TOO Djenty and Trebly?

[brootalboo]

Hey,

So my band's guitarist produces all of our stuff, and he thinks his tone is awesome. His studio tone EQ through a pod X3 is 100% Mids, 100% Treble, and 40% bass, which in my opinion rapes my eardrums. Also, I think my vocals are too trebely. The gain is at 38%, really low Can anyone else attest that it is the same and I'm not crazy?

The worst case out of all of them is (i think) This song: Man by Instagator on SoundCloud - Create, record and share your sounds for free

At about 1:20 is where I start to have a heart attack. I'm really trying to learn more about mixing so I can make a valid argument, so any help is appreciated Thanks guys!

 

[Borges]

I've heard worse tones from a pod. Sounds pretty good imo, but I mean it could lose a bit of high end for low. Sounds over-twangy.

As for the vocals I think they sound good as well except for the first 1-2 minutes they could use a bit of lowering, needs more blend. At like 3:30 it sounds like they've lowered a bit which is good then at around 4:00 they sound too loud. As for too much treb I don't notice it much, only when they're overpowering.

 

[Antenna]

yeah it is a bit harsh in the high freqs. It could stand a decent eq cut up there. Over all it's pretty solid everywhere else, but yeah man you are correct. Mixes are mostly something you compare to what you like to hear so as far as there being a valid argument, take any cd's you like and play them back to back it's obviously going to sound like it has a lot more high end. When in doubt whip out something produced but Joey Sturgis, Devin Townsend, or Bulb and say "ok dude this shit don't sound the same!"

Awesome vocal skillz by the way!!!

 

[Leuchty]

Needs more treble.








Seriously, too much highs.

 

[Kurkkuviipale]

Vocals are good, but the mix is... it's... like a brickwall.

Also, I'm listening on low volumes and the high frequencies are still pushing through. Does he have monitors? This sounds like the dude got some vision and skill, but didn't have the equipment.

E: You're doing the vocals? Shit, you've nailed it. Tell your guitarist that as a band, even though he's more experienced as a producer, he should be able to take your opinions on note. I can tell you it's not nice if you're in a band that you think sucks at the sonar side of things. It's not like I had experience of that as I mix our stuff, but I'm pretty sure of that.

 

[bostjan]

IMO it's a pretty good recording.

I would take the vocals down a notch just so I could still hear the rest of the music better, and I would fill out the bass a bit overall. I'm having trouble hearing the bass drum and the bass guitar, but I'm listening through cheap PC speakers.

 

[Joelan]

Definitely needs less highs and more bass guitar, and that's listening through my very bass heavy PC speakers. Headphones confirm, although it's far from terrible.

Nice work on the vocals btw, they're spot on dude.

 

[Yaris]

Sounds like some of bulbs older stuff. I think the problem is too much treble, a little too much compression, and the vocals are a bit loud (to me).

 

[Ben.Last]

Jebus, that waveform (or lack thereof) is fucking scary.

 

[leonardo7]

Does need less treble and perhaps more bass but its not over the top ridiculous. Needs some tweeking but its almost there. Your music is badass man! Id buy your album. I was groovin to it bigtime. Its kind of djenty in tone I guess but not as much djenty as it has more of a Pantera vibe which I love. Reminds me of Chimaira too.

 

[tvboy123]

Those high hats at 44 seconds are far too trebly too. I think the main problem are the cymbals being too trebly which is making the mix off balance and sounding too trebly. The guitars are, as others have said, a bit too trebly, they need more mids and to be turned down slightly and for the bass to be slightly louder perhaps, but they're not that bad really. The whole song could do with automation, cos it sounds as if it's constantly as loud as it can be hence the constant block waveform. Having a song too trebly and constantly at it's loudest like this will take away from the song and make it tiring to listen to. Try making parts of the song even just a few db quieter than the parts you want to stand out like a hook or chorus etc. Cool song though, really love some of the riffs in there, great stuff!

 

[C2Aye]

The guitars aren't bad at all, but do need less highs and more low mids I reckon. A low pass at around 7000-8000Hz should get rid of the harsh, hissy frequencies in the guitar and really helps with the clarity. The low mids probably would come from the guitar tone itself so probably a change in the amp settings. Also, the cymbals in the drums could also use a high pass as the trebly freqencies are really harsh sounding.

As people have said before, the bass could definitely come up. It would help the guitars to sound beefier as well.

I really like the vocal tones and you nailed it dude! Only thing I would do is make them sit 'in' the mix rather than 'on top of' the mix, so bring them down really and work around them.

All in all, not a bad mix and not as bad as you say but could use a little work here and there.

 

[Iheartmidgetbooty]

The tone sounds like shit!!!!! Everything else is pretty damn good, though, bro!

Too much highs, too much mids and definately a fuck load of treble. I don't know why anyone would put their mids all the way up on their amp. xP

 

[cwhitey2]

i love the vocals not so much love for the guitar tone, but if thats what you are trying to produce...

 

[brootalboo]

Thanks for all the help guys. I will definitely let him know and work with him to get a better mix of this song! Just have to say that I just joined this forum and I'm stunned at how helpful and respectful people are. I can see myself staying here for a while

 

[Chickenhawk]

Whoa.

The mix is actually decent, and the song overall kicks ass. Vocals need to be brought down a bit, and I think less treble with the guitars would help quell the massive amount of 'cheap amp' sound. Might let it growl a bit too.

And the vocals are fucking perfect for the song. Kudos.

 

[Ryan-ZenGtr-]

This is what happens when you mix on tiny satellite speakers and a big sub....

(little cheap speakers don't play back true treble, subs dont show true bass on recording)

Un do everything in the DAW, start mixing again from the beginning. There is NOOOOO BASSSSS ATTTTT ALLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!!!

Content sounds fine, mix is not going to stand up to scrutiny for long. If egos are invested, play the music on as many speakers as possible seeing if hearing it on different setups will aid positive communication.

Arrangement might be too long at 6 minutes, too.

Vocals are dry and upfront. Maybe could use something... Up to you.

Start again with the mix and consider this a learning experience. Get monitors if you haven't already! Headphones (good ones) can help with poor room acoustics and are good for verifying mix decisions made on monitors. They ARE not a replacement for monitors. Try NS-10's or similar, good because they translate well to cheap home speakers.

Much advice in the recording studio area. Have a browse.

Don't forget to listen to other music while mixing. It's important to take breaks and refresh the ears, otherwise you get used to hearing the mix and can't be objective. Find some music you like as reference and load it up on a frequency analyzer plug in and compare your mixes... It will show ANYONE and convince them this mix could be improved to convey your music more successfully.

Try this one (Thanks Kurkiivabdsjfdksdjflsdkfsdfdslkj however you spell it! )
http://www.meldaproduction.com/freevstplugins/manalyzer.php

*Edit: Kurkkuviipale

 

[Kurkkuviipale]

Kurkiivabdsjfdksdjflsdkfsdfdslkj

 

[geofreesun]

sounds not bad, any chance you can share the patch for pod x3?

 

[brootalboo]

sounds not bad, any chance you can share the patch for pod x3?

Sure man! I'm fairly new here... is there a way I can upload the patch on the forum?