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Opinions on mix

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Topic Opinions on mix
Hello!

Anyone feel like checking this mix out?

I'm very new and this is the first thing I've made that can even be listened to in speakers without sounding like a total mess. Still messy and dull but...yeah.
Song can be heard here with whatever loss in quality myspace means :)

www.myspace.com/broo79
2
I think you may have "stereo-itis". Sounds to me like you may have laid all the tracks down as stereo tracks. Stereo tracks are a bad idea. They sound nice by themselves, but the make mush in a recording.

Lay your tracks down as mono tracks only, dry with no effects as you record. Then use your software's mixing capabilities along with judicious amounts of pan/reverb/delay to creat a stereo soundstage. Try closing your eyes and creating a mental picture of how your "band" is arranged on stage, what kind of room you want it to be in, and how far away you are. The use the pan/reverb/eq to create that sound stage- pan to move each source left/right, reverb or short delay to move it close or further away.

Also, make sure that each instrument and voice has it's own spot in the mix, not only within the soundstage you create, but by using EQ to keep tracks with similar frequency content from stepping on each other. For example, male vocals and acoustic guitar have similar frequency content. So you might use EQ as well as pan to help separate them. The same is true of a kick drum and bass- you want both panned pretty much up the middle and they have similar frquency content, but you can help each stand out by eq'ing them so that, say, the beater click on the kick is emphasized, or the low mid punch on the bass is brought up. Remember that a track that sits right in a mix may sound pretty crappy when solo'd, and a track that sounds GREAT all by itself may not sit in a mix right.

But always work with mono tracks as much as possible. The exception to this would be drum loops- use them in stereo.

The other reason the tune sounds sort of dull is that there is no change in the tune anywhere. I like the basic tune, and it had a nice sort of Pink Floyd vibe to it, but I don't even think I heard a single drum fill in there to give it some life!!

Hope this helps. :cool:
The Axeman (##(===> Cuts From My New Blues CD
3
Thanks for the reply!

I never even thought about the stereo/mono aspect of it.

I'll try to change next time for sure.

About the song: Yes I know it's not varied at all, and actually it's not done. I just couldn't finish writing it at the time but I really wanted to have something to practice mixing on. And since I'm so bad at it still, I didn't have the guts to add more stuff either 'cause it could make the mixing part harder.

Although I do actually have a huge problem with writing songs with real verses and choruses :)

Thanks!