I think I would like this mix alot with a few minor tweaks.
Adam Miller: Nice big wide mix. Vocal could have a touch more bottom. There is a touch too much brightness in the drums for my taste. Basicly the mix is a bit bright for my taste. (upper mid/lower highs)
Nick T: Way too bright for my taste. A pitty because the rest sounds quite good.
UnderTow: I shouldn't have slapped that limiter over the stereo bus. Maybe a bit muddy low-low-mids. Vocal could have a bit more weight.
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Oh what the heck, I'll share what I did for anyone interested:
Reference for my version:
http://www.yousendit.com/transfer.php?action=download&uf id=DCE3E7F254BA3E93
Worked in Sonar 5PE. Because I had little time and because I felt it suited the material, I decided to leave it quite raw with not too much reverb except for the harmony vocals. I put them way back in the mix with a big delay to mask all the timing problems. (Also no time for editing).
While going through the tracks I noticed the overheads issue so I turned the phase of one of the channels by 59 degrees. Thats is when it seemed to snap together. Kick and snare expanded and EQed. Overheads compressed with Voxengo Crunchessor and joined with other drum tracks in a bus with another Crunchessor then some harmoniEQ to add some sparkle/harmonics then used dominion (transient designer tool) to bring some snap back. WizooVerb Reverb set to punchy drum ambience and tweaked to taste.
Bass EQed and compressed with Endorphin.
Guitars: Eqed some mid out to leave space and compressed with Crunchsessor. Accoustic guitars EQed but no compression. All guitars have some Mid channel gain reduction with Voxengo MSED to leave space for vocal. WizooVerb Reverb set to Crystal Hall and tweaked to taste.
Vocals: All treated with Voxengo VoxFormer. Delays by Sonitus and PSP Nitro. PerfectSpace reverb with "Bright Blues Club" impulse response.
Stereo bus processing: PSP MasterComp in parallel mode with max 2dB GR on the loudest parts (stereo half linked). Voxengo Warmifier set to 6550 emulation for some fake analogue warmth. The bit I probably shouldn't have done: 2-3 dB of hard clipping, and 3-4dB of hard limiting both curtousy of Voxengo Elephant running in quad oversampling mode.
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This was fun!
Besides my own (electronic) music, I havn't done any music mix in a couple of years. It was a pleasure to work with this material even thought there were some problems as many have allready mentioned. I'm looking forward to taking part in the next IMP if you guys will have me participate.
Cheers,
Alistair