Mixdown Practicing & Learning

Magghy Ji

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Ron Allen
May 12, 2024
Week 19 - Much too Much
https://app.boombox.io/app/shares/cKmNkLj8RkmDA5Wpr
Tried to put it in a warmer space than the sample track and make it sound a little more like a 1950s Dakota Staton song. Also had to phase repair some of the horn tracks to get dynamics working properly. Used a clipper in a few places as well. My final track ended up super mid heavy, so some bus EQ was in order. I wish I had time to restart the vocals. I tried to align the takes to the completed track and tune them as best I could, but I over-compressed them too soon. Tough one for sure this week. So few tracks, so much mic bleed. I'm taking the next two weeks off so I'll see you all in late May or early June.
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Vlad Po
May 12, 2024
good job, there is width, but I lack the depth of the scene
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Adrián Quiroz
May 12, 2024
Ron!! I really like your tonal balance throughout the entire mix, I think your vision connects with mine, in some way I think we tried to make the song sound like a studio record, while the demo made it sound like a live band basically. I really like the atmosphere and vibe you gave it, and the kick!!!! YES thanks for making it shine and punch I love it as well

One thing: Beware of compression. I know this is very cliche but! I can hear you kinda overcompressed your vocals and some other elements but mainly vocals.
Compression is a monster of a tool BUT when you know how to use it. I would advice to blindly tweak attack and release settings to ACTUALLY hear how it is acting, and then learn from that to make a more pleasing compression sound if you are going to compress more than 3dB for example. I wouldnt go more than 3, but when you are going for more (for some reason) then its necessary to do all the things I said before, and mainly have a reason WHY you are going that hard.

Most things don't really need compression, this is stuff that I been learning lately. Its better to leave the original sound flow and tell you what it wants to tell you, instead of trying to get complete control of it and switch it to something completely different than its original purpose.

thanks for your mix :)
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Ron Allen (author)
May 12, 2024
Oh yeah. I totally over-compressed my vocals. Given. Admitted. Guilty. I changed course somewhere in this mix. I was going to go for a high-gain 50s ribbon mic sound and mix this in a very traditional 40s-50s style. After hearing more of the room track, i changed course but did not have time to redo my vocals. I did my best to mellow them out with the time I had. I appreciate the feedback. Maybe someone out there loves over-compression. :) They certainly cut through.
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Helmut Mair
May 12, 2024
Hi Ron,
nice mix, absolutly like you balance and panning, good job! I agree with Adrián concerning the compression, also for me it's too much. I don't agree with Adrián concerning the room/reverb. For me it sounds like a live recording in a very big room and nobody had the chance to eliminate that big reverb. OK, my mix is ​​completely the opposite and very dry, but for me the reverb here is really a little bit too much. But super sound, had a lot of fun!
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Aart dB
May 12, 2024
Hi Ron, I think you succeeded very well in reviving that vintage sound, of a concert in a large hall. I see it right in front of me. At some points I think the reverb is a bit too large, and the singer is not in the same live room, it seems.
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Nate Morgan
May 13, 2024
Hey Ron - I like the warmth that the vocals have but I agree that the compression is a little too much. Vocals could use some more level too. Mix is too bottom heavy for this genre, I said on a lot of the other mixes that jazz doesn't need so much kick drum like more modern styles. Horns could use less verb on them too. Other than that sounds good!