Mix critiques & advices - reach your mixing goals!

Ruud Reiher

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Tiago Marques
May 17, 2024
Hey,

I used to lead a world fusion project with a bit of a cinematic feeling, and here is one of the tracks:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Xw6EXwD3h8d1Zt9Iph-Ep1dKWXkHOUMw/view?usp=sharing

Unfortunately, the band is now over due to a lack of engagement from other members, so I added their part to finish this song for my self-training. Because of this, I won't upload this to SoundCloud, and I will delete it from Google Drive after gathering some feedback. It's a shame really to let original music collect dust on a hard drive, but that's the way it is.

I am especially looking for feedback on the following:
- Balance
- Panning
- EQ
- Compression
- Any tips around samples, bass, and drum arrangement (those are programmed)

Thank you so much,

Tiago
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Vittorio Di Rocco
May 20, 2024
Hi Tiago :) Beautiful work! The only thing I might notice is the panning, in my Monolith M1070 planar headphones it seems a little marked on the sides, for some instruments. Which is good, but in these cases, so as not to confuse too much, I add a bit of reverb on the right if I'm playing on the left and on the left if I'm playing on the right. Worth trying, but it's also a matter of taste. Compliments!!!!
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Tiago Marques
May 20, 2024
Thank you Vittorio, that's indeed a very nice idea, I will try that along with some slapback delay in moderate amounts, that should help! Cheers!
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James Darrel
May 24, 2024
Hello Tiago,

I think you did a good mix with a very good separation !

I like the tone of the different instruments. However, the instument panned to the right has way more body than the guitar panned to the left, so the mix lean a bit on the right. It did not bother me when listening but I noticed it.

The panning is nice, each instrument has its space.

I think adding some reverb overall would help creating a certain sense of space

For the compression, and this is a personnal taste, I would tried to have a bit more dynamics for the main instrument. I would have also tried to have a less compressed sound overall and maybe play with volume automation. Especially for the big parts (for example from 00:53 to 01:05), where it feels like there is a lot of instruments upfront. But once again, this is personnal taste.

Thanks for sharing your mix !
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Bill Briare
May 24, 2024
The accordion seems a little hot until drums come in. Maybe drop it a few db to balance. L side seems to have more weight throughout. Nice tune.
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Tiago Marques
May 30, 2024
Thank you James and Bill, I totally agree with your tips! Cheers!
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George Wolf
May 30, 2024
Yeah Bill Briare pretty much said what i was going to say, but i think its an interesting idea :)
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Josh Kingsley
May 31, 2024
Volume automation is always your friend when mixing. ;)