rush909 wrote on Fri, 11 March 2005 08:58 |
Hey Terry...
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Hey!
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...when mixing a record, do you use any spectrum analyzers to see what's going on in each instrument and try to make room for stuff across the EQ bands or do you do it all by ear and feel... I am looking for tips that will allow me to create more space in my mixes and better separation of elements...
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I don't use a spectrum analyzer..tried that years ago, and it didn't really tell me much I wanted to know. I basically do it all by "ear and feel," by careful examination of each track, trying always to keep it in a musical perspective primarily, and a technical one secondarily. Certainly each instrument needs it's own "space," whether that be equalisation-wise, or position-wise. (For many years I refused to admit that there were any panning positions other than the three "cardinal points" of left, right, and centre, but recently I have actually started panning in between a bit...but I feel like a sell-out.) You do have to be very aware of any buildup of certain frequencies which may overpower a mix, especially those dreaded low-mids in the 200-350 range. But for me, it all just comes down to an overall sense of musicality and "feel." I actually use very little equalisation or compression in a mix, especially if mixing my own things, as I have always made a conscious effort in tracking to mic properly. But at times something will come in which does need a lot of changing work.
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...also on a related note, can you discuss a little your approach to mixing... ie: do you get the drums sounding hot first, then build it from there or do you get the vocal right first, then move on to other elements, etc... or do you put it all up and get a levels first and then start isolating instruments one at a time...
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For a long long time I would always start with the drums and bass, and get those happening first, then go to the other instrumental track instruments one at a time, soloing each, then integrating into the track as a whole. I would always save the vocal(s) for the last. But in the last few years, I have started by first putting up everything and getting a quick, basic rough mix, and then going back to building from there. As much as I always enjoyed my previous method, I now believe that the newer way gives me a better overall sense of the song before I start tweaking things. Drums especially may sound great by themselves, but can be very different when mixed in with the other elements of a song. Once the rough is pretty good, I will usually go back to the drums first with everything else muted, but not make any major changes which would negate the validity of the rough. I will then bring in the bass in the same manner, followed by other instrumentation, and once that is pretty solid, will return to the vocals, including fine tuning lead vocal levels to be sure everything is audible and sounds balanced within itself.
I will discuss my approach to stereo buss compression in another thread question in this forum, so no need to do it here as well.
Also, I will add the "Famous 15 Minute Deaf Mix" story below, as that relates well to the mixing situation.
Hope this answers some of your questions,
Thanks for asking.
Terry