Toadly is learning how to record and mix.

Toadly_Ossum

Hi folks, got a couple of songs posted at http://www.purevolume.com/schelsullivan

Click the "downloadable songs" link to get full bitrate MP3, If you use the purevolume player the quality is somewhat reduced.

Both songs were recorded with KX driven SBLive in Cubase. The song "guitar" came about while teaching my self recording and mixing. "The Stake" is a cover of a Steve Miller song (though I think the song is much older blues tune). All of the instruments(real and virtual) were played by me except the guitar work in "The Stake" was played by my brother. The vocals are me to though im not real proud of them. I may try to sing them again or try some pitch correction.

Opinions especially on the mix welcome

Toad

thomasabarnes

Toadly:

Dude both sound very good to me, and the singing does, too!

Great job! Sounds excellent. Are you usiing software or hardware effects for the vocals? What's your setup man (details)?

Sincerely, thomasabarnes

Toadly_Ossum

All the effects are internal vst except for the guitar on "The Stake" which were from Korg PX4 Toneworks guitar processor. All of the instruments are VSTi except for the guitar.

The vocal are record with a Shure SM57 pluged directly into AC97 with NO preamp. I didnt use any DSP effects in these because im running 3538 and Maxs pluggins which I love arent compatible yet. I use Wave's L1 Ultramaximizer on the input bus in Cubase to get the vocal line level up higher. I know it will sound better once I get a mixer with mic preamp.

P4 3GHz, 1Gb RAM, crappy slow 20Gb HDD (going SATA soon)

Toad

Tiger M

Very, very good. The song "Guitar" is very nice and the mix is medium to good quality.
The only remarks I personally have are:
1. The drum samples you're using are not very "rich"
2. You've recorded the guitar with direct input of the korg, not with a miked amp right?
3. The solos are too far to the left.

But these are minor things, not very important (except for the third one).
The song itself as a composition is very good.

Toadly_Ossum

panning can easily be corrected, and yes the guitar is recorded straight from the korg (no amp), I think the Korg PX4 sounds great.

What do you think i could do to fatten up the drum samples?

Toad

Tiger M

The rhythm guitar sounds very good with direct input, but the solos sound a little thin that way. You can use a low-pass filter with cutoff at around 4000-4500Hz to give it a little more cabinet/combo feel/response.

What are you actually using for drums? Wav/other samples or a soundfont. And what software are you using, the seqence sounds realistic and natural. You can give the snare a little bit more bass and lift up the hats.

All these are a part of my personal preference, other people might think otherwise.

I like the songs very much.

Toadly_Ossum

The drums are from Stienbergs Groove Agent, slightly modified shuffle pattern with some custom fills.

Ive a lot of learning to do when it comes to using EQ to distingush and fatten the individual instruments. I have learned that EQ'ing is crucial to building a professional sounding mix and certain instruments "belong" only in certain frequencies.

So you think more EQ work will correct the mix on the drums? Any effect tweaks you recommend?

Toad

Tiger M

Yes, if we talk professional you have to split (not literary of course) the freqencies between the instruments, so the final mix would have a smooth freqency response with no apparent peaks.

Of course the spatial "placement" of the instruments is equally important. You know that with panning you place them in the left-right plane, with level adjustments - the far-near plane, but there is also a third component for succesful pseudo 3d placement - the amount of delay/reverb you apply to each instrument - this is also related to the far-near perception. The best way to achieve a good mix is to visualize in your mind how the virtual band should be placed.

I can't recommend you anythig, because everything is subjective. If you like the mix the way it is, then everything is fine. Remember that the listener that doesn't know all this stuff won't make a difference, espetially in the hard/heavy stiles

thomasabarnes

Toadly:

Thx for the reply.

Toadly_Ossum

Tiger ive taken your advice and remixed "The Stake". I think it sounds better but I know I have alot to learn about the mixdown, not to mention mastering. But its great fun learning hands on.

Thanks
Toad

Tiger's Eye

It sounds very very good. But note: I haven't heard the previous version, so it might have been as good as this one. I didn't have time to hear it in depth, but the drums sounded a little narrow, although they are much better in terms of realism than the other song.

There are many tricks in mastering and mixing, too long to explain them here, but there is one very important thing to know: listen to your mixes in mono and stereo. One time in stereo and one time in mono and back again. That's the best way to know if a mix is perfect - if it sounds good both in mono and stereo, then you're there...

Again, this last song is really impressive in terms of quality.

Toadly_Ossum

I added another song that basically came about via impromto jam.

Toad

Toadly_Ossum

Hi Friends,

Ive uploaded my attempt at R&B. Its called Fatsack and its about the good herb. Hope you like it.

Toad